Tag Archives: C’ris

Jun 10 2014

Cyclops 2

cyclops 2Today, Patrick and Suzanne are discussing Cyclops 2, originally released June 4th, 2014.

Patrick: When we were in third grade, by buddy Jeff was severely burned by hot coffee. He had accompanied his father to a meeting of some kind, and a giant carafe with boiling hot liquid spilled all over him, giving him second degree burns on his chest and stomach and third degree burns on his arm. Earlier that same evening, I was hoping to have Jeff come over to play video games, but I didn’t get around to calling until he and his dad were just out the door. It’s one of those bizarre “what if”s: what if I had called five minutes earlier? Would Jeff have been spared those burns? How would his life be different if he never experienced that? Obviously, we’ll never know, and this formative experience will always have formed his identity in some way. Greg Rucka and Russel Dauterman’s Cyclops is perfectly positioned to ask those questions of Scott Summers, exploring what forms when one’s formative experiences are entirely different. Scott Summers has always been a principled kid — how could he not be with a mentor like Charles Xavier? — but how does that change when the guiding figure in his life is a drug addicted gentleman pirate? Continue reading →

May 8 2014

Cyclops 1

Alternating Currents: Cyclops 1, Drew and PatrickToday, Drew and Patrick are discussing Cyclops 1, originally released May 7th, 2014.

Drew: Leaders are often defined by their circumstances than any personal characteristics. Abraham Lincoln may be remembered as a persuasive orator, but that reputation takes a back seat to his role in the Civil War. That tendency can flatten out historical leaders, but absolutely steamrolls fictional ones, turning “leadership” into a character trait at the expense of any others. Raphael may be “cool, but rude,” and Michelangelo may be “a party dude,” but “Leonardo leads.” I’ve long had this association with Scott Summers, who I know is the de facto leader of the X-Men, but that’s kind of it. Oh, and he shoots lasers from his eyes. Complicating his circumstances (transporting him in time, taking him to outer space) have multiplied the potential for elucidating his personality, but I was still unconvinced that there was enough to him to support his own title. Fortunately, writer Greg Rucka manages to find an incredibly relatable handhold — Scott’s relationship to his father — delivering a confident statement of purpose in Cyclops 1.

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