Friday, January 31, 2014

Guardians of the Galaxy #12 Unlettered Preview - More Hugs

I don't consider myself an overly affectionate person, especially when I'm sober. Get enough liquor in me and I'll dish out some hugs, but I'm just as likely to start throwing punches. It really depends on my mood, how much I've had, and how bad the Ravens are doing. But I understand the power of affection. It can heal broken hearts, rebuilt burnt bridges, and make a shitty day feel awesome. It's a lot like cocaine and ecstasy, minus the nasty side-effects.

All New X-men has been a pretty emotional series since it began. There hasn't been a lot of hugging, but there has been a lot of emotional upheaval, especially from O5 Jean Grey. She's the one dealing with the most. Being dead in the future, having a school named after her, and seeing the love of her life end up in the arms of her big-breasted rival would make anyone upset. And since weed isn't legal in New York or Canada, she's got precious few ways to relax. Maybe the next base should set up shop in Colorado or something. But now she can't deal with those emotions because she's about to go on fucking trial.

In the events of All New X-men #22, the Shi'ar arrived and abducted her specifically so they could try her for crimes she hadn't even committed yet. It sounds like the kind of legal shit that only takes place in North Korea, Iran, and Texas. To make it suck even more, she got abducted shortly after she got into an emotional argument with O5 Cyclops about how well (or not well) she's coping. It's a shitty way to end a conversation with a future husband, but the Shi'ar aren't exactly known for attacking at a good time.

Now they've officially teamed up with the Guardians of the Galaxy in hopes of saving O5 Jean Grey from the kind of justice that only Kim Jong Un would applaud. And they have to do this while emotions are running high. But those emotions may get even more complicated based on a new unlettered preview of Guardians of the Galaxy #12, which is part 4 of the event. I'm sure everyone remembers this famous cover.


Well, what happened wasn't exactly that Twilight-esque if that's the right word. O5 Cyclops and X-23 never kissed, but they did share a nice emotional moment that involved a hug. It was also stated outright by O5 Jean Grey herself that O5 Cyclops "fancied" X-23. It's not clear if he fancied her as a person or just parts of her. But it's something that was only lightly explored. Well now in the unlettered preview released by Comic Book Resources, it gets a little less Twilight-esque and a bit more pornographic. Hell, without dialog, pretty much anything can be made pornographic, but that's just my own twisted drunken imagination talking.


Marvel is pleased to present your first look at GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #12, from the rock star creative team of Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli! Jean Grey has been abducted by the Shi’ar Empire – accused of cataclysmic crimes she has yet to commit. But not all is as it seems. How are Star-Lord’s malevolent father and the Spartax Empire involved? Now, as the Guardians of the Galaxy and the All-New X-Men race to the edge of the deep space to rescue her – they’ll enlist the help of some very unlikely allies. One of whom will have world shattering consequences for one of the All-New X-Men! But even they may not be enough to stop the most powerful army in the Universe. Don’t miss the encounter that will have everyone buzzing this February in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #12!


Poor O5 Cyclops. He really does look like he needs a hug. It looks like O5 Jean needs one too because it appears she's dealing with some sort of alien lawyer. As someone who has dealt with many overworked and under-appreciated public defenders, I'm pretty sure she's encouraging O5 Jean to plead guilty and hope for a lesser sentence. By Shi'ar standards, that probably means only 150 years in the slave pits as opposed to 200. She knows she's fucked and I doubt she has any cell-mates that can sneak her in some weed. It's tragic, but I guess the Shi'ar don't care for hugs or justice for that matter.

But X-23 shows that she's more compassionate than the Shi'ar, which isn't saying much I guess. She sees O5 Cyclops in a vulnerable state, not unlike the one she was in earlier. And just as he did, she reaches out to him and hugs him. It's a sweet moment that a non-sober me would choke up over. So at the very least the X-23/O5 Cyclops plot isn't going to be dropped. Given how O5 Jean saw them hugging before, it may add more melodrama to the ongoing emotional shit storm between O5 Cyclops and O5 Jean.

But it's still unclear just what sort of emotions there are between X-23 and O5 Cyclops. Is she just being compassionate? Or does she want to jump his bone and ride him like bull on crystal meth? We can't tell from the unlettered preview, but we can infer that emotions will be running high. And if O5 Angel actually does try to hit on Angela, someone might even get laid. It's an event full of justice, injustice, and emotions. It's Judge Judy meets the Vampire Dairies. It doesn't sound like it should work, but fuck if it doesn't look awesome. Nuff said!

5 comments:

  1. HAHAHA I called it. Bendis is gonna hook up Scott and X-23, while keeping him and jean as "just friends". Then the status quo will be changed. They have to find some way to get Jean/Logan exist in 616. And what better way to do that than having the younger versions of Scott and Jean never get together, eh ?

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    1. Dude, it's a fucking unlettered preview. You can't say you called it. That's like Peyton Manning saying he won a game in the second quarter without even throwing a pass. And considering how much Jean/Logan shit there is in the movies (and how badly that turned out), why the fuck would they go this route to hook them up? Makes no fucking sense. There's also that matter of the whole fucking timeline and how Cyclops and Jean Grey's relationship is a big fucking part of that. But then again, Marvel has been known to work around that shit before. They can do it again. I just think it would be a dick move and a really messy move. That and it's way too fucking early to tell. Right now, I'm calling that this is going to change something with the Phoenix Force. That's the only way to resolve this issue. The Phoenix Force has to get involved. Oh joy.

      Jack

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    2. Yup, Bendis himself said in his latest interview. "Fans are gonna say, "Whoa, we did not expect you to go that far". Major status quo changes. Really, I don't understand how you would make Scott a better character by coupling him with someone with even more Baggage than Wolverine.

      http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/2014/01/21/brian-michael-bendis-all-new-x-men-crossover/4725229/

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    3. You're still making a fuckton of assumptions that it has to do with retconning the most important relationship in X-men history. I think a bigger retcon would have to do with the Phoenix Force. That is what this whole trial is built around. Bendis didn't mention Cyclops/Jean and he said on his Tumblr that Cyclops/Jean fans would like how it plays out. He could be lying and you could be right. But again, it would be a dick move of epic proportions if that were the case.

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  2. Bonus points if Laura says "You look like you need this."

    I do like this turn of events. All of Scott's serious relationships have been Jean or substitute Jean. Finally having one that is not could be a huge step forward for the character. And hopefully Bendis will use Scott to develop Laura while he uses Laura to develop Scott.

    Rothstein-Smash

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