thecomicscove

Thanx for the examples, guys. Warlock and Longshot occurred after I'd made this post, but I didn't even think about Jubilee.

@Spiderslike, your point about the dual purpose of education as well as protecting goes a long way towards giving me a logical reason the X-Men could justify denying membership to a non-mutant. Thanx for making obvious what I should have realized. :)

Let me ask this: if someone like Spider-Man, or Punisher (I'm talking "power" sets and ability/origin here, not philosophies), or Dr. Strange were to express an earnest desire to join the X-Men, do you think the X-Men would be justified in denying them? Why or why not?

I slept with Jubilee because I'm freaking awesome.

Apologies if this question has been done or overdone before.

I have a couple of friends whose intense dislike of the X-Men seems to stem from one simple fact: they won't let non-mutants join the team. Using Spider-Man as an example, they say that they simply wouldn't let him join the team because he's not a mutant, and therefore, they're hypocrites/racists/whatever other harmful word you want to use there.

Now, I'm not aware of any specific instance when Spider-Man tried to join the X-Men, so if anyone knows about when he's tried, I'd be grateful to know. But I'm also curious if the larger question of if anyone has tried to join the team who was a non-mutant? I can't currently think of any stories where that's happened, either. What was the reaction, and the reason for it? Have the X-Men ever allowed someone one the team who wasn't a mutant (the combat teams--support personnel like Moira MacTaggart don't really count, imo).

Finally, I can't help thinking that, if it's true, there's plenty of justification for the X-Men wanting to keep their team mutants-only. But so far I'm only able to make an argument based on the fact that I feel this way. I'm having trouble stepping away from the racist/hypocrite label with any logical arguments. Anyone want to help me out here as well.

I'll admit, I like this particular take on time travel, and will likely look into this issue for it. On the other hand, the various schools of thought with regard to how time travel *actually* works all have one thing in common: they're un-provable until time travel actually occurs. In the mean time, I'm happy to look at all the possible types and consequences of time travel as they're told in so many versions.

Time travel, like so many other devices, is common plot device. I think we should treat it and all its permutations as such. Should it be abused? Of course not (unless you have a title specifically dedicated to time traveling). But I see nothing wrong with the Back to the Future explanation of time travel any more than I do with the Days of Future Past time travel, or the myriad forms of time travel explored in Star Trek shows.

In short, let's enjoy it for what it is: good storytelling. Well, at least, in the hands of a good writer, it is. :)

Meh. I don't really care one way or the other. I thought the 2005 redesign was pretty sweet, why they'd want to update it--particularly to *this*--is beyond me. But in the long run, it's not their logo that's gonna sell me comics.

I'm in agreement with those who say that bleak, horrific futures make for better storytelling than happy ones. Without conflict, there's usually no real story to tell.

If you think about it, the very fact of being an X-Man makes you prone to a bleak future, present and eventually, your past is fraught with struggle and tragedy too. Let's look at a few storylines:

Past: Well, anything now, technically. in Deadly Genesis, we discover Xavier sent another team of would-be X-Men to their deaths. Operation: Zero Tolerance, X-Tinction Agenda, and the Legacy Virus fallout are all examples of fights just to survive. The X-Men have managed to stay alive and even enjoy life despite all this.

Present: Age of Apocalypse is one story where the "present" is flat-out altered because of what happened in the past. Horrific and dark? Yes. But ultimately life-affirming.

Future: Days of Future Past. Bishop's future. Cable's future. The future's future. I think we've got enough examples.

I just can't think of any X-Men stories that are memorable where there isn't *some* kind of conflict, however minor. And horrific predictions of the future make for excellent motivators of conflict.

Agreed. I simply didn't understand why there seemed to be such a backlash about this, particularly from G-Man.

I think it comes back to the distinction of toys being a representation of people--which they aren't--and toys being a representation of intellectual property.

This was, above all else, a business decision that should be considered separately from any kind of continuity or thematic issues involved in the stories Marvel chooses to tell.

Apologies if this has been done to death.

I'm curious about digital comics. I know they've become more popular this year, and that there is plenty of speculation about how they will help or harm the industry. I was wondering if people would be willing to chime in with answers to some or all of the following questions:

• Do you read comics digitally? If not, why not?
• If you do, what apps, services, or mechanisms do you use to read them? Do you read them on your phone, iPad, Nook or Kindle, or your computer? Why do you prefer digital?
• What apps, services, or methods would you recommend to a newcomer to digital comics?
• Do you think digital comics will harm print comics? Why or why not?
• Creators, what's your opinion about digital comics? Do you think they offer opportunities or liabilities to your financial well-being? Do you think they're good for the industry?

Since I review comics, I'm interested in exploring ways to read newer issues on the go, possibly at lower cost than if I were to buy them in print (?). I appreciate any input people can offer! :D

So, I've just let my current sequential artist go from a project we'd been working on. He was local, and a friend, and unfortunately things just didn't work out. Now that I'm in the market for another artist, I'm curious to know what forums/websites/boards do you guys use when you're looking for collaborators on a comics project? I should probably start looking some of them over...

My own favorite moment in comics:

People's response to the robbery of Mike Meyer, the Superman fan in St. Louis whose collection of comics and memorabilia was stolen. Comic fans and groups from around the country and the world sent him donations to replace what was taken from him, including original art, autographed memorabilia--even Brandon Routh talked with him on the phone for half an hour.

I blogged this as well as the robbery itself as significant moments from 2011. It's the moment I'm surprised not to have seen in other lists so far.