tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post2662417378468878951..comments2024-03-28T10:18:00.370-05:00Comments on Gentlemen of Leisure: X-amining New Mutants #94Austin Gortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-78884126952433938562019-12-22T13:57:42.047-06:002019-12-22T13:57:42.047-06:00"I even like the (rather manic) grin that sho...<i>"I even like the (rather manic) grin that shows up on Sam's face after Boom-Boom kisses him (although it's slightly ruined by the fact that's tghis will become Standard Liefeld Expression #253)"</i><br /><br />253 standard expressions?! That's a lot! I don't think most artists have more than 10, so good for Rob!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07394443876734831051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-36652749138271433042015-09-11T13:14:48.826-05:002015-09-11T13:14:48.826-05:00While the Cannonball/Dragoness scene is ridiculous...While the Cannonball/Dragoness scene is ridiculously implausible, for all the reasons mentioned above, there is a part of me that is pleased simply for the continuing emphasis on Sam as a cunning leader and strategist. While the actual <i>plan</i> didn't make sense, I think the general <i>idea</i> of it isn't a bad one, it just needed an artist who knew how to coordinate properly with storytelling. But again I like the idea of Sam not being someone to be underestimated. I also like the budding romance with Boom-Boom too. His (again poorly-constructed) "gambit" with Dragoness shows that he's not as "innocent" as he might appear, while still retaining his "aw shucks" country-boy charm. I even like the (rather manic) grin that shows up on Sam's face after Boom-Boom kisses him (although it's slightly ruined by the fact that's tghis will become Standard Liefeld Expression #253)Jon Dubyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11783906806644566810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-4888607963836115632015-09-10T18:57:39.278-05:002015-09-10T18:57:39.278-05:00@Teebore: I think that in issue #98, Cable specifi...@Teebore: I think that in issue #98, Cable specifically says that he doesn't care about Rusty and Skids anymore. Mostly because he says that about all the previous New Mutants as an excuse for why he decided he to get an all, new team instead of just trying to recruit older team members (well that and because around this time "being a jerk" was the most admirable trait a "heroic" character could have.)Jon Dubyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11783906806644566810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-66512419335391437582015-08-31T20:34:52.919-05:002015-08-31T20:34:52.919-05:00@wwk5d: // it does make sense, in story, for them ...<br>@wwk5d: <i>// it does make sense, in story, for them to learn martial arts //</i><br /><br />Yeah. I just wish we got a little more show and lest just tell, Sam or whoever saying how it’s a good thing Cable has been training them in this or that — it does make sense in-story but we don’t actually see it happen <i>in a story</i>.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-66038555406991473672015-08-31T16:05:16.884-05:002015-08-31T16:05:16.884-05:00@wwk5d: Of course, its obvious nobody has yet det...@wwk5d: <i> Of course, its obvious nobody has yet determined what his or Cable's actual powers are, at this point. </i><br /><br />Yeah, Stryfe is pretty much just an armored dude at this point, and the narration about how Cable is awesome is pretty much the extent of his powers at this point. <br /><br />@Teemu: <i>My point kind of was that if old bores like Dr. Doom and Thanos can have fakelings to be used for menial tasks (by writers other than Byrne/Starlin), surely supER-COOL Stryfe could also, for example here by Cable-Stryfe to fool everyone here to think they're obviously not the same person</i><br /><br />Ah, gotcha. Yeah, I suppose, had they been the same person, we could chalk one of them up to a facsimile stand-in at this point. <br /><br />Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-24477649637096457012015-08-29T05:39:13.787-05:002015-08-29T05:39:13.787-05:00Teebore: I'm not entirely sure, but I think th...Teebore: <i>I'm not entirely sure, but I think the art is inconsistent in that regard (shocking, I know), in that his hands are completely covered at one point but shackled only at the wrists at other points.</i><br /><br />"From the company that brought you the revolving tit window dress...!"<br /><br />(like, some in-universe Acme. not implicating Image in any way.)Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-86795762642828257152015-08-29T05:32:19.739-05:002015-08-29T05:32:19.739-05:00Teebore: And straight-up clones. But after the Str...Teebore: <i>And straight-up clones. But after the Stryfe reveal in issue #100, there was some speculation that Cable and Stryfe were actually the same person - as in, one individual playing both roles, without any clones or stand-ins, but their encounter in this one negates that idea.</i><br /><br />My point kind of was that if old bores like Dr. Doom and Thanos can have fakelings to be used for menial tasks (by writers other than Byrne/Starlin), surely supER-COOL Stryfe could also, for example here by Cable-Stryfe to fool everyone here to think they're obviously not the same person. Which they are, as revealed in #100, and this contradicting encounter here can easily be written off.<br /><br />As it happens, I never got the #100, or any of the X-FORCE, so "Cable" gunning down Xavier in X-Cutioner's Song was a curious new development for me.<br /><br />Ha, the clone bit btw actually evaded me as an explanation. I think I've become too avid an Thomas&William Maximoffist. Though, why would Marvel ever want to mess an iconic character like Cable with any clone nonsense?<br /><br />I think my brain actually shut off back in the day in regards to the kisses and keycards scene. They want some triangle drama, they goddamns get some triangle drama, sense and impossibility be damned.Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-83215414238822582762015-08-29T00:57:04.263-05:002015-08-29T00:57:04.263-05:00Yeah, how Cannonball was able to remove the key fr...Yeah, how Cannonball was able to remove the key from Dragonesses' headpiece is about as nonsensical as anything else we'll see in this title. Not to mention how he knew it was there, why she keeps it there to begin with (maybe she took a page from Storm with regards to that?), etc...<br /><br />"Boom-Boom reveals that Cable has been having the New Mutants practice their martial arts."<br /> <br />While it does make sense, in story, for them to learn martial arts, I can't help but feel it's just because Liefeld is just lazy when it comes to showing a real superhero fight with people using actual superhero powers. Considering how 90% of his characters either have super strength, or use some type of weapon, or are just martial artists to be begin with, it's not that surprising. <br /><br />"While much of this issue is handed over to an ultimately superfluous Wolverine/Cable fight"<br /><br />Can you think of a better way to prop up how kewl Cable is?<br /><br />Cable punching out Stryfe is hilarious, especially in light of what we later learn Stryfe's power is. Of course, its obvious nobody has yet determined what his or Cable's actual powers are, at this point. <br /><br />In hindsight, I do understand that Liefeld did bring some energy to a title that seemed to be experiencing quite a degree of malaise, especially when it came to the artwork. But man, when you take off the nostalgia goggle? That is some really shitty, shitty artwork. wwk5dnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-61792844780764929262015-08-28T21:37:39.934-05:002015-08-28T21:37:39.934-05:00@Jason: And ALSO unclear (at least to me), is how ...@Jason: <i>And ALSO unclear (at least to me), is how the fact that she was kissing him made it any easier to grab a key, when both his hands are completely covered by the manacles.</i><br /><br />Heh. Good catch. I'm not entirely sure, but I think the art is inconsistent in that regard (shocking, I know), in that his hands are completely covered at one point but shackled only at the wrists at other points. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-22125371860918927552015-08-28T21:35:21.860-05:002015-08-28T21:35:21.860-05:00@Teemu: There are such things as Doombots and Than...@Teemu: <i>There are such things as Doombots and Thanosi.</i><br /><br />Of course. And straight-up clones. But after the Stryfe reveal in issue #100, there was some speculation that Cable and Stryfe were actually the same person - as in, one individual playing both roles, without any clones or stand-ins, but their encounter in this one negates that idea. <br /><br />@Anonymous: <i> It's not like Amara being threatened by Selene, or the kidnapped Inferno babies, where the team hasn't done anything to rescue them, or even thought about them in ages.</i><br /><br />Eh, it's pretty close to that. At least, it will be once <i>X-Force</i> starts up and they go dozens of issues without mentioning Rusty and Skids. And hey, Cable name checks Amara briefly soon. :) <br /><br />@Blam: <i> Are the present-day action of that issue, this here two-parter, and the events contemporaneously depicted in Wolverine occurring at roughly the same time, right before the big crossover that’s about to happen in the X-team books?</i><br /><br />Per the Marvel Chronology Project, UXM #268 and this story happen roughly back-to-back (Wolverine: Rahne of Terra, the 91 pseudo-<i>Wolverine</i> annual falls between them) but both of those stories take place well before <i>Wolverine</i> #31, and there's a bunch of other Wolverine appearances in there too (the next issue of <i>Wolverine</i> chronologically after this story is #24, and his appearance in "X-Tinction Agenda" comes after issue #34). <br /><br /><i>"Is" should be capitalized here, by the way, since it's not a preposition or conjunction. </i><br /><br />But it's such a small word... ;)<br /><br /><i>He’s Superboy-Prime!</i><br /><br />Ha!Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-24680867738297912942015-08-28T21:31:53.026-05:002015-08-28T21:31:53.026-05:00"Cannonball goads MLFer Dragoness into kissin..."Cannonball goads MLFer Dragoness into kissing him, enabling him to lift the key to his manacles from her headdress (why she keeps the key there, why it's a key card when they're clearly wearing old-fashioned chains, how he knew it was there, and why she reacted to his words by kissing him is not made clear)."<br /><br />And ALSO unclear (at least to me), is how the fact that she was kissing him made it any easier to grab a key, when both his hands are completely covered by the manacles.Jasonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13298753675007196538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-88100176021781269202015-08-28T13:38:16.292-05:002015-08-28T13:38:16.292-05:00I should’ve mentioned this in comments on Uncanny ...<br>I should’ve mentioned this in comments on <i>Uncanny</i> #268, maybe, but the previous <i>New Mutants</i> wasn’t fresh in my head so the fact that both were taking place in Madripoor didn’t hit me: Are the present-day action of that issue, this here two-parter, and the events contemporaneously depicted in <i>Wolverine</i> occurring at roughly the same time, right before the big crossover that’s about to happen in the X-team books?<br /><br /><i>// Cannonball goads Dragoness into kissing him, and he uses the opportunity to filch the key to their restraints from her headdress … (why she keeps the key there, why it's a key card when they're clearly wearing old-fashioned chains, how he knew it was there, and why she reacted to his words by kissing him is not made clear) //</i><br /><br />^ +1,000<br /><br /><i>// The Best There is at What He Does //</i><br /><br />You could’ve put Cable under here too. According to one of the captions on the sideways double-page-spread to which you referred, Mr. Kewly Sue is “among the best at everything he does, and in his short time as leader of the New Mutants he’s convinced his charges that he does everything well,” although come to think of it that last word should’ve been left out since otherwise it’s simultaneously kind-of redundant and kind-of undercutting the first part. Whatever. "Is" should be capitalized here, by the way, since it's not a preposition or conjunction. 8^)<br /><br /><i>// Cable apparently manages to punch Stryfe's red cape right out of existence //</i><br /><br />He’s Superboy-Prime!<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-44555376991885234552015-08-27T23:09:56.927-05:002015-08-27T23:09:56.927-05:00Yeah, but... Cable vs. Wolverine though.Yeah, but... Cable vs. Wolverine though.Zephyrnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-29374393256305522202015-08-27T18:40:51.119-05:002015-08-27T18:40:51.119-05:00"Either way, we never do actually see Cable a..."Either way, we never do actually see Cable and the New Mutants attempt to rescue Rusty and Skids from the MLF."<br />We do see Cable and X-FORCE attacking the MLF's base in X-Force 1. Presumably, if the MLF hadn't all escaped, they would have asked any members they captured where Rusty and Skids were. It's not like Amara being threatened by Selene, or the kidnapped Inferno babies, where the team hasn't done anything to rescue them, or even thought about them in ages.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-36506310785876095722015-08-27T16:19:23.646-05:002015-08-27T16:19:23.646-05:00This issue represents the first on-page, face-to-f...<i>This issue represents the first on-page, face-to-face interaction between Cable and Stryfe. The fact that they're in the same place at the same time is significant given some of the theories that cropped up about their relationship given later revelations in this series.</i><br /><br />There are such things as Doombots and Thanosi.<br /><br /><i>Cable apparently manages to punch Stryfe's red cape right out of existence (or into invisibility).</i><br /><br />And reveal the most anatomically correct armored ass there ever was. Some master blacksmith must've spent hours and hours banging that ass. And no, I refuse to rephrase.Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-68794050573352769672015-08-27T15:14:45.716-05:002015-08-27T15:14:45.716-05:00@Cerebro: Cable's pose on this cover is, also,...@Cerebro: <i>Cable's pose on this cover is, also, a "swipe" (are we allowed to accuse Liefeld of swiping, yet?) of Roadblock from a pin-up Michael Golden did for the second G.I. JOE YEARBOOK. </i><br /><br />A. Thanks for the heads up, I never realized that was a swipe (and a blatant one at that). <br />2. Yes, we are totally allowed to accuse Liefeld of swiping. The only reason I don't do it more myself is because, in all but the most famous or obvious examples, I'm *terrible* at noticing it. Like, once I see side-by-side, it's obvious, but I rarely make the connection myself. <br /><br />So if anyone spots any swipes as we go along, point 'em out! Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-3316187341136510032015-08-27T14:39:58.925-05:002015-08-27T14:39:58.925-05:00> The image of Cable on the cover of this issue...> <i>The image of Cable on the cover of this issue was used as the cover for the early editions of the Cable trade paperback which collected issues #87-94 (sans the fill-in #92) and was the means with which I read many of those issues for the first time back in the day.</i><br /><br />Cable's pose on this cover is, also, a "swipe" (are we allowed to accuse Liefeld of swiping, yet?) of Roadblock from a pin-up Michael Golden did for the second G.I. JOE YEARBOOK. Scroll down, about, halfway, here -- http://www.yojoe.com/comics/homages/ -- for the side-by-side comparison.Cerebronoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-41222506756844467552015-08-27T12:39:30.313-05:002015-08-27T12:39:30.313-05:00This Brad Vancata guy is amazing. He colored Rick ...This Brad Vancata guy is amazing. He colored Rick Leonardi's EXCALIBUR issue too, and that looked fantastic. This looks just as nice, colorwise. I love his muted tones and his use of white for highlighting. That picture of Wolverine and Cable under "The Cable Guy" heading is particularly beautiful.<br /><br />Otherwise I have nothing to say about this issue, as I've never read it.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.com