Advance X-Solicitations March 2010

NATION X #4 (of 4)

Written by PETER MILLIGAN, ROBERTO AGUIRRE-SACASA, JOE CARAMAGNA & IVAN BRANDON
Penciled by MIKE ALLRED, NIKO HENRICHON, HARVEY TALIBAO & RAEL LYRA
Cover by PHIL JIMENEZ
All the pieces fall into place as this final issue concludes with a bang!  Namor has never taken orders from anyone before, so why does he take them from Cyclops? Where does Emma get all those Jimmy Choo's? And when a mystery strikes Utopia, who does Cyclops send to solve it?  DOOP!
40 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99 

X-23 #1
Written by MARJORIE LIU
Pencils and cover by ALINA URSOV
X-23 has spent her short life being used by those in power, from the military to the X-Men. But when she is forced to confront a being who can control her life with nothing but a thought, will X-23 finally learn how to fight -- not for others, but herself? Guest-starring NYX!
48 PGS./One-Shot/Parental Advisory …$3.99

X-FORCE #25
Written by CHRISTOPHER YOST & CRAIG KYLE
Pencils & Cover by CLAYTON CRAIN
Variant Cover by CLAYTON CRAIN
NECROSHA ENDS HERE!
Everything Destiny foretold has come true. The Black Queen has become the Dark Goddess, but X-Force's mission stands...KILL HER. But how do you fight a god with claws, knives and guns? And how many members will X-Force lose before the fight is over? PART SIX (of SIX)
32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$2.99

X-MEN: PIXIE STRIKES BACK #2 (of 4)
Written by KATHRYN IMMONEN
Penciled by SARA PICHELLI
Cover by STUART IMMONEN
X-23, Armor, Blindfold, Mercury and Pixie are stuck in a nightmare high school and they can't get out.  Who is the person responsible?  Could it be Pixie's father?  And who is he? Here's one hint—Hellfire.
32 PGS./Rated A …$3.99

Source

X-Force #22 Variant Cover

X-23 One-Shot in March!

The news that absolutely made my day! I can't even describe how thrilled and happy I am!

As a member of both X-Force and the X-Men, X-23 calls the X-Men's island of Utopia, which floats off the coast of San Francisco, home. However, come March, she'll return to the mean streets of New York City in the "X-23" one-shot by writer Marjorie Liu ["NYX: No Way Home," "Dark Wolverine"] and artist Alina Urusov ["Young Avengers Presents," "X-Force, NYX"]. CBR News spoke with Liu about the special, which is part of Marvel Comics 2010 year long "Women of Marvel" celebration.

Marjorie Liu: Unlike Daken, Laura was raised in a lab, brainwashed, under constant supervision (receiving some kindness from her surrogate mother), and then later abused sexually - after which she eventually found her way to the X-Men. Logan, I'm sure, was the first male role model in her life who treated her decently, and with affection. All this, and she's still a teen.[...] I don't think it's just being with the X-Men that has given her that streak of compassion - she showed a willingness to help others when she was with Kiden. [...] The abused don't always become abusers. Some rise above their circumstances, and become better for them. Others, not so much.[...] Despite the fact that she's powerful, dangerous, and ruthless, Laura is, still, just a kid. Okay, maybe I shouldn't say "just a kid," but she's a young teen girl who has been through hell. Raised in lab, then pimped out as a whore, now used as a killing machine for the X-Men. She's spent her entire life being used - mostly by men in authority - and she's just beginning to realize what that means, and what a mental trap she's found herself in: this odd circle of power and powerlessness that she keeps returning to.[...] 


What is X-23's physical and emotional state when the "X-23" one-shot begins?
Marjorie Liu: Laura's emotional state, at the beginning, is...introspective. Physically, she's fine - but isn't she always? It's her mind and heart that need bolstering.

Power and powerlessness, the cages we put ourselves in without realizing it, the strength it takes to stand up for ourselves when people are hurting us – not physically, but mentally. Friendship, love, hope - I tried to cover all the bases for Laura!
As for the plot, it's rather simple: Laura and Logan come to New York to help an old friend of his (Jubilee, as a matter of fact), and Laura picks up Kiden's scent. She follows it, finds them - and someone else finds her. Someone very powerful, who wants to control her life. Something, unfortunately, that she's all too familiar with. [...] The greatest enemy one ever faces is one's own self. With Laura, this is taken to a much deeper level, with higher stakes. She must take that first step in becoming her own person, or else risk losing her identity altogether.

Kiden and the other kids of NYX first met Laura when she was at her very lowest. She was being used as a whore, and her mind had truly shut down. Her body was just a thing for men to use. She didn't even think about it or fight her treatment.
But Kiden's friendship brought her, for all intents and purposes, back to life. It made her wake up. And the thing about Kiden and the others was that they didn't want anything from her. Not one thing, except to help and keep her safe. That would have been something Laura had never encountered.
They were the first people to show her true friendship, and that's not something she can ever forget. So there are a lot of hard emotions for Laura when she encounters Kiden and the others - and, as with the first time she met them, their presence will make her rethink the circumstances of her life.

What do you feel the book's artist, Alina Ursov, brings to the comic?
Alina is fabulous. I can't say enough good things. Her art is fluid, delicate, with just the right mix of strength and beauty. Truly, it's a joy working with her. She was the artist who was originally intended to draw this one-shot, and I'm thrilled that's still the case.
Is X-23 a character you'd like to revisit again someday? Do you have any ideas on where you'd like to take her next?
I loved writing her, so sure! I suppose I'd like to carry on exploring some of the themes and issues raised in this one-shot.

Source

X-Force #22 Preview

COVER BY: Clayton Crain
WRITERS: Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost
PENCILS: Clayton Crain
INKS: Array
THE STORY:
The unthinkable happens as NECROSHA continues! Selene's actions on Genosha have changed everything, and while the X-Men were desperate to save their species...this isn't what they had in mind. But as the siege by dead mutants continues, things get even deadlier with the arrival of Selene's very much ALIVE Inner Circle at the X-Men's headquarters. With Eli Bard in tow, WITHER, MORTIS, SENYAKA and BLINK have come for one thing, and anyone who gets in their way will die. PART THREE (of SIX) PLUS - A CABLE BACKUP STORY! Parental Advisory …$3.99
PRICE: 3.99
IN STORES: December 16, 2009 

X-Necrosha: The Gathering Preview

COVER BY: Clayton Crain
WRITER: Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost
PENCILS: Kalman Andrasofszky, Leonardo Manco, Ibraim Roberson, Mateus Santolouco
THE STORY:
Selene's Inner Circle stand revealed... Wither, Mortis, Senyaka, Eli Bard and Blink. But what led Selene to gather some of the deadliest mutants in the world? Why would one of the X-Men's students join her? Who is Mortis? How is Blink alive? The stories of the Black Queen's death dealers are told in this anthology one-shot by some of today’s hottest artists! Parental Advisory ...$3.99
IN STORES: December 9, 2009

Emma Frost fanblog

Emma Frost fans assamble! - My new fan blog

"Auntie Emma's little Secret"

A little addition

X-Force #22 page (another Emma Frost's little ghost - Negasonic Teenage Warhead) and X-Force #21 second printing cover)

Plus - Mike Carey, the X-Men - Legacy writer, has promised us more work on some New X-Men characters like Onyxx, Dust and a Generation X character Husk. Hellion and Mercury were mentioned, but the author claimed them to be too popular and that the others deserved more spotlight. Yeah, right, oh, and he wants to make Onyxx (you remember him? Hellion helped Laura out for the first time at the training when Onyxx almost ran into Laura and Emma Frost forced X to stay and not move) more like Rockslide. God, why? I love Rockslide, but why on earth would we want two same-looking characters with the same personality? Thats just nuts. Plus - Hellion didn't get any spotlight, only some cameo appearances, so it's not like he and Mercury are some kind of superstars here...