#pythi's comic antics

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

I'm sorry. I can't take this guy seriously at all. The discount dracula cosplay is just perhaps a bit too amusing to me. That's comics I suppose.

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

Oh shit the high low unblockable. No wonder this team comp was banned in major tournaments.

But getting that out of my system. Nightcrawler and Colossus really do make for a solid combo together. Colossus is so big and tanky that he just naturally draws attention letting Kurt do whatever he wants. Meanwhile Nightcrawler is so ridiculously mobile that he's great for capitalizing off of that from any angle while not getting in Peter's way

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

Art appreciation time. I love the use of black dots around Nightcrawler as the projection turns off, giving it the appearance dissolving into digital ash in a way. And then contrasted by the explosion of Energy coming off of Colossus as his armor forms in an eruption of sheer power. Fitting transformation effects for both given their personalities and powers I believe

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

I know this is comics and names are dumb but... "Homo Superior" .... Really guys? I know scientists name things weirdly all the freaking time, see Hotwheels Sisyphus, but I feel like there had to be better options out there.

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

Welp here we are I guess... @nitpickrider requests a sacrifice of a penny's worth of thoughts and the appropriate amount of digital ink spilled in exchange for the knowledge I have been gifted and who am I to turn down a fair trade. So come one come all to witness my first full effort into the world of Comic Books and without further ado

Let's Talk About:

Giant-Size X-Men; Issue #1

This is... not at all gonna be structured, I'm just gonna ramble off with some summaries, thoughts and pictures soooooooooo.

We're starting off with individual introductory bits to various X-Men. First with Kurt Wagner chased around town by a fairly classic angry mob, pitchforks, torches and the like. The chase leads to them burning down a whole building to try and kill him and in response he stops running and well

Leaps right into the mob, ready to brawl for his life. Which... Might be something to note later. He's got the superior movement, he could probably just run far enough out of town to the point they won't bother chasing him. But instead when reason fails he leaps straight in. Is it recklessness, adrenaline, an attempt to die on his own terms maybe? Once again might be something to note.

But anyways, the fight goes on and Kurt is pinned, the civilians full on plan on using a stake on him like he's some kind of vampire which... Maybe got a morbid chuckle out of me. Although they are quickly halted through psychic power by Charles Xavier. And this is a small bit that very quickly caught my attention

This tiny part of the exchange just kinda hits me as someone who has a few disabilities under my belt. The very first question of "can you help me be normal" is.... Far too familiar to me personally. And Charles quick response essentially being "look at what 'normal' people do to people like us, would you truly want to be like them?" And then of course followed by that conviction of "then how do I be Me" it's just... Something that's very familiar and really really caught my eye. And maybe I wanna bring some attention to that too.

But next up we move on to Wolverine, comic doesn't even tell us his actual name, just Wolverine. This one's honestly fairly straightforward. Xavier just shows up to the secret military base they have Wolverine stashed away in and says "hey wanna join me where you can be free?" "Sounds cool sure" but there's two details that caught my attention, and I'm a sucker for details

Wolverine uses his claws on the guy that tries to stop him from leaving, however no cuts are made. If you look you see he used the back of his claws, the blunt side. Which is a really cool detail to me and it just makes sense. Dude knows his way around these claws and this one panel and detail is a swift little demonstration.

And the other

Xavier is obviously moving, there's motion lines and everything. But his hands are still on the arm rests and obviously no one's pushing him. So he just uses psychic powers to push his chair around I guess. And I think that's pretty cool.

Next up The Banshee, no real name given yet again.

And here it is

I'm not even kidding. It's just these two panels. Not even half a page which is just humorous to me.

Next up is Ororo. This one's interesting because it's something I probably wouldn't at all think of but it makes so much sense. In her homeland Ororo is Revered as a literal god

And it makes sense, with total control over the weather itself what could you call an ability like that other than godlike. And for her we get to see that on display in full force, lighting, wind and rain crashing down as she commands so effortlessly yet with tremendous force. And then... Xavier makes an offer

And once again my eye was immediately caught. I think a lot of us can relate to the whole escapism of fantasy and all. Hell it's part of why people would read comics like these after all. And it's especially appealing for people who just aren't "normal" the fantasy of a world where not being "normal" puts you above everyone else, makes you important, makes you loved. And this little exchange is such a simple and efficient comment on that, the fantasy is captivating but limiting and it can blind you to the wonder of the world that truly exists.

Next up is Shiro Yoshida... Who's also only 2 panels long. Nothing really special here other than he's the first one so far who we learn both the real name and the superhero name, Sunfire, immediately.

Next up is Peter Rasputin and tbh the first thing I have to say is damn what a look

I adore the way they draw his metallic body like this, the harsh white light reflecting off of it, contrasted by the equally harsh shadow where the light doesn't quite reach. Just damn.

But anyways for the recap. Peter's working on a farm near lake Baikal in Russia (btw I accidentally went down a whole rabbit hole on that lake a bit ago, it's a weird ass place). A runaway tractor threatens to flatten a child playing in the field and he runs in front of it, the tractor smashing into pieces against his seemingly indestructible body. Xavier of course shows up and makes the same offer he always does. But this time Peter decides to ask his parents what he should do, his heart tells him to stay on the farm but his conscience says that he needs to go. And this has very quickly endeared me to his character. Sure others have already had more interesting little relatable or thought provoking moments but something about Peter's short bit just speaks to me.

And finally for our introductions, John Proudstar.

There's really nothing special to comment on here. Tbh I'm not even sure what John's mutant power is supposed to be ^^; sooo yeah... But this marks the end of chapter one

Chapter 2 will be it's own post because I'm hitting the image limit oops

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

You know. These days no one draws the unknowable horrors quite like comic artists used to. And damn what a look too, the text breaking out of the text box is such a nice touch too

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

It's.... Impactful just how much time and detail they're spending on John's death. The way the narration talks to Scott like it's a voice in his head, and the way he subsequently lashes out like the narration was his own thoughts. The sheer palpable feeling of the weight of the situation.

No matter whatever reason the writers killed John, because they decided they didn't need him, because they wanted a dramatic death, or whatever they sure as well are not letting it go to waste and are giving it the gravity it deserves... I wish more media did that these days.

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

Love this honestly. Especially cause there is some set up beforehand

In giant size issue one Colossus argues with Storm that she didn't need to carry him down. Storm of course reasonably assumes he's just being a blowhard.

But then we come to here with an abrupt crash landing, Colossus insists the fliers prioritize carrying everyone else over himself and they reluctantly agree. Peter goes down and

Nigh invulnerability is one hell of a drug. Admittedly it's kinda surprising that it seems no one fully knows Peter is... Well nigh invulnerable. Given they've been supposedly training together before this for months. Then again it's a very high stress situation and when your teammate goes down leaving a missile sized crater even if you know in the back of your head he's indestructible it's still understandable to be concerned about it.