Okay so like, i get why you say that, but also ehhhhhhhhh. I was never completely sold on Post Apollyon wars Taylor.
(Also, i think Barker and Biter are pretty much Worm Leroy)
(Armsmaster Vol 2 #17, first full apapreance of the Undersiders and coil)
So, Post Apollyon Wars Taylor is just Diet Taylor. She wad introduced during the Armsmaster ongoing atound its second year with a whole reimagining of the undersiders.
This version was a Cherlie's angels esque group hired by Coil (who is also kind of Regent?) to break shit and distract people. Fun fact, they are pretty much all new characters when you think about it (Sarah Livsey was replaced with Lisa Wilborn, Leroy got replaced by Rachel and Brian got replaced by Aisha. And blueflame is also there i guess).
Also also I FUCKING HATE POST APOLLYON BITCH. Why did you make her so uncomfortably kinky man.
Taylor has a similar backstory in wich like, she is a bullied teenager that gets superpowers. But instead of the Skittering Medallion she is actually just a Post-human (The catchall excuse for superpowers we don't want to explain).
The thing is, there are two fundamentally different things about Post Apollyon wars Taylor.
1) Because nobody gave a shit about the vomics code authority anymore they were allowed to be more creepy and give her actual bug powers and not a bug flavoured Alexandeia package. This is also where she gets the more recognizable 'Skitter' persona.
2) She is actually bullied for being a post human that cant control her powers (and thats also the reason she works with coil in the first place, to control her powers)... so her personality is also completely different?
But like, she was just a minor antagonist in a random arc. The thing is, something would happen that would kind of solidify that version of her.
(Armsmaster the animated series Season 1 episode 52 "Double TTrouble")
Armsmaster, one of the main moneymakers of the WBU also had the privilege of having one of the most iconic tv shows. And because of how many childrens saw it most people see it as the definitive version and Armsmaster and his rogue's gallery, and they will fight you in wichever way they are different to canon.
In some cases it is very very good, the madhouse 9 (as much as i hate the censored name) was pretty much redefined by this show (and you can tell it really inspired McCrae's slaughterhouse 9) and Al Pachino was surprisingly good as Jack the Knife.
But with Skitter they kind of grabbed the Post AW version and ran with it while giving her all of her Pre AW plot beats. Thing is, i don't find her as compeling when her lack of friends is due to magical racism instead of teenagers just being assholes. "Look at her with her too pale and beautiful skin and black raven hair" ass bullying.
(Lisa and Taylor take Colin hostage in The New Armsmaster Adventures ep 3 "Girls night out")
That being said, there is a reason this show almost won an Emmy with 'Snitches get stiches' (it's adaptation of thr night Tattletale died) because like, we got more episodes with Taylor and Lisa being villains but also teenagers, to the point you can see that even under his cold mask Collin has a soft spot for them. So Lisa dyin hits Collin, Taylor and the audience even harder when she is killed after declaring against Thomas Calvert, with the bittersweet satisfaction that in the end, that gave Collin enough evidence to finally put him behind bars.
(Promotional image of the new Armsmaster and Dragon adventures)
I do feel like her joining the Dragonflight feels more earned than her joining the wards. They did explore better the angst and edge she has unlike her peers and how she has to adapt to being a hero.
I don't like that they threw everything they were planning under the bus to make that happen in the comics too.
(Last issue of Skitter's first mini before cancelation)
So, i know it looks too edgy, but a body horror story about a woman turning into a bug would have been really fucking cool man. Because if you are going to go angst about powers make it real angst.
Like, 'Skitter gets trapped in the goblin kingdom and comes out changed' fucked so much as an idea man. But no, they cancelled it after three chapters just to turn comic Taylor into TAAS Taylor.
Also, fun fact, after this point you can blame everything bad that ever happens un the WBU and reality on Editor in Chief chambers. I fucking hate that guy.
(Issue #0 of the second Skitter miniseries, by issue #6 she would become weaver)
I can't sugarcoat it, this series was a total cashgrab that speedran Taylor' greatest hits while queerbaiting the audience.
Taylor becomes GOOD, and she joins the GUILD and now she is magically her chirpy flirt version from the cartoon with the brown hair and green eyes! THIS is the origin of TINO (Taylor In Name Only).
This is the third time they killed Tattletale already man, but this time it was Breed's fault because Breed and Genoschythe the eyereaper are very popular right now.
You know what? Let's put all of our hopes, dreams and company's stock into making Genoscythe the eyereaper a thing people care about because anti-heroes are so hip and cool!
And... WB Comics was one of the victims of the 1996 comic book crash. By 1999 they had to pretty much sell all the movie rights to a shit ton of popular characters including the quadrumvirate and the east coast wards.
So, did you ever wonder why Taylor didn't appear in Protectorate or Protectorate International? Yeah thats right we are talking about...
(Skitter 1 movie poster, first of a low budget triology)
You know, i will never not find funny that during the peak of TINO they got John Carpenter to do a Skitter movie and then got surprised when he went body horror with it.
Because like, it was a filler movie for inbetween the Irregular's movies. So i really apreciate the love Carpenter gave to a character he didn't know shit about.
Like, what can i say, i love the Carpenter triology because he got that Skitter was a horror movie in the making, while also keeping it a superhero movie.
My ranking of them is pretty much the universal one 2 > 1 > 3 but i really like that they made Khepri a separate character and the villain in the third movie as the dark side of Taylor she has to beat by accepting it.
But the thing is, you now had two very different versions of Skitter people wanted to see, so what solution did WB come up with?
(Two comics released the same month, completely different tones, nobody even say anything about it even tho we have time for another dead wife flashbavk with tattletale)
Taylor kind of flip flops between betweem being Dragon and Defiant's surrogate daughter and being an insectoid monstrosity and nobody brings it up. It's like there are to very different Taylors but we just kind of assume they are one and the same
And thats kind of how it was until 2011 when Collin fucked up the timeline during the Valhalla event.
Like, Taylor in the current WBCU takes inspo from this version of the character (wich is a whole other can of worms).
(The paranormal Skitter)
But just let me say, there is a reason the paranormal skitter takes more inspo from worm than from the post apollyon era.
She would have a minor role in the Revelations event when Dragon died but eventually she would be rebooted out of existance alongside the rest of the wormverse after the Valhalla event when Defiant fucked up reality trying to bring back Dragon.
So, with this retrospective done i will probably do a new wave one next? Some of you were asking about Amy and honestly thats a whole other very interesting rabbithole to delve into.
Please tell me if you want any other retrospective!
Loved your takes even if we disagree on TAAS Skitter, she walked so Legend could stand around on a pride month cover. I'll agree the bullying was a little weak but that's just a general post human problem and the way school bullies can't actually do anything that scary on screen and I'm sick of everyone just overcompensating and turning her bullies into Madhouse fangirls or Empire wannabes. As for other retrospectives hundred percent New Wave. You touched on the event that started it with how they fridged her for Scion but I'd be interestered to see your take on Guts and Glory cos killing off TT to make T sad is bad but its nowhere near as controversial as half of the Red Queen stuff. Every new Lisa may have a clock above her head ticking down but they aren't being blatant about it, now every new comic or show has to try and give you signs for why Amy is like that and I have friends who just get nothing but comments about it even if all she's doing is making her friend a lunch box.
