Set
There's not a word yet, for old friends who've just met.
posted
quote: I'm afraid Layla hasn't grown on me that much, the way she apparently has on almost all other X-Factor readers.
I kinda wish she had at least one other outfit in her wardrobe. Given her current situation, the thought that this kid is wearing the same clothes day in and day out, and none of the others have even noticed, is kinda creepy. I get that she has no money, being a runaway from an orphanage, but would it kill Jamie to give her a coupla bucks and send her to goodwill?
Interesting bit from Tryp the Elder an issue or two back, about competing forces of Chaos. Layla came out of the whole Scarlet Witch-Ex-Machina reboot mess, which heavily involved her 'no-such-thing-as-chaos-magic' powers. Could Layla be a literal personification of her chaotic powers, kind of Wanda's tulpa or something?
If she knows that she, on a very fundemental level, isn't 'real,' and isn't destined to have a 'real life,' it could explain some of her fatalism.
quote: Frankly, I'd rather Dani Moonstar had her spot. Or Magma. Or Polaris, even.
Eh. Dani was cool in the first dozen issues of New Mutants, but then her powers got tweaked so many times that she made Psylocke look uncomplicated and straightfoward. Manifest illusions of people's fears, talk to animals, make material objects out of psionic energy, create psi-weapons, see the presence of death, fight death on the astral plane, superhuman strength, flying horse, manifest people's hopes and dreams as material constructs, blah-blah-blah. I just lost interest in her about six changes in.
Magma, IMO, is best when paired up with the insufferable Empath, her sometimes-boyfriend. They made a fun pair.
Polaris was always Havok's appendage, and never really worked on her own, IMO. I'd rather see a 3rd tier X-Men Wive's Auxiliary character like Lila Cheney or Amanda Sefton or better yet, a more dynamic personality like Joanna Cargill or Cecilia Reyes or Carmella Unuscione, all very fun characters.
Much like the Legion of Super-Heroes universe, the X-Universe is absolutely crawling with fascinating secondary and tertiary characters, and in X-Factor, Peter David has managed to create a compelling team out of the X-version of random Subs and Cadets, which, IMO, totally rocks.
Registered: Aug 2006
| IP: Logged |
posted
I like Layla, but I would love it if Carmella Unuscione joined the team. There's gotta be a way that she survived the destruction of Genosha during the Morrison era (Morrison...GRRRR).
X-Factor # 14 was a joy to read. Every issue from # 12 on has, IMO, gradually come closer to the quality of the first 8 issues, and this one finally equalled it, maybe even surpassed it.
quote:Originally posted by Set: I kinda wish she had at least one other outfit in her wardrobe. Given her current situation, the thought that this kid is wearing the same clothes day in and day out, and none of the others have even noticed, is kinda creepy. I get that she has no money, being a runaway from an orphanage, but would it kill Jamie to give her a coupla bucks and send her to goodwill?
Ummm... we've not seen Jamie (apparently) change his outfit in this series - and PAD finally got his "he's got a wardrobe full of identical clothes" anacdote into print in issue... #9 I think. One of the two Civil War issues anyway. Who's to say Layla doesn't do the same thing?
quote:Originally posted by Mystery Lad: I'm afraid Layla hasn't grown on me that much, the way she apparently has on almost all other X-Factor readers. Frankly, I'd rather Dani Moonstar had her spot. Or Magma. Or Polaris, even.
But see, here's the thing. None of those three characters - or Cargill, Reyes, Unscione, Scanner, etc could fill the role that she does. PAD's given Layla a role in the story that... I don't want to call "unique" since the second I say that someone'll pull out an über-obscure character who could do the same thing, but certainly there's no other character in the X-Universe that I can think of offhand who could genuinely pull the same role without a complete personality & power refit to the point that it wouldn't just piss off fans of that character anyway. Especially if you want a very different character to PAD's Layla. It's not a "spot" you could have plugged lots of characters into with only limited adjustment, like Siryn, M and Rictor's roles to date have muchly been.
Probably the biggest weakness with Layla is that she's HAD such a refit for X-Factor - she's simply not the character with that name and general appearance from HoM. There's been the odd semi-token attempt to reconcile, but fundamentally it's a character with a completely different personality & powers. OTOH, no-one liked Bendis' HoM Layla and with good reason, so...
posted
It certainly was an entertaining issue. The character interaction has been exceptional here, to the point of squeezing out the super-heroics. PAD is a whiz at thse kind of moments, so it works well.
As for Layla, she may have a unique position on the team, but I still don't like her. I echo Rictor's sentiments with each issue. Replacing her would be difficult, but I'd rather see someone else anyway. Heck, Monet could pull it off in her own obnoxious manner.
From: Denver, CO | Registered: May 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
As much as I want Dani back in the spotlight, I've gotta agree with Reboot.
-------------------- arachne3003.deviantart.com Current Obsession: Birds of Prey/Secret Six
From: Canada | Registered: Jul 2003
| IP: Logged |
Set
There's not a word yet, for old friends who've just met.
posted
There's often been an annoying know-it-all AT on various teams. Sage, of the expanded X-universe, has filled that role, and while not as 'cosmically conscious,' so has Monet.
Given his scatter-brained nature, Jamie himself could fill that role, knowing something about everything, and often pulling obscure, or downright outre, knowledge out of his butt.
Layla, unfortunately, is a gimmick. I'm not sure she could function without her gimmick, and her gimmick is far too much of a Deus Ex Machina / McGuffin / Plot Device for me to be entirely comfortable with her.
As for the notion of her secretly being rich and having an entire wardrobe full of the same outfit like Jamie, I guess that's one option. It's not like she can't win a lottery anytime she wants cash, or 'lucky guess' the winner of a ballgame or horse race or something.
[ December 26, 2006, 11:10 PM: Message edited by: Set ]
Registered: Aug 2006
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Set: Given his scatter-brained nature, Jamie himself could fill that role, knowing something about everything, and often pulling obscure, or downright outre, knowledge out of his butt.
But that's past knowledge, or general knowledge. When it comes to knowing or deciding where to go, he's hopeless and that's a character point.
-------------------- My views are my own and do not reflect those of everyone else... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
posted
And, just a thought - I think Layla might be in for some speed-aging in one way or another at some point in the not-too-distant future. Why? Because PAD's now set up the "marriage" thing with her and Jamie as firmly-not-a-joke, and brought Raine into it. And, in the natural scheme of things, that would happen years - decades, in real time - in the future, and PAD doesn't usually set up stuff that won't resolve in some form (quick cancellations & him being booted off the book excepted, of course). And for it to resolve as either true or false, he needs to either kill off one of Madrox, Raine and Layla, or get Layla into her late teens/early twenties within the next year or two.
-------------------- My views are my own and do not reflect those of everyone else... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
posted
Well, if Layls is 15, and Jamie is in his mid 20's it wouldn't be inconceivable (Kitty and Piotr) if they became attached in another 5 yrs of Marvel time.
Honestly, I didnt' think Layla meant anytime soon, just that it was going to happen eventually. And of course, there's nothing to say it is just a school girl crush...
From: Denver, CO | Registered: May 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
Okay, so the Monet and Terry vacation to France was fun. PAD has really made me like M, in all her arrogance. And Siryn was less surly; more like that gal I know from X-Force.
I will say I'm tired of Jamie. I know he's the star of the book, but issue after issue of him whining about being unstable has turned me off the guy. Maybe have him sit a few issues out.
From: Denver, CO | Registered: May 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
X-Factor # 15 has some of the best dialogue in a long time.
SIRYN: No problem, skank.
MONET: What was that?
SIRYN: I said, "No problem, thanks."
MONET: Aw, no!! The Victor Meyer Faberge egg I just bought! A bullet bounced off me and shattered it! Oh, you are DEAD for that, monsieur!
MONET: Je m'appelle Monet St. Croix. Mon pere est Cartier St. Croix, il est ambassaduer. Je veux parler immediatement a un avocat. Et rendez-moi vite mon ouef de Faberge!
What we really need now is a Monet & Siryn limited series.
posted
Yeah, I won't deny it was awkward that way. I just thought that the joke behind the line (and behind the line in French, too) -- about how self-centered and shallow she often is -- was funny.
Re: Dr. Rappacini, I plead ignorance. I still haven't managed to track down a copy of the Amazing Fantasy/Scorpion digest, so the only voice of her's I'm familiar with is the one she had in Hulk.
posted
No question about it, X-Factor # 16 is my favorite issue since the first eight. The most difficult dillema yet for Madrox; lots of Monet, including some always-welcome-for-me signs that she's more complex than a lot people give her credit for; and intriguing hints of the upcoming "mutant terrorists" storyarc.
Hyperpath: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic | Subscribe To Topic
