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Tweak says, "In my former life I was a bee."

cyberghostface (cyberghostface) wrote in scans_daily,
@ 2009-05-09 18:39:00

Entry tags:

char: mephisto, char: nightcrawler/kurt wagner, creator: darick robertson, creator: roberto aguirre-sacasa, publisher: marvel comics, title: nightcrawler

Nightcrawler's Brand New Day

We all know how Spider-Man got to where he is now. To save the life of Aunt May (against her wishes), Peter made a deal with Mephisto, the embodiment of evil in the Marvel universe. In exchange for May's life, he sacrificed his marriage with Mary-Jane Watson.

Of course, this isn't the first time Mephisto has made an offer with someone. In this occasion, he makes an offer to Nightcrawler. How does the Furry Blue Elf take it?

Context: This was from the final issue of Nightcrawler's solo title. Nightcrawler was celebrating his birthday party when Mephisto stopped time to make Kurt his offer.

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(Post a new comment)

	cainofdreaming 2009-05-09 05:44 pm UTC (link)
	The Devil's sideburns! ...sorry, I just love that exclamation so. Also, go Kurt! (Reply to this)

	sandoz_iscariot 2009-05-09 06:19 pm UTC (link)
	This is why Kurt rocks. (Reply to this)

icon_uk
2009-05-09 07:01 pm UTC (link)

I really didn't see the need for Kurt to be involved with the occult and demonic forces any more than any other X-man. His appearance shouldn't dictate his involvement, it'd be like expecting the Beast to deal with any animal based threats because he's got fur and claws, or Cyclops to deal with anything involving eye-beams.

That aside, I love this confrontation, and Kurt acts in precisely the way I'd hope a hero would.

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	jlbarnett 2009-05-09 08:07 pm UTC (link)
	Kurt was raised by a witch and dates a witch though. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	icon_uk 2009-05-09 08:13 pm UTC (link)
	True, but he has never shown any facility with magic or the occult himself. He'd be the Darren if this were a Samantha/Endora/Bewitched analogy (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	naebler 2009-05-09 09:03 pm UTC (link)
	Dont forget... he's a priest if I remember right. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fashi0n_mistake 2009-05-09 09:09 pm UTC (link)
	Not according to Chuck Austin! (Reply to this) (Parent)

sherkahn
2009-05-09 10:39 pm UTC (link)

I quote from Tarantino "From Dusk til Dawn" (god knows why I do) to explain why Mephisto would want Kurt out of play in the final fight.

"As far as God's concerned, we might as well all be a piece of shit... but he is one of the boys."

Of the core X-men group, Mephisto would have 3 major opponents, if the big battle final to pass. Jean Grey (host of the Phoenix), Ororo Munroe (descendant of a former Sorceress Supreme with latent but natural mystic abilities) and the most dangerous of all to him - Kurt Wagner. Not just a mere loyal believer, but a full on "man of the cloth". Kurt's faith would be a rallying point for the "Forces of Good", and with the might of heaven unleashed against the fury of the burning abyss, Kurt would be a natural focal point for such energies, making him a seasoned front line soldier in which the spiritual fight would be just as important as the actual physical combat.

Oh, and good for you, Kurt.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Excellent quote skills.

proteus_lives
2009-05-10 04:34 pm UTC (link)

I'll match for another valid one from FDtD.

"So what are you Jacob?(Kurt) A faithless preacher or a mean motherfuckin' servant of God?"

One other possible opponent for Mephisto, Colossus. During Inferno N'astirh said his mere touch was agony because because his soul was so "Noble and Pure." Not sure if his soul is still in the same state. But given the fate and suffering of his sister at the hands of demons, Peter could really unleash some Righteous Anger.

Motto on the good for Kurt.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: Excellent quote skills.

roily_rogue
2009-05-10 06:27 pm UTC (link)

I really have trouble taking any magical/spiritual war seriously in Marvel. The rules for magic and characters' "purity of spirit" just vary too much from writer to writer for those kinds of stories to have any emotional resonance with me. Piotr's spirit being noble and pure? The guy who joined Magneto, cheated on Kitty and who's thrown so many selfish anger fits over the years? Heck, Kurt doesn't have a clean conscience, either, he just tries really hard. If just hating demons and being furious about obvious evil is enough to be deemed so pure demons can't touch you, then demons shouldn't pose a threat at all to any hero worth his/her salt.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: Excellent quote skills.

proteus_lives
2009-05-11 12:00 am UTC (link)

Well, this happened during Inferno. Which was well before his sister died and his defection to Mags. It predates his mental issues as well. As for his issues with Kitty, he was a kid and he always kept her at arms-length. I'm not 100% but I think his tryst with Nereel pre-dated their quasi-relationship. And when he fell for that woman from Beyonder's battleworld, he owned up to Kitty when he got back and broke up with her.

I doubt his soul-status would be the same today. Or any heroes. The only "pure-of-heart" heroes I can think of off the top of my head would be Molly Hayes and Steve Rogers. Molly because she's a kid and Steve because he's Steve!

You're right about the magic though. It's one of those things that the MU really swings back and forth on.

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magus_69
2009-05-09 10:03 pm UTC (link)

Uh... not exactly. Darren was a completely average mortal suddenly thrown into a world he had trouble comprehending. He had a tendency towards dickishness, true, but he was also completely defenceless against Samantha's family.

None of this really applies to Kurt. He grew up with a foot in the magical world, and so he does have some passing familiarity with it. On top of that, he's fully immersed in a world that is just as weird in its own way. Also, he's one of the few X-Men to lack a dickish streak.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

Rant ahoy.

roily_rogue
2009-05-10 06:56 pm UTC (link)

He doesn't date Amanda anymore. Thank god.
And no, that still doesn't justify his solo series having a magical theme. The result was that he, as usual, didn't actually get to make a difference through his own power, which is a problem that constantly plagues the character.

After 12 issues of Kurt telling his magic-wielding friends to smite the enemy, calming angry spirits by looking through books in the library and then borrowing Illyana's Legendary Soulsword to swat demonic flies, I was left pretty puzzled as to why Mephisto considered this guy a threat.
The "explanatory" comment in issue #11 about how he, Margali and Amanda were "cut from the same cloth" rang thoroughly false, especially considering Margali's history of being a murderous, manipulative, scheming demon queen and that Amanda hooked up with Kurt under false pretenses because she couldn't trust him enough to be 100% sure that he wasn't a murderer. Wagner is not a Szardos.

Aguirre-Sacasa just used the supernatural theme because he's fond of it and uses it in almost everything he writes (or did, at least, I haven't looked up his work recently).

I was just disappointed, because a Nightcrawler series could have been so awesome, but instead they made it everything he shouldn't be: angsty, dreary, dark and dull.

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	dustbunny105 2009-05-09 07:09 pm UTC (link)
	Whoo! Go, Kurt! (Reply to this)

	volksjager 2009-05-09 07:23 pm UTC (link)
	See, not all wall crawlers are douches. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	crinosg 2009-05-09 07:34 pm UTC (link)
	You know, if I ever write for Spider-man, I am going to retcon Petey's agreeing to Mephisto's deal as being part of some massive Xanatos Gambit set up by Dr. Strange to defeat Mephisto once and for all. Then have it all end with everything going back the way it was pre OMD. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	icon_uk 2009-05-09 07:40 pm UTC (link)
	There is hope that whatever it was MJ said to Mephisto before the deal was struck might have some sort of loophole that even Mephisto didn't suspect. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	angelophile 2009-05-10 05:06 am UTC (link)
	Well, that's why it was in there. So if OMD turned out to be a complete and utter sales killer, they had an out to reset the whole thing. I can't imagine they worked out the details of how but the MJ whisper was obviously to sow seeds for a loophole if a retcon was needed. Needs a few more thousand readers to stop reading before that happens though. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	filthysize.livejournal.com 2009-05-09 08:11 pm UTC (link)
	If you ever become Marvel EIC, you mean. Being a writer doesn't give you such an option. :P (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	crinosg 2009-05-09 08:21 pm UTC (link)
	Well hopefully by the time I get there Quesada will have been deposed, thrown out of a 2nd story window, had his legs chewed off by rabid wolves, and then been sexually violated by a clown. I trust his successor's first act will be to undo as much of his predecessors bullshit as possible, and that's something I'd like to be a part of. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	scottyquick 2009-05-09 11:42 pm UTC (link)
	Is that really necessary? Crinosq, I really dislike a lot of what Quesada seems to do, and his blatant sexism is a real big annoyance, but c'mon, don't wish death/rape on him. Remember what happened last time? (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Thankyou! dimesfornickels.wordpress.com 2009-05-10 06:12 am UTC (link)
	Thank you for being the lone voice of maturity among this lot, Scottyquick. You made me happy to read this post. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: Thankyou! greenmask 2009-05-10 08:25 am UTC (link)
	"Lone voice of maturity" is a bit rich. It's not like everyone else joined in and said yeah, a big horrible clown!!. I'm pretty sure such personal attacks are against the rules here anyway. Your "this lot" lumping made me unhappy to read this post. :[ On the whole we are actually quite nice. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: Thankyou! kagome654 2009-05-10 11:15 am UTC (link)
	Hey now, you know as well as I do that a community can and should be judged by its 'loudest' member/s. Sweeping generalizations are always the best way to go. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	Re: Thankyou! scottyquick 2009-05-10 08:57 am UTC (link)
	Hey there! While I appreciate the compliment, I don't think that's really fair to the other users. I mean, the other readers probably didn't get to read Crinosq comment, because by the time xe posted it the entry was near the bottom of the page. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	crinosg 2009-05-10 12:14 pm UTC (link)
	I only kid. Jeez. And its CrinosG, not Q. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	scottyquick 2009-05-10 02:39 pm UTC (link)
	I know, but still, it might be really uncomfortable if say, Joe Q came online and saw someone wishing him a specific form of death and violation. Sorry! Misread it there. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

crinosg
2009-05-10 03:02 pm UTC (link)

Points of order:

1) I doubt Quesada actually goes to comic forums in order to read what people think of his stuff, except maybe to feed on their despair.

2)I'm hoping the "violated by a clown", would tip people off I'm not being serious, since that may be the most absurd thing ever thought of.

3) If it makes you feel any better, next time I will place a disclaimer stating that my posts are strictly satirical and not meant to be taken seriously.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	angelophile 2009-05-10 04:03 pm UTC (link)
	That said, yes, it's not meant to be taken seriously, yes it's obviously hyperbole, no it's not an actual threat. But neither's "die in a fire" and we know what trouble that caused. So while it's apparent to most of us it's a joke, toning it down in future would be appreciated. Thanks. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	proteus_lives 2009-05-11 12:01 am UTC (link)
	Molly makes for an excellent Mod icon! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	cricharddavies 2009-05-11 01:08 pm UTC (link)
	I know, but still, it might be really uncomfortable if say, Joe Q came online and saw someone wishing him a specific form of death and violation. If you can't stand the heat, don't do things that make the fire. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	iambickilometer 2009-05-10 01:33 pm UTC (link)
	You make me happy in ways I cannot quite articulate. PLEASE DO. (Reply to this) (Parent)