"as I understand it now the X department is forbidden to create new characters." - Chris Claremont

[Grey]

How is this remotely believable when bendis has several new mutants in his roster?

[Slant]

That was when there were only 5 teen-aged mutants plus their mentor and a few baddies running around. Now...fast-forward to 2014.

Thats not relevant. They added completely new characters that readers had no idea of what to expect and it worked. Even with lesser used character, we have an idea of what they're about.

The complete unknown is lost without creating new characters.

[Roo]

I think it's a great pity if it has come to this.

But for a franchise as historied and varied as the X-Men, it's not the final nail in the coffin. Characters can be uninteresting until someone makes them interesting. I can't remember the last time there was a new X-character that was introduced that was actually worthwhile.

Look at what Morrison did with his team when he came on board. I remember seeing the line-up initially and being massively underwhelmed because, Emma Frost aside, there was nothing at all new or exciting about them apart from the black leather uniforms. And yet it became one of the best things to happen for years (for me anyway). Look at what he did with Emma Frost - all because, if I remember correctly, Psylocke and Colossus were unavailable to him.

Look at what PAD did TWICE with X-Factor - taking a group of second tier characters and making a great team book out of it.

There are plenty of unused, existing characters out there that can be a tabula raisa for any writer with enough imagination

[Slant]

Other than Emma and maybe Magik, most characters fit into their status not too long after they're created. You have to hit the ground running sometimes.

[Imraith Nimphais]

Thats not relevant. They added completely new characters that readers had no idea of what to expect and it worked. Even with lesser used character, we have an idea of what they're about.

The complete unknown is lost without creating new characters.

Really?

That would certainly explain the tedium and rubbish that is TDWFH's O5.

[AcesX1X]

How is this remotely believable when bendis has several new mutants in his roster?

there is a clause at the bottom of the article which bendis has also remarked on. his new terrorist mutants happen to fall under the marvel NOW! "soft boot" which makes them off-limits to FOX.

[Supernature]

I think it's a great pity if it has come to this.

But for a franchise as historied and varied as the X-Men, it's not the final nail in the coffin. Characters can be uninteresting until someone makes them interesting. I can't remember the last time there was a new X-character that was introduced that was actually worthwhile.

Look at what Morrison did with his team when he came on board. I remember seeing the line-up initially and being massively underwhelmed because, Emma Frost aside, there was nothing at all new or exciting about them apart from the black leather uniforms. And yet it became one of the best things to happen for years (for me anyway). Look at what he did with Emma Frost - all because, if I remember correctly, Psylocke and Colossus were unavailable to him.

Look at what PAD did TWICE with X-Factor - taking a group of second tier characters and making a great team book out of it.

There are plenty of unused, existing characters out there that can be a tabula raisa for any writer with enough imagination

All of that is true but the creative people at Marvel should have the leeway to choose wether they want to use the underused characters or create new ones.

Morrison's run used old characters in great new ways but it also had its fair share of new concepts. Now suppose he was forbidden to create Sublime and Cassandra Nova because of some "no new character" directive....

[Imraith Nimphais]

I think it's a great pity if it has come to this.

But for a franchise as historied and varied as the X-Men, it's not the final nail in the coffin. Characters can be uninteresting until someone makes them interesting. I can't remember the last time there was a new X-character that was introduced that was actually worthwhile.

Look at what Morrison did with his team when he came on board. I remember seeing the line-up initially and being massively underwhelmed because, Emma Frost aside, there was nothing at all new or exciting about them apart from the black leather uniforms. And yet it became one of the best things to happen for years (for me anyway). Look at what he did with Emma Frost - all because, if I remember correctly, Psylocke and Colossus were unavailable to him.

Look at what PAD did TWICE with X-Factor - taking a group of second tier characters and making a great team book out of it.

There are plenty of unused, existing characters out there that can be a tabula rasa for any writer with enough imagination

Exactly.

And that seems to be the main issue here...there are a number of x-writers seriously lacking in imagination. Who have no clue as to how to write new characters far less the older, established ones.

[AcesX1X]

Exactly.

And that seems to be the main issue here...there are a number of x-writers seriously lacking in imagination. Who have no clue as to how to write new characters far less the older, established ones.

or you could take chris claremont seriously and imagine the more-likely scenario that there's a lot of x-writers full of imagination, but aren't being allowed to fully explore it.

[Slant]

Its not a one or the other thing. Flat out taking the option away is ridiculous on any level.

[Juggernaut Punch]

If you can't be creative with limitations, then you aren't that creative and probably aren't cut out for writing or working for anyone other than yourself.

The point is, the X-Writers shouldn't have to work within limitations in the first place.

[blinkingblah]

I second this.

Some character fail because they were built around outdated / faulty concepts. Preventing writers from creating new ones who might be better conceived and / or more relevant to our days because of that is silly.

I think it is silly to say that a character is "outdated". Not one character is ever going to be outdated. If you are a writer than you should be able to make a character current and relevant. Characters are and should be able to evolve from their previous selves.

[Mikekerr3]

I want a war between publishing and film company.

That is David vs Goliath, without a slingshot

You can't have a fight when one side is too busy laughing at the other

[Emma's Midriff]

Do you think that Avengers writers and Inhuman writers are allowed to create new characters?

[Roo]

All of that is true but the creative people at Marvel should have the leeway to choose wether they want to use the underused characters or create new ones.

Morrison's run used old characters in great new ways but it also had its fair share of new concepts. Now suppose he was forbidden to create Sublime and Cassandra Nova because of some "no new character" directive....

I think that's a good point. But if that's the story a writer wanted to tell, again in a franchise like the X-Men, there's enough there over the last 50 years to make it work. And not just from the X-franchise as others have already said.

Let's face it - Cassandra Nova was a terrific nemesis for the X-Men. Why? Because of how well written she was. Not because of where she came from, which is fairly ridiculous if you think about it - Professor X murdered his embryonic twin sister in the womb, and she went undiscovered as a hugely powerful psionic entity until she appeared out of nowhere after what, 45-50 years?

Maybe I'm being naive, but this new character embargo can't go on forever. Can it?