#i like to think since this wolverine does go by ‘James Howlett’

[cool-abed-filmz]

i didn’t post this on here but i did this really awesome patch and a deadpool variant artwork :) and put it on my instagram

the story i like to think this is that patch has some hit against him , like he’s too good a gambler or something, the owner of the casino wants him GONEEEE or maybe it’s a mob boss idk i need to read patch comics

wade is like a “fem fatel” type and is hired to get close to patch and trick him so he could take him out

but they eventually fight but like they both quickly realize they both have the strongest healing factor known to man and they can’t kill eachother, wade does actually like patch too so he says fuck the money this guy is rich i know that i’ll stick around and mooch off of him (real i would too)

and so now they’re like spies together or something:m :)

tumblr exclusive sequel :

wade tried to do that thing when like people are dancing and the person leading takes the other persons leg and hitches it up along their side ; patch doesn’t want any funny business rn

:)

[ghostsstolemymoxie]

Do you have any nsfw/sfw hcs for Logan (James howlett)

I absolutely do! Though they're a little bit hodge-podge IMO I do have some HCs for him that I think align pretty well with comic and movie canon. HCs below are for Fem!Readers but I may potentially do one for Masc!Readers if I figure any new ones out.

SFW HCs first

↣ Logan absolutely goes insane when you play with his hair. Half because he gets annoyed when people mess up the style of it considering how it's a staple of his whole Wolverine-ness, but half because the sensation is comforting in a way he didn't expect. When he's drowsy and half-asleep or has woken up from a particularly bad nightmare, all you need to do is card your fingers through his hair, and as long as he's comfortable with you, he'll fall asleep right then and there.

↣ Logan isn't much of a cuddle bug, so he's not as likely to curl up and be the big spoon while you're sleeping. Mostly because he doesn't want to accidentally impale you if he wakes up from a nightmare and doesn't quite realise his surroundings. During the day though? The man will behave as if he is touch starved. Holding your hand or wrist to lead you somewhere, or an arm around your waist or his hand just tucked into your butt pocket whilst you're stood talking. Anything so that he can touch you and feel that you're there. On occasion, if you're particularly focused on something and he thinks he can get away with it, he'll just run his fingers up and down the curve of your spine, just to feel the warmth of you.

↣ This one is very X-men Evolutions coded but nobody touches the Harley. As far as he's concerned, touching the Harley means forfeiting the offending limb - especially if she gets scuffed, scratched, smeared or fingerprinted. The only exception is you, of course, since he trusts you to respect his belongings. He will still fuss over the bike though, and will offer a scowl and a grunt if you leave a fingerprint on her (though he'll forgive you as long as he gets to take a picture of you on the bike, just to keep in his wallet, of his two favourite ladies).

For the NSFW HCs

↣ Like most of Tumblr, I wholeheartedly believe that Logan eats for his pleasure. Logan's women don't go to bed dissatisfied, even if it means his jaw aches for the next three days. He's a firm believer in "Round one is for me, round two is for you" so even if he's quick off the mark first round (which he can't always help, depending on how you've been teasing him all day or just how much he's fucking missed you) you can bet that the second round will be all about you. If he's in a particularly evil mood, he'll make round two last for hours before even letting you finish, just long enough for him to have worked up an appetite of his own again and get stuck in for round three. For him, it's a revolutionary concept to be interested in the pleasure of his woman. After all, he was raised in the 1800s and grew up through the late 19th Century to the early 20th Century, where the pleasure of a lady wasn't always first and foremost. Despite appearances and how he may act sometimes, he does have a gentlemanly side to him, even if that side manifests in burying his tongue so deep in your cunt you can barely keep from screaming the walls down.

↣ Logan also absolutely gets off on taunting you about the difference in age between you both. Whether it's 2000s movie Logan who looks 30 or 2017 Logan who looks well into his 60s, both of them quite enjoy the knowledge that despite appearances, he's your goddamn elder, and you're going to respect him. That means obedience, teasing, and a lot of soft domming from 'your old man'. He'll call you 'kid' or 'bub' or 'young lady' when he's trying to reprimand you, and will revel in you calling him 'Daddy', 'Old man' or 'Sir', even if he feigns offence at first. He'll mock that "Kids like you don't fuck like we did in my day", "The only damn good thing about living this long is knowing how to make pretty young things like you squirm" or his favourite little quip "C'mon, I need a little more than an ankle flash these days, Princess" when you attempt to seduce him coyly, before finally offering a wolfish smile and a beckon with a crooked finger when you finally show him something that would be considered criminally lewd in his day.

So, yeah! Hopefully that was what you were looking for, and if you have any other questions or requests, please feel free to ask away (as long as you've read my pinned post <3 Divider credit @cafekitsune

[rondo-of-blog]

Sabretooth Is Not An Animal (But He Needs To Be)

So I've been thinking a lot about X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009, Gavin Hood) since my beloved Cluster and I rewatched it a number of times recently. Wanted to write down some thoughts I've been having about it.

Particularly about Victor.

[Spoilers for X-Men Origins: Wolverine]

One of the most enduring parts of this film that sets it apart is that, beyond going over Wolverine's backstory (not really gripping on its own), it gives us one of the most fully-realized depictions of Victor Creed that I think has ever been committed to film (or any media format, for that matter).

I hesitate to call him the antagonist of the film (that role rightfully belongs to William Stryker, even as Wade gets the climactic battle), but he's maybe the one character audiences spend the longest time hating as we follow Logan through this miserable past.

When we meet him in the film, he's in the room where a young James Howlett is battling some sort of ailment - that 'Jimmy' is quick to note Victor also had to deal with when he was younger. It sets up a parallel between the two immediately, and just as quickly shatters what connection could be made there as James's father enters the room brimming with compassion for his son and indifference to Victor.

It's in this opening we're shown the first two things Victor hates about Jimmy. He's weak in such a way that reminds him of his own weakness, and then he has the nerve to be loved in a way Victor's never been loved.

What unfolds shortly after happens very quickly, and includes one of the film's cheesier acts of violence (it just looks a bit silly how James charges at Victor's father), so it's easy to miss the subtext. I'll try and go over it as best as I can, because the film itself doesn't fully do it justice.

James races out of his room to find his father shot by Victor's, his mother weeping and screaming at the sight. He rushes down the stairs to meet his father, who tragically can't even let out a single final remark to his son. The overwhelming grief pushes Jimmy to the onset of his most memorable mutation - sharp claws, which he very quickly uses to exact his revenge on Victor's father... shortly before he reveals himself to be Jimmy's biological father.

Jimmy's now lost the father he knew and the father he never knew he had, and it's at this time his mother chooses to react in horror at her son's mutation, all but cementing that he has indeed lost his mother as well. He runs off into the night, traumatized and afraid, only to be chased after and caught by Victor - who, Jimmy presumes, has caught up to him enraged at the loss of his father... but how does Victor feel?

Jimmy initially protests that he "didn't mean it," only for Victor to emotionally and angrily assert, "YES YOU DID." He adds shortly after that he believes his father deserved it, and that Jimmy simply gave him that.

I don't think Victor was angry when Jimmy killed his father - if there was any jealousy over it, he never lets on about it - no, Victor gets upset when Jimmy finally does what Victor has clearly so wanted to do... and is sorry about it. Even going so far as to try and take it back.

He yells at his crying younger brother that he did mean it when he murdered his father because now, for the first time in Victor's life, he feels like he's finally met someone who's the same as him.

In a display of probably the most sympathy Victor shows anyone in the whole movie, he tells Jimmy that they have to look out for each other and asks if he can run when they notice there were authorities coming after them. He can, so they run together through the night in a scene that seamlessly transitions to their military service together.

As the credits roll, we watch them fight side-by-side, war after war. They fight the Confederates, they fight the nazis, it's easy to feel pretty great about both of those things, buuut over time it becomes clear Victor's getting a liiittle too much out of the bloodshed itself.

But through it all, even as James becomes increasingly impatient with Victor's bloodlust, they stick together as brothers. Even when James is positive that Victor's gone too far and is trying to reign him in, he never turns against him - and they head right to the business end of a firing squad, which... goes about as well as you'd expect, for the firing squad, given who they are.

They're recruited by William Stryker soon after to become part of his Team X, and when we cut to the team fully-assembled in a helicopter it's clear they've been on several missions at this point and a rapport has developed between them all.

Victor is very clearly living his best life even as he has to put up with Wade's bullshit, while James just tries to make sure Victor doesn't gut anyone he doesn't have to.

We soon learn they're on a mission in Lagos, Nigeria to find a rare metal (Adamantium, basically), and as the mission plays out we watch Victor relish in it as James becomes increasingly uncomfortable with how morally-dubious their actions are.

It makes an amount of sense - when they were fighting the Confederates, they were fighting a bunch of assholes trying to keep their economy running on the backs of slaves. When they were fighting the nazis, they were fighting the fucking nazis. But in Lagos, the cynical and violent nature of their presence becomes a bit too difficult to ignore.

This comes to a head during a scene of interrogation that escalates from threats to gunfire in a matter of moments. Stryker wants to know where they found the metal, the Nigerians they have held hostage only say that it came from the sky and that it's sacred. Stryker, ever the 'holy' man, turns away as he orders Victor to enact grisly violence against the man they were interrogating in particular.

Victor is all too happy to oblige - a mood that is thoroughly-spoiled when James catches his arm and stops him before he can get to his second victim. James tells him not to even think about what he was about to do, and it's here we see Victor at perhaps his most vulnerable in the entire film.

James asserts that they "didn't sign up for this," which (as anyone paying attention so far could tell you) couldn't be further from the truth on Victor's part, and orders his older brother to put the man he was about to murder down - which he does, begrudgingly.

"What're you doing?" Victor asks, "We finally got a good thing going here, don't you screw this up."

James insists it's enough, "it's enough, we've done enough," though obviously they've gone too far several times over - a fact which Victor is happy to remind him as he asks,

"Who do you think you are? This is what we do."

Once again, James is the extension to Victor in his eyes, and there's nothing in this world Victor hates more than when Jimmy plays the role of his conscience. He needs him to be just as bad, he needs them to be the same, but James has had enough.

"I'm done," he says, "you comin'?" When Victor stays motionless, in the face of this rejection of what he's based his whole life around, James turns his back on his older brother and begins to leave.

"Jimmy!" Victor calls after him, "We can't just let you walk away." James responds by scornfully tearing his dog tags off and tossing them at him. Victor looks almost like he's going to cry.

But James doesn't look back again, no matter how many times Victor calls after him.

This breaks Victor's heart. Worse, it reminds Victor that he has a heart to break. He would never admit it, but the pain of losing Jimmy is what drives Victor to the lengths we see him go to over the course of the film to get back at him. In his eyes, after all, Jimmy hurt him first.

Nowhere is this more apparent than in the confrontation that erupts in the aftermath of Kayla Silverfox's apparent death.

Logan demands to know why he did it, which Victor deflects with an irreverent comment about how Logan never called or wrote to him. Logan goes to kill him, but Victor's at the top of his game and mops the floor with him.

At one point, in the midst of this grief-fueled battle, Victor pointedly asks Logan, "was she worth it?" It's the one time, between all the irreverence and the disaffected attitude he puts on, that Victor lets the real hurt show through.

Logan didn't just abandon him, he left him and became happy. He found a life as a lumberjack, met a schoolteacher and started living with her as her lover, and not once (before they came back to him) did he ever seem like there was an animal inside him that he was rejecting and trying to keep caged inside himself.

We later learn Kayla was an undercover agent of Stryker's all along, but that Logan left Victor and chose Kayla never ceases to make Victor's blood boil. Their love began on false pretenses, but it was real to Logan and it really was real for Kayla... and Victor can never forgive him for it.

The fight ends on Victor asserting that the two of them simply aren't like the humans. Logan retorts that he is nothing like Victor, only for him to reply that they are - he just doesn't know it yet.

It's not that they're nothing alike, and both of them must realize that on some level, but Victor copes with who he is and what he's made of his life by telling himself that Logan is the same - and trying to convince Logan to believe it too.

All it manages to reveal by the end of it is that they are similar - they both have a soul. Victor spends the whole film trying to run from his and tear Logan's out while he's at it, while Logan protects his own and reminds Victor that he's got one too.

Victor's got the same capacity for weakness, for love, and for remorse deep down inside... and that scares him more than a firing squad, a lethal adamantium-injecting procedure, and even the prospect of his own death at the hands (claws, rather) of his younger brother ever could.

Because, as the film goes to such lengths to convey about Logan, Victor is not an animal. He's just terrified of being a man.

[shelf-care]

Winter Nights

Wolverine x OC

Lipstick mark series Pt.2

| Part 1| 

So its snowing in south Texas! that never happens. My parents are panicking and I’m sitting here writing fan fiction to calm myself. What could go wrong? 

So Victor Creed shows up in this because I’m a pantser and I come up with ideas as I go and see if it works for the plot, (For this miniseries I hope it does.) I was also watching Kate and Leopold last night (It’s become a valentines tradition for me over the last few years.) And Liev was in it. So theres that. 

Rated PG-13

Mentions of sex, medical examination, a former abusive relationship, obsession with an individual, slight violence, touch starved wolverine. 

“Your mission Miss hope?” The woman in the white lab coat asked while holding a clipboard ad clicking a pen multiple times, it had to be some sort of nervous tick. Maddie tipped her head back, swallowing her saliva, she was clad in a sterile white medical gown, her red hair sprawled out on the also white pillow as another individual examined her. “My mission was to come into contact with the Man known as wolverine, or James Logan Howlett.” She took a breath, the cold instruments the nurse had been using caught her rather off guard. “And you succeeded in not only finding him, but you managed to get a sample of his DNA?” The woman jotted some notes on the clipboard now, keeping her eyes locked on Maddie. The redhead looked away, staring at the ceiling stark white and formless like everything else in the room. “I did.” The doctor nodded her head. “We’ll be taking those samples back to the lab to confirm that its him. Until they are conclusive, you are free to go.” The young woman nodded watched as swabs left the room, she rather did not want to know what they wanted to do with him.

_

Blankly staring at the roof above her, Maddie couldn’t keep that night from playing over and over again. He was indeed her target, but, something was stirring in her, affection most likely. It would die within a couple weeks like it did with the men following shortly after. She knew he would be harder to kill. But he’d fall like the rest. Eventually. She closed her eyes, then she felt her phone buzz next to her. She reached for it, a voice message was visible. Holding the device to her ear, she heard his voice. A voice that in all honesty she enjoyed. “Look, I’m not that great at stuff like this. But I got your note, the other one, the one with the lipstick,” He paused, thinking about what he’d say next. “I thought we got on pretty well the other night. Lemme know when you make it back to the bar.” The message was short, and pretty sweet. He did care, at least a tad. Maddie slid her lips in a grin, she recorded a new message for him. “I’d love to meet again, this Friday at the bar?”

_

She waited at the bar again, it was cold, snow was on its way. This time the meeting was for more pleasure than anything else since her job was done, but it wasn’t a bad things to keep up with a target. The door swung open among the mostly empty bar. The few patrons turned their heads at the sudden commotion. In walked a man who was tall, very tall. Blond hair cascading down his shoulders, while some of it was put in a half ponytail. A long trench coat and fur, was joined by it, making him look that more intimidating. He made his way to the bar and sat down, eyeing Maddie like she was his new meal. “I didn’t expect to see you here.” He said keeping his sight on the bar ahead of him while he ordered himself a large glass of whatever was the strongest drink at the bar. Maddie rolled her eyes. “You here to babysit me creed?” She asked drawing invisible circles in the counter. “Here more on pleasure Miss Hope.” He looked her up and down again and licked his lips visibly so she’d see it for sure. He knew this made her one of two things. Hot and bothered, or pissed off. it pissed her off this time around, and Creed preferred it that way.  “I thought we were past this.” She turned fully to him now. “You might be.” He drank down half the mixture of bourbon, whisky and fireball and faced her, chest puffed in pride and confidence, a pointed and toothy grin showed itself. “But I sure as hell wasn’t girly.” He scoffed as his fist hit the bar making the redhead jump as he got her attention and everyone else’s in the bar as a matter of fact. “We were just getting good when you left.” A fire lit in her heart, anger and passion apparent in her face she took a moment to compose herself. “Victor, they removed you from my squad and as my partner because of your behavior towards me. That hit was the last straw and I won’t be coming back and I’m sure you know that.” Her tone was low and threatening, looking at him, she grasped the glass and slammed down the rest of the liquid before putting down a few dollars as a tip. Creed thought it was adorable when she was angry, and decided to take it as far as he could.

As she zipped up her jacket and made her way out, the large man grabbed her by the arm. “We’re done when I say we are,” He pulled her close to him, his breath brushing warm against her throat as his claw ran down her cheek. “And I’m not done talking to you.” His yellow eyes bored into hers, she felt her heartbeat quicken, she despised and loved this feeling, that’s what got her into this mess the first time. “I told you I was finished. You’ll get your chance with me another day.” She opened her hand to show her palm to him, illuminating a golden hue of color at the center and curving our like a flame, Creeds eyes didn’t change a bit, he seemed like he welcomed the challenge. “Sweetheart, if only you knew how much I craved that part of you.” He gave a guttural low laugh, daring her, as he smirked again, spurring her on. Seeing if she’d really follow through on her threat, which most of them were never hollow. “On any other occasion Creed, I’d let you have it.” She placed her hand on his fist that was still clenched around her arm. “But I’m not in the mood for playing nice.” His hand went visceral, veins becoming more visible as one could see the vitality of the large mutant being taken on by someone a third of his size. “Let me go.” He threatened as he began to feel his muscles failing him in his left arm. “You first.” She smiled, the grin widening as he raised his claws at her. but was too weak to do much else. She laughed and leaned into his ear whispering in a sensual voice, her chest touching his to pour more salt onto the wound. “I thought you craved this part of me.” He could feel himself become more drained the longer she stayed, he realized she wasn’t messing around this time, his grip loosened and she walked free, not another word was heard from Creed, and it would be like that till the next time those twos’ paths crossed. Creed was bent over the bar. He reached for his drink and it shook in his hold, and drank the rest fervently like he needed air, he watched as his hand shook like an elderly man and his hand similar to one too. “Babe’s been getting stronger.” He was captivated by the way her powers worked, he always had been.

 She was Outside, the wind howled and whipped the snow up, crating a curtain of nothing but white mist making visibility a little less than optimal. She pulled out her phone and started to text.

“Hey, the bar is full. Did you want to meet anywhere else for drinks?” She messaged him. Yes, it was a lie, but she didn’t want to be around Creed, for reasons that was obvious. She waited a few minutes till she saw the three dots pop up. “You wanna come to the trailer?” He asked bluntly. She shrugged. “Pick me up?” She shot back quickly. “Sure thing.” Was all he said back.

_

Maddie threw her head back against the mini sofa that was in the one room airstream. The warmth enveloping her as she sighed after her first sip of beer. The snow on her jacket seeping into the fabric further, making a chill run down her spine. “Thank you.” She said raising her head to look at him, happy to be warm. “Don’t mention it.” He said mirroring her actions. “I can’t believe you wanted to meet again.” She mentioned looking at him again, he was different from last time, but not. “I can’t either if I’m honest.” He sat on his bed across from her. There was a silence that fell between the two, but it was comfortable. “Sorry the bar didn’t work out.” Leaning forward trying to skirt the conversation along. “I’d rather be doing this.” He tilted his head referring to his drink. That made Maddie laugh through her nose a bit. “Really? You’d rather act like an old married couple than be out?” She teased him, but he looked at her for a moment. “Been there and done that.” She nodded. “I like this though. It’s nice.” She took another sip of her drink before throwing away the bottle in an open trash bin. “I never got to ask. What is it that you do?” She placed her palm under her chin and smiled, waiting for his answer. He played with his bottle, before drinking his as well. “What you saw the other night is what I’ve been doing for the last fifteen years.” He told her nodding and thinking about his past and his way of living. “I don’t remember much of what I did before.” Maddie looked at him, a blank face that he couldn’t make out, but made him curious. “You never told me what you did. How did someone like you wind up in this dump of a town?” He joked slightly but he wasn’t wrong, it was a little piece of nowhere. “I’m in military secret forces. I was stationed here, and have been here for the last three years.” She saw him tense at the subject. “You okay?” Her brows cocked at him becoming a little bit tense. She didn’t think he suspect anything, and she wasn’t outright lying about what she did. “Yeah, I’m fine.” He left it at that. She stood up and paced over to him, and sat down next to him. The mattress sinking beneath her. He looked at her not quite knowing what she was doing. She reached for his hand, and looked at him before she went any further. “You don’t seem fine.” She silently asked for permission and he let her have his hand. She traced his palm slowly and gently, comfort in every movement. He was starved of this type of affection. Most people were, but him more than others she found just from the way he acted. She laced her fingers in-between the spaces where his were not, interlocking their hands. He closed his eyes her for a split second, every curve, every bump, every imperfection written on her face made him want her more as he reveled in the feeling of them being so close. “Don’t do this to yourself.” He warned her, taking his hand out of hers, though she stopped him. “Don’t tell me what to do.” She was firm, but the firmness was met with a soft smile. Logans eyes studied her for a minute. No one had ever stopped him like that, not to his knowledge anyway. This time when he went to remove his hand she let him leave, but it was to place his hand under her chin and bring her closer, and there, their lips met, and he pushed her below him while she wrapped her hands around his neck and raked her hands through his hair, all while closing her eyes enjoying the warmth compared to the freezing outside.

_

While the campers light was dim, if one were close to it you could hear giggling, rocking, calling one another’s names in the dark, and a little obscene noises that you would only hear if you where right next to the airstream. Then there was the figure that stood a few feet away from the little camper, a figure that towered over most men. The same body that was blonde, and in the bar with Maddie that same night. “You made a big mistake girly,” He peered down at his still healing hand, it looked aged, like his hand was ten years older than the rest of his body. 

[beebleboosuwu]

Alright.

There are a lot of conflicting emotions about having The Music Man kicking out Beetlejuice from the Winter Garden. Although I am bitter that one of my favourite musicals is being replaced in favour of money and two big names is just.. not sitting right, but I am open to everything and trying to look at everything with open eyes and an unbiased opinion.

Did Will Blum’s influence this a little? Yes.

Was the post a little unsound and unprofessional? I think so but it brought up some great points.

Yes, I agree. The fact that you are selling a name instead of a GREAT show is disrespect to the source material. Hugh Jackman is an awesome guy and his tenure as the Boy From Oz is forever embedded into Broadway his(her)story as being a stepping stone for Hugh’s career. Also you have Broadway star, Sutton Foster, another big name who, if you are a theatre lover, can’t help but fawn and scream in excitement.

We all know and love Hugh Jackman as the Wolverine/James Howlett/ Logan, that’s what people associate him as such. Fun fact he played that role from 2000-2018. Wolverine is known to be big, all muscle and raw strength, but in the theatre world we know him as a musical theatre actor. Jackman first claim to  international's fame was in 1999 when he played the leading man, Curly McLain, in the film adaptation of Oklahoma! He played the titular character Peter Allen in Boy from Oz in 2004 which he won a Tony for and Jean Valjean in the film adaptation of Les Miserables in 2012 while that wasn't the best adaptation of that musical, they did include Broadway and West End actors which was awesome! And lastly the most recent entry musical/film role was P.T Barnum in The Greatest Showman, Jackman went on tour last year singing songs from The Greatest Showman and some other songs from other musicals he previously worked in. He is an amazing vocalist, actor and dancer. His performance in Boy From Oz says as such in a review by Charles Isherwood: praising Jackman but panned the show: "Jackman is giving a vital and engaging performance in this pitifully flimsy musical almost in spite of the material he’s been handed. It’s a sad waste of an exciting talent." I’m pumped.

Sutton Foster is a Broadway actress that is well known for her two-time Tony award winning performance as Millie in Thoroughly Modern Millie. She has also roles from other shows such as: Chess, Funny Girl, Les Miserables, Anything Goes, Grease and MANY more. I knew her best as Reno Sweeney from Anything Goes, her vocals are nothing but extraordinary and her acting is nothing to sleep on, she is an excellent dancer and I cannot help to try and recreate in my bedroom when I’m alone. You can say all you want about her, but she is one of the Broadway actresses I know from the top of my head, alongside Patti LuPone, Sierra Boggess and Liza Minelli. She is also the younger sister of Hunter Foster of Little Shop of Horrors and Urinetown fame. Foster is going to be amazing as Jackman's partner in the upcoming production and honestly as a fan, I am so excited! 

They are both triple threats but.. no one knows a lot about the Music Man. It is a classic and has been around since the late 50′s.

Broadway, coming into the new decade of 2020, is becoming more MODERN. All these new musicals that have come out during this past decade might not have made it to Broadway but they are more aligned with the changing times and modern settings. Though there are musicals based on films from the 80′s that reach out to that generation and reintroduce them into that mind space they were in back in the day.

American Idiot, great musical, angsty music but has that throwback niche to that rebellious stage some, or not most, of us went through in the 2000′s.

Elf, that also starred Will Blum at one point, is fan service to those who love the holiday season and those who loved the film that came out in 2003. I haven't listened to it yet BUT I WILL EVENTUALLY.

Heathers, we all love the Heathers. Also Winona Ryder, who played Lydia Deetz in the 1988 Beetlejuice film, starred as Veronica Sawyer. Like Elf, IT BRINGS INTEREST TO THAT GENERATION SO THEY COULD BUY TICKETS TO THIS SHOW THAT WAS BASED ON A FILM THEY WATCHED AS TEENS. Also can we just forget about the horrible rendition of Candy Store done by the cast of Riverdale? That never happened. NEVER. HAPPENED.

Beetlejuice, Come From Away, Ghost, Once, Book of Mormon, Finding Neverland, Newsies, Kinky Boots, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Big Fish, 21 Chump Street, Amélie, Be More Chill, Hamilton, Head Over Heels, Lazarus, School of Rock, Something Rotten!, Tuck Everlasting, Waitress, Anastasia, Hadestown, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Prom, Ain’t Too Proud, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Frozen, Mean Girls, Six, Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, The Lightning Thief, Jagged Little Pill, Moulin Rouge!, The Cher Show, Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, & Juliet, Mrs. Doubtfire.

These are SOME of the MANY shows that came out this decade!

Some musicals are entirely satirical so that was a niche for audiences who love the weird and messed up humour, some musicals are named after the films or shows they were based off of. So old audiences can take interest into coming to Broadway, okay I get that because again, nostalgia, some are entirely original or had little to no source material! Some are based around history, some about civil rights issues and some of them are jukebox musicals that appeal to people who like those artists.

Broadway has always been conservative and prefers to play it safe when it comes to opening a new productions and the dominant audiences have been older and more traditional. So that stereotypical Broadway show people think of is just that, the lead character getting their “want song” in, a lot of dancing, internal or external conflict that ultimately gets resolved with cheerful songs and set pieces. Although newer audiences want those boundary pushing shows so CAN get introduced to musicals like the Music Man, it means nothing if they were never introduced to the strange and unusual first. Everyone wants to advance to find that next big thing but they can’t do that when it is all safe but we did get some of them with Cats, Beetlejuice, Carrie, Matilda The Addams Family and more.

I totally get the interest of bringing back a musical that hasn’t been on Broadway for 20 years (last performance was in 2000) and it is a great way to reintroduce an old piece back into the world again, but it was at the expense of new artists making their Broadway dream a reality. The decision to evict, not close, evict Beetlejuice from the Winter Garden was a big mistake by the Schubert Organization. The Schubert Organization is one of the biggest landlord of theatres in New York, they at least own 17 Broadway theatres. Here’s the reason why they’re so successful:

They don’t keep shows that don't bring the cold hard cash. It’s show business, it has always been about the business and never about the show. As much as we could scream and shout to keep Beetlejuice in the Winter Garden all we want, it is unfortunately their decision to keep them or boot them out. We all know that productions have to be approved by a theatre organization so that production can be leant one of their many theatres, they show also had to keep up a total of sales from tickets above that number per week. As all of you know, that’s what happened with Beetlejuice. Ticket sales dried up and fell way below the amount. There was talk around the theatre community that a production of the Music Man was in the works with Hugh Jackman as the lead. So... they saw Beetlejuice as dead weight and sought out to cash in on Hugh Jackman’s name and fame.

There was a lot of problems from the show but most of their problems came from the critics. Mixed reviews was all the show got but the biggest blows came from the New York Times and Ben Brantley saying that the show never came to that same conclusion of home and belonging like other Broadway shows. This killed their ticket sales cause everyone goes through those reviews before they see a show. However that’s the thing, Beetlejuice never wanted that. The entire creative team and the cast knew that what they had was entirely unconventional, like it was their way sticking of the middle finger at the word conventional.

There's no doubt that the Music Man, Hugh Jackman, Sutton Foster and the cast and creative team will be amazing at the Winter Garden and it is highly unfortunate that the eviction of Beetlejuice was done for the sake of financial greed. I’m glad they were only evicted and not closed, the show IS still on and the public demand for the show is high. I know a lot of us hate the decision but what could you do? It’s all about the business aspect of Broadway and never the show.

Even though Beetlejuice had its problems with its opening following the Harvey Weinstein controversy, having the Music Man revival during this time of political conflict is a little awkward. Let’s trade a sexual, murderous demon for a eulogized conman.. that seems right.

I’m sure the show will be fantastic but the circumstances leading up to the opening is shady and not shining a good light for the Schubert Organization but lets not hate the actors and the creative team of the Music Man, they didn't do anything wrong. Instead, point that dislike to corporate greed, but is okay. The show is not closed and is only evicted from the theatre. Eventually they will find a new theatre on or off Broadway for everyone’s enjoyment again! Also that National Tour is coming up in Fall 2021 I believe, I personally can’t just fly to New York but I will be watching the National Tour if it does roll by where I live.

Keep safe my friends 💚🤍🖤

[chingonaclawsarchive]

     *  Note: Since LOGAN takes place in a dystopian world set in  the 20th Century Fox world of their ‘XMEN’ in 2029 -- I’ve had to tweak Laura’s canon timeline to fit in with the MCU. These are my compiled ideas/notes for where Laura would/might fit in, according to the MCU timeline. This can also be amended/altered depending upon who I am writing with & whatever stories we come up with on the sides. I will update/list those verses within this list as well. XO. - Betty. 

2012.  AVENGERS.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 001. avengers. )  i am not my enemy.  

     2002, Alkali-Transigen  aka ‘Essex Corp’ ) conducts it’s second round of the Weapon-X program utilizing children ‘perfected’ in a lab/facility. Laura Howlett ( known as X23 amid the program ) was ‘born’ into the program, the daughter of an unknown Latina woman ( who is more than likely murdered by the company shortly after Laura’s birth ) & James Howlett aka The Wolverine.       2012, a 7 year-old ‘killing dream’ begins her hardcore training under the Transigen umbrella, having grown up within their cage and knowing nothing but life within ‘The Facility’. During the events of ‘The Avengers’, Transigen ( more than likely a subsidiary or sister-company to HYDRA ) attempts to gather knowledge/the power of the alien forces that attack Earth. It is quite possible during this attack, the Xmen join the Avengers. - Transigen utilizes newer technology to harness a killing serum that triggers and strengthens the children’s mutant abilities. Through the years they continue to medicate and test the formula out on the children, including Laura;  to which they discover if they choose a specific target, she will stop at nothing until said target is vanquished. 

2015.  AGE OF ULTRON.  ✗ verse: ( mcu 002. ultron. )  i can do anything.  

     2013,  8-year-old Laura, along with her ‘brothers and sisters’ attempt to escape from the underground jail in Mexico ( where she was ‘born’ ) when given word/hope of a safe haven full of mutant-kind. The children are provided stories with the help of comic books smuggled into the facility. Some of which include stories of The Avengers, while others house a storyline shadowing the truth about the XMEN. Upon their first attempt of escape, the children are unsuccessful, and Essex Corp demands that they relocate to a ‘more secure’ unit in New York City. In 2015, the attack of ULTRON commences, more or less rocking the hard walls of the New York facility to rubble.        For the most part, with the help of HYDRA, Transigen is able to gather up their little ‘test subjects’, some having successfully gotten away, sadly Laura not being among them.      2016, an 11-year-old Laura with the help of the nurses, including Gabby, leads the pack to escape once more. It’s here Laura encounters her father ( Wolverine/James LOGAN Howlett ), Xavier & Caliban by psionic-ally following Charles’ guidance. During this timeline she goes on the wild chase, running from Transigen and relying on what remains of Logan’s strength. The climax ends with Xavier’s passing and Logan’s sacrifice, and the children successfully fleeing for the Canadian border to ‘Eden’ aka the safe haven which turns out to be a new school for the gifted, headlined by a group of vigilante mutants ( aka, the plotline of Mangold’s LOGAN. )      It should also be noted that during this time period, the X-men are dwindling/dying out, and going into hiding due to many people either wanting to lock them up out of fear or provide them ID badges and what not ( similar to the plot of the ‘Civil War’ in the comics. ) 

2017.  CIVIL WAR.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 003. civil war. )  my choice mine.   

     At 12, Laura quietly slips from the safe haven ( headmistress at this time being Emma Frost ) , feeling as though she’s really more of a danger than anything else, specifically due to the ‘death’ serum. Laura cannot control herself when injected with it, especially if she’s provided a ‘target’. To think she could end up killing one of her own terrifies her, not to mention the more she keeps running the less likely Transigen is to discover her.       During the time of the Avengers’ ‘Civil War’  ( between Tony & Steve ), Laura is only a child but spotted through the streets of New York. A time or two, Tony witnesses the feral child having pick-pocketing or slyly stealing a thing or two of necessity. Unable to confine the child or discover her whereabouts, he becomes aware of the ‘mutant strain’ in DNA, now knowing there is far more to this life than other worlds, planets, Norse gods and experimental projects gone wrong like Banner -- Hydra’s been hiding the secret unit to which not only have they began to suppress the X-gene that creates the ‘mutants’ but that they’ve been testing the effects of their serums and juices and what have you on children more-or-less created in a lab with the specific function of utilizing them as some ultimate mutant army. It is a terrible and harsh reality and one he does not take to lightly.      Contrary to the comics’ canon ( & the Xmen’s Civil War ) when Tony discovers she is a mutant child born and raised the way she was, he almost feels an obligation to protect her from others who felt mutants ought to be branded or ID’d and what not. ( A bit contradictory to the Xmen comics, I know, but it makes sense when you think of Steve/Capt America in the comics and how against Laura he was in the beginning, I feel he’d be a little apprehensive in the MCU as well. This could change depending upon whom I’m writing with. )       On the search for a place to help her ‘lay low’, Tony keeps her at the compound, until Pepper insists she just come on home with her. ( Again, this can be adapted depending upon the individual story. ) 

2018.  HOMECOMING.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 004. homecoming. )  are you sure i deserve salvation?  

     At age 13, since Pepper thinks it best that the pre-teenage girl get used to a ‘normal’ life, Laura begins attending public school, where she continues to attempt to ‘lay low’. Of course she does her very best to fit in, though there are many ‘human’ things she’s unaware of such as personal space and certain topics of speech. She basically follows the lead of people she feels she can trust like Peter Parker. Technically since Laura also ages much slower than most everyone, she will be a teenager for a longer period in her life. It is within these confines that she learns more about humanity, her compassion for the human race quite evident and her curiosity ever the more present. She spends a lot of time making up for lost time in her childhood, things she’s never discovered, places she’s never been -- a life she never knew she could have.  2019/2023.  ENDGAME.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 005. endgame. )  i’m f*cking wolverine. 

     During INFINITY WAR ( obviously just prior to this timeline ) Laura of course fights along side the team sustaining little to no injury even though she could’ve severed a limb or two, due to her mutation, she recovers rather quickly. Upon the realization that she could lose her family of mutants with Thanos’ plan, she scurries to get back to the school, begging many of the others to fight along side the Avengers. She succeeds in convincing several of the XMEN, including but not limited to Emma Frost,  to take part in the battle... but it is only to their demise as her healing is too rapid for his ‘curse’ and rather than fluttering into ash, she witnesses all those she holds dear dissipate having to see, once again, the utter destruction of those she holds dear. It tears her apart from the inside.       In 2023, Laura is just about to turn 17. -- Upon Tony’s return from space (2019), and the realization that Pepper hadn’t been taken away, Laura barricades herself within the hope she can have a somewhat normal family. She stays with Pepper and Tony, far away from the compound. She takes up her roll as a sister-figure to Morgan, something she absolutely takes seriously. She’d give it all up for this little girl -- hell, for this family. Tony stands in as an unlikely father-figure, but even moreso, Pepper as her mother. ( Again, these choices can be adapted/tweaked depending upon the storyline/plot we have -- maybe Laura grew up at the compound, or with someone else or with Aunt May... the possibilities/ what-ifs are endless... She could’ve also gone off on her feral way, etc etc. ) 

     When the final battle hits, and those who were taken away appear within the portals, a sudden relief washes over her. She has much more to fight for, and she gives it her all. But it is at the loss of Tony where she feels her world crumble once more, wondering if she should go off on her own and call it good, because it seems no matter where she attempts to land, there is far more loss to be had. She contemplates whether or not Logan had it correct when he was always insistent they stay far away from people, isolate and keep to themselves. Of course that was a much different time in the world and Transigen/Hydra has/have more things to worry about than hunting her down lately -- still, it’s a threat.        With Peter Parker’s ( and possibly others ) insistence, she remains close by. 2023/24.  FAR FROM HOME.  ✗ verse: ( mcu 006. far from home. )  el que con lobos anda a aullar se enseña. 

     Basically, Laura ( now, tech, post-snap almost 18 ) is hanging out with SHIELD, there to aid Peter where needed, more or less helping to keep an eye on him, along with Happy doing her best to stay out of trouble.   

[lycorogue]

Who Wants to Meet My OCs? (Part 3b – Glitches Reworks)

Who’s ready for part two (er... of part 3...)?

If you’ve missed it, I’m doing a series to introduce everyone to my main OCs (and no, I’m TOOOOOTALLY not doing this to procrastinate on writing my fanfics... why do you ask?)

In Part 1, I introduced the series, what I wanted to do with it, and gave some insight on the real world inspiration for my two worlds:

Gyateara

Glitches

Then, in Part 2, I talked about the IRL inspiration for my Gyateara characters:

Amara Yori

Natalie

Connor

Jolene Crisslebalm

The first half of this third part of the series - Part 3a - I talked about how characters are created for the Play-by-Post RP X-Future; the game that birthed Glitches. I also talked about the inspiration for my main four truly original characters: my husband’s character Chayse, and My Girls: Lia, Willow, and Trish.

In this final part of the introduction series, I’m going to talk about the adult characters of Glitches, the X-Men/Marvel canonical characters they were derived from, and how I have started altering them to create original variants to use for Glitches.

If this sort of thing strikes your fancy, feel free to read about these characters below the break. If you’re more interested in the actual individual character bios, the first one will be up next Sunday. Catch ya then!

Marvel Canon Reworks:

The next series of characters were all originally canon characters for the X-Men comics. They are all significant for the X-Future characters, and therefore would need an original counterpart for Glitches. I have yet to figure out anyone’s last names....

Matteo

Emily

Ryder

Keahi

Cody

Ignatius “Iggy”

Ready to find out who they were originally?

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Matteo

In X-Future, after Xavier dies in The Reaping, Kitty (Pryde) LeBeau and James “Logan” Howlett take over as the headmistress and headmaster of the school. Wolverine has a strong presence in X-Future because of that, and also because of family created by some of the players. Now, I don't have the IP for any of Wolverine's children/grandchildren/clone's children... (it gets complicated...), but I like the idea of Wolverine being Kitty's foil. A sort of Magneto to Kitty's Professor X. So Wolvie needed an overhaul.

Matteo is half-Puerto Rican, half-African American. His Latino features are more dominant though. And, honestly, the only real reason I thought of including the half-African American part was because it was a suggestion of a friend. His character Lucas is the son of Wolverine's clone X-23. Back when I was first thinking of creating Glitches, this friend was very much involved in helping me figure out what parts of X-Future should make the cut. We jointly reworked Lucas slightly so that he is instead a kid whom Matteo rescued from government experimentation. Lucas was Black, and so my friend thought having Matteo be at least half-Black would help Lucas see a connection that would lead him to trust Matteo and bond with him. A sort of Bruce Wayne/Dick Grayson sort of dynamic.

Said friend of mine sort of went radio-silent after moving a few states away, and so I no longer feel comfortable using Lucas in Glitches. Therefore, I'm not sure if I should just revert Matteo back to full Puerto Rican. It's still up in the air.

I needed him to have the feral personality and physical durability that Wolverine has, but he's now gruff and hardened less because of what had been done to him, but because his younger sister was killed in government experimentation. He is NOT a fan of humans and Glitches (my word for mutants) cohabiting. He no longer has the claws, but takes Logan's begrudging paternal personality and cranks it up a few notches.

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Emily

Kitty “Shadowcat” Pryde, as mentioned above, is the headmistress of the Institute, and she's Chayse's very involved mother. I couldn't leave her out if Chayse was transitioning into Glitches. So, she became Emily. Since Chayse has both parents' powers in equal parts, it was a touch easier to manipulate both Shadowcat and Gambit so that Chayse still had the same power set, but the Glitches version of his parents SHOULD be different enough not not be blatant rip-offs.

I started off by giving Emily Gambit's powers, sorta. Instead of Gambit's ability to create kinetic energy, Emily can MANIPULATE kinetic energy. Not only can she build up or create kinetic energy out of potential, she can also instantly pull kinetic energy out of an object in order to drop it back into potential energy. This means, for instance, if she were to catch a ball, she wouldn't need to follow through with her arm; it moving with the kinetic energy transferred from the ball once it's stopped in her hand. Instead, her skin simply absorbs the kinetic energy and the ball stops instantly, as if it were gently lobbed over to her. Likewise, if she concentrates, she can make her skin impenetrable: instantly withdrawing the kinetic energy from things such as bullets, cars, blades, etc., before it can puncture or otherwise injure her skin. No skin injuries also tends to mean no internal injuries.

Of course, the main use of this kinetic manipulation is the way Gambit uses it: adding or building up kinetic energy in an object. This can be used to add force to an object, such as hitting harder with a bat or bo staff without added effort, jumping higher or running faster, or building up enough energy the object explodes. Emily and Chayse also figure out how to use the kinetic energy very similarly to The Flash from the DC comics. Namely, build up enough kinetic energy within their own cells that they vibrate fast enough to pass through other particles. This makes them intangible and capable of phasing through solid objects. It takes a LOT of practice to keep their feet particles on top of the ones that make up the floor/ground. Even more practice allows for “air steps” where they can actually climb the particles that make up the air itself. This brings things back full-circle to Kitty's phasing powers.

I have been so focused on Emily's backstory, ideals, and new powers, so I don't really have a mental image of her that is vastly different than Kitty Pryde's. I still need to work on that. The only real big thing is that Emily has eyes similar to Gambit: unnatural colored irises and sclera. Normally, Emily has the naturally occurring white sclera, and magenta irises. When she's using her powers, however, the magenta bleeds into her sclera. That's it. That's all the physical description I have thus far...

Personality wise, however, she is much more stern and focused than Kitty is shown in most canonical iterations.

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Ryder

Gambit is just as much of an involved parent as Kitty, so it's only natural that if Kitty has to become Emily, then Remy becomes Ryder. My biggest problem, though, was how to make a suave, Cajun, con-man with powers NOT feel like THE Cajun: Remy “Gambit” LeBeau himself. Granted, not having the ability to blow things up helps, but there's so much more to Gambit than just that.

I wanted to keep him suave, a reformed con-man, White with a non-American accent, and have a love of play cards. That's just TOO Gambit to not include. At the same time... it's SOOOOO Gambit to NOT be recognizable. So, I started off by changing the Cajun accent to one I find equally sexy: Australian. Next, Ryder is more a con-artist than a con-man. More of a manipulator than a thief. He still loves his cards, but he's more likely to play Three Card Monty with them than blow you up with them.

One of the side-effects to Gambit's kinetic powers is the “accidental telepathic manipulation.” He may not even realize he does this, but Gambit can mess with the kinetic energy WITHIN SOMEONE'S BRAIN! He can make certain parts of the brain fire off, making his target much more susceptible to believing his lies, manipulation, and over-all charm. Gambit also always has a kinetic shield around him that continuously shifts erratically. This makes it extremely difficult for telepaths to break through the kinetic field and attack Gambit's mind. Effectively making him highly resistant to telepathic attacks and/or manipulation/suggestion.

So, I figured I'd take this commonly overlooked part of Gambit's powers, and make it Ryder's main mutation. He has a “silver tongue” and has the telepathic ability of verbal suggestion, manipulation, and hypnosis.

Ryder looks like a normal human, albeit a gorgeous one. He has brunette hair instead of Gambit's usually auburn, and he has intense “baby blues” that helps him hold eye contact, which elevates his powers. I don't have much more by way of physical description.

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Keahi

On the one hand, Keahi is a major rework of her canon counterpart. In the comics, Amara “Magma” Aquilla is a blonde haired, blue eyed, White girl from the Roman-like society of Neo Roma. They wear togas still and everything. The Amara from X-Future is the version we see in “X-Men: Evolution” in which she's just a typical Brazilian girl of tan skin and brown hair and eyes. I shifted her again so that Keahi is Hawaiian. A bit of a change.

On the flip-side, you can only do so much with “woman who can manipulate tectonic plates and magma, can create fireballs, is immune to fire/lava/breathing in ash, and transforms into a humanoid walking ball of magma.” Lia has all of those powers, so her mother has to have them. Which means I can't really do much with Amara's powers to alter them for Keahi.

Since Keahi doesn't actually show up all that much in Glitches – ya know, since she's MIA – I didn't spend terribly too much time on her. I still need to sit down and figure her out a bit.

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Cody

Jamie “Multiple Man” Madrox is too much of a helicopter parent to not have him follow Lia over into the Glitches rework. The main reason he could be a helicopter parent to such an extreme is his ability to create duplicates. That way he can literally always be with Lia, except for when she needs privacy, such as when she's in the bathroom and/or changing.

In Glitches, Jamie is now Cody, a man who can still create clones of himself out of fresh drops of his own blood. Slightly different than Jamie's impact-created duplicates. The funny thing, though, is for someone whose powers requires bleeding, he's as Edge Lord as a middle-aged man with diabetes. Cody gets viciously protective of those he loves, so he can get some of that badassery his comic counterpart has, but... it's not wholly evident.

In order to use his power, I had Keahi design a special wedding band for her husband. It's similar to (Spoiler alert?) Annie's ring from “Attack on Titan.”

It has a spike hidden inside it that Cody can flick out to puncture or slash his skin whenever he needs blood in a hurry. Normally, he does keep a sleeve of sterilized sewing needles in his pocket, and pricks his fingers on those, but the wedding band is used in a pinch, and has helped him in the past.

Cody still needs some more work as well, but his build is mostly “generic over-protective dad.”

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Ignatius “Iggy”

Iggy started his life as St. John “Pyro” Allerdyce, aka: Devon's father. I was actually largely inspired to create Iggy after watching the anime “K.” Specifically, Iggy is largely designed after the Red King Suoh Mikoto. I mean, look at this guy!

(Sorry, I no longer have the artist credit after my computer crashed. If you know who put this together, please let me know.)

(Same deal; the file I had that listed where I found this fanart got corrupted when my computer crashed. Please let me know if you recognize the artist)

(There's just something about a fit man juuuuuuuust barely showing off his stomach that is just so yummy for me.)

Anyway... Throw in a little Billy Idol and flame-ombre hair, and you have the basic aesthetic for Iggy.

Iggy's personality is more manic than Pyro's. He can be calm and calculated, but also be enraged out of nowhere and go on a rampage; the same qualities his protégé Trish possesses. I wanted Iggy to have a “sexy British-derived accent” still, and with the red hair, I figured: go Irish. So Iggy is an Irish immigrant. The Brotherhood is now a street gang that Iggy turned into a terrorist group. So... again, semi-inspired by Suoh from “K.”

He still has the power to manipulate flame, without the ability to create it. However, there are so many fire manipulators/pyrokinetics throughout pop culture that I'm hoping Iggy doesn't feel like a Discount Bin Pyro.

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In the end, there's not much that I've really done with these character re-works yet, but you'll get to meet them further in later posts.

Until then, thank you for taking this time to see a broad look at my character creation process. If you have any notes on how I can make these characters more distinct from their canon counterparts, feel free to drop me a DM or something.

Thank you, and I’ll see you guys again next week for the first of my individual character profiles. I’m going to start with the “most vocal”: Willow.

[zenosanalytic]

HoXPoX Liveblog: PoX#3

Managed to get through 2 today, which is good, and

Here’s The Link

Alright continuing the liveblog now it's time for PoX #3! It's a second printing so the cover's the same as the first run, but it a black and gold duochrome. Seems to be Rasputin and Cardinal facing off against sentinels, so I'm guess we pick right up where PoX2 ended. 

Also the duochrome; the background&sentinels in blacks and greys with the mutants centered and golden, really gives it a strong "Dawn on the third day" vibe. 

It open with an Apocalypse quote: "I am immortal and I have no end". Then X2, at a "church of ascendancy" preaching human-machine consumption by the Phalanx. His first words are "reject your humanity" setting up a direct opposition to Xavier's humanizing offer to Magneto in PoX2 

this melodramatic prick cant deny himself the Paradise Lost Paraphrasing while cybertizing an infant >:( 

What all theyve managed to fit into his rhetoric is interesting tho. He talked abt "flawed design"(so intelligent design), fate(mysticism), absorption into a "higher being" & "perfection"(Platonic Idealism just never stops being awful, does it?)

there is A LOT of Purple in these pages. I really need to do my analysis of that color at X(I've already touched on it's aspects of Otherness, and maybe that's all it's symbolizing here, but it also pops up with the "end" point of a cycles before a new thing starts(so dusk) 

I'm a bit confused about this bit, actl, since out first intro to this era heavily suggested that humanity was entirely banished to their preserve-dome. Maybe that's "pure" humanity, and this is a society entirely of human-sentinel cyborgs?

ok now an info page. This Wolverine is, in fact, Logan aka James Howlett afterall, and the Magneto-looking guy is apparently "North", a chimera of Polaris and Emma Frost, and the Tree guy is Krakoa merged with Cypher. Cardinal is a chimera of Kurt, Jean Grey, and "Freeman" whch ?

there's also mention here of a "mother" named Akkaba? I wonder if this is Moira or a descendant of her. I dont really know Apoc's lore very well so maybe there are other possibilities, or it's someone new.

ok wait I think I confused myself: I was thinking we were in X3 because of the church of ascendancy, but yeah this is X2 so these are human-cyborgs during Nimrod the lesser's time, so what's that orb they have? It cant be phalanx can it?

from there it cuts to Nimrod in his citadel, these pages are all reds and purples. Dialoguewise it's Nimrod and Omega discussing the inability of humans and mutants to work together against the machines while arguing abt whether to respond to the attack. Omega leaves Nimrod stays   

so yeah this whole section's pretty explicitly political; the bots mocking the inability of those they exterminate and those they merely oppress to work together Cardinal confronting a human over it only to find their obedience has become religious awe fairly Applicable Id say :p    

HA! Ok: from there it cuts to Apoc and his team in the archive... finding out when Nimrod came online XD The immediate implication is that X0 X1 X2 X3 might be DIFFERENT timelines, not different eras & this info gets communicated through moira but we'll see.  

Cut back to the distraction group; Rasputin takes off Xorn's mask. Xorn is a blackhole. Guess that's The End for Omega :p Back to Apoc, he hands the crystal off the Wolvie with Krakopher acting as a Gate. Apoc's gonna fight Nimrod.

Apoc's not doing so great. There's an interesting color thing going on in these two pages tho; Apoc and Nimrod's fight is all neon purple, while Wolvie's journey back to Asteroid K and the sarcophagus are light blue...

Ok yeah: so it very much looks like X2 is the end of the Apocalypse timeline; life 9 for Moira. That makes sense; no way the rest would agree to work with Sinister, so he had to have final say. 

And once again Wolvie's left to murder people he doesnt want to X| X| X|

cuts out on an, I feel, disposable Apoc quote, then onto infopages updating the Moira's Lives Chart. This also gives some more info on Life/TL 10 (X0? or X1??). House of X starts on year 52 and Nimrod comes online year 50 in 9 so...

Ok so... that was A Pretty Cool issue. Wow. I feel like I need to do a bit more work on the color-symbolism front though to really get all that's in here. Also there's clearly some communication btw PoX3&PoX2 and I need to dig down on that.

[eurusholmmes]

Daddy’s Home Again|| Old Man Logan + Daughter!Reader

Requested by: Anon

Prompt:  IDK IF I MISSED THE TIME OR NOT I really love your stories though! Could you maybe do an Old Man Logan x Daughter! Reader? Maybe the daughter has a similar mutation like 23 but with bone claws instead? And only on her knuckles? Maybe angsty I freaking love angst.

* I’m trying my best to keep these as short and thorough as possible so I can done with them, but because it’s Fathers Day this one got away from me LOL

WARNING:  A N G S T  

Tag List: @xavier-chxrles @house-of-penguin @drewkelliii @weasleytheking @agirlinherhead @itsbrittbrattt @buckybabble @avengers-bucky-fanfic @castawaybarnes @cleanslates @let-it-go-and-live-again @liveourlifelikenobodyelse @tigers-have-teeth @katiedreamy @rivertales 

Lyrics come from I’m Coming Home - Skylar Grey 

And the blood will dry

Underneath my nails

James Howlett lifted his eyes to the open expanse of royal blue sky above him, his eyes softening at the clouds that were passing over his head. It had been one of his favorite things to do once upon a time - making shapes out of cloud formations and soaking in the sunlight. 

That was all gone now. All there was in this day and age was blood and fire and utter chaos. 

And the wind will rise up 

To fill my sails

He grimaced as Laura chopped away at the trunk protruding through his lower abdomen. Blood trickled from the wound as the eleven year old slowly lowered him to the forest floor, eyes glassy with tears as Logan struggled to regain the breath he had lost. 

  “Daddy!!” A shrill feminine voice called out from the underbrush. Logan felt his heart constrict in his chest as a figure emerged from the woods, with bright y/e/c eyes and y/h/c hair that fell in soft  waves against her back. “It’s been so lonely without you.” The figure paused right in front of him, and Logan tilted his head in confusion when Laura made no move to acknowledge her. “Are you coming home now Daddy?” 

So you can doubt

And you can hate

A string of profanities broke into his mind as The Wolverine managed a weak nod. It had been months since he’d seen you last, a ghost that constantly followed him everywhere he went to remind him of the biggest mistake he’d made in his long life. The mistake of allowing someone else to hurt you, to end a life you hadn’t even begun to live yet. It was a constant nightmare battling for control behind close eyelids. His mind never let him forgive, and never let him forget.

But I know

No matter what it takes

  “Hello y/n.” He murmured, managing a weak smile as you sat at his feet and tucked your legs beneath you. “You look so well, sweetheart. Tell me.. What’s it like up there?” You grinned widely at his question and bounced on your haunches, anxious to tell him everything you’d seen since going to heaven all those months ago when Donald Pierce had killed you. 

  “It’s beautiful, Daddy!” You exclaimed, pausing as Logan turned to acknowledge the brunette girl at his side, murmuring something low enough only for the two of them to hear. “Grandpa Charles and Momma are waiting up there for you. They’re so happy Daddy.. but they miss you. Are you gonna come home now?” 

I’m coming home 

I’m coming home

Tell the world I’m coming home 

The little girl beside Logan let out a sob as a deep groan broke through his lips, his hands moving down to press against the wound on his lower abdomen. You furrowed your brow as you stood to your feet, hand outstretched to tenderly wipe the blood off of his skin. “I’m so old y/n… I’m so ready to be done.” He pleaded, tears falling down his pale cheeks as you stood on the opposite side of him. You could audibly hear the space in between his heartbeats growing further and further apart. He was running out of time. “What about Laura? What happens to her now?” 

  “Well.. God told me she’s gonna grow up to be a big, strong woman who does everything in remembrance of you. For your.. legacy. What is a legacy?” You questioned as your lip jutted out, confused as to why he’d begun laughing. 

Let the rain wash away 

All the pain from yesterday

  “There was this song your mom used to play on a loop from this musical back at the Mansion.. I think the lyrics said, “What is a legacy? It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.” My legacy.. Laura is going to carry it out.” His weary eyes met your own as you  rested your hand against his forehead. “I’m done with this life. I want to move on to the next.. To tell you how sorry I am for ever letting anyone hurt you.” 

I know my kingdom awaits And they’ve forgiven my mistakes I’m coming home

  “I don’t hurt anymore, Daddy.” To prove your point, you lifted your hands to his eyes and allowed him to caress the areas of your knuckles where they’d broken your bone claws clean off. There was no blood or scarring, nothing. The skin was as supple as the day you had been born. “My claws are gone. There’s no pain, no suffering, no anguish.. None of that is in heaven. It’s paradise there.. and I want you to see it with me.” 

Logan let out a slow exhale the moment your palm connected with his forehead, his physical being succumbing to the pain coursing through his body and his heart beat slowly coming to a deafening silence. From where he stood beside you with your tiny fingers wrapped around his wrist, Logan Howlett managed a genuine smile before scooping you up in his arms. “I’m so proud of my girls.” He whispered, eyes cast on Laura who with the help of the other mutants had begun digging his grave. “Are you ready to go home?” 

  “Let’s go home.” 

I’m coming home 

Tell the world I’m coming 

[renaroo]

Wednesday Roundup 15/6/2017

So this is a day late but in my defense I had a ridiculous amount of comics to get through with no one to blame but myself here. And you know what? I genuinely enjoyed almost everything. But does that mean every comic was good this week? And even so what did I think was the best? 

Honestly I don’t know how to write these intros for people who wouldn’t be here to read my opinion anyway so let’s just jump into it. 

Marvel’s All-New Wolverine, Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, DC’s Detective Comics, DC’s Gotham Academy: Second Semester, DC’s Justice League of America, Image’s Motor Crush, DC’s Superwoman, IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, DC’s Titans, IDW’s Transformers: Salvation, DC’s Wonder Woman

Marvel’s All-New Wolverine (2015-present) #21 Tom Taylor, Leonard Kirk, Cory Hamscher, Terry Pallot, Michael Garland

Okay I need this issue to reread a million times over because there are just so many things I love all at once. Like, oh my gosh. I was almost in tears multiple times because relationships! Healing! Supporting each other!

Wade and Gabby alone could just about make this issue perfect, but then you have Laura and Daken hugging and worried about each other, and Old Man Logan being likable for the first time in any of my readings of him. There’s so much I enjoy, though I find the cover rather deceiving. This is much more of a Howlett family reunion than anything else, though I did enjoy Riri’s parts in it.

I just eriously adore these characters and it meant a lot to see them all come together like they have here and that cliffhanger HURT so much more for it. 

I will nitpick the art a bit because we’ve been doing so good about keeping Laura in the Wolverine costume which is much preferred to her X-23 wardrobes, for sure, but this issue it pretty much looked exactly like one of her old costumes without the midriffs and it was kinda weird. I know she took off a lot of her armor for skin contact but it’s... idk. It was weird. 

The main thing I’m happy about though is that as we go on, I realize that literally all of the Marvel books I’ve kept are going out of their way to not involve themselves in Secret Wars and it’s kind of beautiful. Laura and Gabby are stuck on an island that’s quarantined (and I can pretend Wade’s there with them instead of whatever’s going on since I dropped Deadpool for the summer crossovers, thanks Tom Taylor!), Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur are literally off world, and the rest are non-616. So yay me!

Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows (2016-present) #8 Gerry Conway, Ryan Stegman, Jesus Aburtov

For those who don’t know, Mary Jane Watson is genuinely one of my favorite Marvel characters and is easily one of the reasons I ever stuck with the Spider-Man comics for as long as I did was because of my interest in her and wanting to see her and Peter.

I can also thank her for my genuine attraction to redheads probably.

But one of the main reasons that I’ve loved this book so much is because, as written by Gerry Conway, this is the Peter and MJ of my dreams. I love them so much, and the complications that comes from their relationship and from growing older, raising a daughter, and MJ’s desire to continuously be the glue to keep both Peter and Annie together logically causes her to seek out a way to continue being Spinerette without syphoning off Peter’s powers. 

It’s almost like growing old, having a stable relationship, trying to keep things fresh while raising a kid, are all dramatic and worthy of good storytelling in their own right or something HMM.

Anyway, yes it’s completely on the nose where this is going and it’s a little curious how MJ’s not immediately aware of the connection between what’s going on with her right now and the horrible, arguably traumatizing experience she and Peter had, but who knows what’s canon anymore lol

Basically, I sideye a bit from a story point of view, but this series continues to make up for it with the real thing that matters to me: these characters and their development.

DC’s Detective Comics (2016-present) #958 James Tynion IV, Aluaro Martinez, Raul Fernandez, Brad Anderson 

Honestly I really love the slower issues where Tynion takes more time to make moments for the relationships between the characters and give us interractions we didn’t know we wanted -- Kate going with Luke and Jean Paul to a basketball game, Cass and Clayface being adorable by reciting a play, Bruce at a poker game with a bunch of assholes in homage to Almost Got ‘im!? It was a lot of fun honestly. 

...

Okay I take issue with Cass’ dialogue. I know she was repeating lines from a tape and such but it’s weird to see her make so much progress when just two issues ago she was almost monosyllabic. Like... I want to see Cass gradually learning, I want to feel her frustration with hitting walls, I want to see her struggle and achieve despite the struggle because that gradual progression was honestly something we weren’t delivered in the former canon. We have a great opportunity for it here. 

But y’know. I’m particular with Cass and it’s hard to say where her baseline for reading and speech even is in this canon because her dyslexia may be in tact but her circumstances growing up are completely different. So I don’t know. 

Now. I’m a sucker for Bruce and Zatanna team-ups because I’m a schmuck but I’m really excited for next issue. Had a lot of fun with this one. This feels like a decent pace for Tynion -- at least in my opinion. 

DC’s Gotham Academy: Second Semester (2016-2017) #10 Brenden Fletcher, Becky Cloonan, Karl Kerschl, Adam Archer, Massyk, Sandra Hope

This comic is speeding toward an end and I’m not sure if I’m ready! 

From the beginning, for me at least, the selling point for Gotham Academy has been just how much these kids felt like real teenagers and real friends with all their various relationships and connections, platonic or romantic or something in between. And it’s powerful to see that coming to play as an advantage to completing Olive’s arc, but also as a disadvantage since the consequences of many of her actions hurt that much more.

I’ll save a lot of my thoughts for a complete wrap up of the series but overall, very happy and very grateful for the continuously good read that is GA

DC’s Justice League of America (2016-present) Volume 1: Road to Rebirth Steve Orlando, Jody Houser, Ivan Reis, Andy MacDonald, Stephen Byrne, Jamal Campbell, Mirk Andolfo

WE GOTTA GET THE BAND BACK TOGETHER. WE’RE ON A MISSION FROM GAD. 

In all seriousness, I’m a huge fan of Vixen and Ryan Choi as well as a big fan of Justice League International, as it was in its 80s glory. So my interests with this particular lineup were piqued from the beginning and I made myself wait for the first volume to dive in. 

For the most part, this is a team gathering exercise. Characters that have lacked the spotlight in the last few years -- Vixen, Ray, Killer Frost, and the Atom -- were given whole issues to reintroduce them to this continuity. And honestly those issues were great. I really, really love the updated origins for them and feel that they’re a good blend of honoring the past of the characters as well as adapting them for a new world. 

Lobo, Batman, and Black Canary took back seat, but considering that there were already tensions showing within the group, I think it’s safe to assume that giving the spotlight to the rest of the team won’t always last this long. Things are nothing if not explosive among these members.

I really did mean it when I said this is a team gathering exercise, because there’s no first case to unite everyone. There’s not any real antagonists or team-ups we see to speakof. It was just getting hte jLA together. 

And for me it’s enough to get me intrigued, though I’d completely understand if people told me it was far from enough for them. 

Now they just need to add Big Barda, Booster Gold, and Ted Kord and I’ll be satisfied. 

Image’s Motor Crush (2016-present) Vol. 1 Brenden Fletcher, Cameron Stewart, Babs Tarr

I was not the biggest fan of this team’s Batgirl team though I appreciated the aesthetics and what not. There just never seemed to be a storyline that really interested me and I couldn’t be sold on the characterization for Barbara. So I kept hearing about Motor Crush for the last year and was really itnerested in it so I wanted until this volume came out and. 

Well, quite simply, I’m in love.

Tell you what, those biker gangs that kept coming up really confusingly out of place in Batgirl make a hell of a lot more sense now that I can see this team’s actual passion project. 

So I love Motor Crush a lot, I’m really invested in Domino, the mystery that is her origins and the powers of Crush itself. I love her relationship with her ex, Lola, I love her father -- I love just about everything and the cliffhanger really surprised me. 

I will say that while I love having a world that speaks for itself rather than constant narration, it’s a little hard to follow this world entirely, I’d like a bit more explained than what has been, but at the end of the day I’m very excited to see more. 

DC’s Superwoman (2016-present) #11 K. Perkins, José Luís, Ray McCarthy, HI-FI

You know, I have made it clear that I’ve been worried about this title for a while now, really just hoping it was going to find its direction and wow us with the great potential that is the Super Family outside of the main Kent triad. And I feel like that’s for good reason -- the end of Jimenez’s run let a lot of people feeling justifiably scorned, there was a mishandling of a lot of heavy and important subjects that were raised, and at least the initial stuff with Perkins taking over kind of left one wondering if they had a fully formed direction to go toward next. 

But I am really glad that I stuck it out for this long because the family of John, Lana, Nat, and everyone else is so important and so fundamentally different from the dynamics found elsewhere in the new familial renaissance of the DCU that I needed it. And I hope it continues to emphasize these relationships and how important they are to each other.

I’m still unhappy with how anxiety and mental illness is being handled in the title and find it lacking since it was brought up to begin with and now being ignored. That subject alone is making me rethink my disinterest in Green Lantern books as a whole because I have loved and felt inspired so far by what I’ve seen of Jessica Cruz and their handling of anxiety, and it’s why I picked up Silk at the high recommendations of a close friend. 

So I’d like for mental illness to be treated better in this title -- the least it can do after bringing it up and treating it the way it did at the end of Jimenez’s run, but there’s so much value in the non-nuclear family dynamic of the Irons household and of the uniqueness of Lana’s powers and her approach to fighting crime that it’s worth it. For me anyway.

IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2011-present) #70 Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz, Mateus Santolouco, Ronda Pattison

I knew the end of this storyline was going to be, at the very least, explosive but wow, WOW I had no idea how many twists and turns it was going to take in that time. That was a phenomenal ending to the Mutanimals storyline for the time being, and I just feel so bad for Slash, down to my core. I’m so worried about him, and whenever he will be allowed to recover.

At least I hope he’ll recover.

This series is seventy issues strong and i’m just so blown away by the way they still manage to keep me on the edge of my feet while so many different storylines and character developments are happening at the same time.

I mean, I even feel for Old Hobb here!

I do suppose a complaint I could hold here is that the titular turtles themselves have ultimately not been very front and center throughout this storyline, and that really showed in the conclusion, where for the most part they were lost to the colorfulness of the huge, colorful supporting cast that has been developed over the years. 

For me, personally, I think that’s honestly okay. We can’t have the same story over and over again with only the main four characters driving the narrative, and it’s been a long standing tradition in TMNT for a good 30 years now to sort of embody the concept that our main guys don’t really look for situations to get involved with but sort of fall into them naturally. 

Not to mention it’s probably a strength that 70 issues in, we haven’t once repeated plots or stories or put any of the characters on a loop of development to end up right back where they started. I don’t think the achievement of that can be understated, especially as we near that landmark #75!

DC’s Titans (2016-present) #12 Dan Abnett, Kenneth Rocafort, Dan Brown

Bleh. BLEH. I was holding out judgment on the twist of Wally and Donna and Roy ending up in some kind of love triangle because I wanted the context but honestly the context is kinda... bleh. It would be awesome if we lived in some world and time where Donna’s origins were not constantly retconned and thus the source of her characterization in every run of every thing she showed up in. Which is by no means a new problem but still.

And my opinion is... Wally and Donna are both going through a hard time and Wally is having to accept that his life is fundamentally different from the previous world he knew, that he can’t just badger people into returning things to the way they were -- especially Linda, who he loves but it’s a very one-sided relationship as a result of the parallel universe paradox and stuff. It makes sense to me that in a ploy to gain some sense of control over that, he and Donna both would try to take fate in an unexpected direction, into their own hands. 

But making it a love triangle with Roy just kinda keeps my eyes firmly rolled into the back of my skull. 

I overall like Lilith, Dick, Garth, and Karen’s development and characterization in this issue. I think they’re taking Lilith in interesting directions and I’m really curious about what her omen means for the future, since apparently there’s a traitor among them. And they set up plenty of reasons for various members to be that traitor in this issue but I can’t help but assume already that it’s going to end up being a twist. Good twist or not remains to be seen. 

IDW’s Transformers: Salvation (2017) John Barber, Livid Ramondelli

I’m going to be completely “original” here and say that I’m not a fan of Ramondelli’s at for the various Transformers comics. i know! I know. Shocking, never said before, completely going against the general fandom consensus. I’m such a brave soul. I know. 

Okay, joking aside though... I didn’t think the art was bad in this one-shot. Actually! I’d argue a lot of it was even good. He may not be my favorite artist and I’ll think that his colo gradients are butt ugly most of the time, but there was better handled action sequences than usual, the characters looked like they had weight, and we even got a range of expressiveness in the characters that is... well, frankly, not usual for Ramondelli. 

So other than that shocking revelation, I thought Barber performed good once more on tying the TF universe together again, answering some prior plot points and nicely knotting off loose ends. Trypticon being a Titan is not the biggest revelation in the world, but the development of Sandstorm and the Dinobots was great, and I loved just how devious Starscream truly is under Barber’s pen even though I’ve fully been enjoying the characterization for him in Till All Are One. 

But the most important thing of all: SPARKLINGS. SPARKLINGS. All I’ve wanted for years is baby transformers so I am HAPPY BEYOND BELIEF. THEY’RE NO LONGER A DYING SPECIES AND THESE PRECIOUS BABIES COULD BE BORN WITHOUT EVER KNOWING THE CIVIL WAR AHHHHHHHH

DC’s Wonder Woman (2016-present) #24 Greg Rucka, Bilquis Evely, Romulo Fajardo Jr. 

WOW! I mean, just wow! What a resolution to everything. I have so many emotions for Diana, for Barbara Ann, for even Veronica Cale of all people. Etta and Steve were great, the art was amazing.

It’s just such a relief and such... honestly just an amazing feat that Greg Rucka is beginning to wrap up this just phenomenal run of Wonder Woman 

I really enjoyed how everything turned out and it was so remarkable to see Diana’s resolution to save Veronica but also to not turn her back on her friends and loved ones as well as the torment it is for Barbara to not be able to get into Themyscira after all her life’s work.

And I liked Diana’s assessment of Veronica at the end, it was true and also blunt to the point of cruelty. But fitting also. 

It’s amazing what a turn around I’ve personally felt when it comes to Veronica’s character because in all honesty I was not a fan of her most of the time in the preboot, but Rucka really has fleshed her out and done something unique with her perspective now. There is tragedy but there’s also less deniability for her fault in all of it. 

I’m sad to be coming toward Rucka’s end on the run, but I’m also so happy to see the love and passion he’s put into everything culminating to what it is now.

This is a genuinely hard choice but I think if I go by what tugged on my heartstrings the most, what gave me the most joy overall and just feelings unrelenting from start to finish, I would have to say that my pick of the week is All-New Wolverine. I adore this series and I couldn’t be happier with this issue and how they’re keeping my precious Marvel girls faaaaaar away from Secret Empire. A close second would be Wonder Woman but really I would happily recommend my entire pull this week. It was a geat week for comics.

But that’s just my opinion! I’d love to know your thoughts. Agree? Disagree? Think I missed something I should’ve picked up this week? I’d love to hear from you!

[forgedobsidian]

Horsefeathers

A “Logan” fanfiction. One-shot. Sequel to “Like A Cat.”

AO3

Summary:

With everything said and done, Logan hardly expected to get a welcoming invitation from the Munson’s to visit their home.

Logan sighed and leaned back in his chair, legs stretched out comfortably and a cold soda resting in his hand.

The evening was peaceful, the heat of the day fading to a more sedate temperature as the sun hid behind the mountains. A pair of birds chirped in a nearby pine tree, and he could hear arguments and laughter in the cabin behind him. The porch was empty, save for him and his chair. His feet twitched as a stray breeze chilled his neck, bringing the smell of forest and mildew down from the mountains.

It was quiet, but not in a dangerous way.

The Canadian government knew they were there and were plenty willing to leave them be, surprising.y. It was a nice change of pace. They even lended a helping hand every now and again, providing supplies, food, and, memorably, even stopping by to help build the large cabin everyone lived in. All they asked in return was that the kids lived quietly and recovered from their experiences, as much as they could. It helped that Logan was a Canadian citizen, even if his salvaged birth certificate read somewhere in the early 1800’s.

Logan shook his thoughts away as Laura walked outside, the door falling shut behind her. There was a furrow between her brows and her mouth was downturned.

“I know that look.”

Laura wrinkled her nose and looked away.

“Better spill, kid, otherwise Charles might get worried.” He quirked an eyebrow and took a sip of his soda.

Laura’s shoulders stiffened under her jacket before she turned to glare at him.

Logan raised his eyebrows.

She sighed and stepped closer to him, leaning against the arms of his chair. “I want to talk, but I don’t want you to get angry.”

He snorted. “Since when have you worried about me getting angry?”

“It’s about the Munson’s.”

“. . . oh.”

It wasn’t so much that he had forgotten about the Munson’s - they’d given them a place to rest, after all - but he tended to push people who weren’t right in front of him to the back of his mind. Besides, he had no plans to go back, so keeping the family in mind wasn’t a helpful thing to do. Still, Laura had a strange look on her face, and it was with a faint feeling of trepidation that Logan asked “. . . what about the Munson’s?”

“Do you think we could visit them?”

He could remember shoving Kathryn and her son behind him just before X-24 scooped out some of his stomach. Will hadn’t looked that great, sporting claw cuts on his upper arm, but he had been alive. It was pure luck they had made it out of the farm without anyone getting irreparably hurt, or worse.

“I seriously doubt they want anything to do with us, kid.”

“They do. I called.”

Logan spat out his drink. “You what?!”

Laura didn’t seem bothered by his outburst. “Señora Kathryn gave me their phone number before we left. I wanted them to know we were safe.”

He rubbed one hand down his face. “Geeze, kid, you don’t just . . . we’ve bothered those people enough, don’t drag them back into the mess.”

“They want to see us again.”

Logan cursed at the hopeful glance Laura shot him. “Yeah, that doesn’t sound like a trap or anything.”

“Michael checked. Their house isn’t being watched, and their phone lines are clear.”

He scratched at his beard. “You really thought this through, didn’t you.”

She grinned, showing off a missing tooth. “Yup.”

“And if I say no?”

“I’ll probably just end up going anyway.”

Logan glared at her, not liking the nonchalant tone of her voice. “You know Charles can’t come with us. He’s not strong enough for travel.”

“I know.” She shot him an excited look. “So does that mean we’re going?”

“If it’s only the two of us, and not for very long . . .” Logan sighed and ran a hand through his beard. “I don’t see why not.”

Laura let out an excited yelp and hugged his shoulder. “Thank you!” She ran back inside the cabin, yelling “He said yes! He said yes!” The door closed behind her with a quiet click.

“Well, shit,” Logan said. He grimaced and knocked back the rest of his soda.

Will Munson was looking well and healthy, and so was Kathryn. She gave him a once-over as he stepped out of the truck, her eyes lingering on his stomach. She gave a satisfied nod when she saw he was healthy and whole.

Laura immediately walked up to Nate, holding out the music player. The boy hesitated for a moment, eyeing her knuckles, before he reached out and took the device from her hands. Laura grinned. “You have good music, but it’s not my favorite.”

Nate’s eyes widened when Laura talked, then he gave a slow smile.

Logan felt a glow of pride in his chest, but his attention was quickly focused on the boy’s parents. Will had stepped in front of him, Kathryn not far behind. He looked Logan up and down, nodded, and held out his hand.

“It’s good to see you again, James.”

Logan swallowed and gingerly took the farmer’s hand. “You too.”

“Oh, there’s no need to be like that,” Kathryn said, stepping in front of her husband and reaching up to gently hold the sides of Logan’s head. She pulled him down and pressed a light kiss to either of his cheeks. “There, now that’s a proper welcome!”

Logan gave a hesitant smile, and Will gave a bright laugh. “Now, Katie, no need to scare the man!”

Logan grinned and waved his hands, trying to ignore the flush of heat in his face. “No problem, no problem.”

Will grinned and slapped a hand on Logan’s shoulder. “So how’s Chuck?”

“He’s staying with some friends. He’s a little too weak to travel, but he says ‘hi’.”

Will nodded. “Glad to hear he’s still around. Well,” he said, gesturing at the farmhouse. “Let’s go inside, and we can talk for a bit.” The couple started walking inside, not seeing Logan shake his head in denial.

“Wait, wait,” Logan said, holding up his hands and taking a step back. He felt frantic.

“What is it, James?” Kathryn looked curious, and a little worried.

“I’m . . . why did you want us to come back? It’s not like anything good happened while we were here last time,” Logan said, resisting the urge to shuffle his feet.

“We might live simply, James, but we know good people when we meet them,” Kathryn said, shooting him a grin. She patted his shoulder. “Besides, you didn’t ask for what happened. And you were hurt protecting us. That matters.”

Logan swallowed around the sudden lump in his throat, and only gave a sincere smirk and looked at the ground.

“Papa, Nate says I can ride one of his horses!” Laura’s excited voice drew their attention away from the heavy conversation. The young girl had a large smile on her face, which didn’t quite match the eerie way she stalked over the ground.

“Maybe later, Laura. And only if you have permission.”

“It’s alright!” Will chuckled. “Our horses have had it easy for a while. They need to get back into shape.”

Logan gave a slow nod, and this time he followed the family back into their home with Laura just behind him, talking with Nate.

“She talks?” Kathryn raised an eyebrow and quirked a smile.

Logan rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah. Always could, apparently.”

She laughed. “Kids can be like that.”

He gave her a grin. “I’ll bet.”

They got into the farmhouse, the air conditioning a welcome relief from the humidity outside.

Caliban was sitting on the couch. He gave Logan a nod when the older man walked in. He had healed from his run-in with the Reavers, and he seemed more content than he had been with Logan and Charles back at the Mexican border.

Logan nodded back. “Caliban.”

“He’s been such a dear,” Kathryn said, going into the kitchen. “This time of year we need all the help we can get, and he’s always willing to lend a hand.”

A happy grin grew on the mutant’s face.

Logan raised an eyebrow. “So you’re happy here?”

Caliban nodded. “Yes. They need help at all hours, so I do what I can with the nighttime chores. It’s nice.”

“Well, good for you.”

“And how are you, Logan?”

He sighed and ran a hand through his beard. “Doin’ better. Still need glasses though.” He sat down into a recliner.

Caliban laughed.

Nate and Laura walked into the living room, the girl plopping down next to Caliban with a sigh. Nate moved a little slower, almost hesitant to move around Logan. He seemed perfectly comfortable around Laura, thankfully.

“So . . . you’re really Wolverine?” Nate asked, trying to restrain his interest.

Laura snorted before Logan could answer. “He’s not that cool. He snores when he sleeps.”

Logan took a slow swipe at her head. She ducked and laughed. Caliban looked between them both with a curious expression on his pale face.

“Well,” Will said, walking through the doorway. “We have the guest rooms all fixed up. Laura, Nate, now would be a good time to ride. It’s clouding up, but I doubt it’ll rain.”

“Alright!” Nate sounded excited. “You wanna? I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

Laura nodded, an excited spark in her eye.

“I could teach you too, Mr. Howlett,” Nate offered, giving a quick glance at Logan.

He raised an eyebrow. “Thanks, but I think I’ll just watch. I want a good view for when Laura gets bucked off.”

The girl made an offended sound in the back of her throat, kicking at his feet when she walked by to follow Nate out the door.

“You coming?” Will asked.

“Yeah, just need to sit a bit longer.”

“Well, we’ll meet you out there, then.”

Logan felt himself sink into the thick padding of the chair, taking a moment to just enjoy the sounds of company around his ears.

“She’s good for you, Logan.” Caliban’s voice was soft.

Logan smiled, feeling the edges of his eyes crinkle. “Yeah, she is.”

“I’m still not sure about this, Laura.”

The girl grinned. “Scaredy cat.”

Will smiled. “It’s fine, James. No worries. We teach people how to ride all the time.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m fine with my feet on the ground. Never had a good experience with a horse, anyway.”

Laura laughed. “No estas un caballero, señor.”

“Shut it, you.”

Will tipped his hat back and smiled at the sky. “It’s a lovely day. A good one for riding.”

“If she doesn’t get bucked off.” As much as Logan wasn’t worried about Laura getting hurt - she’d be able to shake it off, anyways - she did have something of a temper.

Will laughed. “Our horses are good with kids. I wouldn’t be worried.”

Logan sighed, but followed the group out to the barn with minimum complaining.

A small number of stalls lined the walls, and several horses peeked their heads over the half-doors as the group walked down the row.

“How about ol’ Joan? She needs some exercise.” Nate walked over to a dark brown mare, reaching out to scratch at her mottled nose.

“Sounds good. Laura, come with me to get a saddle, alright? Nate, how about you take Preacher, too.”

“Okay!” Nate called after his departing father. He handed a lead rope to Logan, the other end firmly attached to Joan’s broad head.

“Just stand here. She won’t move unless you move.” Nate went off down the stalls, stopping at a large white-and-red spotted roan.

Before long Will and Laura returned, the girl carrying a saddle that was almost bigger than her. Nate helped her saddle the large Preacher, while Will walked over and placed a blanket and saddle over Joan’s sturdy back.

Logan gently scratched at the horse’s nose, grinning when she curled her lip and shook her head.

“You sure you don’t wanna ride?” Will sounded encouraging from under the horse’s belly, where he was tightening the cinch.

Logan smiled. “I’m pretty heavy. I’ll be fine watching. More of a bike person, anyway.”

Will shook his head, but he had a grin on his face. Nate showed Laura how to get up into the saddle, which she did near-perfectly on the first try.

Logan and Will followed the mounted pair out to the corral, where Nate was teaching Laura how to sit in the saddle.

“You know, you and yours are welcome here any time. From what Laura told us over the phone, you’re raising quite the bunch.”

“I don’t raise ‘em. I just make sure they don’t die doing stupid sh - stuff, is all.”

“Sounds like being a parent to me.”

Logan gave Will a sideways glance. He had been able to tell when Kathryn hugged him earlier, her scent different from what it had been before. Before the new year rolled along Nate would have a younger sibling.

“Well, thanks. Might take you up on it sometime.”

“You know, we can help out with anything you need.”

“I appreciate that, Will.”

Logan leaned on the fence, watching Nate teach Laura how to guide a horse with reins. There was an excited grin on her face, and even he couldn’t suppress a smile.

“I think we’ll be just fine.”

Author’s Note: Listen the kind farm family Did Not Deserve That. 

Also my Spanish is a lot rusty so. Yeah. If I made any mistakes please tell me.

This is the last X-Men/Logan fic I’ll be writing for the foreseeable future. I just needed something that healed the wounds the movie gave me, and I think I’ve managed to do that fairly well with these two fics.

Thank you for reading!!

[ethanalter]

'Logan': Let's Talk About THAT Final Scene (Spoilers!)

Hugh Jackman in ‘Logan’ (Photo: 20th Century Fox)

Warning: This post contains big spoilers for the final scene of Logan. If you haven’t seen the movie and don’t want to know how it ends, read no further!

The unthinkable has happened, true believers. James Howlett, a.k.a. Logan, a.k.a Wolverine, has gone to his great reward. Sure, the character has already died in the comics, where deaths often have a way of reversing themselves. But based on the events in Logan, the new entry in the X-Men film franchise, it seems very much like this cinematic version of Wolverine — played by Hugh Jackman across 17 years and nine films — really isn’t coming back. In the final act of James Mangold‘s film, an aged, dying Logan pops his claws for one final battle, taking on the Reaver army commanded by Donald Pierce (Boyd Holbrook) and serving the interests of Zander Rice (Richard E. Grant), the head of the genetics company, Transigen, that was breeding its own army of mutant child soldiers until the kids went AWOL.

One of those escapees is Logan’s own daughter, Laura (Dafne Keen), created in a lab from his DNA. She’s been brought to him with the expectation that he’ll lead her and her fellow “New Mutants” from a dystopian future America to the relative safety of his home and native land, Canada. In order to do that, though, he’s got to get through a swath of Reavers, plus an even more lethal duplicate of himself, X-24, without succumbing to the injuries endured by his adamantium-poisoned body. Impaled on a tree during his bout with X-24, Logan is rescued by a well-aimed adamantium bullet fired by Laura that takes off the clone’s head. But this is one wound his celebrated healing factor can’t cure. Logan dies in the woods overlooking the Canadian border. “So this is what it feels like,” he says, as his spirit leaves his body. Laura and her comrades bury him where he lies, leaving — what else? — an X behind to mark the spot.

Related: Meet X-23: A Primer on the ‘Logan’ Secret Weapon

Clearly, there’s a lot to digest in this farewell to one of the all-time great cinematic superheroes. So follow along as Yahoo Movies editors Ethan Alter and Marcus Errico discuss the ins and outs of Jackman’s death scene, and what the X-franchise might be without him.

ETHAN ALTER: I have to admit that just before the credits rolled on Logan, I was bracing myself for James Howlett’s claws to come bursting out of his makeshift grave Carrie-style. That’s how trained we are as both consumers of comic books and comic book movies to expect miraculous resurrections in the closing splash page. But it seems that both James Mangold and Hugh Jackman are sticking to their guns about this being the final Wolverine story in this current incarnation. And while I have some issues with the movie as a whole (an inert second act, a fairly bland villain, and a pervasive nihilism that grows wearying), Logan’s ferocious rush toward death felt right and, more important, felt earned.

I should note that I was only ever a sporadic reader of Wolverine’s comic book exploits, so Jackman’s version is the one I’ve followed most intently since his debut 17 years ago in Bryan Singer‘s X-Men. I liked him immediately then, particularly the way he found just the right balance between menace and mischief. And I missed that earlier Logan throughout Logan, which, of course, is part of the point; the fight, to say nothing of the fun, has gone out of him and he’s a walking 200-plus year-old shadow of a hero, just marking time until the adamantium poisoning his blood drives him into his grave.

Related: ‘Logan’ Director James Mangold Is Asked About a Black-and-White Version, Replies He’s ‘Working On It’

But the great thing about the final act of Logan is that it does give us back that youthful version of the character we met in X-Men. For starters, he rushes into battle specifically in the name of protecting a young mutant, X-23, just as he did with Anna Paquin‘s Rogue all those years ago. And, just like in the Statue of Liberty fight, he’s willing to trade his life for hers; in the earlier film, he allowed Rogue to “borrow” his healing factor even though it would potentially kill him. Here, he extinguishes his healing ability with that lethal dose of anti-virus and fights until he can’t stand anymore. For the most part, Logan is deliberately light on overt references to previous X-Men movies. But I love that Logan’s final on-screen moments so specifically recall his inaugural outing as an X-Man.

Your turn, Marcus! Do you also view the respective finales of X-Men and Logan as ideal bookends? And, be honest, did you also flash back to The Last Stand a little bit when Wolverine ran berserker-style through the woods in a sleeveless T-shirt?

Dafne Keen and Hugh Jackman in ‘Logan’ (Photo: 20th Century Fox)

MARCUS ERRICO: Yes, my friend, you are very correct about us viewers being conditioned to expect the Hollywood ending in comic-book movies. The dirt moved! Bruce Wayne’s on a Roman holiday, knocking back espressos. Heck, Wolverine already came back to life once before, reviving moments before the credits of Days of Future Past. One of the biggest knocks against the Marvel Cinematic Universe proper is the lack of stakes — no matter how dire our heroes’ predicament, we know Iron Man, Thor, and Cap are going to be back for the next Avengers. But Logan telegraphs from the get-go that there are stakes, and this will not be your typical superhero flick.

I grew up on the X-Men books of the 1980s, with Wolverine — a wise-cracking misfit and raging force of nature — front and center. From the outset in Singer’s X-Men, Jackman captured Wolverine’s inner turmoil, the James Dean of superheroes searching for his cause, which reached its apotheosis in Logan.

The film has so many meta moments — notably him thumbing through vintage X-Men comics, and him willfully downplaying those glory days — but, like you say, it also echoes that original X-Men movie. There, we have Wolverine finding humanity by helping surrogate daughter Rogue on a road trip/voyage of self-discovery. Here, it’s his real daughter, Laura. Those similarities are no accident. Logan/Jackman have gone full circle and it’s time to say sayonara.

While his death itself felt a bit underwhelming — this isn’t the first time a cinematic character has been fatally impaled by a jagged tree limb — I did appreciate how he was ultimately killed, and saved, by versions of himself. Very fitting.

Patrick Stewart and Hugh Jackman in ‘Logan’ (Photo: 20th Century Fox)

ETHAN: I agree that the specific manner of his execution, death by tree branch, is familiar. I’m trying to think of another way I’d have seen the killing blow dished out. Maybe his “brother” X-24 could have skewered him just before Laura blew his clone brains out with that adamantium bullet? That would have been a nice callback to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and the rivalry between half-brothers James and Victor Creed, a.k.a Sabertooth. Although, I’m guessing everyone involved with the X-franchise would rather forget that particular entry exists. (Allow me to play devil’s advocate on one Origins element, though: I’ve always maintained that Liev Schreiber was a fantastic Sabertooth. I’m sorry he never got the chance to reprise the role or, you know, digitally replace Tyler Mane in X-Men like Hayden Christensen has now been swapped in for Sebastian Shaw as Ghost Anakin at the end of Return of the Jedi.)

Leaving aside the exact manner of how he got his fatal wound, I’m very glad that Mangold allowed the scene to play out well past that. One could accuse him and Jackman of milking Logan’s final moments far beyond what was necessary, but after 17 years, I think he’s earned a victory lap on his way to the graveyard. It’s so rare for an actor to get the opportunity to permanently retire a hero they’ve portrayed across multiple movies and decades. Off the top of my head, the only major examples that come to mind are Harrison Ford in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and William Shatner in Star Trek: Generations. (Although Kirk came back later on in book form.) The next big one, I’m assuming, will be when Robert Downey Jr.‘s Tony Stark dies — for real this time — in an upcoming Avengers movie. Because you know that’s the last big trump card the current incarnation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will play.

I also think that Jackman couldn’t have delivered Logan’s last line, “So this is what it feels like,” any more eloquently. On the scale of a superhero’s dying words, it notches in well above “Not like this — like this!” and “Doomsday…is he…is he.” Is there something else, though, that you would rather have heard him say? Like, “Tell Deadpool to eff off.”

Laura and her fellow ‘new mutants’ on the run in ‘Logan’ (Photo: 20th Century Fox)

MARCUS: Ha! No, I agree with you there. The final line was a heartbreaker. As a father to a daughter, the poignancy of their goodbye hit me right in the solar plexus. And don’t get me wrong, I loved the setup for his big death: a rejuvenated Wolverine who literally battles a soulless form of himself to save the best part of him. That works for me. And I guess I can forgive the stick-through-the-heart trope.

Jackman milked the moment and delivered. I found it far more rewarding — and earned — than Han Solo’s demise, which felt like it served Harrison Ford more than the character or franchise.

But there are so many wrenching farewells in Logan. It’s early in the year, but I could see some awards love going to Patrick Stewart for his Professor X swan song. This is as Shakespearean as comic book movies get.

That said, do you think people will be satisfied with the ending? Are the “new mutants” interesting enough beyond Laura/X-23? And will folks find the lack of a credits scene a letdown, since it’s something we’ve been taught to expect from all these comic-book flicks?

Dafne Keen as Laura in ‘Logan’ (Credit: 20th Century Fox)

ETHAN: I think that hardcore Wolverine fans — those who have been craving an R-rated version of his exploits since the first movie — will be thrilled with Logan overall, and ecstatic with the ending. It gives the character a final full-on berserker killing spree, followed by the kind of melodramatically macho exit that aging fanboys adore. In that way, it’s both Shakespearean and Eastwood-ian. Had Clint not been otherwise engaged with Sully, it’s easy to imagine him behind the camera here.

One plea to those aging fanboys: Please, please, please do not bring your kids to Logan under any circumstances. Even if they’ve watched all the other X-films, plus Wolverine’s solo adventures, they should pay their respects to Logan when they’re a little older. Beyond the heightened level of brutality, the movie is rife with depictions of child abuse that work within the context of the story, but would be deeply upsetting to kids and the parents of kids, myself included.

Because of that, I actually think Logan can’t be the direct link to whatever the next generation of the X-Men franchise proves to be. The film ends with Laura and the other New Mutants crossing the border to Canada while Wolverine, like Moses, doesn’t live to see the promised land. That establishes a seemingly clean line of continuity, with Logan passing the torch to Laura. But, speaking for myself here, I’m not especially eager to spend any more time in this particular future, which seems like a narrative dead end to me.

A New Mutants movie set in this timeline would almost have to be as dark and depressing as Logan for it to feel like a natural successor. And if Fox’s mission going forward is to find new ways to bring new fans into the aging X-Men franchise, young audiences in particular are just going to be left out if that future involves an R-rated X-23 movie. Better to let Logan’s passing mark the end of an era, and create a New Mutants movie from the ground up that has some of the same maturity — but also the childlike fun — of Bryan Singer’s original X-Men outing, which is largely responsible for the franchise-rich present we inhabit.

Patrick Stewart and Hugh Jackman in ‘Logan’ (Credit: 20th Century Fox)

MARCUS: Funny you mentioned Eastwood. The Old Man Logan comic, which this film is very loosely based on, is essentially a Western, and, in the end, Wolverine gets to walk off into the sunset with a renewed sense of purpose. My inner fanboy is saddened by the finality of the film, because Jackman was so good as Wolverine, usually better than the material deserved. And I think he and Mangold knew that the sunset-walk wasn’t an option for them — they needed Wolverine to be buried to establish the certainty of his death, as much as Harrison Ford needed Han Solo to be impaled by a lightsaber, fall into a bottomless chasm, and, for good measure, get blown up with the rest of the planet. Neither is coming back.

As much as I loved the character of Laura, and the performance of Dafne Keen, I don’t see a viable sequel from here either. Laura/X-23 is currently the “all-new Wolverine” in the comics after a long stint on X-Force. But Fox has already decided to do X-Force as a second Deadpool sequel, and the New Mutants movie that begins shooting this year seems to be linked with the younger characters introduced in X-Men: Apocalypse. You are absolutely right that a film set in Logan’s dystopian future featuring a team of kids would be tonally jarring and all kinds of inappropriate. Wolverine’s DNA and his spirit live on in Laura. There’s a rebirth of mutants. There’s hope. There’s closure.

If that doesn’t satiate the Hollywood suits, we might get prequels, reboots, or, help us, another time reset. But I prefer that Jackman’s Wolverine rest in peace. He deserves it and so do we.

‘Logan’: Watch Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart Rave About Dafne Keen, Young Scene-Stealer as X-23:

[asmudgedmind]

My Top 12 favourite superheroes of Marvel and DC.

Okay, so first disclaimer, I am only sticking to heroes specifically rather than overall characters otherwise I would almost definitely have Mary Jane Watson and Lois Lane up here instead of some others (and probably Anna Maria Marconi too). Also, yeah I went for 12 so I could shoehorn in the last two onto the list as I like them too but there’s a lot more characters that I had to put in the first 10. 

And my top 5 are the same as what I had the last time I did this but I felt that there were more I anted to talk about and I like making lists. Sooo...

12. Natasha Romanova/Black Widow

Admittedly, this is from little exposure to her but... I really like what I have read and seen. The current run with Waid and Samnee is amazing and the run directly before it with Edmondson and Noto I liked too. I also love any time she has shown up in the Daredevil comics so that helps.

Number 11. James Howlett/Logan/Wolverine

Not much to be said here really. He’s the best at what he does...

Number 10. Marc Spector/Steven Grant/Jake Lockley/Moon Knight

I only got introduced to this character with the short but sweet Ellis and Shalvey run but I love this priest of Khonshu.

Number 9. Kate Kane/Batwoman

So the first story I read with Batwoman was the Detective Comics story ‘Elegy’ where she took over the book for a while. I appreciate the fact that despite being a prominent open LGBT character, she wasn’t written as a stereotype, and wasn’t written to be flawless. She’s a pretty badass fighter but she can be beaten. Shes strong but has flaws. Also, the fact that quite a few of the stories she’s had have had incredible art.

Number 8. Diana Prince/Wonder Woman

Okay, I’ll be the first to admit that I was late to the game with Wonder Woman and am playing catch up. I pretty much only started consistently reading her since the start of Rebirth but something has to be said for how much I’m enjoying it despite having no prior background really.

Number 7. Tim Drake/Red Robin

I think I have already made appreciation posts in the past for Tim but, to avoid going on too much, it is suffice to say that he is my favourite Robin and my favourite non-Batman member of the Bat Family. He’s the detective and, in my opinion, the one most like Bruce and would be best suited to becoming Batman.

Number 6. Bruce Banner/The Incredible Hulk

So this pick has more nostalgic value than anything else. The Hulk was my favourite superhero as a kid as I grew up watching the old live action show with Bill Bixby. Apparently my name for the Hulk was instead ‘The big green man that goes raarrgghh’ if that’s any indication as to how early I was exposed to the character. Needless to say, I was disappointed and pissed at Civil War 2.

Number 5. Bruce Wayne/Batman

Because he’s BATMAN!!... In all seriousness, this has a lot to do with the average quality of stories, writers and artists Bruce has had over the years more so than any particular character trait.

Number 4. Peter Parker/The Amazing Spider-Man

Again, a childhood nostalgia trip. While others got to consistently watch Batman: The Animated Series, I mostly got Spider-Man and then obviously the Raimi movies had a big effect. Spidey and Batman were actually the first two characters I started reading trades for to get myself into comics. Also, obviously Peter served as wish fulfilment for a young nerd such as myself before I got to actually achieve a scientific career.

Number 3. Wally West/The Flash

Yes he is better than Barry. I defy anyone to find a character trait of The Flash that they like that came from Barry and not Wally. The amazing cheesiness/heart and emotion of Wally’s Flash stories are just the best. Chain Lightning is my favourite Flash story of all time.

Aaaaaannd Joint Number 1. Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Clark Kent/Superman

It may seem odd that two seemingly very, very different heroes can come in as a tie but hey, it’s my list. I’m a relatively recent fan to Superman so let me start by talking Matt.

Daredevil was the third character I read for when getting into comics, immediately after Spidey and Batman. This was maybe 6 years ago and buying trades for Daredevil was a very different affair back then. I remember struggling to find Mark Waid’s run on Amazon UK (seriously they usually have everything but not that at the time) and you could maybe reliably get one of three stories: End of Days, Born Again, and Yellow. Since then, I have read around 300-400 of Daredevil’s probably nearing 600 issue history, with most of the stuff I haven’t read near the beginning (pre-Miller). I obviously empathise greatly with a superhero with a disability who doesn’t allow himself to become a victim and instead holds true to his sense of morality. This became even more the case when Matt found himself battling depression more than villains. It also helps that Daredevil has had some of the most consistently amazing creative teams in comics. 

Another contributing factor is something shared with Superman, and something I don’t see many people talk about with Matt. Despite having a tragic backstory, that is not what motivates Daredevil. What drives Matt to fight crime has nothing to do with his father’s death. An easy piece of evidence for this is how he got blinded in the first place. As a ten year old kid, Matt Murdock, without a second of hesitation, ran into the road to push an old, blind man out of the way of an oncoming vehicle. Daredevil is a hero because it’s the right thing to do, not out of guilt or some other motivating factor. (See another post for my favourite Daredevil story)

The exact same is true of Superman. And while Daredevil represents what a regular human with human difficulties and struggles can do to combat the evil in the world, Superman represents the best of us, what we can become. 

When Superman says that he stands for Truth, Justice and the American Way he does so without a hint of irony or cynicism. Clark Kent fights crime because he can do it and it is the right thing for him to do. But more than just combating the bad, he actively inspires the good.

[shioritsumi]

Of the cosplay group, which aspect has the most influence over each of them personally...?

Sawyer: Logic (He’s super energetic, but he’s secretly sort of a ‘there’s a method to my madness’ kind of guy. Everything he does actually makes complete sense and a lot of work goes into making all of his crazy shit work.) 

Phoenix: Creativity

Liam: Anxiety (He’s an android who’s constantly struggling to find the balance between too robotic and too human. He’s a nervous wreck half the time. Well, 60%.)

Kos: Morality (He’s the prince of a foreign kingdom, and he tends to rely on following his heart for a lot of things. His kingdom focuses on peace, which his family has always achieved through remaining harmless and making friends everywhere. So he’s good at that.) 

Fun facts:

-In order of heights, it’s Kos, Sawyer, Liam, and Phoenix. (5′ 4″; 5′ 8″; 5′ 10″, and 6′ 1″, respectively.) 

-People are somehow constantly surprised that Pheonix speaks Spanish. And also that some of his words are slightly different from what their Mexican classmates speak, or what they hear at Mexican restaurants. This is because he’s SPANISH, not Mexican. He speaks European Spanish, and some terminology differs. (Like European French to Canadian French.) 

-Liam’s prototype name was James Howlett, with him being called Logan as a really nerdy joke. (Wolverine’s called Logan, but his real name is James Howlett. There’s the entire joke.) 

-Prototype Sawyer was named Danny, and he was secretly a fairy. He’s just a really super energetic human right now. And his name was and still is a reference to Cats Don’t Dance. 

-Kos was planned as a prince from the beginning stages. First of all, to play off the whole Virgil-Roman banter, with the Virgil cosplayer being the actual prince while Princy’s is just a guy who acts like one. Secondly, it was to bring the whole idea of how the outcast-type character, the introverted one with anxiety was secretly the highest in status. And because being a prince is an extremely stressful thing. He HAS an older sister, but she’s fragile in health, and while their parents are in good health now, there’s no telling how long that’ll be true. He’s extremely anxious about his future, and taking over from his parents. 

-One of Liam’s pet peeves is being called a robot. According to him, a robot is a mindless machine which is only capable of repeating menial repetitive tasks. Unlike him, who is a living thinking feeling highly advanced technological marvel. His dad is extremely proud of him, and won’t stop telling him so. 

-Kos’s great great great grandfather’s family became the first royal family due to popular demand. They were actually sort of the clergy-community PTA group, and suggested the people choose someone they could trust and rely on to always do the right thing. The answer came back right away that “Well, that’s you! Your family ALWAYS does the right thing, and ALWAYS has the best for everyone at heart.” Graciously, they accepted, and Kos’s family has been in power peacefully ever since. 

-Kos’s full name of Kostyantyn is a Ukrainian form of the name Constantine. Why there isn’t an ‘n’ in there, I will never know, but...whatever, there it is. Part of the goal with his name was to find something old, traditional-sounding, and yet to also make it clear from his full name he’s secretly something really impressive. If you hear his full name, you go, oh yeah that’s totally a European crown prince. But if he goes by Kos, you just go, oh he’s that weird skinny guy in the hoodie on the far end of the class right? He’s been wearing that same hoodie all month does he even wash it?

[briangroth27]

Fox Should Wait to Recast the X-men's Logan

With Hugh Jackman retiring from the Wolverine role as of Logan, I can imagine the pressure to introduce a new Wolverine is overwhelming. He’s the most popular X-man and has been the face of the film franchise since it started (and arguably, the face of the comics franchise since at least the 80s). He’s the only X-man besides Deadpool proven to be a solo hit at the box office. There are three new X-films coming out in 2018—New Mutants, Deadpool 2, and X-men Dark Phoenix—any of them an opportunity to introduce a new Logan within a year. However, that’s the opposite of what Fox, Bryan Singer, and Simon Kinberg should do. The X-films are still my favorite superhero film franchise, but I think they can stand to give Logan a rest for a while.

Can Anyone Measure Up to Hugh Jackman? Wolverine was around decades before Jackman put on the claws and he’ll be around long after whoever suits up next. However, Jackman’s made his Logan the iconic version for many, despite the physical differences from the source material (comics Logan is just 5’3,’’ for instance). Any actor hired to take his place is immediately going to face scrutiny from both comic fans and general audiences, making it that much harder to sell someone else in the role.

Certainly, not just one actor gets to play each character and just because selling a new actor is difficult doesn’t mean the role should never be recast. Most would say Christopher Reeve is the iconic Superman, but that hasn’t stopped others from being (at least arguably) just as good in the role. Each actor brought different aspects of Clark Kent to the surface, making the role their own. And we do already have a great, recast Professor X in James McAvoy, as well as strong actors cast as young Cyclops, Storm, Nightcrawler, and Jean Grey, so the X-roles aren’t sacred and recasting doesn’t take anything away from the original. Sabretooth, Colossus, Jubilee, Gambit, Psylocke, Angel, Moira McTaggert, and Emma Frost have been reimagined as the movies’ narrative evolved, casting new actors in every case (three actresses have been Kitty Pryde!). However, Jackman’s tenure as Logan feels different from those roles, since he’s existed in both the not-so-distant-future and the prequel eras of the franchise. He’s already been established as the Logan of the Apocalypse era, so it’ll be a larger disconnect to see him recast now. It also feels a little dismissive of Jackman’s 17 years in the role and the character’s recent death in Logan to recast him in the near future.

The X-men are Bigger than Wolverine Wolverine’s one of my all-time favorite X-men, but he’s far from the only one worth telling stories about. The team is more than just “Wolverine and his Uncanny Friends,” and it’s past time the movies reflected that. With McAvoy, Fassbender, and Lawrence wrapping up their contracts (though I’m sure at least McAvoy will be back for New Mutants or Dark Phoenix) and Jackman retiring, now is the perfect time to put more focus on the younger cast and flesh out the other A-list X-men. We don’t need Gambit, Deadpool, or a new Wolverine to act as the franchise lead. I’d love it if the X-men films were reframed as true ensemble pictures, like the first movie was. At least let a different trio of characters headline each film while the rest of the team acts as supporting players, rotating them each film so everyone’s fleshed out. I’m more than ready for the films to focus on the other X-men and reintroducing Wolverine could very easily derail that. So many of the characters we’ve already got on screen have compelling stories to showcase:

 Cyclops Explore Scott dealing with the pressure of saving an entire species while he learns to be a leader. What if he’s secretly not confident he’s the right mutant for the job (reflecting his belief that Alex was supposed to be the guy who changed the world, not him), but like his optic blasts, he feels he has to keep those doubts bottled up or the team will fall apart? How does he learn to open up and let go when he’s been trained to believe strategic planning is the only way to save everyone? How does his usual status of “married to his job” (leading the X-men) affect his relationship with Jean? Can she get him to open up and relax? In addition to his weaknesses, let’s see his strengths! Show his ability to rally the X-men—and mutants in general—to his side to fight to protect a world that hates and fears them. Rather than the team blindly charging into battle, let’s see Cyclops’ strategic brilliance at work. Scott’s the X-men’s Captain America (with hidden some insecurity/confidence issues) and it’s time the movies played that up.

Rogue Reintroducing Rogue with her comics origin—a supervillain who permanently absorbed the super-strength, flight, and memories of a hero (there, Carol Danvers, here, it can be any random mutant), leaving her to question who she is—would give us a hero with a dark past seeking peace and redemption, much like Logan was...only comics Rogue balanced her angst with a flirty and fun side. The question of whether her heroic instincts were absorbed from the random Flying Strong Mutant or are her true nature coming out as a result of the kindness the X-men showed her would be a great line to walk. If Jean dies or loses her powers in Dark Phoenix, the field team will need a telepath and Rogue’s ability to absorb memories could come in handy, with the built-in disadvantage of also taking on the personalities of people she absorbs. And including that ability instead of just mentioning it happening offscreen, that’d be a fun challenge for any actress.

Storm Ororo stood by while Cairo was leveled—what’s she going through? How does her experience as the beloved leader of that group of Cairo children (making her the only mutant in history willingly followed by humans) inform her choices, viewpoint, and leadership style? Could this drive her to be overly proactive and overprotective of the New Mutants? Could we see her go a little dark, like punk Storm in the comics? Play up both her desperate thief past and her serene, nurturing side from the comics (of all the characters in the original trilogy, Storm’s multiple facets and complexities were flattened out the most). While her villainous arc was my least favorite part of Apocalypse, it’s certainly left her in an interesting position and I want to see her explored more. Could being party to the near-destruction of the planet lead her to take on the responsibility of bending nature to her will to revive the Earth? Controlling the weather is an immensely important power that has practical applications, and I’d love to see how she uses it to improve the world.

Nightcrawler Can Kurt find and keep his faith (and sense of humor) in spite of a world that largely hates his face? How does a religious mutant interpret God’s will and Word, if humans were made in God’s image? It’d be a departure from the comics, but could Kurt start his own denomination of mutant-based Christianity? Let’s explore the mutant subculture in New York through the guy who sticks out the most—we know some humans think they’re cool, we know others hate them, we could meet the Morlocks, etc. A jovial, swashbuckling skirt-chaser with the face of a demon and a strong faith is a great comedic (and potentially tragic) juxtaposition that deserves to be explored more. What happens when he realizes Mystique is (maybe) his mother?

Jean Grey Dark Phoenix will likely focus on Jean’s evolution into the comics’ cosmic force (that was Singer’s original plan for X3). How does she deal with the primal force of her evolved state? Will she want to continue to control herself, or will the power she displayed in dispatching a deadly threat like Apocalypse be too easy an answer to mutants’ problems? What can she do for the world with endless power? Is she the only mutant to achieve the next stage of evolution, or are there others? Are her concerns bigger than human/mutant relations now? What does a person do when they essentially become a goddess? Hopefully she’ll do much more than achieve ultimate power, only to stand behind a different villain like in Last Stand.

Quicksilver Will Peter find his purpose not that he’s gotten out of his parents’ basement? Will he make Erik a better man, or will Erik’s crusade rub off on his son?

 While there are some interesting aspects of Logan we’ve yet to see (which I discussed here), I can wait to get to those until we’ve gotten more from the others. We don’t need to see the Cyclops/Jean/Logan triangle again (particularly after they already resurrected it in Last Stand after it was settled in X2) and we’ve seen him mentor tons of people now, so the comics’ recent “teacher Logan” isn’t really needed here either. Just like the films need to use villains beyond Magneto and Stryker, lest they wear them out, they need to dig into the untapped potential of heroes beyond Wolverine.

 There’s a Great Wolverine Already Cast It’s possible they’ll have another version of Wolverine, like Jimmy Howlett, Logan’s son from the Ultimate X-men comics, take over the mantle in the main X-men films (which is the plan for the current X-men Blue comic). He’d be young enough that it’s not creepy to be in a love triangle with Jean and Scott (though if Dark Phoenix is set in the 90s, they’d be in their 20s). Daken, Logan’s son from the main Marvel continuity, is another possibility, though he’s a villain. 

Still, there’s already a perfect Logan replacement. Her name is Dafne Keen. Fox should follow her adventures in the future in Logan sequels. The best way to avoid Jackman’s shadow is to do the opposite. While either of Logan’s sons are valid options, it’d probably feel forced and redundant to introduce yet another guy with claws who happens to also be Logan’s child. Keen, however, already had the torch passed to her and is ready to go. She’s got the grit to do the crowd-pleasing berserker rage when needed, displayed a more vulnerable and caring side (as well as comedic chops), and she’s young and talented enough that they can take her character wherever they want as she grows.

Plus, Keen would be a ready-made and audience-tested female superhero franchise lead, something Fox could’ve had with Storm, Rogue, and/or Mystique already but haven’t and something WB and Marvel Studios are unfortunately only just starting to dig into. I also wouldn’t hate it if they rolled Laura into the New Mutants film and set it in the future of Logan, which I think should be relegated to its own timeline because of how defeatist in terms of Xavier and the X-men’s legacy it is (as I discussed in my Logan review). No matter where she pops up next, Keen was fantastic as Laura/X-23 and if she’s up for more, Fox would be crazy not to capitalize on this star in the making.

 I’m sure at some point, the X-universe will be fully rebooted and a new Logan will be cast. They’ll probably recast a new Logan before that, but I think they should explore the rest of the universe instead of relying on the cache of one mutant. Keen can carry the Wolverine name while Fox gives everyone else time to become stars too. If they must bring back Logan sooner rather than later, I just hope they remember he’s only one member of the team, not the entirety of the X-men.

[kingthekj]

Y/n, This Isn't You

Okay! I think I did a pretty good job for a rookie. So, here is the second chapter. Hopefully, I'll get an idea of what to do with this. Now I'm rambling. Sorry. 《Part Two 》 Tony shakes his arms, trying to get the blood running. Sixteen Days. Three hundred and thirty eight hours. Twenty-four thousand and forty seconds. That's how long since everyone has seen Y/n. It was like our sun had been snatched away from the team. Tony had stayed out of the suit and searching for any clue or trace of you. He was out of the skies for now, he felt more useful this way. But Thor and Vison  decided to go make rounds to see if anyone has seen you. Thor lands harshly on the ground , making his presence known. He watches closely as text mutants pile out on the lawn. "What are you doing here, Odinson?" The professor greets. He ignores the greeting and says with great sadness "A Warrior of ours has gone missing. We desperately need help." Storm scoffs "All that technology and you can't find one Avenger? Some team." Erik narrows his eyes at Vison. "Which one? You didn't specify which Avenger has gone missing, Thor." Erik notices the shaky breath the God of thunder does before answering. "It-it's Lady Y/n." The X-men look at Logan, who stiffens at the name. "How long?" He growls. No one sane would mess with Y/n. Someone who had a solid sibling bond with The Wolverine, Sargent James Logan Howlett. He'll raise Cain if someone hurts his sister. "Sixteen Days, Mister Howlett." The Humanoid informs. Vison then turns transparent to dodge the enraged Logan. Thor sighs, rolls his eyes and mutters about Midgardians. Meanwhile, Nat is trying to solve the issue singlehandedly. Fury, however has a different opinion. "Natasha Romanoff! You are most definitely not going half way across the globe." Fury fumes. But she isn't listening (When does she ever?) She spins on her heel and pokes him in the chest. "No! You listen here, I will not let my-my partner just go missing and just sit here. refuse to! Fury watches wide-eyed as the redhead rants. She loves y/n, he can see that with only one eye. "You're...scared, Nat. I get it. We all do but, fear-*blind* fear isn't going to get her back. She'll show up. Maybe we'll find her. Maybe she'll find us. She knew what this lifestyle cost. The rewards and risks. She'll pull through. " Fury states firmly. "I'm sorry. I just-just," Nat let's out a weak laugh then continues "I know something *bad* will happen or has happened to her. I know it." She lowers her head but Fury can see the tears in her eyes. He knows anything hes says next will just be empty promises to her ears. So he engulfs her in a embrace. Nat breaks down completely, with shuddering sobs and gasps. She clings to Nick, her fingers digging into his leather jacket. Nick gently soothes her by hugging her tighter and kissing the top of her head.