nenena: (Soul Eater - Soul/Maka)
nenena ([personal profile] nenena) wrote2011-07-23 10:09 pm
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X-Men: Schism betting pool.

So, flist, help me figure this one out.



So everybody and their dog is talking about Schism and how Marvel told everyone at SDCC that Cyclops and Wolverine are about to become the new Charlie and Magneto. Yes, in those exact words. Which... BWUH?! How is this supposed to happen? I mean I am truly, honestly baffled as to how Scott and Logan could actually have a philosophical difference as deep and wide as "let's peacefully co-exist with humans" versus FUCKING GENOCIDE.

And I'm sitting here (after having read Schism #1) and still not sure what the two of them are eventually going to fight about. I'm coming up with various scenarios in my mind and having a hard time imagining how any of them could, you know, happen.

So after reading Schism #1 - which basically just recapped Scott and Logan's character arcs since the beginning of Uncanny X-Men and went to great lengths to show how deeply both Scott and Logan admire (and depend upon) each other even if they're never going to get all Buddy Movie with each other - I'm still not sure what the Big Fight is going to be about, but I have some guesses. Anybody want to place bets?

1. The conflict will be a literal rehash of Professor X versus Magneto, with one side wanting to earn the trust of humans and the other side waving the "FUCK YEAH MUTANT SUPERIORITY" flag. Odds that this will turn out to be true: Three hundred and fifty-four zillion to one. Unless half of the X-Men are replaced by Skrulls.

2. The conflict will be some variation of "mutants with powers are obligated to protect humans from supervillains/aliens/dinosaurs/zombies/shark-people/whatever" versus "screw risking our lives to protect humankind, it hasn't made them stop hating and fearing us for the past fifty years so let's just leave them alone." Odds that this will turn out to be true: Two to one, as I think it's the most likely conflict that Schism #1 has set up. But. BUT. I do not see how either Cyclops or Wolverine could take the "screw protecting humans" position without that being an enormous disservice to each of their respective character arcs. Yes, ESPECIALLY Wolverine. But then again Marvel loves to derail character arcs and regress character development (heeeey, remember Magneto in the 80's?) so it's still not unlikely that this is going to happen.

3. The conflict will be some variation of "mutantkind needs to unite and stay on this island where we can be safe from human hatred" versus "we're never going to solve anti-mutant prejudice unless we get off this island and integrate with humans." Odd that this will turn out to be true: Fifty to one. The mutants have had this argument before, so at this point a re-hash would be boring. Also, the very argument itself is a gross oversimplification of what Scott is trying to accomplish with Utopia, and Logan is smart enough to understand that.

4. The conflict will be some variation of pro-mutant/superhero registration versus anti-mutant/superhero registration. Odds that this will turn out to be true: One hundred to one. I doubt that Marvel is going to re-hash Civil War all over again. Not even Marvel is that lazy.

5. The conflict will be based around the discovery of some Plot Element that can either undo M-Day or in some other way ensure the continuation of the X-gene and the mutant species. Possibly a Plot Element that comes covered in a sticky goo of Unfortunate Ethical Implications. And it is the Unfortunate Ethical Implications that somehow causes a disagreement and falling-out between the two groups of X-Men. Odds that this will turn out to be true: Four to one. I have no doubt that either a reversal of M-Day or some event that signals the rebirth of the mutant species (I mean, above and beyond just Hope) will happen sometime in the next year or so in one of the X-books, but for some reason this doesn't ping me as the event that Schism is going to be based on.

6. The conflict will be Cowboys fans vs. Steelers fans. Odds that this will actually turn out to be the One True Conflict that tears the X-Men apart: Two to one. Well, it makes about as much sense as either Wolverine or Cyclops leading half of the X-Men to abandon the whole "sworn to protect a world that fears and hates them" concept. And anybody who has ever been caught in the middle of a fight between a Cowboys fan versus a Steelers fan knows that football is serious fucking business.

So those are my guesses. The only thing that we know for sure right now is that Schism is going to end with a split between a team led by Logan and a team led by Scott, an event which will apparently be so dramatic that it causes Emma Frost to stop wearing pants.

Does anybody want to add more guesses to the betting pool?

If you feel so inclined you can place your bets in the comments. Just be aware that this is one of those betting pools where there are no tangible prizes other than the smug satisfaction of knowing that You Were Right and You Totally Called It.

[identity profile] corinn.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 03:08 am (UTC)(link)
I'm totally waywaywaaaay on the fringes of X-Men fandom-- as in, I thought Evolution was fun to watch on Saturday mornings and found at least some entertainment in the first two movies. I have no damn idea what the comics do at all. None.

But I posit Love Triangle with Jean Grey Goes Ballistic. Because why not.
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[identity profile] nenena.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 03:52 am (UTC)(link)
Er, probably because Jean Grey is perma-dead. And has been for a while.

Scott is all but married to Emma Frost and Logan is (supposedly) going to hook up with the Age of Apocalypse Jean Grey later this year. And AoA Jean Grey was always in love with Logan and never looked twice at Scott. So not exactly the recipe for a re-hash of the ol' Scott-Jean-Logan love triangle.

[identity profile] corinn.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 04:10 am (UTC)(link)
Oh. Hmm.

But then again Marvel loves to derail character arcs and regress character development

*chinscratch* Retcons for the lulz?

This is basically like asking me to extrapolate a storyline in Star Trek or Dr Who, haha. [popcultural osmosis] + [small amount of canon info] = [basis for crackfic, at best; mind-numbing stupidity, at worst] Like one of those random generators.

Just for cracky lulz, let's say Yeerk analogues come to town and take over some of the X-Men and fake a change of heart. Then there's an alien invasion to be fought off. They'd have to take over all mind-reader types in the initial onslaught, but that can be done.
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[identity profile] nenena.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 04:31 am (UTC)(link)
Retcons for the lulz?

Mmm, not a retcon. More like "ignoring previous character development in order to make a character do whatever they need to do in order to make the next Big Event happen."

Just for cracky lulz, let's say Yeerk analogues come to town and take over some of the X-Men and fake a change of heart. Then there's an alien invasion to be fought off. They'd have to take over all mind-reader types in the initial onslaught, but that can be done.

That kinda-sorta already happened in 2008. With Skrulls.

[identity profile] corinn.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 04:58 am (UTC)(link)
Fine. Magneto dies and his ghost possesses the adamantium bonded to Wolverine's skeleton and controls him like he's wearing a Wolverine suit. Or something. And Cyclops fights him and tries to help Wolverine overcome the possession in impassioned speeches, or whatever.
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[identity profile] nenena.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 05:00 am (UTC)(link)
Okay I just literally laughed out loud when reading that.

[identity profile] corinn.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 05:10 am (UTC)(link)
Good.


If anything like that happens, I will laugh and laugh and laugh and laugh and--
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[identity profile] nenena.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 05:14 am (UTC)(link)
oh god your icon

Anywhoo for the record Magneto is officially a Good Guy now (hence I guess the need for Marvel to shoehorn Cyclops and Wolverine into becoming the "new" Professor X and Magneto) so I doubt that could actually happen. But then again Magneto has been a Good Guy before and then suddenly went all evilpants again, so who knows.

[identity profile] corinn.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 05:27 am (UTC)(link)
"I'll take 'Highly Unlikely, But The Hive Mind Has Needs' for 500, Alex."

[identity profile] dragonmage87.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 03:28 am (UTC)(link)
I'm with Corinn on this one, I watched Evolution until it up and died and saw the movies. I don't know what it is about the Marvel style, but I've never been fond of it, and whatever actual books have been published never caught my eye. Oh well, can't be part of every fandom.

[identity profile] shanejayell.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 06:46 am (UTC)(link)
I'm actually thinking #3. I think Cyke and his... crowd? End up on the isolationist camp, while Logan argues that mutants must work with others or they'll all start thinking of themselves as monsters.
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[identity profile] nenena.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 07:19 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, the more I think about it, the more #3 seems likely. I think I dismissed it too easily in my head just because those arguments have been hashed out between various characters before.

On the other hand, I have a hard time imagining Scott becoming so unreasonable about mutants wanting to leave Utopia that he would actually come to blows with Logan over it. And Scott has always been pro reaching-out-to-the-rest-of-the-world up until this point, so... Yeah.

[identity profile] badninja.livejournal.com 2011-07-24 06:59 am (UTC)(link)
I hadn't heard about this at all and I'm having trouble moving past 'the next charlie and magneto' considering the debatable relationships there.

...

No, it's still in canon, never mind.