| X-23 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Publication date | 2010 |
| No. of issues | 21 |
| Main character(s) | X-23 |
| Creative team | |
| Written by | Marjorie Liu |
X-23 is a comic book series written by Marjorie Liu, published by Marvel Comics. It was the first ongoing series for the character Laura Kinney, better known as X-23.
The series was prompted by the success of Liu's one-shot X-23 from earlier in the year. The series ran for 21 issues. [1] [2]
X-23 begins having apocalyptic nightmares involving a demonic Wolverine asking her to be his "right hand in hell." Due to this, she sleeps outside as not to cause any alarm among her roommates. A rift has arisen between her and her former teammates, who are now wary of her due to her having been a part of X-Force. The only ones who side with her are Dust and Hellion. She pleasantly surprises Hellion when she tells him she has missed him, and the two share a brief moment. However, Surge's antagonizing of Laura forces Cyclops to intervene. He then tells her to visit a halfway house in San Francisco for former mutants who are trying to live normal lives. As she steps into the building, she suddenly experiences a vision similar to her dreams with the building on fire and her surrounded by dismembered corpses. [3]
A flashback opening the second chapter of "The Killing Dream" shows Wolverine and X-23 at a theme park. While they are preparing for the roller coaster to launch, Wolverine states he is adopting her as his daughter. When brought back to the present, the fire was implied to be started by the devil possessing Wolverine. He meets X-23 in the hospital and seemingly "kills" Hellion before diving into her mind. He tries to convince her to join him as his queen in Hell. [4] X-23 finds her inner "light" and banishes him from her mind. She awakes to find that there is blood everywhere but she and Hellion are fine. She also notices a symbol on her hand (Marjorie Liu promises that the symbol will be a long mystery). [5] The X-Men are perplexed about her situation and want her to stay so that they can "fix" her, but Gambit convinces them otherwise. X-23 silently visits Hellion's room (unaware that he knows she was there) before she leaves Utopia. [5]
X-23 begins her journey towards self-discovery. X-23, flanked by Gambit, encountered a young girl named Alice and witness her being murdered. However, they encounter Alice the next day, very much alive and well. Encouraging them to follow her to a peculiar desert laboratory, Alice introduces them to her employer/owner/adoptive mother: Claudine (Miss Sinister). Revealing herself openly to X-23, Claudine explains that Alice is also a clone, fourth of a series of five created by Essex as another experiment alongside several other children that live in the complex. She then expands upon her own origins, stating that the process of becoming what she is left her with vague, but invasive memories of Essex's life and that as a malignant presence within her mind. He is slowly killing her as a means of self-resurrection. He even manages to manifest briefly before being re-absorbed back into her. Claudine then incapacitates Gambit and straps X-23 to a peculiar chair, stating her aim to switch their bodies – thus inheriting Laura's healing factor. She has wanted the healing factor since her stabbing, and hopes it will free her of Essex. The plan backfires when Essex in fact controls Laura's body and uses her to mortally wound Claudine again. Laura manages to overcome Essex's presence in her mind, expelling it through force of will. Laura, Alice and Gambit manage to escape the laboratory as it collapses and arrange for the children to be given new homes before setting off on their journey again. In the wreckage left behind, Claudine is still barely alive, and is being watched over by the fifth Alice Clone – the new host of Essex. [6]
During the "Collision" storyline, X-23 and Gambit travel to Madripoor in pursuit of Malcolm Colcord, a man that wants to revive the Weapon X program that created Wolverine. They pursue Daken in the belief that he can lead them to Colcord, and later enlist the help of the crime boss Tyger Tiger to concoct a plan to rid Madripoor of both Colcord and Daken, but after a fight between X-23 and Daken reaches a stalemate, she resolves that she does not need Daken's help, and is later taken captive. [7] Daken helps to free her because, he says, he knew Colcord would want X-23 once he knew Colcord was rebuilding the Weapon X program, but allowed Colcord to capture her to see what he could learn. [8] The two are badly burned by a bomb detonated by Colcord, before X-23 and Gambit depart for Paris. [9]
In Paris, X-23 and Gambit pursue the person in possession of the "trigger scent" that sends X-23 into a berserk rage, and the DNA of her and Daken. When Gambit discovers that X-23 still causes bodily harm to herself, he contacts Wolverine, who counsels X-23 about filling her heart with better memories. Gambit questions Wolverine about why he never treated X-23 with the same compassion as Jubilee. Wolverine admits that he did not make the right decisions with X-23, a problem he intends to rectify it for both young women. [10]
X-23 and Jubilee subsequently bond over their common experiences. Following her transformation into a vampire, [11] Jubilee has come to feel that the people she once considered friends are now afraid of her, a pain with which X-23 sympathizes, because she was born and raised to be a killer, and found transitioning to civility difficult. During the storyline, Jubilee assists Wolverine and Gambit in their attempts to calm X-23 during her berserker rages. [12]
While having a dream of a mysterious symbol, Laura wakes up in a cab with Gambit in New York. The two later meet with Cecilia Reyes, as Gambit was bleeding from his groin, and X-23 left him in Cecilia's care while she went to search Alex Cimini for information. After finding him in a lab in the University Physics Department, she leaves. Unknown to her, a bright light appears in the lab Alex was in. While walking on the street, Laura sees the same symbol from her dream in the sky and on a man. An earthquake follows and the building near her collapses. As Laura was helping an elderly woman come down from a building, Spider-Man appears and helps bring them down. Laura and Spider-Man later see the symbol appearing in the sky at the same time, and they both realize that they have been dreaming of the same symbol. After the two help save civilians from the collapsed building, Laura and Spider-Man are approached by Reed Richards, Susan Storm and Ben Grimm. [13] The Future Foundation then bring Laura back to the Baxter Building to run some tests and discover that she is emitting the same energy signatures that were responsible for the earthquake. Later, a device shows Reed and Valeria that Laura, Spider-Man and Sue were all emitting the same energy signature. Spider-Man realises that the energy emitting from them is involved with the Uni-Power that changes beings into Captain Universe. While discussing this, Valeria activates the device and Laura, Spider-Man and Sue are transported to an alien world. There they are confronted by monstrous warriors. [14] The creatures are revealed to be the Whirldemons, creatures imprisoned by Prince Wayfinder, who eventually became the Enigma Force. During her confrontation with the Whirldemon King, Laura learns that the emblem on her hand from the first time they bonded is a mark associated with the Enigma force marking her as the ultimate heir to its power. She then bonds with the entity a second time to repair the seal preventing the demons from escaping into the world again. [15]
X-23 babysits Reed and Susan's children Franklin and Valeria. [16] She is trying to decide what direction to take in her life. [17] Valeria and Franklin Richards play with a temporal window, that unleashes a dragon. Hellion appears as all of them are transported to a space junkyard. [18] Hellion finally kisses X-23 only to be rejected by her saying that she no longer has feelings for him. Jubilee appears to tell her to come back to Utopia so that she can make a decision as to what side of the "schism" she wants to be on. [19]
The series currently holds a 8.1 out of 10 from 57 professional critics on the comic book review aggregator Comic Book Roundup. [20] [21] [22]
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-23: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 | X-23 (vol. 1) #1–6, X-23: Target X #1–6, Captain Universe/X-23 #1, X-23 (vol. 2) #1, X-23 (vol. 3) #1–3, material from X-Men: To Serve and Protect #2 | August 16, 2016 | 978-1302901165 |
| X-23: The Complete Collection Vol. 2 | X-23 (vol. 3)# 4–21, Daken: Dark Wolverine #8–9, material from Wolverine: The Road to Hell #1, All-New Wolverine Saga #1 | December 20, 2016 | 978-1302901172 |
Gambit is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. The character was created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Jim Lee. Drawn by artist Mike Collins, Gambit made his first appearances in The Uncanny X-Men Annual #14 and The Uncanny X-Men #266. Gambit belongs to a subspecies of humans called mutants, who are born with superhuman abilities. Gambit has the ability to mentally create, control, and manipulate pure kinetic energy to his desire. He is also incredibly knowledgeable and skilled in card throwing, hand-to-hand combat, and the use of a bō staff. Gambit is known to charge playing cards and other objects with kinetic energy, using them as explosive projectiles.
Wolverine is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, often in association with the X-Men. He is a mutant with animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, a powerful regenerative ability known as a healing factor, a skeleton reinforced with the unbreakable fictional metal adamantium, and three retractable claws in each hand. In addition to the X-Men, Wolverine has been depicted as a member of X-Force, Alpha Flight, the Fantastic Four, and the Avengers. The common depiction of Wolverine is multifaceted; he is portrayed at once as a gruff loner, susceptible to animalistic “berserker rages” despite his best efforts, while simultaneously being an incredibly knowledgeable and intelligent polyglot, strategist, and martial artist, partially due to his extended lifespan and expansive lived experiences. He has been featured in comic books, films, and video games.
Sabretooth is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men, in particular as an enemy of the mutant Wolverine. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist John Byrne, the character made his first appearance in Iron Fist #14. The original portrayal of Sabretooth was that of a non-powered serial killer, but was later written as a mutant possessing bestial superhuman abilities, most notably a rapid healing factor, razor-sharp fangs and claws, and superhuman senses. He is a vicious assassin, who was responsible for numerous deaths throughout history, both as a paid mercenary and for his personal pleasure. Accounts on how his enmity with Wolverine originated differs depending on different writers. One of the most common accounts is that Wolverine and Sabretooth were both participants of the Cold War supersoldier program Weapon X, and that Sabretooth saw Wolverine as competition and therefore antagonized him. While Wolverine is depicted as suppressing his more savage qualities, Sabretooth does the opposite and embraces them, until the events of the 2014 storyline "AXIS".
Mister Sinister is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont, the character was first mentioned as the employer behind the team of assassins known as the Marauders in The Uncanny X-Men #212, and later seen in silhouette in The Uncanny X-Men #213, with both issues serving as chapters of the 1986 "Mutant Massacre" crossover. Mr. Sinister then made his first full appearance in The Uncanny X-Men #221. His appearance was designed by artist Marc Silvestri.
Weapon X is a fictional government genetic research facility project appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They were conducted by Department K, which turned willing and unwilling beings into living weapons to carry out covert missions like assassination or eliminating potential threats to the government. It was similar to human enhancement experiments in the real world, but it captured mutants and did experiments on them to enhance their abilities such as superpowers, turning them into human weapons. They also mutated baseline humans. The Weapon X Project produced Wolverine, Leech, Deadpool, Sabretooth, and Weapon H.
X-23 is a fictional superheroine appearing in media published by Marvel Entertainment, commonly in association with the X-Men. The character was created by writer Craig Kyle for the X-Men: Evolution television series in 2003, before debuting in the NYX comic series in 2004. Since then she has headlined two six-issue miniseries written by Kyle and Christopher Yost, a one-shot and self-titled series written by Marjorie Liu, and All-New Wolverine by Tom Taylor.
Cyber is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as an enemy of Wolverine from the X-Men. Created by writer Peter David and artist Sam Kieth, Cyber first appeared in Marvel Comics Presents #85, though his physical appearance was obscured by a trench coat and hat. He was first fully seen and named in Marvel Comics Presents #86.
The Marauders refers to one of two teams of fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The original Marauders team included mutant warriors and assassins employed by the X-Men's enemy Mister Sinister, a mad scientist villain often intent on creating a perfect race of superhumans. At different times, the Marauders have been tasked with Sinister to perform kidnappings, assassinations, mass murder, or to simply fight Sinister's enemies. At different times, Marauders have been killed in combat, but often Mr. Sinister later uses his cloning technology to re-create them. This team of Marauders has appeared in many different stories of the X-Men franchise, as well as stories featuring other Marvel Comics heroes.
The Principality of Madripoor or Madripoor is a fictional island appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The island is depicted as being located in maritime Southeast Asia, and has appeared mostly associated with stories from the X-Men series. Based on illustrations, it is in the southern portion of the Strait of Malacca between Singapore and Sumatra.
Howard Mackie is an American comic book editor and writer. He has worked almost exclusively for Marvel Comics and is best known as the co-creator of the Danny Ketch version of the Ghost Rider character.
Malcolm Colcord, also known as The Director, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character plays an important role in Weapon X comics and has appeared as a villain in Wolverine.
Daken is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Daken was created by writer Daniel Way and artist Steve Dillon and first appeared in Wolverine: Origins #5.
Daniel Way is an American comic book writer, known for his work on Marvel Comics series such as Wolverine: Origins and Deadpool.
Jubilation "Jubilee" Lee is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Marc Silvestri, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #244. Jubilee is a member of the human subspecies known as mutants, born with superhuman abilities. She can generate pyrotechnic energy blasts from her hands. Introduced as an orphaned "mall rat" from Beverly Hills, Jubilee joined the X-Men in the early 1990s, becoming the team's youngest member and often playing a sidekick role to her father-figure, Wolverine.
Marjorie M. Liu is an American New York Times best-selling author and comic book writer. She is acclaimed for her horror fantasy comic Monstress, and her paranormal romance and urban fantasy novels including The Hunter Kiss and Tiger Eye series. Her work for Marvel Comics includes NYX, X-23, Dark Wolverine, and Astonishing X-Men. In 2015 Image Comics debuted her creator-owned series Monstress, for which she was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best New Series. In 2017 she won a Hugo Award for the first Monstress trade paperback collection. In July 2018 she became the first woman in the 30-year history of the Eisner Awards to win the Eisner Award for Best Writer for her work on Monstress.
X-Men: Regenesis is a comic book branding used by Marvel Comics that ran through the X-Men family of books beginning in October 2011, following the end of the X-Men: Schism miniseries. This realignment of the mutant population is ahead of the 2012 Marvel event Avengers vs. X-Men which begins during Regenesis with the mini series Avengers: X-Sanction and brings back Cable, who was previously thought to be dead following the events of X-Men: Second Coming.
"Death of Wolverine" is a 2014 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. The story has grown from both volume 5 and volume 6 of the Wolverine main series, and also continued with "Hunt for Wolverine" and "Return of Wolverine".
"Hunt for Wolverine" is a 2018 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, starring the character Wolverine. The storyline is the follow-up to the Death of Wolverine event, and is continued with Return of Wolverine.
X-23 is a 2010 comic book one-shot published by Marvel Comics. It follows title character X-23 as she contemplates her existence. It was written by Marjorie Liu who would later go on to write an ongoing series by the same name for the character due to the one-shots success.
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