X-Men

“Avengers vs. X-Men” is Marvel Comics’ big crossover event of the year — and by the time it reaches its conclusion, one major figure will be no more. Professor Charles Xavier formed the X-Men after the mutant population exploded around the world, with an eye toward teaching his followers to use their abilities for the common good. The book itself dates back to 1963, and with its 50-year anniversary approaching, the fact that the character is reaching the end of his narrative journey speaks to the new environment in which superhero comics reside — his departure allows Marvel to creatively shake up the storyline as the X-Men are forced to grapple with the weight of his death. Hero Complex contributor Jevon Phillips caught up with Jason Aaron, the writer tasked with scripting the final issue of the AvX series, and […]

Caped crusaders are out and proud this year at Comic-Con International. Even Superman and Batman at the Prism Comics booth wear snug Underoos, capes and chef’s aprons — but not much else — as they entertain passersby. T-shirts featuring “Glamazonia: The Uncanny Super-Tranny,” “Wuvable Oaf,” a hairy-chested wrestler-type in pink shorts. and other less-famous characters line the walls of Prism’s booth — the unofficial hub of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community at this week’s convention. “It feels revolutionary,” says Scott Covert, decked out as Batman’s sidekick, Robin, at one of the convention’s many panels about gay culture and the comic book world. He flips the lip of his cape as he adds, “There’s more tolerance this year.” Gay Geekdom celebrated last month when Marvel’s mutant superhero, Northstar, married his longtime partner, Kyle, in “Astonishing X-Men No. 51.” The […]

For Marvel fans, it’s the wedding event of the season: The X-Men’s North Star, a high-flying mutant, and Kyle Jinadu, his “normal” publicist boyfriend, are getting married in issue No. 51 of the popular series. To celebrate that groundbreaking ceremony (which is being billed as the first same-sex marriage in a major mainstream comic series), New York City’s Midtown Comics is going for some real-world nuptials synergy Wednesday by hosting the hitching of Scott Everhart, 39, and Jason Welker, 33, both of Ohio. “It’s the perfect, geeky way to do it,” said Everhart, who saw Midtown Comic’s call-out post on Out.com and applied for the opportunity. “Our first date was in a comic book store. This is us.” Nearly two weeks ago, Everhart proposed to Welker in the pair’s Columbus home, right before the final interview with the store’s co-owner, Gerry Gladston. Welker, […]

Northstar, Marvel’s first openly gay hero, is going to tie the knot with his boyfriend in mainstream superhero comics’ first same-sex wedding in an upcoming issue of “Astonishing X-Men.” The announcement comes on the heels of DC co-publisher Dan DiDio’s revelation that an iconic DC character will reveal he is gay in a June issue, joining prominent lesbian character Batwoman beneath the rainbow banner. Northstar, whose real name is Jean-Paul Beaubier, is a Canadian mutant whose superhuman abilities allow him to move and fly at supersonic speeds. He’s also a professional skier, Olympian, novelist and businessman who made his debut in “Alpha Flight” #10 in 1984. He openly revealed his sexuality eight years later, in 1992′s issue #106, and officially joined the X-Men in 2002. In “Astonishing X-Men” #50, set to hit comic shop shelves Wednesday, Northstar proposes to his […]

This story contains spoilers about “The Avengers.” “The Avengers” passed the $1-billion mark in worldwide ticket sales this weekend, and a sequel is already in the works. Does that mean writer-director Joss Whedon will be back at the helm of the franchise that unites Marvel’s box-office heavyweights, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and the Hulk? “You know, I’m very torn,” Whedon said in a sit-down interview in Beverly Hills before the film’s U.S. opening. “It’s an enormous amount of work telling what is ultimately somebody else’s story, even though I feel like I did get to put myself into it. But at the same time, I have a bunch of ideas, and they all seem really cool.” Whether he gets his hands on the sequel, Whedon’s fingerprints are all over “The Avengers,” which echoes some tropes found in his […]

Stan Lee, the living Marvel himself, will close out the 2012 Hero Complex Film Festival – and he’ll get some on-screen backup from Wolverine, Magneto and the other uncanny mutants in the landmark 2000 film “X-Men.”‘ “An Evening with Stan Lee” will bring the 89-year-old dynamo of pop culture and co-creator of Spider-Man, the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, the X-Men and hundreds of other characters onstage for an in-depth conversation. You could say that Lee is the most famous name in comic books who isn’t a comic-book character — but at this point he he’s appeared in so many Marvel stories — both on the page and on the screen in his movie cameos — that it’s difficult to know where Lee the creator stops and Lee the character begins. Stanley Lieber was born in New York City on Dec. 28, 1922, but when he got […]

Visit any toy aisle in America and you’ll probably find an action figure based on a Hollywood movie, and there’s a very good chance it will stamped ”Made in China” — but will that be that same phrase soon apply to Hollywood’s biggest action movies as well? Disney has just announced that “Iron Man 3,” one of the highest-profile popcorn films for 2013,  will be a joint production with DMG Entertainment of Beijing. It’s a major moment in the American film industry’s intensifying courtship of China, which many industry experts say is on track to be the No. 1 movie market in the world by 2020 (it’s ranked third now, up from fifth a year ago). Tom DeSanto is among the many Hollywood players poised to exploit that surging marketplace. The 43-year-old New Jersey writer and producer was a key figure on the first two “X-Men” films, […]

We’ve got an exclusive preview of pages from “Avengers vs. X-Men” No. 2 — you can flip through them above or go to the larger images below – which moves forward the “event” of the year for Marvel Comics. The issue is from writer Jason Aaron and penciller John Romita Jr., and the cover is by Jim Cheung. And while it is very of the moment, the idea of warring heroes is a classic theme from the House of Ideas. If you grew up reading Marvel Comics in the last century, there were certain things you could count on. Doctor Doom says “Bah!” and Wolverine calls people “Bub.” For minor characters, death is the final curtain, but for the big names it’s more like a revolving door. When scientists test things out themselves it just doesn’t go well.  The Watcher never keeps his non-interference vow  (maybe they should call him Uatu the […]

If the reaction from the crowd at WonderCon’s Avengers vs. X-Menpanel is any indication, the children of the atom may crush Earth’s mightiest heroes in the upcoming 12-issue event series from Marvel written by the team of Brian Bendis, Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, Jason Aaron and Jonathan Hickman and drawn by John Romita, Jr., Olivier Coipel and Adam Kubert. “Event” is the operative word here, as not only will the book (and its offshoots) cross into various titles and spotlight huge battles, it’s drawing in more than 1,100 comic shops worldwide to participate in special Avengers vs. X-Men launch parties on April 3. If you’re in L.A., Meltdown Comics is one of the participants. It was also mentioned at the WonderCon panel that fans would be able to pick up exclusive giveaways. That panel, moderated by Marvel’s  director of communications, publishing and […]

The entire Marvel Universe will feel the impact on April 4 when war breaks out in “Avengers vs. X-Men” No. 1, the publishing “event” that features two storied super-teams and — in a real-world rivalry — represents Marvel’s bid to reclaim the spotlight that shifted to DC Comics with the New 52, the landmark relaunch of every DC title that made national news in August and September. But Joe Quesada, chief creative officer of Marvel Entertainment, scoffed when asked if “Avengers vs. X-Men” could be viewed as a response to the New 52 or any other DC initiative, for that matter. The Marvel exec said he’d been hearing those half-baked theories but that’s all they are if you look into the history of the planned showdown series. “Yeah, of course — that’s what people want to think,” Quesada said. “But let’s be clear: The DC relaunch […]