Regret Asking: Character Origins

[Wind-Breaker]

Who are some characters who's origin story hurt the character more than help them? What characters would have been better off if their complete origins were never told?

Monet for example, had an origin that was unnecessarily complicated and/or confusing with the Emplate/ Penance thing.

Gambit's appeal of him being mysterious was ruined by a complicated back-story with his ties Sinister.

Emma Frost (with her solo series and one-shot) attempted in someways to soften a character and show incompetence, for someone who's appeal is being entertainingly unpleasant and gets stuff done by any means.


So which characters would have been better off if their origins remained untold?

[Justin K.]

Wolverine

10 char.

[Slant]

I love Gambit's ties with Sinister. I'm eager to learn who his parents are. Will he even have parents?

[Peter F.]

While I love that Pixie is the third Mastermind sister, I feel that have a faerie mother is going a bit too far.

[Wind-Breaker]

I love Gambit's ties with Sinister. I'm eager to learn who his parents are. Will he even have parents?

I like the thieves guild thing myself. I think if those were his real parents I would've liked it better.

[MorbidCuriosity]

How about characters whose origins no longer make sense considering the sliding timescale?

Colossus, for example, grew up on a farming collective in the Soviet Union, and was raised as a good young Communist who used "By Lenin!" as an expletive. Except, Peter is MAYBE as old as me (26) and the Soviet Union collapsed when I was in elementary school, and practices like his farming collective had mostly been phased out before then. How does this reconcile?

What about Forge? One of his defining attributes is his service in Vietnam, but Vietnam ended 35 years ago... Forge should be in his late 50s or early 60s, but even when Ellis offed him in Astonishing last year, he didn't look nearly that old. Age-retarding cybernetics? Is that what they're using on Cher and Dolly Parton?

Xavier and Magneto have a number of de-agings and new bodies to explain their longevity, and presumably the Cytorrak Ruby kept Cain Marko young, considering he's older than Xavier, but how can we explain some of the others?

[Monty_Cristo]

i wish i had never found out that Shortpack's the nephew of F.B.I agent Fred Duncan.

[marvell2100]

Vulcan. It would have been better if he were green and had pointy ears.

[NickFury90]

Gambit and Wolverine really didn't get any help with theirs, especially Gambit "oh btw did I tell you I lead the Maruders into the Morlock Massarce thing lolol"

[harostar]

Jeph Loeb's disaster of a Shatterstar origin.

"No, no. He's not REALLY from the Mojoverse, guys! He's just a brainwashed kid from Boston and it was all (a wizard) Gamemaster's doing! Ignore all other evidence to the contrary, including stuff that I wrote!"

*facepalms*

Sometimes, simpler is better.

[RoguefanAM]

Rogue's. Something something dreamland hippies something. That's all I remember of it.

Plus, it kinda contradicts some of the other hints that previous writers had set on Rogue's past.

[Gene M.]

Vulcan's origin is a freaking mess.

[Quinnhop]

- Wolverine
- Cable
- Rachel Grey
- Nightcrawler
- Hope
- Magma
- Pixie
- Monet
- Polaris

[DevilishRogue]

Wolverine and Nightcrawler. Though I admit Wolverines Origin has grown on me. >>

[Castel]

- Magma

Well, Magma story is quite hilarious, a hidden Rome ? in Brazil ?

Lol, is that a Star Trek episode or something ?

[Froggy]

Gambit and Wolverine really didn't get any help with theirs, especially Gambit "oh btw did I tell you I lead the Maruders into the Morlock Massarce thing lolol"

lol this has so much comedy potential


just gambit chilling and laughign witht he group over stupid stuff they did and he mentions that, causing the record to skip, and everybody staring at him

[Filthy Mutie]

Wolverine definitely suffered from a poor fleshed-out origin.

Abyss' was completely trivial and kind of wrote him into a corner.

[worstblogever]

What about Forge? One of his defining attributes is his service in Vietnam, but Vietnam ended 35 years ago... Forge should be in his late 50s or early 60s, but even when Ellis offed him in Astonishing last year, he didn't look nearly that old. Age-retarding cybernetics? Is that what they're using on Cher and Dolly Parton?


They could just retcon him out as having been a veteran of the first Gulf War conflict, like they did with Iron Man.

And for those unaware... Madison Jeffries served in Vietnam as well, making him a fogie in his own right.

[Congo Jack]

Wolverine. Way to kill a core appeal of the character, dudes.

[Dupe1979]

I think the entire current marketing money milking medium of origin storytelling and "Prequels" in general is a pain.

I guess it is easier to come up with an origin story for people then it is to find them something actually interesting to do moving forward. Obviously something of a background is needed to introduce people but for the most part reveal their character to me through their actions and I'll be much happier.

Before I even read the OP the title of the thread already had me thinking Monet.

[geminicomplex]

How about characters whose origins no longer make sense considering the sliding timescale?

Colossus, for example, grew up on a farming collective in the Soviet Union, and was raised as a good young Communist who used "By Lenin!" as an expletive. Except, Peter is MAYBE as old as me (26) and the Soviet Union collapsed when I was in elementary school, and practices like his farming collective had mostly been phased out before then. How does this reconcile?

What about Forge? One of his defining attributes is his service in Vietnam, but Vietnam ended 35 years ago... Forge should be in his late 50s or early 60s, but even when Ellis offed him in Astonishing last year, he didn't look nearly that old. Age-retarding cybernetics? Is that what they're using on Cher and Dolly Parton?

Xavier and Magneto have a number of de-agings and new bodies to explain their longevity, and presumably the Cytorrak Ruby kept Cain Marko young, considering he's older than Xavier, but how can we explain some of the others?

I think you just kinda have to take these things with a grain of salt. If we aged every character, within a few years they'd be gone. The original X-Men would all be seniors and even then the All New All Different team would be there with them. Its an unfortunate mistake whenever you give someone a birthdate or time line that is directly influenced by history, but it happens.

[DaveTVS]

Emma Frost

blahblahblah

[zaionay]

pixie..... did she really have to be apart of the bastard mastermind family? did she really have to be a real....pixie? GAWD!


psylocke....while the concept of being in another womans body is kind of cool they rarely ever did much with that and i personallly think it would have been alot more cooler if the real psylocke died and kwannon joined the x-men. i would have loved to see a kwannon origin tale.