Your Unpopular/Controversial Opinions on the X-Universe

[davetvs]

Yeah...aging out the pop characters would be pretty dumb, to be frank.

No one wants Spider-Man to be old for everyone just because I am old.

You can't bottle these characters' popularity ergo they are irreplaceable. They have to be kept in posterity for the next generations ad infinitum.

I don't think anyone wants them to age in real time, the problem is that they keep them stuck at an age that's perpetually too young to make any sense within the narrative. For me, the O5 should be stuck in their mid 30s, not late 20s. That way, Kitty and the New Mutants can be late 20s, Jubilee and Gen X mid 20s, X-23 and the Academy X kids early 20s, and the Maxime + Manon era of student characters as teens.

[sunofdarkchild]

I think we can accept certain characters aging at different rates than others. The older the character, the slower the aging. Peter Parker took 4 years to graduate high school, but many times that to graduate college.

Marvell characters are supposed to have a certain level of dynamism. That's what separated them from DC characters in the 60s. They did grow and change. Starting in the latter half of the 80s and especially in the 90s after Claremont left characters became static and largely frozen. One of the reasons I haven't cared about Logan or Ororo in years despite loving their 80s versions is because they stopped growing and developing. They've been static for forever, and even if there's a big event that focuses on one of them I know it'll be more of the same. Characters not aging is a symptom of this larger problem. Once a character has been around for a certain amount of time they freeze in place.

[Ambaryerno]

I think we can accept certain characters aging at different rates than others. The older the character, the slower the aging. Peter Parker took 4 years to graduate high school, but many times that to graduate college.

Marvell characters are supposed to have a certain level of dynamism. That's what separated them from DC characters in the 60s. They did grow and change. Starting in the latter half of the 80s and especially in the 90s after Claremont left characters became static and largely frozen. One of the reasons I haven't cared about Logan or Ororo in years despite loving their 80s versions is because they stopped growing and developing. They've been static for forever, and even if there's a big event that focuses on one of them I know it'll be more of the same. Characters not aging is a symptom of this larger problem. Once a character has been around for a certain amount of time they freeze in place.

This is one reason why I will never not be some combination of annoyed and amused by the rote nostalgia for the Claremont era, as it celebrates a writer who did more to evolve and change the characters and their status quo over his tenure than any other writer before or since...by keeping the franchise more or less frozen in the same status quo ever since. No matter what changes happen over the short term. (Decimation, Utopia, Inhuman Fart Cloud, Krakoa) things will ALWAYS eventually revert back to the same status quo again.

[sunofdarkchild]

This is one reason why I will never not be some combination of annoyed and amused by the rote nostalgia for the Claremont era, as it celebrates a writer who did more to evolve and change the characters and their status quo over his tenure than any other writer before or since...by keeping those characters essentially frozen in the same place he left them.

The great irony, the desire to prevent the characters from changing is the biggest change of all and makes the characters fundamentally different from who they were when they were allowed to be dynamic.

[marhawkman]

Yeah...aging out the pop characters would be pretty dumb, to be frank.

No one wants Spider-Man to be old for everyone just because I am old.

You can't bottle these characters' popularity ergo they are irreplaceable. They have to be kept in posterity for the next generations ad infinitum.

If by old you mean late 30-early 40s? That's what MC2 was.

This is one reason why I will never not be some combination of annoyed and amused by the rote nostalgia for the Claremont era, as it celebrates a writer who did more to evolve and change the characters and their status quo over his tenure than any other writer before or since...by keeping the franchise more or less frozen in the same status quo ever since. No matter what changes happen over the short term. (Decimation, Utopia, Inhuman Fart Cloud, Krakoa) things will ALWAYS eventually revert back to the same status quo again.

Which was a fear that came up when people were discussing the possible results of Disney buying the stuff. Disney... seems to have decided they're not interested in stories that change over time.

[Omega Alpha]

If by old you mean late 30-early 40s? That's what MC2 was.Which was a fear that came up when people were discussing the possible results of Disney buying the stuff. Disney... seems to have decided they're not interested in stories that change over time.

To be fair, this has been an issue before Disney bought the company too.

[WhitePhoenix]

Controversial opinion, Betsy was a boring character so they bodyswapped her to be more interesting.

[Baron of Faltine]

Controversial opinion, Betsy was a boring character so they bodyswapped her to be more interesting.

Is less controversial and more incomplete. They reached a point with the character that they had no other option that body swap. But the final result is result is same. So more nitpick by my part.

[Baron of Faltine]

I don't think anyone wants them to age in real time, the problem is that they keep them stuck at an age that's perpetually too young to make any sense within the narrative. For me, the O5 should be stuck in their mid 30s, not late 20s. That way, Kitty and the New Mutants can be late 20s, Jubilee and Gen X mid 20s, X-23 and the Academy X kids early 20s, and the Maxime + Manon era of student characters as teens.

That would make sense...or they could have a paralleled universe ala ultimate or marvel 2099 where character are allowed to age, retire, change or what else. Oh wait they did with MC2...damn I miss that universe even if it has some flaws.

[Havok83]

Is less controversial and more incomplete. They reached a point with the character that they had no other option that body swap. But the final result is result is same. So more nitpick by my part.

IDA. Almost everything done with Betsy in the 90s could have been done had that body swap not stuck passed its initial arc. A caucasian character becoming a martial arts expert and training hard so their hand to hand combat skills improve isnt uncommon and she did not have to literally inhabit a Japanese body for that to happen. It was already the trajectory she was on anyway as she craved the action and wanted to fight. She could have gotten there besides what was written

[davetvs]

IDA. Almost everything done with Betsy in the 90s could have been done had that body swap not stuck passed its initial arc. A caucasian character becoming a martial arts expert and training hard so their hand to hand combat skills isnt uncommon and she did not have to literally inhabit a Japanese body for that to happen. It was already the trajectory she was on anyway as she craved the action and wanted to fight. She could have gotten there besides what was written

I agree, and part of what makes Excalibur so disappointing is that we haven't gotten a real look at how Betsy sees herself now that she's in her original body. Does she still have the martial arts training? Is she still the action-junkie who'd rather jump face first into the fight rather than use her powers in more measured ways? I would like to see more interaction between Betsy and Kwannon (and Brian), there is so much to explore there. About identity, about body image, about sisterhood, etc.

[Kitty&Piotr<3]

If by old you mean late 30-early 40s? That's what MC2 was.Which was a fear that came up when people were discussing the possible results of Disney buying the stuff. Disney... seems to have decided they're not interested in stories that change over time.

30 is too old, let alone near 40.

[marhawkman]

30 is too old, let alone near 40.

Hehehe.... Just an example, but in MC2 Pete had a teen daughter, so had to be past his mid 30s.

[Kingdom X]

That would make sense...or they could have a paralleled universe ala ultimate or marvel 2099 where character are allowed to age, retire, change or what else. Oh wait they did with MC2...damn I miss that universe even if it has some flaws.

I'd love for them to make the "Life Story" comics where characters age in real time an actual line and not just short mini-series.

[Kitty&Piotr<3]

Hehehe.... Just an example, but in MC2 Pete had a teen daughter, so had to be past his mid 30s.

This is exactly where the old versions and parent versions of the characters should be: alternate universe #8675309