X-Men #18 - "Inside the Vault"

[laughing_tree]

This is completely overcooked, but it's a lot like trauma victims in that it just takes a little while to not feel like we're going to punch them when the next issue comes out. And that's kind of what this whole big, long first opening bit of all of this is, is us just saying, "You know, it's all right. We're going to have a good time." Of course there's going to be drama. That's our job. But it's going to be the good kind, not the frustrating kind where you get angry at the books. -- Jonathan Hickman

Comments

[tinygaylaura]

Synch has the same taste in women I do which is "Could she kick my ass?

YES GOOD I AM INTO HER"

[leahandillyana]

On one hand, finally this plot point moves somewhere. On the other, this is a boring development.

[lordultimus]

Man, Hickman loves the "centuries inside, minutes outside" trope nearly as much as he loves arrogant men creating their own downfall.

[tinygaylaura]

"Why are so many of Hickman's plots about arrogant men causing their own downfall?"

"Because Mr Hickman is a very observant man"

[mindsweeper]

Between the changes in the CotV and the introduction of Arakko, feels like Hickman has brought his Ultimate ideas (The City/Children of Tomorrow and Tian, respectively) to the 616.

[stubbleupdate]

Good. That was a great, if very short time.

[shadowpsykie]

so.... what happened?

[alliterator]

We don't know yet, This was the last issue so far and it only showed the first day that Synch, Dawin, and Laura went into the Vault. The next issue will be the one to show how long they've been in there and how they get out.

[lordultimus]

Also, that quote seems hilariously naïve about how fandoms work to me.

"It's okay, they'll stop being angry any day now."

"Any day now."

"ANY. DAY. NOW."

[tinygaylaura]

I assume he's referring to the part of fandom that's actually worth caring about

No one would ever imagine that all of comics fandom could be pleased. Or try to, since trying to please everyone is how you make extremely dull and crappy content

And in the case of comics fandom in particular we're talking about a fandom that includes shut ins who used to write rage filled letters about how Superman's new haircut has ruined the character forever.

So I think he just means "To the people who actually have reading comprehension if you notice things that make you go "Hmmmmm that's kinda weird" that's intentional and we have a pay off in mind for that"

[donnblake]

Is there any connection between the Children of the Vault and Weapon Plus's World? I mean, the Marvel Universe is a big weird place and there could very well be two entirely unconnected Accelerated Time Hyper Evolution Chamber Things, I guess.

[tinygaylaura]

I don't think there was ever any direct connection I think it's just that "Scientists" in the Marvel universe are basically weird dudes who throw science at the wall and see what sticks and so two entirely seperate groups of nutbars got the idea of "What if we just broke the laws of physics and see what happens"

[nyadnar17]

That quote hit home for me.

I want to have fun in my X-books again. I am tired of nihilism and mean spiritedness. Really loving this current age of X-men.

[tinygaylaura]

On the whole with the exception of X-force and Wolverine I'm finding the current X-books very enjoyable and much more so than they have been in a looooooooong time.

Especially Al Ewing's SWORD, Leah Williams X-Factor and Gerry Duggan's Marauders books. And I think Excalibur has been getting back on track post X of Swords as well, the last few issues have been especially good

[zachbeacon]

If Synch can copy their powers then isn't the logical conclusion "oh, they're mutants", not "I guess I can copy non-mutants now"?

[deh_tommy]

But they’re not mutants, they’re “post-human”. Which is a fancy way of saying mutant, but they’re technically not mutants as we know them and therefore okay to kill because they might genocide mutants in the future.

[zachbeacon]

So it's just the Neo again?

Now those are some baddies with staying power.

Can't wait to see them on merchandise.

[scorntx]

No, Neo are Mutants using tech to boost their powers.
The Children of the Vault are evolved humans using tech to give themselves powers.

It's a clear physiologically and legally distinct difference.

[zachbeacon]

Thank you for clearing that up.

Anyone know where I can order a rad Children of the Vault lunch box to put my U-Men thermos in?

[mastermahan]

The Neo used tech to boost their powers? I thought they were, like, a mutant subspecies who claimed they were more powerful than regular mutants - the idea being that they were to mutants as mutants are to humans.

Not that they ever seemed that way on the page. Considering how normal mutants already range from "has a moderately useful power" to "living gods", the concept was never going to work.

[tinygaylaura]

Whatever happened to the Neo?

Was that story ever wrapped up or was it one of those dangling plot threads that happen sometimes

[nyadnar17]

Didn't Beast accidentally kill them all?

[tinygaylaura]

"Accidentally"

Beast: What a totally unforseen accident >.>

[zachbeacon]

As someone who loved Beast in the 90s (mostly because of the cartoon and that one Eric Larsen Spider-Man issue), it's really disappointing to suddenly realize his evil AoA counterpart is the preferable option now.

[tinygaylaura]

:(

I miss when Beast was a cheerful kind hearted dude who liked having adventures rather than betraying his people or comitting war crimes

[mastermahan]

The Evolutionaries - a bunch of 2-million-year-old cavemen in Eternal powersuits - wiped them out.

Then Cyclops used a device Beast built to kill all but one of the Evolutionaries.

It was not a great story.

[donnblake]

Were any of these Evolutionaries high?

[mastermahan]

Completely unrelated, but a later story had them working for the High Evolutionary for no reason. There were also more of them, despite the last story ending with only one left alive.

They were also created by an Eternal more than million years before the Eternals actually existed.

Honestly, getting killed by this utter mess was the perfect fate for the damn Neo.

[scorntx]

Huh. Thought they used tech. Must've been all the cybernetics, getting them all confused with some other bunch of generic baddies.

[mastermahan]

Easy enough to do. It's not like the Neo were particularly memorable.

[tinygaylaura]

They're not mutants, their powers come from technological/genetic augmentation. None of them have the X-gene. They're basically like a more advanced and less Australian version of the Reavers (The X-men ones not the Firefly ones) in that they're humans who have altered their bodies to give themselves new abilities

And yeah, that sounds sensible to me. The Children of the Vault exist only to kill and conquer. So killing them before they get the chance to do that seems pretty logical