Scar
Super Freak
Re: Marvel Main Events (Spoilers) [Currently Dark Reign]
Well, now we know that the Professor Xavier being paraded around by Norman is in actuality Mystique, whom Emma seemed quite ready to execute on the spot if given permission... but the fact alone that she would be asking permission, and from Norman Osborn, is the way the tables have turned in the Marvel U right now. I like that Mystique has been outfitted with nanites in the same respect that the Thunderbolt team members were, but with hers having the added feature of an explosive capacity to render her little more than a crimson mist, should she step out of line. I wouldn't count Emma out just yet. She is as she has ever been - extremely provocative in terms of both her actions and her motivation. Her villainy has boundaries, unlike the other members of the Cabal; she joined Norman's alliance for a noble reason, that being the safeguarding of mutant kind. You'll notice that in Utopia, Emma's turncoat actions don't strike Scott as particularly bothersome, but rather compelling. Watching Scott as he witnesses Emma's activity seems more like a pensive chess player observing a mate's clever move in admiration, rather than gauging a petulant, traitorous opponent and yearning to strike a devastating blow. Norman legitimately believes Emma to be playing for his team, and right now I'm not entirely certain she's not playing for Scott's as well. She may very well not be motivated by power, as Norman and the other members of the Cabal largely are, but rather still by a desire to safeguard her kind. Better to be at the right hand of the devil than in his path...
In terms of Avengers power players, Ares is, after all, a god. The god of war, for that matter. Very, very few things give him pause on the field of battle. I find it difficult to calculate many who could oppose him in a protracted fight. Ares, Moonstone, and the Sentry are the heavy-hitters that the Dark Avengers have going for them, and being that we saw the Void make his Dark Reign arrival in the last Dark Avengers issue, I'd say the odds are heavily stacked in the Avengers' favor. I LOVE the feral angle with Venom, allowing him to feast upon both the flesh of the innocent and prisoners' alike. He's an attack dog, Norman's little Rancor to whom he can toss all troublemakers and leave them little more than stains on the floor. This last issue of Dark Avengers was easily my favorite. We continue to see an interesting dynamic play out between Norman and Bob, particularly when he calls upon the Void to make an example of the Atlanteans. I'm curious what Namor will think of all this, but again with Bob at his beckon call few can oppose him... at least until Bob blows a fuse, in which case everyone on the planet will have much bigger worries than the Dark Reign. A very, very, very strong issue for the Dark Avengers. And overall I like what I'm reading in Utopia thus far.
Ok, just read Dark Avengers #6 and X-Men/Dark Avengers Utopia #1. Dark Avengers continues to be a great read, but I was disappointed with Utopia
Dark Avengers:
- Osborn is continuing to piss his team off; Bullseye and Moonstone in particular.
- Doom and Loki are working together to undermine Osborn
- Norman tries to order/yell at Namor resulting in a major clash of personalities and Namor leaving the group. Osborn then orders Sentry to release the Void and kill every Atlantean "terrorist cell" except one to be paraded through the streets to give the public peace of mind...the Atlantean is then fed to Venom.
- Marvel Boy is missing
- At the end of the book, Osborn has a conversation with his green mental companion
Utopia:
- Mutant Rights and Humanity Now groups have riots throughout San Francisco resulting in the Dark Avengers being sent in to enforce order
- Osborn tells Emma Frost that Cyclops cannot handle the job of being mutantkinds leader and he wants Emma in charge; he then gives her a folder and it eludes that they have sex afterwards (Osborn says, "Think big, real big." Emma replies, "Oh my!" and the next box is her with just a sheet on.)
- Emma turns into the Black Queen
- Beast is imprisoned, Venom and Colossus go at it, Bullseye helps out the local police, and Ares and Northstar prepare to fight
- At the end, a seemingly brainwashed Professor X is telling mutant kind to stand down and do what the government wants (sterilization of mutants)
I really like how Dark Avengers is panning out, but Utopia seems...stretched and rushed to me. I don't like how Trask just shows up in San Francisco with Humanity Now! insisting on sterilization of mutants and instantly the city has riots while Cyclops just seems confused and unable to give commands.
I hate what Marvel is doing with Emma Frost. She has always been...provacative, but now they are just portraying her as a super-whore who is willing to do anything to get by instead of the co-leader of the X-Men who helped Cyclops turn the team more militaristic. C'mon, in the last few months it has been revealed that she has slept with Sebastian Shaw, NAMOR, and now hinted at Norman Osborn? Why does Marvel have ANY villains turn hero if they are just going to retcon or change the character back? Just seems a waste that they have spent the last five years building her as a strong-willed leader just to trash that.
Finally, I think that without the Void, the Dark Avengers do not stand a chance against the combined X-Men teams. Venom vs. Colossus? Colossus stood up to the Hulk (albeit, briefly) during WWH. Ares would cause problems, but I just think it is a bit of a stretch.
Well, now we know that the Professor Xavier being paraded around by Norman is in actuality Mystique, whom Emma seemed quite ready to execute on the spot if given permission... but the fact alone that she would be asking permission, and from Norman Osborn, is the way the tables have turned in the Marvel U right now. I like that Mystique has been outfitted with nanites in the same respect that the Thunderbolt team members were, but with hers having the added feature of an explosive capacity to render her little more than a crimson mist, should she step out of line. I wouldn't count Emma out just yet. She is as she has ever been - extremely provocative in terms of both her actions and her motivation. Her villainy has boundaries, unlike the other members of the Cabal; she joined Norman's alliance for a noble reason, that being the safeguarding of mutant kind. You'll notice that in Utopia, Emma's turncoat actions don't strike Scott as particularly bothersome, but rather compelling. Watching Scott as he witnesses Emma's activity seems more like a pensive chess player observing a mate's clever move in admiration, rather than gauging a petulant, traitorous opponent and yearning to strike a devastating blow. Norman legitimately believes Emma to be playing for his team, and right now I'm not entirely certain she's not playing for Scott's as well. She may very well not be motivated by power, as Norman and the other members of the Cabal largely are, but rather still by a desire to safeguard her kind. Better to be at the right hand of the devil than in his path...
In terms of Avengers power players, Ares is, after all, a god. The god of war, for that matter. Very, very few things give him pause on the field of battle. I find it difficult to calculate many who could oppose him in a protracted fight. Ares, Moonstone, and the Sentry are the heavy-hitters that the Dark Avengers have going for them, and being that we saw the Void make his Dark Reign arrival in the last Dark Avengers issue, I'd say the odds are heavily stacked in the Avengers' favor. I LOVE the feral angle with Venom, allowing him to feast upon both the flesh of the innocent and prisoners' alike. He's an attack dog, Norman's little Rancor to whom he can toss all troublemakers and leave them little more than stains on the floor. This last issue of Dark Avengers was easily my favorite. We continue to see an interesting dynamic play out between Norman and Bob, particularly when he calls upon the Void to make an example of the Atlanteans. I'm curious what Namor will think of all this, but again with Bob at his beckon call few can oppose him... at least until Bob blows a fuse, in which case everyone on the planet will have much bigger worries than the Dark Reign. A very, very, very strong issue for the Dark Avengers. And overall I like what I'm reading in Utopia thus far.
Last edited: