{"id":10262,"date":"2024-08-01T21:24:04","date_gmt":"2024-08-01T20:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.housetoastonish.com\/?p=10262"},"modified":"2024-08-01T21:24:04","modified_gmt":"2024-08-01T20:24:04","slug":"x-force-1-annotations-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.housetoastonish.com\/?p=10262","title":{"rendered":"X-Force #1 annotations"},"content":{"rendered":"

As always, this post contains spoilers, and page numbers go by the digital edition.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>X-FORCE vol 7 #1<\/strong>
\n“Where Monsters Dwell”<\/strong>
\nWriter: Geoffrey Thorne<\/strong>
\nArtist: Marcus To<\/strong>
\nColour artist: Erick Arciniega<\/strong>
\nLetterer: Joe Caramagna<\/strong>
\nEditor: Mark Basso<\/strong><\/p>\n

X-FORCE:<\/strong><\/p>\n

The new X-Force is a team put together by Forge to deal with a hazily defined problem of “fractures” that are causing the world to break apart. Aside from the fact that Forge and Sage were both regulars in the previous run, it doesn’t have much connection to previous versions of X-Force. (In fact, the book was apparently pitched under a different name and assigned the “X-Force” name after the fact.)<\/p>\n

Forge<\/strong> is effectively the lead character. When we first see him, he’s replaying some sort of video or simulation of a 1980s X-Men team fighting the Brood, for some reason or other. The art doesn’t really match up with any specific event. Forge is apparently obsessed with this, enough to spend over a day watching it and losing track of time.<\/p>\n

Forge’s main project is “the McCoy Project”, which Forge says is inspired by the Beast’s research into mutantdom – i.e., the work that led to him become blue and furry back in Amazing Adventures<\/em> #10 (1971). Forge claims that the Beast was “tr[ying] to run away from his mutation and stumbled into a power-up”, which is not what happened in the original story – the Beast was just investigating the “chemical cause of mutation”. Perhaps Forge construes any investigation into that topic as some sort of attempt to create a cure. In the context of an X-Force<\/em> book, any suggestion that Forge is following in the steps of the Beast should probably be seen as some sort of warning.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Forge’s basic idea seems to be to use his powers to create some sort of device that enhances his own powers. In turn, that makes him aware of some sort of problem with fissures that need to be addressed in order to save the world, and also points him towards a solution: create a thing called the “analog” which helps to identify the problems, and form a team to deal with the problems. What links these problems, what caused them, why this particular team addresses them, and why the group has to be kept secret is left unclear – apparently even to the rest of the cast – through Forge seems puzzled when Sage asks him about the reason for secrecy.<\/p>\n

I think<\/em> part of the point here is meant to be that Forge’s powers, even enhanced into a more general problem-solving ability, still ultimately work by getting him directly to the solution by intuition alone. This is why Sage finds Forge impossible to analyses with her usual computational methods, and why he responds to her line “You actually do think of everything” by saying “That’s not how my power works.” If so, Forge doesn’t actually know why<\/em> his power is pointing him towards these steps, but simply has faith that it will be steering him correctly. Still, his first mission does correctly identify a major threat, and his decision to hire Deadpool for the day turns out to be key to the solution.<\/p>\n

For some reason Forge insists on wearing a psi-blocking headband, despite having invited three telepaths onto his team. You’d think people might be a bit more suspicious of this, but presumably his explanation involves yet more of that secrecy and paranoia he’s sold everyone on.<\/p>\n

Sage<\/strong> is the narrator for the book, presumably because Forge’s thought processes are meant to be obscure to us, and her purely rational approach contrasts with his. She seems to have had some sort of mental breakdown after the fall of Krakoa. Forge attributes this to her blaming herself for not preventing the fall of Krakoa, but she seemed fairly normal in the latter issues of X-Force<\/em> and Wolverine<\/em>, all of which came after that point. Maybe things caught up with her after Orchis was defeated or maybe the actual cause is something else. She certainly seems in a self-loathing mood, though, since she’s checked herself into a Swiss psychiatric clinic under the name “Mademoiselle L’\u00c9chec” (“Miss Failure”). She’s babbling nonsense at first, but pulls herself together failure quickly on seeing the analog, which she seems to find fascinating.<\/p>\n

Forge insists on calling her “Tessa”, the name which she used when she was undercover in the Hellfire Club back in the 1980s.<\/p>\n

Captain Britain<\/strong> and Askani<\/strong> come as a package deal. Betsy isn’t particularly keen to join up for this exercise and wants to spend time with Rachel “in light of recent events”, but Rachel – who decides to start calling the group X-Force – signs up enthusiastically and ropes Betsy in. It’s not clear why<\/em> Rachel is so keen to get involved, but the vibe seems to be that she’s just looking for something to do. Betsy is played as the senior\/serious member of the duo, with Rachel something of a “brat”, in Betsy’s words.<\/p>\n

Surge <\/strong>happens to be visiting her family in Japan when X-Force show up to fight Mr Sinister’s creation (see below). She’s recruited into the team at the end of the issue because “the analog wants her”, as shown in the QR-code bonus page. We last saw Surge in a major role in the\u00a0Bishop: War College<\/em> miniseries, though she’s had a couple of cameos since.<\/p>\n

Tank <\/strong>is a red humanoid thing which has no dialogue and shows up with no explanation. The obvious implication is that he’s a robot built by Forge, but we’re not actually told that in terms, and at this stage he probably qualifies as a mystery subplot which is pretending to be too mundane to call for explanation.<\/p>\n

Deadpool<\/strong> has been hired by Forge just for this one mission, against because the analog wanted him. The actual threat in this issue is a grey goo monster which eats everything in sight and will apparently go on to consume the world unless stopped. Forge has brought Deadpool along because – for reasons that are handwaved through with rather unsatisfactory technobabble – eating Deadpool will somehow or other lead to the creature dying harmlessly in three days or so. Forge doesn’t warn Deadpool about this in advance, but it’s entirely possible that he doesn’t actually know why Deadpool will come in handy. Then again, he doesn’t seem particularly bothered about it either.<\/p>\n

VILLAINS:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mr Sinister<\/strong> is behind the company which created the grey goo thing, though it seems to have simply escaped rather than being released as part of any sort of plan – at any rate, Sage assumes it to be an escapee, presumably because Sinister has nothing obvious to gain from letting it out. He may just be a familiar name to attack to a threat-of-the-week monster.<\/p>\n

The online bonus page shows a shadow figure monitoring X-Force from a distance. Forge says that X-Force is his machine, and the mystery figure comments “And you, querido<\/em>, you are mine.” Querido<\/em> is Spanish for “darling”.<\/p>\n

OTHER SPECIFICS:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Page 8: “Hart Home, Florida… The Well of All Things… The Forest of Torment… Sorachi-Shi…”<\/strong> Forge is apparently voicing the names of places associated with the “fissures” problem.<\/p>\n