Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: "Utopia" Part 5

[colonel_green.insanejournal.com]

Three scans from Dark Avengers #8, by Matt Fraction and Luke Ross.

Cyclops sends X-Force (in their normal costumes, for the most part) into Norman's evil HQ to retrieve all the captured mutants (they had Mindee Cuckoo deliberately get arrested to lead them there).  They are confronted by the Dark X-Men:



Namor KOs Mimic, and Emma asks whether Cloak and Dagger want to go back to being on the wrong side of the law or stay.  Obviously, they choose option 1.  Magik beams everybody to the X-Men's new base...an island raised off of San Francisco bay, which is called "Utopia".




I kind of hope Emma keeps this costume, though based on the covers that's not likely.

Disappointingly, there's no X-23/Daken fight in this issue, but apparently that's going to happen in the finale instead, based on the preview art.

Comments

[kd_the_movie.insanejournal.com]

gotta admit, this is pretty cool. It sets up a "mutant state" that's actually controlled by the X-Men this time around.

[daningram.insanejournal.com]

Neat scene there, though I wonder when writers are going to realize that people don't need camera crews, reporters etc. to broadcast their messages to the world.

Fraction lauds Cyke for using the media against Norman, as if it's some great feat. Aw well.

Wonder what losing two of his useless Cabal will do to Norman...

[jlroberson.insanejournal.com]

Fraction of all people, whose writing reflects technogeekery in the extreme, should understand that.

Funny, the MU is full of supertech and yet the concept of media might as well have only 3 networks.

[icon_uk.insanejournal.com]

You don't need them, but they add authenticity to your case, and when you return them to the mainland, they cans till represent you as free agents of the media.

[(Anonymous)]

heh, i knew, and i think everyone else did too, that there was more to Emma's "defection" than seemed. they went too far our of thier way to show that she has "become one of the family" in that mini.... the mini which name escapes me... anyways, So cloak and dagger joined them? cool, namor too. I like smart scott :)

[thanekos.insanejournal.com]

... what is it with Norman picking disproportionate-to-the-situation Dark Avengers to carry out his misdeeds?

he brings along Moonstone to intimidate Tigra, yet he only comes with Venom to the Fantastic Four.

somehow, it doesn't seem Daken and Bullseye will be enough to take on the superstrong Atlantean and the can-go-hard-as-diamond lady. i mean, hell, at least send noh-varr or mimic along for the ride.

(okay, he'll probably have the rest of the dark x-men go too, but it's still a valid complaint.)

[bruinsfan.insanejournal.com]

If Illyana Rasputin is among the X-Men he's aiming to take out, I don't think any of the Dark Avengers are up to the task. Well, unless Loki has actually joined rather than just being part of Osborn's bridge club behind the scenes.

[proteus_lives.insanejournal.com]

Raising Asteroid M was cool, they fooled me. I thought it was going to be Ship.

I was also disappointed with the lack of a X-23/Daken fight!

[angelophile.insanejournal.com]

And for this issue the part of Scott Summers will be played by Alex Winter, man.

[jaybee3.insanejournal.com]

I predicted this pretty much early on. There was just no way Fraction was going to have Emma turn on Scott, her loyalty to him's been a staple of her character for some time (and I don't even particularly like the coupling). She's said that she tells him everything because his mind can't hide anything from her. And Scott was too nonchalant about her defection for him not to know what she's doing.

As for Namor, he was never going to be taking orders from someone like Norman. And I wonder if he heard the threats Osborn made to the Richards kids? Namor wouldn't like that either.

[jlroberson.insanejournal.com]

I'm thinking that Namor will be the one to beat Osborn.

You simply do not talk down to him and expect to live.

[ian_karkull.insanejournal.com]

Emma's just saying (and doing) what everybody else was thinking about Daken.

But, honestly, a solitary mutant nation? Because that always works out so well..

[box_in_the_box.insanejournal.com]

What the fuck else are they supposed to do with mutants now?

The whole deal with mutants was that, barring special cases like "threat or menace" Spider-Man, mutants were the superheroes who were hated and feared by the general public, but in the wake of "Civil War," ALL superheroes became hated and feared, which left mutants with NOTHING TO DO.

It's like the Punisher in the '90s - DC and Marvel both went through phases, during the 90s, of trying to turn all of their characters into the Punisher, and yet, ironically enough, the Punisher's sales in his own title fucking CRATERED, because by being imitated so much, he was ROBBED OF HIS NICHE.

ALL superheroes are now as wangsty and persecuted as the X-Men once were, so unless Marvel actually wants to make things BETTER for the X-Men - unlikely, since DC and Marvel believe that things should ALWAYS get WORSE for superheroes - then what the fuck is left for the X-Men to do?

In a way, it's a perfect metaphor for the status of the X-Men ... they've devolved into this irrelevant, incestuous island of characters and concepts already completely cut off from the rest of the Marvel Universe, so why not make it official?

[(Anonymous)]

Oh Look Anole and Greymalkin working together! yay!

[xandertarbert.insanejournal.com]

I'm confused by the two Angels, and the one that should be the original Angel has been Apocalypsed up. What's going on?

[colonel_green.insanejournal.com]

Warren can now transform into his Archangel form at will.

The other guy isn't Angel, he's Mimic, who has all the powers of the original X-Men.

[jlroberson.insanejournal.com]

Am I hallucinating, or, apart from BLACKEST NIGHT, is it "villains finally get their asses royally kicked month" at Marvel and DC?

Partly..

[steverodgers5.insanejournal.com]

Yeah, for the most part you're right in this assertion. Which is a real nice change of pace..

And frankly it's nice to see Cyclops actually making a real difference these days..I haven't been 100% enjoying this crossover as much as I could have been if they'd done more with it..But Cyclops has been fun throughout..
(And at least Rogue had one cool kick ass moment..I've missed seeing that side of her..)

[greenmask.insanejournal.com]

I see London
I see France
I see Daken's cartoon buttcrack!

[jlroberson.insanejournal.com]

Okay, let me get this straight: DOMINO is standing there and Daken thought this would go well for him? Oh ha ha bloody ha. This is the woman that jumps through windows and fate puts a pool there to break her fall.

[icon_uk.insanejournal.com]

Mimic could have duplicated her power to help his side... (If he still has the duplicated power he's named for)

[mania21.insanejournal.com]

Well, each of Marvel's big super teams now have a connecting link to Marvel first 3 superstars.
Avengers-Captain America
Fantastic Four-Human Torch
X-men-Namor.

[box_in_the_box.insanejournal.com]

I actually would like to see Namor stay on as an X-Man, for that reason among others.

It certainly suits him better than being an Avenger.

[silver_raven.insanejournal.com]

What do these writers want! They just moved the whole crew to San Fran and now they moving to Asteroid M?! My gawd what a waste of time. And what another annoying misuse of characters. This just so annoying. And didn't Magneto try this. Scott is such a hypocrite. I hate him. Why can't Emma, Storm, Psylocke and Rogue take over leadership and get rid of the dick, that is Scott.

But besides all that, "Mutopia" (been there done that again) may become interesting. But I doubt it. I have lost so much hope.

[mullon.insanejournal.com]

Cable called. He wants his dad to stop stealing his ideas.

[autolychus2.insanejournal.com]

This.

Weapon Omega aka Michael Pointer

[abagnale008.insanejournal.com]

What happened to him? Thanks

Re: Weapon Omega aka Michael Pointer

[zegim.insanejournal.com]

He's been juiced up using a machine Dark Beast built. That machine drains mutants of their powers and Weapon Omega gets that energy.

This all means nothing.In Peter David I trust.

[hyperactivator.insanejournal.com]

X-Factor is telling the important stories in my eyes for mutant kind.Everything else seems like its spinning around in circles trying to find it's own butt.

Re: This all means nothing.In Peter David I trust.

[okkult3000.insanejournal.com]

You just put on the Ring. Now Sauron knows where we are.

[zegim.insanejournal.com]

The art is ugly and Fraction writes Daken as dumber Wolverine, while we see him as a clever bastard everywhere else.

Also the pacing felt rushed, all the characters had horrible lines of dialogue and... Screw it. Just hated this.

[kirke_novak.insanejournal.com]

So, Namor got his brains back?

Pogrom <--- just pointing out.

[valtyr (from insanejournal.com)]

When the screen faded in, I thought for a minute that Emma and Namor were clinging to Scott's arms. They, uh, weren't. Oh well.

[jlroberson.insanejournal.com]

Okay, I'm going to feel really stupid for saying this but: second to last panel, is that HANK I see with Osborn?

[valtyr (from insanejournal.com)]

Dark Beast.

[lbd_nytetrayn.insanejournal.com]

Ok, the Avengers, I can understand.

How is Osborn getting away with stealing the X-Men's name?

--LBD "Nytetrayn"

[colonel_green.insanejournal.com]

He attempted to commandeer it by using Emma and Mystique-posing-as-Professor X to set up a "government" team. By this issue's end, about half the team has departed to rejoin the real X-Men.