I guess I should start the column off with a little apology. If you happened to click on the nexus Friday morning, in hopes to read this little column, you might have noticed it missing. That would be my fault. And, even if you didn’t notice it missing, I’m coming clean. I was late with my column. I sit here writing it Friday afternoon, because I was a lazy, sick bum, all week long.
I was going to write the column on Thursday night, but I got my scheduled all mixed up. Had to go see my cousins play and then drive an hour away to go see a midnight showing of Harry Potter. At least the column is late because of geeky reasoning. (Harry Potter was good by the way. I quite enjoyed it.)
But all that is in the past now dear reader. It’s time to go forward and talk about the new topics of the day. The last two columns I’ve been devoting all my time and energy to helping you, the reader, how to get the non comic book reading people in your life to read comics. This week, we’re going a different route. We’re entering the Marvel zone.
Now if you haven’t heard lately, it seems that the Scarlet Witch went bat frig crazy and decided to screw up all reality. This all happened in a little book called House of M. You might have heard of it. For all you people who have read the last issue of House of M and then continued your Marvel journey onto Decimation M, feel free to read the rest of this column.
For those folks who have not yet read these issues, and do not want to be spoiled as to the outcome of what happened, you might want to stop reading here. Come back next week, or go check out the message board under more comics and check out the fangirl ramblings post to check out what I read this week. I just don’t want to spoil anything for you.
(But seriously man, if you haven’t read those issues yet, and you don’t know the outcome, you’re living under a rock now a days. Or maybe without internet. And if that’s the case, how are you even reading this?! Do I have readers who posses the ability of magic? Can I have some? I’ve always loved magic. I’d be real careful, and only use it for the purposes of evil hate every once in awhile. And just to let you know, I’m giving you a sad pouty face that few can resist.)
This is your last chance folks, after these sentences I’m spoiling the whole outcome of House of M. If you are leaving, then it was nice chatting with you, and I’m glad I got your hit. For the rest of you who are sticking around, lets get into the meat of this column.
Scarlet Witch, she’s crazy, she’s unhappy, she got rid of mutants. Most of them anyway. It seems there are still 198 left of them. I figure give it enough time, I’m sure each and every one of them will have their own title. But sadly, of those 198, one Miss Jubilation Lee is not one of them. Yes folks, my girl, the character that helped create a love for comics that has not been swayed, is no longer a mutant. It seems that she did not make the grade, the cullings have begun, and she no longer has the ability to create fireworks in the sky. She will *PAF* no more.
There is a small part of my heart that is grieving for the identity of a fictional character who only existed in the four color world of comics. Ok, and once in a really bad made for TV movie, and she had a small part in the X-Men movies, but really, very miniscule. The point is, she no longer is a mutant and that means she no longer has use in the Marvel Universe. Sure, she had her glory days back in older issues of Uncanny X-Men and quite a significant role in some issues of Wolverine. I’ll always remember those. The first 25 issues of Generation X I hold up to being some of the best teenage super-hero stories. It’s what Gen 13 at the time wanted to be, and will always beat out Young Justice in my eyes.
Jubilee was the character that brought me into comics, and it’s sad to see her go. Sure, she’ll be in the Generation M story-line, which I’m looking forward too. It’ll be nice to see that her last hurrah will be written by Paul Jenkins. We’ll forget that the Jubilee mini-series existed. It had it’s moments, but it just never reached it’s full potential. And the art, don’t get me started. It was the perfect opportunity for me to own Jubilee artwork, but it wasn’t very good. Only the last issue, but the pages were kind of pricey. This means that my poor fiancee’s job of getting me presents that involve comic book pages of Jubilee in it, much harder.
It’s odd, as I sit here typing I’m talking with Mr Hatton. I’m speaking about how silly I feel writing a whole column based on the fact that my favorite character has become redundant and how I feel sad. I now understand why people get so upset over characters dying. It has a significance. A little piece of you grieves with the other characters. This is the character that got me into comics. It’s hard to imagine, would I have found comics another way if I hadn’t watched the X-Men cartoon that one Saturday morning. It was the character of Jubilee that I fell in love with. Heres this smart mouth kid, who’s a mutant, a great concept for a 12 year old sarcastic tomboy to fall in love with. It lead me down this path, that in a weird sort of way, has some what helped me become the person that I am.
I started working in a comic book store when I was 17. I would never have taken a job like that if I didn’t like comics. Through that store, I met so many great friends. From there, I started going to comic conventions, and meeting more people, some who I’ve stayed close with to this day. And, the big one, it’s one of the reasons why my now fiancee, asked me out. We met in a coffee shop where he worked, and we ended up chatting about comics. I don’t know how much I believe in fate, or destiny, but I do know my life would be different if not for my love of comics.
So heres to a fictional character named Jubilee. Thanks for the memories kid. I’ll always remember the good times we had, and uncanny X-men #244 will always hold a special place in my heart.
