Saturday 15 December 2012

X-Factor #7: Who's Maddy?

So, X-Factor was launched against the protests of Chris Claremont, and it's been entertaining to watch him argue with it in Uncanny, by rehabilitating the Phoenix and having Madelyne wind up nearly-dead in a San Francisco E.R. That stage is over, as Claremont will find Louise Simonson (who took over writing from #6) much more amenable, and the two series' begin to acknowledge each others' reality.

X-Factor #7 sees our team arrive back as X-Factor, to a media furore. They've been been linked with their X-Men identities, courtesy of Tower, and Vera is interviewed on the telly by Trish Tilbit (note spelling: I choose to regard all subsequent appearances of her as Trish Tilby as misspellings).

Scott makes some phone calls (!) and can't find where Maddy is, while Jean asks some questions of the others, and deduces that the boy has only gone and got himself married. Accidentally calling her Maddy didn't help, probably.

Meanwhile, downstairs in the tunnels, two new mutants (Glowworm and Bulk), rejected even from the Morlocks (for being radioactive), are ready to demonstrate one of the more obvious flaws in the X-Factor plan, by attacking it. The guys have no clue what to do, and improvise wildly, dressing up as X-Men and teaming up with the Morlocks to attack X-Factor. (Hank, Scott, and Bobby anyway - Jean is missing and Warren is left behind because his wings would make him too distinctive, which I'm afraid is too little, too late!) "Free the mutants! X-Terminate X-Factor!" goes their slogan, and so they are quickly dubbed the "X-Terminators" by Tilbit, who can hear missing Es and hyphens.

After some "friendly fire", the second part of the game plan goes into effect, and five people in X-Factor uniforms leave the building to engage in a battle. That'd be Warren, Cameron, Jean, Rusty, and Vera. They "defeat" the X-Terminators, who then run away, with the Morlocks. Back at a safe location, they don't even explain what X-Factor really is. This is only going to lead to continued future embarrassment. But at least they've cleared up any holes in their story that X-Factor and the X-Terminators are separate. Yes?

3 comments:

  1. Vera is interviewed on the telly by Trish Tilbit

    Is this her first appearance? Must be.

    Scott makes some phone calls (!)

    So he DOES know how they work. Curious... :)

    and so they are quickly dubbed the "X-Terminators" by Tilbit, who can hear missing Es and hyphens

    Ha!

    This is only going to lead to continued future embarrassment.

    At least this time, that seems intentional. As in, Weezie realizes what an awful setup the X-Factor idea is, and is preparing to dismantle it.

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  2. Is this her first appearance? Must be.

    Yep.

    As in, Weezie realizes what an awful setup the X-Factor idea is, and is preparing to dismantle it.

    Absolutely. But it's amazing that the damage that was done in #1 will take until the Fall of the Mutants to play out. It has to be unpicked gradually.

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    Replies
    1. True. It's probably to Weezie's credit that she at least takes the time to properly acknowledge the problems with the setup, offer up a partial explanation for why it happened in the first place (Hodge), then moves past it, rather than just immediately sweeping it aside as soon as she took over, which is most likely what would happen today.

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