Entry tags:

char: agent abigail brand, char: beast/hank mccoy, char: death's head, char: henry peter gyrich, char: lockheed, creator: jamie mckelvie, creator: john cassaday, creator: joss whedon, creator: kieron gillen, creator: steven sanders, publisher: marvel comics, series: awesome new female characters, title: astonishing x-men, title: s.w.o.r.d.

Ornery, unyielding, quick-tempered, terribly busy, and the best damn person to lead the planet's first line of defense, Abigail Brand is my candidate for Awesome New Female Characters Week!



Making her debut early in Joss Whedon and John Cassady's Astonishing X-Men, Brand is the commander of S.W.O.R.D., Earth's major defensive organization against extraterrestrial threats. She was, throughout, portrayed as someone who would go to any means to save the planet, always keeping the big picture in mind.





It's not a bad start (which is about the highest praise you'll hear me give that run, which i wasn't generally a fan of), but I feel it lacks something...


Shouting! Yes, yes, manic shouting is exactly what she was missing. <3

Given her own spin-off book last November, S.W.O.R.D. by Kieron Gillen and Steven Sanders, it lasted only five issues before cancellation, but has quickly become one of my favorite reads!
Here's a few more to give you an idea of the greatness that is Brand!

(about three and a third in total from #1)

It's a save-the-world-before-breakfast day. She has a lot of those. Hers is a busy job.


She's a good sister to a bad brother!


She's never heard of the A-Team! She was too busy.
...Saving the world.


She has, if I may say so, excellent taste in men. Especially when he's written more in character than when they first got together.*


Really, she probably hasn't eaten breakfast in years.

(from #1's back-up story, art by Jamie McKelvie)

She's an impressive negotiator (do not cross her ever, ever).

(approximately three pages from #2)

She takes pleasure in the small things!


She's got her priorities straight!


She does her own sound effects!


But at least she's isn't the black sheep. Believe it!

(one and a half from #3)

She has no patience for coups. (the "contact pyrokinesis", btw, has only ever been shown once*)


But she really does care (don't tell anyone!)

(about one and a third from #4)

She's an experienced diplomat!


You won't see her let herself get tired often, but she's still human (on her mother's side).


If she is anything, she is thorough.

(not quite four pages from #5)

She has a master's in Gloating to match Gyrich's doctorate in Deserving It.


It doesn't happen often, but when it's her responsibility, she'll own up to it!


Did I mention she's really good at negotiating?


She has the best job in the universe, and there isn't anyone better at it.

Abigail Brand is amazing, no question about it. If you like what you see here, check out S.W.O.R.D.! It's manic fun, action-packed, and the most delightful read of the year, in my humble opinion. It's collected as X-Men: S.W.O.R.D. - No Time To Breathe, so pick it up if you can! You'll thank me later.

She also had a relatively minor role in Heralds, and has been featured to some unknown degree in Warren Ellis' run on Astonishing X-Men, but I haven't read that so I couldn't speak to it.

* linked pages are from Giant-Sized Astonishing X-Men #1, by Whedon and Cassady

And if you're thinking of complaining about how Beast looks, really, we've heard it all before.