Chris Claremont laid the groundwork for Kitty Pryde and Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler to develop one of the X-Men franchise’s most complex and sustained cross-gender friendships. 1/8 #xmen
Kitty’s initial fear of Kurt compels intersectional explorations of how different mutations are perceived differently, even by other mutants, and inspires Kurt to reflect on his ingratiating approach to acceptance. 2/8
Their relationship has several important turning points, including a buddy adventure in space (Uncanny X-Men #155-57), and a second space adventure in which Kitty (inadvertently) takes her first sentient life, to save Kurt (Uncanny #163). 3/8
Kitty befriending Kurt becomes symbolic of her developing maturity and social consciousness; her iconic defenses of the mutant cause in Uncanny #210 and God Loves, Man Kills extend from her devotion to Kurt. Relevant to the former: Kitty is Jewish; Kurt is German. 4/8
In the Claremont-penned tie-in Excalibur, Kitty propels Kurt’s own maturation. The series opens with Kitty admonishing Kurt’s senseless bravado after he is nearly impaled fighting robotic pirates. With the other X-Men seemingly dead, Kurt must grow up; for Kitty, he does. 5/8
Their relationship is largely devoid of sexual tension. Kitty is one of the few X-women Kurt (a notorious flirt) never tries to romance, except, interestingly, in a comedic guise within a bedtime story Kitty tells to Illyana (“Kitty’s Fairy Tale,” Uncanny #153). 6/8
In post-Claremont stories, Kitty and Kurt continue to function as emotional outlets for each other. On numerous occasions, their interactions inspire important confessions of vulnerability, often leading to character growth (and tearful hugs). 7/8
Individually, each character has often been framed as a “soul” of the X-Men. But they arguably communicate the franchise theme even better through their friendship, their heroism emerging through a model of found family grounded in intersectional empathy. 8/8
Today's TBT post composed by (e)visiting Claremont scholar, Dr. Anna Peppard, who (with Stephanie Burt @accommodatingly) actually just published a review of Claremont’s most recent Kitty/Kurt story comicsxf.com/2022/03/09/exc…
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The Forge/Storm reunion in Fall of the Mutants story hit a lot of emotional notes and thus offers a great object lesson on the importance of the illustration team to capture and project the emotional nuance of character melodramas through expression. #xmen 1/8
The spectacle of working in the superhero genre has the potential to distract from an artist’s skill with rendering emotion, and Silvestri in particular has been badly undervalued in this aspect of his work. The quality and diversity of Storm’s expressions make that clear. 2/8
Without these expressions, Claremont’s emotional beats really can’t come to fruition. The narrative of Forge and Storm – the intimacy and longing between them - can be seen in their words, but it’s really brought to life through the visual imagery more than anything. 3/8
While the circumstances of Rogue’s absorption of the Carol Danvers persona are surreal and supernatural, they nonetheless provide an intriguing example of the concept of “restorative justice” in a manner that makes a compelling story at the same time. #xmen #rogue 1/9
Restorative justice is a system that focuses on “providing an opportunity for the parties directly affected by the crime – victims, offenders and communities – to identify and address their needs in the aftermath of a crime” instead of simple punishment. 2/9
Though more recently popularized, RJ was commonly practiced by First Nations communities in North America, forming the basis of entire judicial infrastructures (where most Western justice systems, up until recently, focused on the familiar penal structure). 3/9
As a collaborative medium, comics are sometimes denigrated for their committee approach to character-building, but a closer look at the 'committee' behind Wolverine shows how a character like Logan offers a multifaceted connection to creative genius. #xmen #wolverine 1/10
As noted by Marvel historian Sean Howe, Wolverine was first “named and conceived by Roy Thomas, who detected a need to exploit the Canadian market” before being “developed further by Len Wein and John Romita” ahead of Logan’s debut in “The Incredible Hulk.” 2/10
Throw in Claremont, and the pedigree is quite impressive already. Thomas is perhaps best known as the greatest writer of Conan comics, a character that later artists would draw from quite directly in their interpretations of Wolverine. 3/10
In UXM #220, Claremont takes a moment away from a chaotic era to touch back upon the longstanding, well-evolved relationship between Storm and Wolverine, giving readers another character-revealing scene between this iconic X-Men duo. #xmen #wolverine #storm 1/9
The scene initiates a journey of self-discovery for Ororo, one of many throughout the series but this one will specifically create the rising action for the “Fall of the Mutants’’ event. She has to go alone, but someone has to lead the X-Men in her absence. She recruits Logan 2/9
The power dynamic is foreshadowed in the simple fact that Wolverine (an archetypal hunter) has literally scaled the highest mountain to be alone, but it doesn’t matter. Even without her powers, Ororo has tracked him down. 3/9
In an introductory essay penned in 1980, John Byrne recounts his personal perspective on Jean Grey and her transformation to Phoenix. His candid account paints a less grandiose view on the cultivation of the character within the series than we normally hear. #xmen #JeanGrey 1/7
“I’ve never liked Phoenix. There, I said it...It’s not that I don’t like Jean Grey. I have an abiding fondness for readheads, and have been in love with Jean since we first ‘met,’ about a millions years ago when I was 13.” 2/7
“Granted that her power were not nearly as spectacular as Cyclops’, or Angel’s, or even Iceman’s, but she looked real good in a tight uniform and could – and did – serve to get the X-Men out of tight places.” 3/7
Placing Kitty Pryde into the position of viewpoint character has to represent one of the most groundbreaking decisions within the entirety of the Claremont run – a move that ultimately impacted the series, comics as a whole, and even Western media in powerful ways. #xmen 1/10
The Claremont run begins with Cyclops as the main viewpoint character. Kitty joins the team right at his departure and soon enough takes over as a main viewpoint character for the rest of her tenure, as reflected in our data (noting that Kitty’s only on for 70ish issues). 2/10
At the time of her arrival, Claremont had already executed a turn toward more adult-oriented stories (something that becomes even more pronounced after the death of an X-Man in DPS). It’s therefore perhaps odd to bring on a teen protagonist. 3/10