Farewell, X-23 Monthly Series...
By
Anti_Proton,
Posted on: 2011-12-07 10:44 in Comic and Hero-Villain Culture
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Damn. One of the few titles I was still holding on to. Ah hell.|
Originally Posted by Kurrent
We only had you for two years, yet you reached heights of storytelling many series will never taste.
 Wherever you wind up, Laura, we wish you only the best. You're one of Marvel's most original and compelling characters, and maybe they'll give you your own book again soon. You certainly deserve it. K |
My trip to the comic shop last week? $0.00 (not including gas).
Looking like I'm going to be seeing more and more of those.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
How is a girl wolverine original?
Once you make failure an option, eventually, it will be your ONLY option.
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That's what I was going to ask. I never read the book, admittedly, but my understanding was that it was basically Logan with a sex change.
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Originally Posted by Killer_Joke
How is a girl wolverine original?
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Est sularis oth Mithas
I've only ever seen her in X-Men:Evolution and not read any comics with her in it but yeah she is a female clone of Wolverine. Not really original.
P.S. That cover reminds me of Adventures In Babysitting so much.
I really enjoyed the X-23 mini series and the monthly. Its a pity to see it go.
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Are those just her boots, or does she have claws in her toes?
Est sularis oth Mithas
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Yes. |
Originally Posted by Arnabas
Are those just her boots, or does she have claws in her toes?
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She has two claws in each of her forearms, and one in each foot. They tried to expalin it as a female thing. Something about defending children, I think.
Cancelling her series and moving her into Avengers Academy. Not sure why, but I guess Marvel feels that adding Wolverine Lite to the roster might do the book some good.
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Daken is geting dropped too. Its like they just fired her (the writer for both books. I forgot her name. Marjorie liu or something close). Laura going to avengers acadamy instead of being with X-Men Wolverine's Faction is an interesting move. But nothing will ever beat her run with New X-Men and X Force.
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The cover was very deliberately done as homage to "Adventures in Babysitting," which doubles its awesomeness.|
Originally Posted by Frostbiter
I've only ever seen her in X-Men:Evolution and not read any comics with her in it but yeah she is a female clone of Wolverine. Not really original.
P.S. That cover reminds me of Adventures In Babysitting so much. |
How is Laura original as compared to Wolverine? Well, physically, no adamantium bonded to her bones, only her claws. Healing factor even higher than Wolverine's, since his is partially occupied countering the poisonous effect of the adamantium coating his skeleton. Yes, she has claws in her feet. Not as strong as Wolverine, obviously, due to her smaller build. Teenager, and, um, a girl. Obviously.
(SPOILER WARNING AT THIS POINT)
But the real originality in X-23 was in her story, which really is best learned from her origin miniseries. Wolverine had it rough, but Laura had it worse. Created in a lab, raised to be an assassin with zero human contact, treated like an attack dog except for the one researcher who donated the other X chromosome since the Y chromosome from Wolverine's blood sample was too degraded. Laura's "mother" gave her a name and read stories to her when possible, providing her only taste of humanity and compassion for over ten years. Her martial arts sensei also treated her with respect, which made an impression on Laura, but he was killed for his attempt to interact with her on a human level. Oh, and Wolverine's berserker rage, which tends to reduce his fun level at parties? Again, Laura has it worse: a "trigger scent" which induces an animalistic killing rage and suppresses her conscious mind, forcing her to slaughter anyone around her whenever she detects the scent. She killed her own "mother" this way, which haunts her constantly.
Once she escaped her laboratory home and killed all the other X-23 clones that were being created, Laura wound up as a homeless girl, uncertain about human interaction or her purpose. She became a child prostitute, not through any desire but because she was pushed in that direction by a pimp, she had no concept of self-respect, and she really didn't care one way or the other. She still deals with memories from that time, of being degraded and abused but always healing physically, never mentally.
And even with all that baggage, she still tries to be a better person. She found friends who taught her to respect herself and the value of life in general, but she has no hesitation in killing to protect others. She is an outsider most teenagers her age can't even fathom, but she is still accepted and loved by her friends and new family. She has been hesitant to accept that she deserves a chance at life and a chance to be happy, but she has finally been convinced of that by those close to her. She's a walking, seething mess of contradictions but she manages to rise above the horrors of her past and her own terrible actions to try and be a better person. THAT'S a good character. It's part of what gives Wolverine his appeal as well, and I can see why it's easy to assume that Laura is just a copy of him and his story, but there are definite differences. Watching the two of them interact is its own little subplot in itself.
And I absolutely LOVED the storyline where X-23 is asked to babysit Franklin and Valeria Richards. Pure storytelling delight in pretty much every page, where dialogue isn't even needed in many panels but is perfect where used.
(Laura: "You want to use a nuclear bomb... to travel through time."
Valeria: "Just a little one.")
Gold. I can only hope that Avengers Academy treats her well. Seeing Lightspeed and the new White Tiger in AA so far has been very nice, I must say. I love both those characters, and I like seeing them used. The subplots they've just introduced for each of them are also very intriguing. I've also heard rumors about the Runaways popping up in AA, which would make me ecstatic.
While the series was certainly better than some of the other X-Men books out there, X-23 is far from original. Don't get me wrong, I prefer reading X-23 than say Dark Wolverine, but again a female Wolverine had already been done before in "The Native" storyline some years back. Condition an assassin was the sole basis of the Wolverine character, yeah how they did it was different but it's the same thing. The only original thing about X-23, the claw in the foot, which was one of the more annoying things about the character...right up there with Daken's two claws from the back on the hand on one from the wrist. Oh, and Daken doesn't have adamantium either, just the wrist claws which are coated with metal for the that sword which could kill Wolverine (or something like that, the whole storyline was moronic).
-- "If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried."
Now if we can get rid of "Chick-Ghost Rider", "Chick-Black Panther", and "Chick-Bullseye", I can get back to enjoying those characters again.
"Samual_Tow - Be disappointed all you want, people. You just don't appreciate the miracles that are taking place here."
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There's a super-team dedicated to handing out religious tracts?
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Originally Posted by Anti_Proton
Now if we can get rid of "Chick-Ghost Rider", "Chick-Black Panther", and "Chick-Bullseye", I can get back to enjoying those characters again.
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Well "Chick Ghost Rider"'s series is ending with ish 9, it seems Marvel is cancelling many titles, but then some deserve it and the current Ghost Rider series is one of them. Despite the fact that "Chick Rider" is guest starring in some books prior to ish 9 and that Feb 2012 is the new GR movie, I suspect the series will end with Blaze recombining with the Rider again.
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Originally Posted by Anti_Proton
Now if we can get rid of "Chick-Ghost Rider", "Chick-Black Panther", and "Chick-Bullseye", I can get back to enjoying those characters again.
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Yeah, I'm gonna miss X-23's monthly series. It was shaping up nicely with Liu at the helm, and Takeda's pseudo-manga art style really complimented her writing. They managed to make vampire Jubilee impossibly cute, and Franklin and Val Richards actually looked their ages for a change. My consolation is that X-23 is going to another solid title in Avengers Academy; I have no concern that Christos Gage will mishandle her.
As for the female Ghost Rider: The series was an odd one. It started smack-dab in the middle of Fear Itself, and so a lot of story points were kinda rushed. It was just starting to hit its stride and decompress a little with Alejandra going off on her own, although Rob Williams was still unsure of what voice he wanted to give her. But with Marvel looking to cut its number of publications and a new GR movie coming out with Johnny Blaze, the writing was all but on the wall.
Positron: "There are no bugs [in City of Heroes], just varying degrees of features."
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Both the current GR Series and Iron Man 2.0/War Machine were derailed by FEAR and pointless crossover issues. Also to me FEAR was a non event full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. THOR's "death" at the end of it is basically meaningless since Asgardians do not tend to stay dead and since he had a recent successful movie and with Avengers around the corner you know he's coming back fast (ish 12 I believe) |
Originally Posted by Goliath Bird Eater
As for the female Ghost Rider: The series was an odd one. It started smack-dab in the middle of Fear Itself, and so a lot of story points were kinda rushed. It was just starting to hit its stride and decompress a little with Alejandra going off on her own, although Rob Williams was still unsure of what voice he wanted to give her. But with Marvel looking to cut its number of publications and a new GR movie coming out with Johnny Blaze, the writing was all but on the wall. |
Also what is a shame about the impending end of the current GR series was that they had planned for Dan Ketch who is still a Rider to appear in it. But it's pretty obvious that Blaze will again be the Rider when the series is done. Too bad they can't find the right writer to give GR a good series.
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I really liked the Ennis/Crain mini series, and the followup by Way/Saltares/Texeria (later Aaron/Boschi) with his 'rebirth' back out of hell, and the revelation that being a tool of Lucifer was a deal brokered by the angel Zadkiel selling God's Vengance out as part of his plan. It got kind of dodgy near the end, but had a really good story going, and the Ennis run was brilliant on its own. Also the "Trail of Tears" mini-series was really very good in my opinion, and did a lot to capture the essense of the rider.|
Originally Posted by Nericus
Also what is a shame about the impending end of the current GR series was that they had planned for Dan Ketch who is still a Rider to appear in it. But it's pretty obvious that Blaze will again be the Rider when the series is done. Too bad they can't find the right writer to give GR a good series.
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I don't dislike the new run, but it doesn't have a lot of strength behind it. I hope they do find a good team to work on it. There's some truly awesome anti-hero stories that could be told with the Ghost Rider.
Back on topic. As for X-23, I'm really sorry to see the series go. I pick a copy up for both myself and a friend of mine who's a fan of hers as well. I'm not a big fan of Wolverine (though I don't hate him either, even though I think he's been a little overused). However, I like X-23 for the character she is, and has developed into. I hope she doesn't fall into the same category Wolverine has, wandering into every series 'til she's involved in everything 'cause she's cool...
On the other hand, I also read Avengers Academy... she's an... interesting... addition to the roster...
"I play characters. I have to have a very strong visual appearance, backstory, name, etc. to get involved with a character, otherwise I simply won't play it very long. I'm not an RPer by any stretch of the imagination, but character concept is very important for me."- Back Alley Brawler
I couldn't agree more.
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As i recall X-23's foot blades were a procedure done by the engineers/surgeons during her development that involved removing one claw from each hand and implanting it in a foot.|
Originally Posted by Loki120
While the series was certainly better than some of the other X-Men books out there, X-23 is far from original. Don't get me wrong, I prefer reading X-23 than say Dark Wolverine, but again a female Wolverine had already been done before in "The Native" storyline some years back. Condition an assassin was the sole basis of the Wolverine character, yeah how they did it was different but it's the same thing. The only original thing about X-23, the claw in the foot, which was one of the more annoying things about the character...right up there with Daken's two claws from the back on the hand on one from the wrist. Oh, and Daken doesn't have adamantium either, just the wrist claws which are coated with metal for the that sword which could kill Wolverine (or something like that, the whole storyline was moronic).
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The fact that the character concept wasn't totally original doesn't change the fact that in my opinion the character herself has been handled in a way that makes her more interesting and original to me than Wolverine himself has been for years. She is definitely not simply a female Wolverine. By that standard any character that shares a heritage and powers/abilities with another character is a derivative copy. That really only hold true with bad writers who actually write the character that way. (Not going to mention the Cimeroran cut-and-pastes, not going to mention the Cimeroran cut-and-pastes, not going to...) X-23/Laura is someone who happens to have the same abilities as Wolverine (by design), but who is otherwise a very different character.
X-23 was actually one of the only Marvel titles i was collecting aside from Avengers Academy. i guess this was Marvel's way of lowering my comic collecting costs.
Dr. Todt's theme.
i make stuff...
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I got the joke, and it made me lol a little.|
Originally Posted by SkullThuggery
There's a super-team dedicated to handing out religious tracts?
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As far as Laura, looks like she is also going to be having a guest spot in another book that looks to be very interesting.
Venom (Eddie Brock)
Rulk
Ghost Rider
X-23
http://www.comicvine.com/venom/29-14...ent/92-637597/
Just noticed it was female Ghost Rider.
Willpower has more passive regen than Regen does. Who thought that was a good idea?
Can we get a fix for Energy Melee instead of more new sets?
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Yep but I think that issue occurs before GR 9.
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Originally Posted by Gobbledygook
I got the joke, and it made me lol a little.
As far as Laura, looks like she is also going to be having a guest spot in another book that looks to be very interesting. Venom (Eddie Brock) Rulk Ghost Rider X-23 http://www.comicvine.com/venom/29-14...ent/92-637597/ Just noticed it was female Ghost Rider. |
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Incorrect. Sitting here with the origin story in hand right now.|
Originally Posted by Schismatrix
As i recall X-23's foot blades were a procedure done by the engineers/surgeons during her development that involved removing one claw from each hand and implanting it in a foot.
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It was 2 claws in the hand and one in the foot. Always. They didn't "rearrange" her.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
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Yet as she is a clone of Wolverine, one would think the claws would remain as 3 in the hand and none in the foot....unless they want to use this as an excuse to give Wolverine retractable claws from his feet.......ugh
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Originally Posted by Hyperstrike
Incorrect. Sitting here with the origin story in hand right now.
It was 2 claws in the hand and one in the foot. Always. They didn't "rearrange" her. |
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She's not an exact clone. She was modified in a few ways, and being brought to term in a surrogate mother might've also affected her development. Also, Daken has two claws coming from the top of his hand and one coming out underneath from his wrist, so there is evidence of variance in claw placement within those from his bloodline who share the same mutation.
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Originally Posted by Nericus
Yet as she is a clone of Wolverine, one would think the claws would remain as 3 in the hand and none in the foot....unless they want to use this as an excuse to give Wolverine retractable claws from his feet.......ugh
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Positron: "There are no bugs [in City of Heroes], just varying degrees of features."
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This.
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Originally Posted by Goliath Bird Eater
She's not an exact clone. She was modified in a few ways, and being brought to term in a surrogate mother might've also affected her development. Also, Daken has two claws coming from the top of his hand and one coming out underneath from his wrist, so there is evidence of variance in claw placement within those from his bloodline who share the same mutation.
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Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
We only had you for two years, yet you reached heights of storytelling many series will never taste.
Wherever you wind up, Laura, we wish you only the best. You're one of Marvel's most original and compelling characters, and maybe they'll give you your own book again soon. You certainly deserve it.
K