scans_daily | Uncanny X-Men's metaphorical slash subtext

salinea posting in

So the recent UXM was interesting, but more importantly, it had this... parallel thingy that provides fodder for slashing. Really, it does. Kieron Gillen said it does:

Pretentious (and inaccurately) I think of the issue as the leitmotif for my whole run. In the small story, you can see the whole picture. It's certainly the tightest example of how I'm using the villains in my post-relaunch issues. As in, I'm exploring them as a compare and contrast with the current situation of mutantkind, and as dark possible futures. This is the first time I've explicitly mentioned this, but every primary antagonist they meet is the last member of another species. The Phalanx is driven mad by the loneliness. The Savage and the Immortal Man are dual custodians of a people's past, fighting over what really matters. Sinister is a new species of one person — which of course simultaneously also makes him the last. And as readers of S.W.O.R.D. will know, UNIT is a very friendly ends-justify-the-means final-artifact-of-a-long-dead-people, with an ethical calculus that justifies infinite genocides to achieve their aim. When I'm writing about the villains, I'm really using it to explore the question of mutantkind and their current position as a species on the cusp of annihilation, and where that can drive you.

They're also useful for fights. Big ol' fights. Honestly, there's punching. It's not just metaphors. There's often metaphors you can punch, which are the best kind of metaphors.

Source is a Newsarama interview

They are also metaphors that you can slash, which are the very best kind of metaphors!

So we have this capsule, accelerated time aged world from which the Savage and the Immortal Man are the dual custodians of a people's past. Let the Savage explains their story:

Okay, so one's a benevolent if very condescending guy, and his old friend, even more arrogant, is not so kind - even irrationally so. I think the parallel is clear enough. What does the Immortal Man has to say for himself?

... wait, "unwife"?

Yeaaaah, the parallel haven't gotten any less obvious, but this "unwife" business, is it really as shippy as it sounds?

Yes, yes, it is.

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From:

shadowpsykie

hmm... this is surprisingly deep... i might have to pick this up....

From:

salinea

woot! I definitely think Gillen's run is worth checking out, despite the occasional Land art.

From:

shadowpsykie

see the thing is i don't necisarrily hate Land's art... from time to time i actually like it... but then every now and then you will get that one weird panel... with the open mouth... or the dead eyes... or the souless/Soul sucking eyes.

From:

salinea

You're lucky. I have a strong DO NOT WANT reaction to it. It's not even the porn face aspect; it's just very uncanny valley to me.

So yeaah, souless eyes XD

From:

shadowpsykie

heh yeah i know what you mean its like. oh that's really AHHHH MY SOUUUUUULLLL!

From:

biod

Land's art is more than tolerable to me as long as he isn't focussing on human faces or women.
So, not often, unfortunately.

From:

brooms

this was so ultimate!charles/erik meet first class fandom.

From:

salinea

I just love how deliberate it is XD

From:

shadowpsykie

hmmm i didn't see it... now i do... fascinating

From:

salinea

it kind of jumped out to me :)

From:

shadowpsykie

heh keep in mind, this is the only pages i have read of this, i am saving uncanny for Lui's

From:

salinea

Liu's going to be on Astonishing, not Uncanny.

From:

shadowpsykie

... that's what i meant.... :P

sorry my head is full of victorian lit facts. their titles are VERY long, and there are very.... different philosophies at work... im taking a break to see if i can go back and remember.

From:

skywaterblue

Yeah, yeah, Charles/Erik is obvious. It's so Doctor/Master for me!

From:

salinea

If I was into Who, I'd probably agree with you :)

From:

darkknightjrk

I don't think it's slashing when it's pretty much telling you what's going on in-story. I also don't understand what the quote from Gillen has to do with it.

From:

salinea

Oh, sorry for not spelling it out.

The Immortal Man and the Savage are meant to parallel the classic positions (and characters) of Magneto and Xavier.

The Immortal Man and the Savage are in a canonical epic, tragic romance.

Therefore, Magneto and Xavier are metaphorically slashed.

From:

darkknightjrk

Oh, oh, okay, I thought you meant slashing between the Immortal Man and Savage--or "Good Apex and Bad Apex."

I don't know if it's my pairing bias' showing, but the bit about the two never deciding on who would be the wife reminded me more of Batman/Catwoman. XD

From:

salinea

That's another interpretation, although one that seems more remote from the text.

From:

brooms

i'm starting to think kieron gillen could have written 10 entire pages of these "old friends" who are "dual custodians of a people's past, fighting over what really matters" playing the apex' version of chess, complete with magneto interjecting that these folks' relationship is reminding him of SOMETHING... and the penny still wouldn't have dropped for a lot of readers.

From:

salinea

Some people do not like metaphors :/

From:

blackruzsa

The subtext needs its hammer time :)

From:

flo_nelja

Yeah, tu l'as posté ! Et tu as raison, c'est assez clairement évident. ^^;; Il y a des gens qui s'amusent avec leurs métaphores. ^^

From:

salinea

From:

tessiebee

I mean the Mags/Xav is meant to be cute but come on 'each would prefer the other to be the wife'?

God forbid a big strong genius creature should choose to become *gulp* a wife.
I cannot be the only one to see the problems here...

Plus not touching the obviously axe-crazy Magneto counterpart. 'Bad Apex' my bum.

From:

salinea

but come on 'each would prefer the other to be the wife'?
Yeah, I agree the formulation is problematic, especially thrown in like this as a joke and without anymore linguistic explanation that would make it sound less weirdly sexist & homophobic.

Plus not touching the obviously axe-crazy Magneto counterpart. 'Bad Apex' my bum.
I don't mind it too much, because it's not like it's a perfect parallel.

From:

tessiebee

Thanks, was feeling a little all on my own there :)

From:

okkult3000

I have yet to understand why some things are condemned and others are praised. If Jeph Loeb or Rob Liefeld had written that bit about neither character wanting to be the "girl" in the relationship, there would be an outcry.

From:

brooms

i assumed he was talking about procreating (he mentioned breeding), not gender roles. if the apex are viviparous and "wife" is shorthand for "the one who carries the embryo and gives birth", i can see why a species where individuals can chose their reproductive roles would swing toward "husband".

gestating is by far the most biologically demanding and riskier option.

From:

tessiebee

All very true.

I still take issue with it, as it comes across as a demeaning role as well.

Good apex defines the unwife as he (and by exention himself as they are both the same) so the choice to go from 'he' to 'she' is a step neither wants to take.

To me that gives it a feel of a bad move, a negative step that they want the other to have to deal with. I get connotations of 'no,* you * lose, I want to remain as a brilliant genius thing' and to be fair, brilliant geniuses in comics tend to default to male anyway.

I'm not well versed in feminism and patricarchy (learning a lot from this comm) but this just really rubbed me up the wrong way. I'd like to see more educated posters like yourself explain their take on it.

From:

brooms

ha, i doubt i'm more educated on feminism than anyone in this community.

I still take issue with it, as it comes across as a demeaning role as well. (...) To me that gives it a feel of a bad move, a negative step that they want the other to have to deal with.

i understand. that was not my initial impression, tbh, but maybe i'm giving gillen more credit than he deserves, and maybe the articles i've been reading about the history of the pill lately colored how i interpreted this.

From:

blackruzsa

This is what I thought too. Supposing that they were supposed to go into a reproductive pair and neither of them want to be doing the producing part of the reproducing, there's a clash of personalities.

I don't think it's sexist so much as it's two people afraid to take on the arguably larger responsibility.

Although they may have to rethink that now that the rest of their people aren't up for the job :I

From:

sir_mikael

As much as I enjoy implied Xavie/Magneto slash I agree.

Also doesn't it feel like the conflict will likely end with them actually picking genders/reproductive roles and birthin new Apex babies?

From:

pyrrhocorax

I thought it was going to be different sort of relationship, an epic rivalry marrige (like kismesissitude in Homestuck) and every Apex has a Wife and an Unwife. Cool! Then I got to the bit when we find out that no, it's just that neither of them want to be the girl and went :/

From:

lieut_kettch

Can we have "Good Apex" join the X-Club and have many snark-filled adventures with Dr. Nemesis?

From:

joasakura

only if the starfish is still there.

From:

blackruzsa

Good Apex must stay.
This is a really lovely thing to return to <3 Haven;t been on S_D in a while.

From:

salinea

welcome back!

From:

blackruzsa

Thank you!
I'd say glad to be back but lately, comics have been disappointments piled on disappointments, and the ones I follow are going, going, gone ):

Still, S_D is a lovely place to be on an off day.

From:

salinea

yeah, I know what you mean, I had a hard time being excited about most things right now; at least outside of X-books. Between DCnU and the cancellation of several the series I liked, it is not an ideal time :/

But I do love the S_D community ♥

From:

biod

Oh my word, it's Prothy the Prothean in his incredibly rapid extra-canon appearance!
Bioware wastes no time in expanding the influence of their characters across all media.

From:

quatoria

Haha. I have to admit, I was hearing his voice in some of those lines of dialogue. "They used to eat flies."

From:

pyrrhocorax

I love the way their faces keep changing shape, not sure why though. Maybe in response to light levels?

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Uncanny X-Men's metaphorical slash subtext

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