Subcultural engagement for the 21st Century...
Barbelith is a new kind of community (find out more)...
You can login or register.

Underground > Comic Books >

New X Men #140

Page: (1)2 3 4 5

19:06 / 23.04.03

Preview pages are available at PopCultureShock

19:27 / 23.04.03

Heh. Like the Poirot-esque quality. I'm not especially familiar with Bishop or Sage, though; any more continuity-savvy x-fan want to enlighten us as to their history, powers, etc.?

19:31 / 23.04.03

Oh and there are some spoilers in the first few pages so the spoiler sensitive might not want to click...

19:36 / 23.04.03

Bishop was an entirely tedious X-man from the future who debut was in uncanny xmen 283 if memory serves - a member of the XSE... hopefully a decent write can salvage something out of him.

I think Sage is the latest version of tessa, a minor character from the hellfire club and one time confidant of the Black Queen.

leastways that's what i half remember -anyone care to correct me?

19:48 / 23.04.03

The future, eh? Guess bad hair never goes out of fashion...

Matthew Fluxington

20:31 / 23.04.03

Wow. Those first four pages feels soooooooooooo early 80s Claremont & Romita Jr. to me, which is a wonderful compliment if you're not familiar with that run.

Sleazenation has it right, the only major thing missing is that they are current members of the X-Treme X-Men group, and that it should be clarified that the XSE was a mutant police force in Bishop's dystopian future. Bishop's been through a lot - he's from the crazy future, he was convinced that there was a traitor in the X-Men for a long time (it turned out to be Xavier in the Onslaught story...), he's been lost in space, etc. Lately, Claremont's simply been writing him as a big tough mutant cop, the essence of the character. Grant's playing very nicely with Chris, they obviously planned this story out pretty far in advance, because this would fit into the X-Treme "Schism" storyline continuity-wise.

It's cool to see Nightcrawler pop up in NXM!

(Note to comics moderators: please add an abstract to this thread.)

20:41 / 23.04.03

Here's an idea: We never left Jean's enfolded mind...

Since Jean confronted Scott and Emma outside(but inside Emma's mental budoir), and the recent issue had Jean and Emma fighting "inside a room"... who's to say they never left the "room", or that the house itself isn't a bigger room -holy shit. Bigger rooms, outside of our little rooms. QQ? What if the whole Murder at the Mansion is Emma's psychic rehab, her slow initiation, a bit of American Death Camp plus telepathic astral planing?

Here's a thought... since we are more than who we are(thanks Goo Goo Dolls), maybe Jean's enfolded EVERYONE into her mind to show Emma how linked everyone is, and how linked they are to her? Read Beast's comments about Emma's mind strength and then Tessa's slight insult... sounds kinda "A Christmas Carol"esque.

20:46 / 23.04.03

That was a total Cockrum Nightcrawler rendering. which i loved because he was mostly Dave Cockrum's creation and during that time (94 - 110 or so, then later for a brief time) my favorite x-man.

One of the spoilers invalidates some of the recent speculations on method of death. Grant has said he wanted to leave clues to make it possible to solve. Anyone care to list what other evidence they've seen?

20:51 / 23.04.03

Chesed,
That's a really interesting idea. With that in mind, look at the point of view of the panel you refer to. Sure it helps Phil fit everyone in a short panel, but more importantly it suggests that it could be a first person perspective from someone hovering above.

21:10 / 23.04.03

Is everyone here, accounted for in the drawing room?

What's the meaning of this? I have no time for these paranoid shenanigans. This is absurd!

Quiet, sir. I'd like to go over the evidence we've uncovered thus far...SPOILERS BELOW!

1) A diamond bullet was seemingly used to kill Emma Frost.

2) Wolverine was the last one seen with Emma.

3) Cyclops mysteriously disappeared before the murder.

3) The most likely suspect is Jean Grey, but she would not kill someone with a diamond bullet. And why would she kill someone who she just forced to evolve?

4) Although a diamond bullet was used, why wouldn't anyone (especially Beast) have heard a gun shot?

5) Bishop had the bullet before he saw the crime scene.

6) Beast now has four fingers instead of three...mistake?

7) The Stepford Cuckoos are still in the mansion.

8) Whoever got a diamond bullet would either have to forge it or buy it. Who else have we seen that has a) the ability to sneak into the mansion undetected and b) a very unusual bullet collection? Hmmm...I'm sure we'll see someone who fits that description soon enough. Like in the next arc.

21:17 / 23.04.03

Ummm... Jean caught the bullet fired at Xavier by assassin-Lilandra. It had a 'peculiar resonance' (or something) but probably wasn't diamond...

21:19 / 23.04.03

You're not suggesting a guy who has a name beginning with 'F'...

...and ending with 'antomex', are you?

05:41 / 24.04.03

Hmm, the rooms idea is interesting.

About Tessa... She was a close confidant to Shaw, has a computer like mind, and just happens to be a telepath. It seems Sebastian has a pattern, here.

E

yawn - thing's buddy

08:53 / 24.04.03

cover looks good

11:45 / 24.04.03

I second the cover. Fun.

And this whole 'bullet' thing is way peculiar - why on earth would super-powered mutants kill Emma Frost w/ a diamond bullet? (Aside from the desire to build an intense, Clue(do)-like atmosphere of mystery-solving to entertain guests). I wonder if it's actually a bullet, or if there's some bizarre cirumstance as to what it is.

I'm excited on this - I'd assumed the primary suspects were the core team, but it looks like we have a whole gang of folks to choose from - unless it's Fantomex, though I have no idea why that would happen.

That big panel on page four of Emma slipping through Hank's fingers is just heartbreaking, and makes me think this murder might be for real. (especially in light of Rich Johnston's comments about the White Queen series writers being pissed they have to do a flashback series now (though I don't know how much water that rumor holds as I distinctly remember that being the idea from the beginning, from a Newsarama article...).

It's interesting to me how nearly identical Jiminez's renderings of certain students are to Van Sciver's initial drawings way back in #117 - The green, bumpy guy in the sweater-vest on page 2, the kid with the big arms and the shirt w/ green words on it in the background on page 3.

The vest that one of the Cuckoos is wearing on page 2 reminds me of the Prisoner, though I can't think of a direct visual reference as to why.

I'm Rick Jones, bitch

11:52 / 24.04.03

I like Chesed's idea, it would be a total headfuck.

I'm Rick Jones, bitch

12:18 / 24.04.03

Hang on a second? That's supposed to be a fucking bullet? Could just be a fucking chunk of thigh, for all he knows.

Beast is rolling in bling. Literaly.

17:38 / 24.04.03

Why shoot her with a diamond bullet? Well, not everybody can shatter diamond on their own. I'm still thinking it's Hellfire Club connected.

E

The Photographer in Blowup

18:43 / 24.04.03

Hasn't Morrison said somewhere, that by the end of the arc, no one will still know who the killer is?

20:37 / 24.04.03

I think we won't know who killed Emma because Emma was never killed. I can't think of any other realistic setup than the psychic manipulative therapy one.

yawn - thing's buddy

21:19 / 24.04.03

och aye, mind, its only a game.

yawn - thing's buddy

21:25 / 24.04.03

by the way chest(sic), if you're right (and even if you're not), I think this storyline may be one of GM's most heartbreakingly beautiful creations yet.

139 was how I want my comics.

24hrs a day pleez.

ah mean, how fuckin good are morrison and jiminez, when they're on their game?

how fuckin good?

hypersimulation

21:31 / 24.04.03

Chesed's theory would also explain why Wolverine and
Beast are acting so strangely at the end of the 139.
One of those "we're not quite back to reality/woken
up from the nightmare yet" narrative burbs, yeah?

A

04:26 / 25.04.03

It must be pretty swell for Ethan to see what seems to be one of his favourite artists drawing some of his creations.

19:57 / 25.04.03

Looks great, but GAAHH!! Look at the cover -- Wolvie reverted to the spinach-chin! I'm sure it's just because the covers are done months in advance, since Phil J. drew Logan all Jackman-studly-like and without lame-o chinbeard in 139.

Matthew Fluxington

20:09 / 25.04.03

The first person to name every character on the cover gets a No-Prize!

I know them all.

20:44 / 25.04.03

N - Cannonball, Bishop
E - Beak
W - Jubilee, Sage, Angel
X - Beast, Juggernaut, Rogue, Husk, Nightcrawler, Xorn, Northstar, Havok, Storm, Gambit, Iceman
Jean Grey, Cyclops, Emma Frost, Xavier, Wolverine
M - The Stepford Cuckoos
E - Polaris
N - Annie the Nurse, Chamber, and...DAMN...whose blond hair is that? I lost!

20:47 / 25.04.03

Well as far as I know only two of the cuckoos have ever been named.

Sophie is dead.

Which leaves Esme and three others so how can you name everyone?

20:53 / 25.04.03

I was gonna put Jeffrey Garrett up top in the first N... making Cannonball maybe the the missing blonde hair boy. Is it Jubilee? I was gonna suggest Irina, the asian "lips on her neck" girl.

20:54 / 25.04.03

Well, you can't "name" Rogue either, but it's worth a shot...

Jeffrey Garrett or Sam Guthrie
Lucas Bishop
Barnell Bohusk
Angel Salvadore
Tessa
Jubilation Lee
Henry McCoy
Robert Drake
Remy LeBeau
Jean Grey
James Howlett
Scott Summers
Emma Frost
Cain Marko
Marie "Darkholme"?
Paige Guthrie
Kurt Wagner
Xorn?
Jean-Paul Beaubier
Ororo Munroe
Alex Summers
Esme
Cuckoo 3
Cuckoo 4
Cuckoo 5
Lorna Dane
Annie Ghazikhanian
Jonothan Starsmore
Jeffrey Garrett... or perhaps the killer ...or Elisabeth Braddock?

21:13 / 25.04.03

You know what I mean.

Matthew Fluxington

21:22 / 25.04.03

Aw, Quimper soooooooooo close!

The blonde clump of hair is probably Archangel, but that is definitely Kitty Pryde and not Annie The Nurse. And that is most certainly Jubilee, not the lip girl.

I give you the No-Prize anyway!

Matthew Fluxington

21:26 / 25.04.03

Actually, to get really technical, that clump of blonde hair is probably Havok, and the blonde guy in the X is probably Archangel. It's hard to tell the two apart, both being generic blonde white guys, but even though Archangel is often drawn with longer hair than that guy on the cover, Havok currently has a long scare along one side of his face and the guy in the X does not. It could go either way, Phil may have just not known about Havok's scar.

22:22 / 25.04.03

Yeah, I'd say the clump of blond hair is Alex, as the cover is the current cast of the three books, plus frequent guest star Kitty.

E

01:26 / 26.04.03

Yes, yes. Clearly Kitty. My original answer was going to be Annie...or Kitty Pryde. But I was stumped at the blond locks, forgetting Archangel's absence...and thinking that was Havok with no scar. But thank you for the accolades!

So I'm thinking about this Fantomex theory. While I so want Chesed to be right that we are still in the dreamlike state of Emma's evolutrionary journey on the meta-plane, but I fear that the arc may turn out to be more straightforward than that. Fantomex had those strange bullets in the X-Corp Paris arc. Someone on this board suggested to me that the faces on his bullets in the Darkstar-blown-away spread weren't on the bullets, but reflections of who they were aimed at. Were they diamond bullets? He could have sneaked into the mansion undetected, like he did in Paris. But, I am at a loss as to why, other than he is a transition into the Assault on Weapon Plus.

Could Jean and/or Chuck recognize the bullet held up by Bishop? Will Morrison stick it to the fanboys and exhume Darkstar's dark, rotting corpse to search for evidence? I hope so.

Page: (1)2 3 4 5