Pulled over from the solo thread because it's not really on topic there.
I'm not at all happy about how Storm has been played in the rebooted series either (especially after the first couple issues looked promising), but in that my subscription has about seven remaining issues I'm going to swallow the koolaid about things being about to change. For now.
I thought about you this afternoon.
I met up with a buddy of mine today, the the one who convinced me to give Worlds Apart another try. Until now, she was one of the last ones still reading BP. So imagine how surprised I was when we started talking about this month's book.
Her: Did you read Black Panther this month?
Me: You know I didn't. Why?
Her: Oh. My. God. You will NOT believe this sh*t.
And she just tears into this month's issue. I mean, hands shaking, voice trembling
rage. I'd never seen her like that in my life. I had to get her to calm down (we were at a restaurant). Apparently Storm's doing nothing but smiling and nodding like a bobbleheaded doll kissing Shuri's ass, while Shuri is running around calling herself a queen. (So much for that "princess regent" bullsh*t.) She said she never knew how much she loved Storm until the relaunch. I didn't know how much she loved Storm, either. If anybody was going to have tears in their eyes after something like this, I always thought it would be me. "They RUINED her!" is what she kept saying, something I can neither agree nor disagree with, since I don't care enough to read the book to find out. (People tend to mistake my "thinking out loud" posts as having an opinion.) She's not too thrilled w/me right now because I didn't have much to say except "sucks to be you". As far as I'm concerned, if she keeps reading the damn title, she deserves to be kicked in the teeth.
On one hand I'm curious as to exactly how bad this month's issue truly is. My friend points out that I've already paid for the book (via subscription), so I may as well read it an have an educated opinion, which is a very strong argument. On the other hand, it's the principality of the thing, Smokey. As I've explained to her, I don't
have an opinion one way or the other, and the truth is, I really don't want to read the title or support it in any way. I don't really need to know how bad it is. In fact, I'm pretty sure
I can tell you exactly what's happening:
T'Challa is still pimpin hoes. Shuri is even more annoying, if that's possible, and Storm does not exist. I think the Thirsty Hoes ate her.
...only replace "pimpin hoes" with
"acting like a whiny little bitch". I really think she just wants me to read it just so she'll have somebody to rant to (the rest of us abandoned it long ago). But c'mon, even though I couldn't love her more if we were blood, that's just asking too much. Personally, if I was ever caught reading this title, I pray that my friends would have the wisdom, courage, and personal conviction to beat my ass on the spot.
Which brings me back to you, because - with all due respect to Rutog98 - the only opinions here that I trust are yours and BarbaraB's. I ask this with nothing but respect: how can you possibly trust the team behind Black Panther to do the right thing by Storm, seeing what they're doing to her
right now? As my friend pointed out, Storm has never, EVER received this kind of front-and-center attention - not under Hudlin's pen, or as a 30+ year Marvel character. I don't have any problem with her being 1/2 of a royal couple, but playing second string to some sassy black kid sister? To quote another friend of mine, who IS this bitch? And why does she deserve more shine that Storm has ever had in her entire life? And even if, by some crazy circumstance, the third arc does NOT suck donkey dick, can any future stories rectify the treatment of Storm in the present? What possible excuses could Marvel have for busting her down in rank, turning her husband into a slimeball, and painting her as utterly indifferent to her T'Challa's current state? (Which reminds me - exactly how blind, deaf and dumb is Storm supposed to be to not notice any of the new marks on T'Challa's body? About as blind, deaf and dumb as she is to not notice an entire army of women at her husband's disposal, I guess.)
Anyway, like I said before, I'm just thinking out loud right now. I would never want to go on any other comic board to talk about this title because I don't want it to look like I've flipped. Then again, maybe I have flipped and I'm just too proud to say "you guys were right and I was wrong". I mean, I talked an awful lot of sh*t in my day.
But I just hate being on the Black Panther board ragging on the Black Panther book, mainly because I get sick of people saying I should "give it a chance", like I didn't before. Give it a chance for
what? If my friend is shaking and near tears, there's no telling what the hell I'd be doing. The weird this is, I really *don't* care, not as things are right now. I mean, I would care if we were to go back in time, but to me, it all just seems tainted to me now, and anything that comes in the future doesn't change the fact that once upon a time at Marvel, somebody said "You know that chick Shuri? Well, I have a
great idea..." Does that make any sense at all? Because this is a lot of words to say "f*ck it, do whatever".
