How amazing is The Amazing Spider-Man?

The difficult thing about comic book movies is that there is always a push for a new movie to be released. This means that there is going to be times when an actor gets too old for a particular role, and if you want a new movie, you are going to have to relaunch the series. This was the case recently with Spider-Man.

This has happened for good or for bad with a variety of franchises. Replacing Batman, has had it's ups and downs, and the new Superman didn't go very well. Marvel hasn't had many titles that have reached that point yet, so they are still looking to see what will happen as they have to relaunch to maintain popularity. (Let's just ignore the failed movie attempts from the 80's.)

So what do I think of the newest Spider-Man movie?

I think this is the best Spider-man movie that has been made to date. Tobey Maguire does a good job of being the web-slinger, but there is something wrong with the tone of those movies. They don't seem to take themselves seriously. (I know, how serious can you be about a story involving a man with spider powers? It's a delicate balancing act.)

I think the casting is as close to perfect as you can get. Martin Sheen and Sally Field as Uncle Ben and Aunt May are inspired. (When I first saw Sally in the kitchen, I started to have a moment where I though, "But Aunt May has..." and then I stopped that thought.) Emma Stone was a great choice for Gwen Stacy. I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw Denis Leary as Captain Stacy, but I was happily surprised about that casting choice. Oh, and Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man was a great choice.

Do you know what else makes this the best of the Spider-Man movies? The humor. When I saw the trailer, I knew that Garfield was going to be able to make me remember why I fell in love with Spider-Man. When I was young, I decided to be like Spider-Man, to be funny and sarcastic. I wanted to have a quip whenever I needed it. I didn't see that Spider-Man from Maguire.

There were a few small issues, but over all, I loved this movie. If you haven't seen this movie, you need to fix that. Go see the Amazing Spider-Man today.

What about Marvel Zombies?

Do you know what Marvel comic I really enjoyed? What if? It was fun to see how stories may have gone differently if something had gone in another direction. “What if Charles Xavier had become the Juggernaught?” “What if Spiderman joined the Fantastic Four?” What if Daredevil had killed the Kingpin?”

The list goes on and on, and the stories are fun to read even though they don’t take themselves too seriously. That is probably the best part about the comic book.

So what does this have to do with Marvel Zombies? It is two different miniseries that consider a question-“What if the heroes and villains of the Marvel Universe became zombies?”

I love the concept, but I don’t care for the execution. The writing is sloppy and the storyline doesn’t feel real enough to satisfy me as a comic book reader. Perhaps it is the fact that the story moves with the speed of a What If? story, but drawn over many issues. Maybe it is the fact that even with so many panels, the story still feels incomplete.

There are two volumes to look at. In the first volume we see how the zombies handle a shrinking population, and trying to eat Magneto. The story ends with them eating Galactus and travelling all over the universe eating their fill.

The second volume picks up 20 years later when the zombies return to earth after eating every sentient creature in the universe. They are excited to find a handful of humans still on earth and make plans to breed them for future eating.

Here’s where things getting silly for me. These few zombies have eaten the entire universe, which in the Marvel universe is largely populated. Why didn’t they think about this plan when they still had other planets to eat? More importantly for me, why are they adding zombies to their ranks?  Firelord shouldn’t exist at all since Galactus created him after Silver Surfer went rogue. Thanos might be able to stand up to galactic power, but then to have his head crushed by Hulk like it’s no big deal? How does that make sense?

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Why was there a moment where I couldn’t tell the difference between Luke Cage and Black Panther?

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->How is it possible for Cortez to pull some pieces from Teed Richard’s device and Forge can’t figure out the problem?

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Do any of the Acolytes’ children even have mutant powers? If so what are they?

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Not eating is the solution to the Zombie problem?

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->What is the impact besides Spidey whining and the universe getting eaten?

Those are just a few of the confusing features of the story for me. Even with these questions, it is still an interesting read, and well worth your time. Check it out. 

Top 12 Avengers-Number 1

Top 12 Avengers-Number 1

Captain America

Captain America was not a creation of Stan Lee, in fact, the Captain has his origins before Stan was involved with comics and when Marvel Comics was known as Timely Comics. It was 1940, and the United States was still undecided about its policy concerning World War II, but since every other comic company had someone involved in the fight with Hitler and the Axis powers.

Originally he was going to be called Super American, but the adjective had been worn out by that point, so Joe Simon decided to name his character Captain America. In his first issue, Cap got to slug Hitler in the jaw. With that single issue, Captain America was a hit.

So what's Cap's story? I'm sure you've seen or heard it before, but here you go:

Born a Yankee Doodle Dandy (on the 4th of July in case you don't get the reference), Steve Rogers grew up to be a scrawny Fine Arts Student, and when the war started, he wanted to go and fight, but he was deemed unfit for service. He jumped at the chance to be a part of the Super-Soldier project in hopes that it would help him be able to serve his country.

Since the man behind the program is killed by enemy agents as Rogers becomes a Super Soldier, and since he didn't leave complete records of the formula, Rogers is used as a patriotic super hero. He battles America's enemies both at home and around the world, but in a daring attempt to defeat Baron Zemo, both Cap and his partner Bucky are involved in an explosion over the Atlantic, and they are both presumed dead.

Years later, a frozen Captain America is discovered and thawed from the ice. He recovers thanks to the Super-Soldier Serum and joins the team. Cap has often acted as the leader for the team, and his tactical expertise and experience have always been an asset.

Let's talk for a little bit about what makes Cap so special. The Super-Soldier Serum increases his strength, agility, speed, and everything else to beyond peak performance. He has a shield that is made from a blend of adamantium and vibranium (along with some other things) that is invulnerable and can absorb almost any shock it receives. Cap's long experience as a soldier has taught him how to predict the moves his enemies will make and how to counter them.

Cap has been a part of almost every major story line in the Avengers and the Marvel Universe. Although he only has his enhanced strength and the shield, Cap is still more than a match for many of the opponents he faces, but he does so with a humility that makes him endearing.

Let me tell you about some of my favorite Cap moments.

Captain America defeats Iron Man one-on-one. This has happened more than once actually, and every time it happens It makes me happy. Somehow Cap manages to overcome huge obstacles to defeat the man in the super armor.

Captain America defears the Super Adaptoid in possesion of the Cosmic Cube. The Super Adaptoid is a sentient robot that was designed to defeat any and all chalenges by duplicating the powers of anyone it encountered. At some point, this device gained the powers of the Cosmic Cube. (This is not to be confused with the cube in the Marvel movies.) The Cosmic Cube can basically grant any wish its holder might make. Using the power it had copied from the cube, the Super Adaptoid capture the Avengers, who were led by Captain Marvel (aka Photon) and held them in cubes that their powers could not affect. Captain America (then using the identity the Captain since he had been stripped of the title Captain America by the US government) was teleported to the scene. Cap was able to show the Adaptoid that it wasn't as perfect as it thought even though it had immense power. It wasn't able to create something original or even beat the Captain in combat. This proved, the Super Adaptoid shut down.

Awesome shield tricks I don't remember where this happened, but in a storyline Cap needed to get to the bottom of a deep pit. Without taking time to think about it, he jumped and fell

Cap jumps off the SHIELD helicarrier and hijacks a jet while it is in the air.
At the start of the Civil War storyline, Captain America is on the SHIELD helicarrier talking to the woman that is responsible for reigning in all of the heroes that are against registering. Rather than trying to explain the situation and the reasons that the government is taking these actions, she tries to detain the Captain. Cap doesn't take this approach very well and does something no one is expecting-he uses his shield to smash through the glass of one of the windows, and falls.

This is unexpected enough, but then Cap guides his decent so he lands on a jet plane patrolling around the helicarrier and ejects the pilot so he can fly it to safety.

Let's talk about the movies

I didn't do this with the others,but I just appreciated Chris Evans' performance in this role so much. Along with that, the film makers really got the character right. (Certainly better than Cap's first film.) Steve Rogers is all about being that guy that takes one for the team. He will jump on the grenade and think about everyone else first in a combat situation.

I loved watching Cap stand up to Thor's hammer and arguing with Iron Man. (Movie Iron Man gets a pass compared to the comic books.) I wasn't expecting Captain America: the First Avenger to be a period piece, but that ended up being the perfect way to introduce the character.

Steve Rogers is a symbol for America, but more than that, he fights for everyone that needs a hand, and that makes him my favorite Avenger. You may or may not agree, but that's what the comment section is for.

Top 12 Avengers-Number 4

Thor

While trying to come up with new ideas for heroes, Stan Lee started thinking about mythology. It occurred to him that while most people were familiar with Greco-Roman figures, they weren't really familiar with other groups like the Norse. Since there would be fewer people complaining about discrepancies, Stan suggested that Marvel try using Thor as a hero.

This was great because not only did we get to have Thor, but Norse mythology had already provided a large group of allies and enemies to make writing a little bit easier. Odin and Loki have been huge features in the book, as well as Fenrir and the Midgard Serpent.

One of the most important parts played by Thor was the reason for the creation of the Avengers. Loki was trying to trick and theoretically kill his brother, Thor, by pitting him against the Hulk. Not only Thor replied to the call for help, but so did Ant Man, Wasp, and Iron Man. The four teamed up, and with the help of the Hulk, they managed to defeat Loki's evil scheme.

Since Thor has to split his attentions between Midgard (Earth) and Asgard, he hasn't always been an active part of the Avengers, but his presence is always welcomed, and appreciated.

I think what I really like about Thor is the option of the different worlds. With Asgard, you also get all of the Nine Realms with all of the insanity. Frost Giant, Dwarves, Dark Elves, Hel are all great possibilities, and you get all of the great enemies and allies like Enchantress, the Warriors Three, Sif and the rest.

I almost forgot to talk about Thor's alternate personalities. Early on, Thor had to spend a good portion of his time as Donald Blake, which was referenced in the Thor movie, but the original concept was Donald Blake as a doctor with a bad leg whose cane turned into Thor's hammer. At another point, Thor had disappeared, and a mortal named Eric Masterson was given the powers of Thor in an attempt to find the thunder god.

Thor is a big hit and he has been for a long time. With the success of Thor and the Avengers, look for more and more people to get interested as well.

Top 12 Avengers- Number 5

Photon

Monica Rambeau started her comic book story as a member of the New Orleans harbor patrol and gained her powers while trying to stop the creation of a weapon. Bathed in extra-dimensional energy, she gained the ability to transform her body into any form of energy. This gives her the ability to fly, and project energy either in energy and human forms.

After gaining her powers, Monica decides to become a super hero and takes the name Captain Marvel which while being one of the more popular names in the Marvel Universe, isn't currently in use. After Carol Danvers loses her powers as Binary, Monica gives up the name and becomes Photon.

I don't really know Monica as Photon, but I'll use the name to keep things simpler.

My main connection to Photon is during her time leading the Avengers. I really appreciated her in this role. It wasn't an easy time to be an Avenger, let alone leading the team. The ranks were a bit thin, and the original Avengers all had their own problems that kept them away from the team. Photon still did a great job in my opinion.

She did have some trouble with the Super Adaptoid after it had gained access to the Cosmic Cube, but that is to be expected. Other than that moment, I can't think of a problem she wasn't able to lead the team through.

I especially appreciated her upbeat attitude even in the worst conditions. She hasn't been a regular part of the Avengers for a while, but hopefully she'll be back sometime soon.

Top 12 Avengers-Number 6

Hawkeye and Mockingbird

I know that lots of people are shipping Hawkeye and Black Widow after the Avengers movie, and there is some justification for the connection, but I always preferred to see Clint and Bobbi together. Let's get some background first.

Hawkeye lost his parents at an early age and ran away to the circus with his brother Barney. Clint was trained to be a master archer, and headlines at the circus. Eventually, he decides to use his archery to become a hero. However, his initial encounter with the Black Widow messes that up a little bit. Clint fell in love with Natasha and she convinced him to help her steal industrial secrets from Tony Stark. After a few stories with Clint as a reluctant criminal, Iron Man actually puts him up for membership in the Avengers.

Clint was a part of the smallest team, when the Avengers were really figuring themselves out. It was just Captain America, Scarlett Witch, Quicksilver, and Hawkeye. After a bit, Giant Man, Wasp, and Hercules. Clint was a major player in the Avenger, and the driving force behind the creation of the West Coast Avengers, and the Great Lakes Avengers.

Clint has tried his had at using Pym particles to make him Goliath, but I always prefer him as the man with the bow. He always keeps his foes guessing with all the trick arrows at his disposal.

Bobbi Morse has a very confusing background before she started working with SHIELD and became Mockingbird, and I'm planning to ignore all of that. I want to talk about the woman that got Clint Barton to settle down, at least a little. Mockingbird doesn't have any super powers, but she has been trained by SHIELD, and wields a staff that can separate into two batons that she has been extensively trained to use.

The best thing about Mockingbird is when she takes her name literally, and makes fun of her opponents. (This is something that I appreciate in a lot of heroes.) Hawkeye and Mockingbird make a great team. I'm not sure of their status now that Bobbi isn't dead any more. Hopefully these two can get it together.

Note: There have been lots of stories about Clint hooking up with other heroes. My favorite was the issue of What if? where the heroes of the first Secret War never made it back to earth, and Hawkeye ended up marrying She-Hulk.

Top 12 X-men (part 2)

Cyclops

Sure Wolverine is more popular as a charcter then Wolverine, but that won't change my opinion. Cyclops is a better X-man than Wolverine.

Scott was one of the founding X-men, although shifting continuity may have changed that without me knowing. He has been gifted, and cursed, with the ability to shoot concussive beams from his eyes. The beams are extremely powerful, and after years of training, Scott has gained percision skills. He can shoot wide destructive beams, or tighten the beam to a very narrow diameter. He has also developed a mastery of angles so that he can make nearly impossible richochets.

The thiung that makes Cyclops the man that he is, is the fact that without his visor or his ruby quartz glasses, he cannot stop his beams. Sure he can shut his eyes, but as soon as he does, the beams will come blasting out. This has caused Scott to be a cautious man. He always worries about doing things correctly and having a plan. This Has led some, including Wolverine to doubt his heart, but Scott just doesn't wear his emotions on his sleeve. It has also led to Cyclops being a tactical genius. (I will not agree with a recent issue of the X-men where the writer declared the Cyclops had unbeatable plans. I've seen him on the ropes too many times to believe that one.)

So why does Cyclops beat out Wolverine on this list? First, he got the girl, aka Jean. Sure the movie has her using her Pheonix powers to rip him to shreds like she did to Proffessor X, but that doesn't change the facts. Scott won the girl of his dreams. Wolverine came in second.

Scott was the second X-man. He is one of the Twelve (another ruined storyline) and was the host of Apocalypse. Scott faced off against Mastermold alone and won. Scott worked with Banshee to bore a tunnel from Magneto's underground base in the Actric until they reached the Savage Lands. Scott was a founding member of X-factor, and he take on any team of X-men in a game of tag, and still win.

These are just a few of the reasons why he is #2. However, he did leave the X-men to marry a clone of Jean, that ended up becoming the Goblin Queen. He might have lost a one-on-one match with a powerless Storm for the leadership of the X-men. He might not have been able to kill Jean/Pheonix Force when he knew the time was right, but nobody is perfect.

Right now the writers of the X-men are treating Cyclops wrong. I can understand what they are trying to accomplish, but Scott isn't that big of a jerk/moron/power-hungery-maniac/etc. They have lost the core of the man, most of which has come from his relationship with Jean. I guess Emma is a decent replacement, but I've never really cared for the character because of how she has been used over the years.

Well, there's only one possible person left. Sure there are lots of X-men to choose from, but only one person to choose in my book.

Top 12 Avengers-Honorable Mentions

There are so many Avengers to choose from, and it seems a shame to leave any of them out, but I do have to keep this list at 12, just because that's what I do. However, I can still list some honorable mentions to help out a little. It won't let me list Team-Leader Era Wasp, or War Machine, but I did squeeze them in here.

Black Panther

T'Challa is the King of Wakanda, a small kingdom in Africa that has the distinction of being the most tribal in appearance and attitude, but also the most technological country in the world. This is because Wakanda is the leading supplier of Vibranium, a rare metal that absorbs vibrations. (Captain America's shield has vibranium in it and that is why he can handle being hit by Thor's hammer in that scene in the movie.)

The king of Wakanda also fills a special role because he is the leader and defender of his country as the Black Panther. The king trains his body to the peak of human perfection, and develops the skills needed to fight the enemies of Wakanda.

The Black Panther was first introduced to bring some diversity to the Avengers, and his characterization in the comics reflected that forced situation. This is a trend, that is a bit of a shame. I already talked about Triathlon, but it also happened with Falcon. Why can't they just become part of the team and that is it?

Panther had an attitude for a bit (and so did some of the Avengers, so I guess he had a right to be upset) but the team eventually managed to get beyond the race issue and get down to the business of saving the world. Panther hasn't been an active member of the Avengers for a while, but he does keep popping up. Most notable in recent events was his marriage to Ororo Monroe (aka Storm). That didn't last very long, and I'm glad it didn't. Storm has too much going on to be tied down to being Queen of Wakanda.

Hercules

Hercules is a bit behind the times. He really only wants one thing out of life, glorious adventures. Unfortunately that means that he isn't always thinking about the repercussions of his actions. Cap might be trying to talk his way out of a dangerous situation, and hen Herc just jumps in and slugs the guy which looks cool, but then starts a major battle.

With that being said, Hercules is strong and faithful. If he considers you a friend, he will face heaven and hell to save you. He is the actual hero that faced the challenges back when Greece was the cradle of civilization and was eventually given immortality.

He does tend to forget that us 'mere mortals' are mortal, but that may have something to do with spending time with heroes that never seem to stay dead.

Starfox

An Eternal from Titan, a moon of Saturn, Eros, aka Starfox didn't have much time for anything that didn't involve having fun or meeting women. That all changed when is brother, Thanos, killed most of their people. Thanos (who is that mysterious purple guy you spotted at the end of the Avengers.) Starfox can stimulate the pleasure centers of the brain and like all Eternals, he is super strong, resistant to harm, can heal quickly, and fly.

Starfox is an on-again-off-again kind of guy, so it is hard for him to make the list.

Antman

Henry Pym helped to start the Avengers as the shrinking Antman, but he's not the guy I want to talk about. Pym was always too worried about his power level even though he had proved his ability to save the world time and time again. Scott Lang, on the other hand, is more than happy to be the man who hangs out with ants.

Scott has been an Avenger, the scientific advisor for the Fantastic Four when Reed went missing, and helped to save the world many times. He is a great character and a great hero too.

Top Twelve X-men- Number 4

Storm

Ororo Monroe has had an interesting existence as a character. Just like any other character, she has grown and changed over the years, but some of the key elements have been there from the beginning. Storm has lived many lives (most of them happened early on so it isn't just because she's been around for over 30 years.)

Storm the orphan thief

There's something about the early days of the X-men and the leaders of the team. Both Cycolps and Storm lost their parents and spent a good portion of their lives as orphans. Storm lost her parents during the Suez Crisis in Egypt and became claustrophobic after being trapped in a pile of rubble after that attack. After this, a six-year-old Ororo was trained as a master thief before she wandered off into the Serengeti.

Storm the goddess

When Storm's powers manifested, she was revered as a goddess by the tribal people. She provided them with the rain they needed as well as the sun to help their crops grow. She didn't really let that life go to her head too much, but she certainly enjoyed the title. This is where Professor X found her for the second time because she picked his pocket once when she was a small child.
Storm the X-man

The new team of X-men was a larger group and a stronger group in many ways. Storm was especially important. Her power to control weather was probably the biggest asset of the new team. Because of her time as a goddess, Storm had confidence and extreme control of her powers. There were few occasions where she lost that control, but they were generally when she was trapped in a small space. My favorite instance is when the team faces Doctor Doom and he turns Storm into a statue and her unconscious mind creates a storm that threatens to destroy Latveria.
Storm the powerless punk-rock leader

I don't know who it was, but somebody came up with the brilliant idea of taking away Storm's powers. In the storyline, Forge accidentally shoots her with a gun he's been working on that will take away mutant powers. Storm has already been struggling with her rebellious nature. Prior to losing her powers while in Japan, a ninja reminds her of the girl that she used to be. Storm ends up getting a Mohawk and sporting lots of leather which causes a rift between her and Kitty.

There comes a point where Professor X is in space with Lilandra and Scott should probably stop being the leader of the X-men and go take care of his wife and child. Storm challenges him to one-on-one combat in the Danger Room for leadership of the team. Even though she is powerless, she manages to win that fight. Storm proved her leadership skills frequently as she faced many challenges.

She killed the team (well made it look like she killed them) in order to find a bit of safety and to let the X-men be a little more active rather than reactive. This didn't turn out very well, but the X-men came back with Storm leading one of the two main teams.

More recently, Storm married the Black Panther in an overblown event that included the Watcher talking about their future child. They have since broken up. Storm sided with Cyclops during Schism and is now part of his proactive team. We'll see how that goes. I think she would have been better off going her own way, but that's just me.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 5

Shadowcat

Once there was a young lady named Katherine Anne Pryde, and when she turned thirteen, she started getting headaches and had some strange experiences like laying down on her bed and finding herself on the living room floor. She was recruited to go the Xavier's school and quickly became one of the X-men.


Kitty in her first appearance

I was trying to decide where to interrupt myself for a moment, and that time is now. If this list were my personal favorites, and not combined with significance to the lives of the X-men, Shadowcat would be at the very top of the list. I have always been a huge fan of her character. When I first started reading the X-men, Kitty was an older woman, but sadly those days are gone. I've always appreciated her resolve, determination, and intelligence. Now back to the rest of my post.

Kitty may have started off as a goofy teenage girl (with some serious fashion sense problems), and that is because that's who she was, but she grew up pretty quickly and became an important part of the team. Her powers may not seem very impressive at first, but there is more to Shadowcat than passing through solid objects. With concentration, she can 'walk' on air and her power disrupts electrical circuits. Her powers also allow her to get places many others cannot with little or no trouble.

Kitty is a big part of some important story lines. She is the main focus of Days of Future Past. Her future self, Kate, travels back in time to try to stop the sentinels from taking over. Kitty is one of the founding members of Excalibur. Kitty has the attitude to make up for her lack of super flashy, planet destroying powers. Oh, before I forget, Kitty also phased a giant space bullet through the planet that would have killed us all. I think that in itself deserves a little respect.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 6

Colossus

Here we have the X-man that I feel connected to the most. I mean, I'm not Russian, and I never really worked on a farm. I have younger sisters, but neither of them... (I'm getting ahead of myself here. Let's just jump to the actual discussion of Peter Rasputin.)

So Colossus is part of the second round of X-men. He is part of the ethnic mix that is a part of this new team. From the start we get to see that Peter is more than just the strong man of the team. Sure he can change his flesh into organic metal which allows him to take lots of damage, but there's also a sensitive and caring side to this man. Sure he's made out of metal and he's able to repel most attacks, but that doesn't make his willingness to stand in harm's way to protect his friends.

As time passed, Peter became a more complex character. Yes, he is a pillar of strength and power for the team, but he is also an artist and it is his determination to help other that makes him one of the mainstays of the team. (We'll get to that in a bit, but I don't want to get ahead of myself.)

Colossus has many advantages what with his power to transform into organic metal, but he also has many disadvantages that were very frustrating to him. Unlike the Beast, Colossus was most likely to rush in and start bashing the enemy. This was a problem if his enemy could get in a good shot. There were many times early on that Colossus was seen flying off into the distance or crawling out of a crater. He was also a liability in fights against Magneto.  This made him doubt his place on the team, but with some help from his friends he was able to find a way to avoid those problems and be a real force in the battle against an assortment of enemies.

Things got complicated when Peter's sister Illyana discovers her mutant power to open teleportational portals that pass through the demon realm of Limbo. One moment Illyana is a little girl, and the next she is a teenager who has spent most of her life literally living with demons. It is tough for Peter to accept at first, but he is quick to accept his rapidly aged sister and love her unconditionally.

OK, major plot points for Colossus that make him a part of the list. (It has to be more than just the fact that I really like him, right?) Well, let's see. Not only is Colossus a mainstay for the team, he's also been involved in a number of major story lines. Colossus gave his life to end the Legacy Virus. He also saved the day during the Proteus storyline and during the epic battle in Dallas where the X-men kept the the spirit of mischief from ending the world. (In both cases it was Peter's metal form that ended those battles. Probably the biggest moment though was when Peter left the X-men to join Magneto for a time. This was a major blow to the spirit and moral of the team because Peter was such a consistent part of the team.

Even though he died from curing the Legacy Virus, that didn't keep him from coming back from the dead. Everyone else had their time, so why not Colossus too?

Top Twelve X-men-Number 7





Nightcrawler



The first appearance of Nightcrawler when the X-men rebooted.

I feel a little bad about this one. I mean Kurt Wagner is one of the best characters ever. However, I have to try to stick to my original criterion (Appeal and importance play equal parts.) and put him right here on the list. Nightcrawler doesn't have the most impressive powers and he hasn't been the driving force of any major story lines. He's certainly been around for most of the big stories, but let's give credit where credit is due.



Let's take a moment to talk about Kurt's background and introduction to the X-men. Even though the original team of X-men was pretty good, the book had a lot of problems like lame villains which included Unus the Untouchable and the Vanisher. The book was put on hiatus for several years and also had a segment of time where Marvel just reprinted old issues to keep the book alive. That all ended with the introduction of the New X-men. This was an attempt by the writers and the company to not only create more interest in the team, but also to address the lack of racial diversity on the team. (The book likes to focus on prejudice and fear of differences, but aside from mutant powers the original team of X-men had no diversity.)

This is when Nightcrawler was introduced. He is a German mutant who is also one of the first truly non-human mutants to play the role of hero. Think about the past choices. First you have Hank McCoy who hadn't even become furry at that point. He just had big hands and feet that could hold stuff really well. You could also consider several 'evil' mutants that were frightening like Blob or Toad, but even they weren't as inhuman as Nightcrawler.

Kurt may not look like your average human, but he is probably the most human character in the X-men universe. He has a passion for life and he has a bit of a split personality. On the one hand, he is a swashbuckling hero who wins the girl, and relishes every moment of the adventure. On the other hand, he is a devout Catholic who strives to serve God even though he looks like a demon. It is a strange dichotomy, but one that works well with the character.

While Nightcrawler is a wonderful character, his role hasn't been as significant. He is certainly always the voice of hope and adventure for the X-men. He was the leader of Excalibur and he used his strategic skills to lead the team, almost always with success.

The injury that took Nightcrawler from the X-men and let him become the leader of Excallubur.

So what about Kurt's biggest moments? Well, he is a major long-term contributor to the X-men, but the writers don't really like to give him a big role in the comic book as a whole. We do get to see Kurt being used in a plot overthrow the Catholic church by setting him up to become the new Pope, and he is always a big part of what's going on in most story lines, but that's about all I can offer you besides what I mentioned before. Hopefully You won't hold that against him.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 8 Gambit



Gambit

Here is one of the first shots we have of Remy in his first apperance in the X-men. Not quite as handsome as they make him later.



I might get some flack for this one, but it's my list and I have my reasons for putting Remy LeBeau a little further down the list than some people might appreciate. Before we get into all the reasons, let's talk about the the man himself.

Gambit officially hit the pages of the X-men in the 90s during a period of great upheaval for the team. The Mutant Massacre had mixed things up and sent Shadowcat and Nightcrawler to England to be a part of Excalibur a book set in England and put together by the legendary team of Chris Claremont and Alan Davis. Then Storm and Wolverine had followed up on a plan to 'kill' the team and allow them to work behind the scenes without endangering their friends and family. Later on, the whole team either died (well it looked like Storm died) or walked into the Siege Perilous with some not-so-gentle persuasion from Psylocke. (The Siege Perilous was a fine McGuffin that sent the X-men off in different directions and placed them in different lives for a while.)

OK, sorry that took such a tangent, but it needed to be said in order to get to the next part. You see, Storm didn't actually die, she ended up being turned into a child again and she went back to the only life she knew from that time of her life-being a thief. That's how she met Gambit. They were both in the process of stealing paintings from the same not-so-nice guy and ended up having some adventures together. Eventually all of the X-family gets back together and the entire mutant community gets turned on its head. Gambit ends up becoming a part of it all even with his unclear back ground.



Remy's first cover shot.



Let's talk about powers and abilities now for a little bit. Gambit is a mutant who was born with the ability to transform potential energy into kinetic energy. Not sure what that means? Don't think about it too hard because the idea doesn't completely hold up to scrutiny, but let's just put it this way, Gambit can take an object and fill it with the potential to explode. He usually uses playing cards because the charge quickly, but with enough time, he can use his power on any object. He even blew up his motorcycle in an attempt to defeat a bad guy.



Like any worthwhile anti-hero, Remy has a dark past beyond his life as a thief. He was the man that led the Marauders to the Morlock tunnels for the Mutant Massacre. It turns out that he's also been closely connected to the history of Mr. Sinister (albeit through time travel) helping this menace to the X-men become the threat that he is. (I guess was is a better term since I think Mr. Sinister is dead at the moment. Maybe next week he'll be back.)

Remy also suffers from the typical comic book character syndrome- too many writers.  Everyone wants to work with this kind of character, and everyone seems to want to either add to his back story or just rewrite it. (Wolverine has the same problem.) Some of the changes have been for the better. I'm sure the original plan for Gambit was not for him to be responsible for the Mutant Massacre, but it definitely works for the character and the story. Hopefully no one will decide that Remy's blood can cure cancer or something ridiculous like that.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 9

Number 9-Rogue
Of all the characters in the X-men, I think that Rogue provides the greatest opportunities for story and drama. Not only does she have a power that limits her interaction with others, but she also has an outgoing personality that craves that kind of interaction. She has a past as a criminal. She's 'stolen' the lives of countless people-most for just a few minutes, but there's one case where it was much longer, and her power always has that potential to steal another life.

Rogue's first appearance was in the pages of the Avengers. It was Avengers Annual # 10, a book that I actually own. Mystique is the leader of the Brotherhood of Evil mutants at this point and Rogue is her adopted daughter. She convinces Rogue to attack the Avengers so the Brotherhood won't be bothered by that team while they pull another job. Rogue almost defeats the Avengers single handed because she gets the drop on Thor. In a What if? story, Rogue completely absorbs the powers of Thor and eventually becomes the goddess of thunder.

I should probably take a step back and talk about Rogue's powers. Rogue has the ability to absorb the abilities, powers and memories from anyone she comes in contact with. For a very long time, she had no control over this ability, but I guess through some convoluted circumstances, that has changed. (At least for the time being.) Rogue has ghost memories of the people she touches even though the transfer is only temporary, but in one case she did steal a person's mind and powers 'permanently' or at least as anything in the world of comic books can be considered permanent. Rogue also faces the possibility that her personality might be overtaken by someone that she touches.

The first story where a member of the X-men accepts Rogue after she joins the team.

Her powers have changed from time to time. She originally just had the power to absorb powers, memories and skills. For a long time she possessed the powers and memories of Ms. Marvel-flight, strength, invulnerability. After gaining control of her powers, Rogue can now access most if not all of the powers she has gained at different times.


Rogue took charge of training a group of new X-men shortly after the Mutant Massacre story. The team ended up facing off against the Juggernaut and actually beating him. (Go Rogue!)


So why does Rogue get on the list? I think that question is pretty easy to answer. While Rogue has never been the center of any major plot lines, she has been a steadfast part of the X-men since she joined up with the team. I know this is contrary to the movies, and some of the animated story lines, but while Rogue might think about getting rid of her powers or going back to Mystique, she never really went for it.

Rogue is possessed by Spiral when she accidentally makes contact with her foe. (Even the bad guys look scared.)

One of my favorite aspects of Rogue is her willingness to use her natural powers to help the team even though it's going to be hard for her to face that absorption. Rogue has had the minds of Spiral (see above) Juggernaut, Naze (the Native American god of chaos), and Loki inside her head as well as many other unsavory people.

Well, Rogue's number nine on my list. I hope you enjoyed learning more about her. I'd recommend you check out what she's up to these days. For now though, feel free to leave any comments or feed back on Rogue.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 10

Magneto/Joseph
When it comes to the X-men, there isn't a figure with more importance to the book than Magneto. Sure there's Charles Xavier and all the other team members, but what good is the book without the most important villain in the mutant world. If there wasn't a Magneto threatening to blow up the world at the beginning to X-men #1 (either series of the book) there would not be an X-men comic today. There may be plenty of other enemies out there, but this is the one who defines who the X-men are.

But we're not here to talk about Magneto as a villainous would-be world conqueror, we are here to talk about him as an X-man. Those of you following the X-men at the moment (and I am not closely following the X-men at the moment, but I keep up with the story lines) will know that Magneto is currently working with the X-men, but you may not know that this is not a new story line. There have been several other times this has happened.

Now before you start giving me a hard time about Magneto being so low on the list let me explain. If I were writing a Top 12 list of X-men enemies, Magneto would be at or near the top. (I just realized I might actually write such a list so I should give myself some space to work.) However, as an X-man, Magneto is not nearly as important. In fact, we'll talk in just a moment about his shortcomings as a hero.

The first time we get to see Magneto as a good guy is in the "Days of Future Past" storyline. This is a massively significant storyline that has shaped X-men comics since it happened. In the storyline, a future version of Kitty Pryde switches places with her younger self to stop the newest version of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants from killing a senator. In the future, we get to see a world overrun and dominated by Sentinels. the Sentinals aren't new to the X-men, but the idea of the Sentinels actually winning is. Mutants are locked up in concentration camps and humans are ruled by the Sentinels. In the story line, Magneto is old and confined to a wheelchair. He uses the last of his powers to distract the Sentinel guards to allow the other X-men to escape.

In the 80's, the writers decided that Professor X needed to go away so different story lines could be addressed. They also decided that it would be great to add Magneto to the mix just to make things interesting. Before Professor X takes off for space with his lover, the Empress of the Shiar Empire, he asks Magneto to take over as the headmaster of the school. This leads to a lot of conflict. Cyclops ends up leaving the team because of his past history with Magneto, and Magneto is always facing consequences of his past actions. 

Magneto's promise. (You can click on the image to see the full size if you can't read what they're saying.)

Eventually, Magneto's change of heart changed again and he was back with a vengeance. That is until Professor X's son Legion went back in time to kill Magneto and accidentally killed his father instead. That led to the Age of Apocalypse story line where Magneto and an alternate group of X-men try to save the world from Apocalypse and his attempts to take over the entire world.

In the 90's, there was a great storyline where Magneto was missing and a stranger with no memory and the face and powers of Magneto appeared out of nowhere. This character ended up calling himself Joseph and had a wonderful angsty time trying to figure out who he was and if he was destined to wake up one day as Magneto. Joseph was the hero that Magneto could have been. In the end it turned out that he was just a clone created by one of Magneto's enemies to draw Magneto out of hiding. Joseph died in the final show down and proved himself a hero to the end.

I don't really want to talk about the current storyline of the X-men, but I have to if I'm going to talk about Magneto as a good guy. Magneto has recently joined the X-men in their attempt to create what I have to call a new mutant nation to replace Genosha. I think it's just an opportunistic power grab for the Master of Magnetism, but it did provide the storyline for Shadowcat to come back for her exile in the super bullet. I won't get into how wrong it is that the moment of her return was so poorly done, but it was.

Anyway, that's Magneto. He's definitely better as a bad guy, but he's had his moments. Feel free to comment below. Hopefully, I'll get part 9 done a lot sooner.

DC's latest animated release-Superman/Shazam!

I didn't have high hopes for this animated special. I've seen a lot of the DC animated comic book movies, and they've been decent. A few of them have even been good, but I was extremely impressed with this DVD. Of course, I should add that this DVD will still disappoint you with what it isn't, but we'll get to that in a minute.

So based on previous DVDs put out by DC, I was expecting to see the entire length of this disc devoted to Superman and Captain Marvel fighting with Black Adam, but about half an hour in, I was very disappointed to see that the story was coming to an end. Before I move on to the rest of the disc, let me tell you that the main reason I was disappointed was because the quality of story and art was so high that I didn't want the story to end at that point. Let's talk for a minute about what's happening in the story.

So the basic storyline is that Billy Batson is just a kid trying to survive alone on the streets. He's lost his parents and he ran away from foster care. He's trying to make it the best he can. Somehow he still has a positive attitude about the world and is even willing to stand up for a homeless man who is getting robbed by a group of kids. (Being a foot shorter than the shortest of the trio means he doesn't last very long.) Billy is also meeting with Clark Kent, who is doing a story on the foster care situation in the city. At the same time, Black Adam has made his 5000 year voyage back to earth after being exiled, and want to kill Billy because of what will happen next. (Billy gains super powers based off the ancient gods and is the replacement for Black Adam.) Super powered fisticuffs ensues, but you'll have to see the DVD to see what happens next.

The story ends and you realize two things: first the story was way too short, and second there's still a lot of time left. That's OK, the rest of the disc is going to blow your mind. There is an assortment of short features of a variety of DC heroes. It's a great idea even if the DVD is mislabeled. (It should have been called DC Showcase or something like that.) So what else do you get? The Spectre, The Green Arrow (with Black Canary cameo) and Jonah Hex all get short story treatment. Each special is done with it's own temporal and emotional treatment. The Spectre feels like an old film noir detective story, Jonah Hex has a wild west feel, and Green Arrow is more of a modern adventure.

If you have any interest in comic books and characters, you will want to watch this DVD even if you don't follow DC very much. It will be worth your time.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 11

Old school Beast- right after graduation.

Number 11-The Beast (aka Henry McCoy)

I first became connected with the Beast when X-factor got started. The idea of that comic was to bring together the original X-men in an attempt to keep Professor X's dream alive. They did this because of a variety of odd circumstances. First, the Professor had gone of into space to hang out with his love interest the Empress Lilandra. It had something to do with his clone body needing to stay with the alien technology or something. Next up, there was also the unexpected return of Jean Grey who had supposedly died quite a while back in the comics, but it turns out she'd been replaced by the Pheonix force and left in a recovery cocoon at the bottom of the bay. (Yeah, I'll explain more about all that nonsense later.) Anyway, all these circumstances came together for X-factor where the original X-men pretended to be mutant hunters in order to collect mutants and help them learn to use their powers. (Yeah, it was a stupid idea, but it led to some worthwhile events.)

Wow, so that ended up being more of a detour than I intended. What all of that was supposed to get to is that the Beast has gone through many transformations. (See most of them on the left.) Henry McCoy started off as an almost normal looking boy with larger hands and feet. He was able to use his feet as extra hands when he was a baby. As the storyline of the X-men continued, Hank graduated (partly because he was super smart) and moved on to work with the Avengers. At some point, he was experimenting with something and unlocked a further mutation giving himself blue fur. While he was with X-factor something odd happened and he lost the fur and later lost his intelligence for a period of time. (The more he used his strength the stronger he got, and the dumber he got.) After some plot contrivance, he got better and bluer again. Recently he got another mutation that changed him from a furry human to more of a cat. 

OK, now we can talk about why he's on the list. The Beast is a powerful ally who bring a lot to the team in terms of raw power and scientific knowledge. More importantly to me, he brings humor and wisdom to the mix. He can be pummeling an opponent and quoting Aristotle at the same time. I love the combination of the beast and the brain. Hank has recently left the X-men again. This time because of differences he has with Cyclops about the direction the team is taking. (Including leaving the blue fur ball at the mercy of Norman Osbourne and his Dark Beast from another reality.) It was a good move for the character and hopefully for the book.

Well, that's all for the Beast for now, but be on the lookout for the #10 X-person coming soon. Feel free to comment below.

Top Twelve X-men-Number 12

Samuel Gurthey is the X-man known as Cannonball.

There came a point when the X-men were getting really popular that someone thought back nostalgically to the days of the original X-men when their powers were new and exciting, and they also had problems with control and power limits. (Iceman was more of a snowman for a large portion of the early run of the series, and Cyclops would often run out of steam with his optic blasts.) So the mighty minds at Marvel decided they needed to make a junior team, called the New Mutants, to take over that role. (Yes, the name was lame even when the book first came out.)

The team was made up of interesting but very limited powers that had some potential but were included more for uniqueness and variety. They were trying to avoid having the same old powers and they did this but that didn't make the characters all worth creating. Since Sam's the only member of the New Mutants getting on the list (Sorry to ruin the surprise) I should give you some details about who Sam started out teamed up with.

Karma had the power to possess other people's minds. She could only do one mind at a time and she had to struggle with most minds in order to make them do what she wanted.

Mirage had the power to reach inside a person's mind and make a realistic image of either the thing they loved or feared the most.

Wolfsbane is pretty self explanatory-she was a werewolf, but a mutant werewolf.

Sunspot absorbed solar energy to fuel his super strength. (it often gave out when he needed it most.

Cypher was a mutant with the awesome power of understanding any language, perfect for a pitched battle. He died trying to be a hero and eventually came back as the annoying and unending Douglock.

There were others, but I'll cut off there for now. Cannonball was with the team for it's entire run and was part of the group that ran off with Cable to become X-force where Sam had a very weird storyline where he was an immortal, but he got over that. He later became a full-fledged X-man. I guess it's about time to talk about what exactly Cannonball can do. Well, I think the guys that thought him up understood that a balanced team needs to have a flier, but they didn't want to make him too much like Rogue or Superman, so they didn't give him the usual strength/invulnerability. Instead, he gets to be invulnerable thanks to a field that surrounds him when he flies, but if he isn't 'blastin' then he's just a target.

Sam is the kind of hero that is refreshing to see. He's a good ol' country boy who comes out the the big city to see what he can do. He's a hard worker who is willing to put in the effort to overcome his limitations and make the most of his abilities. I know antiheroes are great too, but that doesn't mean they all have to be jerks.

Top Twelve X-men (part IV)

I'm going to take one more break to talk about X-men that don't make the Top 12 so I can mention a few names of characters that didn't get a chance to show what they could do with the team for whatever reason. These are characters that had lots of potential, but left the team (or died unexpectedly) before they could get integrated into things.

Sunfire

 Sure Sunfire is still running around in the Marvel Universe, but his tenure with the X-men was very short. Shiro Yoshida is a mutant with the ability to generate superheated plasma and like most fire-based super-powered types can fly. He was born into an important Japanese family and has a lot of issues, both with his superiority  complex and in playing well with others. Sunfire joins the X-men during a transitional period. (You may not have known this, but the X-men comic was actually canceled at one point during the 60's.)

The creative team wanted to diversify the team and give it some powers that were a little different from what the old team had. The creative team decided to draw some characters that had appeared throughout the Marvel Universe and create some others. Sunfire and Banshee had appeared in the pages of the X-men as villains and Wolverine had appeared in the Incredible Hulk.

Sunfire stormed out of the pages of the X-men shortly after the new team saved the old team. I do think it would have been interesting to see how the challenges the team faced would have been different with this Japanese hot head on the team.

Thunderbird

 Thunderbird was a part of the 'New X-men' I was just talking about in the section about Sunfire. He was an original creation put together for the reboot of the series. My guess is that the creative team put as many different ideas on paper and waited to see how the fans reacted. Thunderbird has a great back story. He's an Apache Indian who served in the Marines during the Vietnam War. He has super strength, durability, and speed, as well as enhanced senses that make him an excellent tracker. There's one small problem, he's redundant on the team. He's not as strong as Colossus, and Wolverine is just as good a tracker as Thunderbird. It didn't take the writers long to decide that Thunderbird would never be a major player on the X-men.

It was decided that John Proudstar would see his own inadequacy and take it to heart. While the team is on it's second mission, Proudstar is denied opportunities to use his powers and is taken out of the battle early on. When he realizes that Count Nefaria is going to escape in a jet plane, Thunderbird jumps on the plane and destroys it even though it costs him his life. Even though Thunderbird is dead, his death is one of the most significant moments in X-men history. It is the first time a member of the team dies on a mission and his death leads to significant story lines for his younger brother, James, who has similar powers.

I do wonder what would have happened if Thunderbird had lived longer and been a part of the X-men or moved on to a different team. Thunderbird also has the unique distinction of being the only X-man to die and not come back from the dead. There have been some stories where there is a fake Thunderbird, and he has shown up in the book Exiles, but the original has never come back, and I don't think he ever will. His death is too important to take back.

Maggot

 OK, I know what you're thinking. He's blue (not very original in the Marvel Universe) and he's hanging out with strange maggots, what's so great about that? Sure he has a very lame kind of power: his digestive track separates from his body and can eat anything. When they're gone he also becomes super strong and invulnerable. The real attraction I had to Maggot was his story. He's on this obsessive search for Magneto, but why? I think the X-men have overcome lamer powers in the past and the same could have been done with Maggot. [Examples of initially lame powers: Dazzler makes a hypnotic light show, Shadowcat walks through stuff, you get the idea.]

Blink

I'll admit that this one is a bit of a cheat. Blink was never on the X-men. She didn't even live long enough to make it to Generation X. Even so, after seeing what Marvel did with the character in Exiles, I really wish she hadn't gotten the bum rush. I can see her being a major part of some of the story lines involving the X-men. Of course she probably would have ended up in a love square during the Angel-leading-a-team era. (Yeah, I'm going to complain about that a lot. It was just so bad.) Go check out Exiles and see what Blink is up to (assuming she's in the book at the moment, the teams changes quite a bit.)

OK so that's the end of my little side tracks. Next time you see the Top Twelve X-men list, it will be with #12. I decided to do each character separately so I can give them the write up they deserve. Excelsior and all that Stan Lee type stuff.