X-Men #9 (2020) - "The King Egg"

[laughing_tree]

One of the first things I wrote for Marvel was a pitch document explaining why the X-Men were broken and were going to continue to be broken and did not work anymore, and even though the books sold well, they were going to eventually fail, for these reasons, and this is how you solve it. I wrote that before Axel [Alonso] had his job, I think. [...] The point was, listen, these things that the X-Men have been about for 30 years -- and they change every decade for a good reason -- I argued that they were not timeless eternal themes like "With great power comes great responsibility," and if you're going to crack the egg and save the franchise for the next 50 years, you have to make it bigger than what it is. -- Jonathan Hickman

Comments

[crinos]

So...Broo is the supreme leader of the Brood race now?

Good for him.

[scorntx]

So, one of the first things Hickman did at Marvel was tell them "you FOOLS, you're doing it all wrong! Listen to me and it will all be better!"?
Because... y'know, can't help but get the feeling Marvel probably gets at least five or six e-mails like that a week for free.
Not counting the executives, editors, publishers or what have you who do the exact same thing.

"Bigger than what it is."
... even for interview fluff talk, and Hickman especially, that's some prime nonsense right there.
Feels like it should be on display in a museum of meaningless guff.


-"Close study implies manufacture"-
... not again.
Maybe it's just curmudgeonly, but there's something about the idea that every species (save humans, apparently) in the Marvel U only came about because some other bunch of aliens came along and experimented on them. Makes it all seem... I dunno, smaller?

[donnblake]

Are humans not the result of Celestial meddling anymore? That seems to fluctuate every time we get a grand history of the Marvel universe and I admit I've lost track.

[jlbarnett]

I thought that Celestials experimented on every sentient race, not that they made them

[bruinsfan]

Yeah, the Celestials were supposed to have first come to Earth and experimented on homo erectus about a million years ago, resulting in the Eternals, Deviants, and latent mutant/mutate genes in the main population.

[cainofdreaming]

Not every, or at least we've not seen any Eternal/Deviant Shi'ar or Badoon, or many other races. Just human, Kree and Skrull.

[rzerox21xx]

why is Scott flexing his Biceps in front of Alex and Jean in the cover? Check out this summers gun show

[bruinsfan]

Has anyone questioned how pheromone control is supposed to influence Brood hives' behavior from across interstellar space?

[gnarll]

So... Vulcan and Gladiator in the same room. Theres an elephant there that is bigger than any Acanti.

To be honest, Shi'ar succession has to be a total mess by now. I mean, Deathbird was heir first, but she got exiled. Then it was D'ken. But he went catatonic. So Lilandra succeeded although technically that should have been a regency. Then Deathbird took the throne, Lilandra took it back, D'ken woke up and took it from her, D'ken died, Deathbird inherited but her husband Vulcan took the throne, Lilandra died, Vulcan was lost and Gladiator took the throne. Presumably with Kid Gladiator as heir. But then Xandra appears, so now she is heir, or Empress with Gladiator as regent.

ANYWAY. There are four people currently alive who have been Majestix or Majestor: Gladiator, Deathbird, Xandra and Vulcan. (And I can't imagine Xavier is going to leave Lilandra dead.)

In terms of inheritance Xavier should be in line either by the same rules as Vulcan took the throne. But that marriage was annulled. But as Xandra father, he should still be somewhere a bit further down in line. Through him, Legion might have a claim too, and Juggernaut. Through Vulcan, Scott, Alex, and amusingly enough Corsair has a claim, as does Rachel, Nathan and Stryfe. Jean and Madelyne if Scott takes the throne.

Through Deathbird, Black Light and White Noise has strong claims. And Adam X as the son of D'ken of course.

Deathbird renounced the throne but that might not bind her children.

Anyway, they got four emperor/empresses alive at the moment, and probably number five is coming soon.

And Xandra is a mutant and therefore a citizen of Krakoa. Joy.

[silverhammerman]

The Shi'ar Empire will not rest until every individual X-Men has been emperor or empress at least once.

Although, the throne constantly changing hands back and forth in ways that don't make any sense actually kind of works if you look at the Shi'ar leadership as being akin to medieval royalty, rather than a settled and stable matter.

[scorntx]

The way Vulcan got the throne was thanks to an obscure by-law D'Ken found (something about how any kid born in the royal palace could be considered royalty), and then marrying into the royal family.
Doesn't automatically make his siblings heirs, and they'd probably get shot trying.

Lilandra can't be resurrected Krakoa-style because she ain't a Mutant. She'd have to come back in some other way, like all the other chumps who weren't born with the good sense to be Mutants.
(Y'know, deals with cosmic / daemonic beings, magic rituals, not actually being dead in the first place, just getting better, those sorts of things.)

Charles was just the royal consort, so he could only get the throne as regent for Xandra, never as majestor in his own right.
Unless he just got his X-Men together and made himself majestor the really old-fashioned way.

[gnarll]

True on the medieval thing, and the Shi'ar unlike humans don't actually consider children individuals until they are adult. So there could be a number of potential heirs who are underage and they just see who survives. Fast-breeders, probably lay a clutch every time.

[gnarll]

Yeah, Vulcan was born of one of his harem, technically. Might get him in. However, once he is on the throne, the inheritance line will run from him, not the (other) Neramanis. So its his closest relatives from there on. Technically.

I am not sure why not being a mutant keeps you from being resurrected? There does not seem to be anything in the process limiting it to mutants.

Well, Charles did also hold the title of Warlord, so the acclaim route should be open to him. I expect Gladiator has far more support among the military and guard structure. Unless Charles decides that they should not, of course. Might be why Oracle is so down on Xandra.