X-POSITION: Lemire Brings Magic & Romance to "Extraordinary X-Men"

The launch of "Extraordinary X-Men's" "Apocalypse Wars" story saw Jeff Lemire introduce a number of major changes to his team-driven X-title. Not only did Colossus' team of young X-Men get whisked away to a dystopian future timeline, but the team has now run afoul of an all-new lineup of Apocalypse's Horsemen -- a roster that includes one of their very own. And while "Apocalypse Wars" hasn't impacted "Old Man Logan," that book's protagonist is dead set on preventing his own personal apocalypse -- namely the hellish future Wasteland that he hails from.

This week in X-POSITION, "Extraordinary X-Men" and "Old Man Logan" writer Jeff Lemire answers all of your questions about everything from Storm and Logan's romantic tension to the fate of the X-students and the next few arcs of "Old Man Logan."

CBR News: Welcome back to X-POSITION, Jeff! Let's begin this week with a question from timdogg98 about Magik's new role.

Hey Jeff! I'm very curious about the story you're building between Magik and Sapna. Getting Doctor Strange involved opens the door for the X-Men to get involved in the mystical side of the Marvel Universe. What was the genesis of the Magik/Sapna side-story? Was it a passion to delve into mystical elements? Or is it wanting to push Magik more into the forefront with a mentorship role?

Sapna is a new character I created, so she means a lot to me, and she allows me to more fully explore both the mystical side of Marvel, which I love, but also Magik, my favorite X-Man. The Magik/Sapna storyline has been percolating since issue #1, and it will finally boil over and take center stage in our next arc, entitled "Kingdoms Fall." That will begin in Issue #13.

I love mixing superheroics with mysticism. I had a blast writing things like "Animal Man" and "Justice League Dark" at DC, and now I'm getting a whole new universe to play with here at Marvel. I'm very excited about the story. I actually just started the first script today.

Next up, R. Smith has a question about another subplot that seems to be simmering.

I loved the interaction between Old Man Logan and Storm in "Extraordinary X-Men" #8. Is this a hint that perhaps their romance will be rekindled, despite this version of Logan being older and more seasoned?

I also like the chemistry between Ororo and this older, wiser Logan. A romance between them was not something I originally planned for, but it seems to be taking that direction. I guess the bigger question is if Logan will allow himself to get that close to someone again after all he's lost.

Speaking of Storm's love life, her ex Forge is also a member of the book's cast. Askani's Flame has a question about the mutant Maker.

I'm excited that you brought Forge back into the X-Men, especially with Storm and OML. Will we see him play more of an active role in the missions or is he relegated to serving as the techie? His mystical and mechanical combo abilities are valuable assets!

He will indeed be more active. I don't want to spoil what's coming, but we'll see Forge in the field again soon.

Something to look forward to, Forge fans! Now Uncanny Madman has a question about some of the book's other supporting players.

What is it about the X-kids you chose -- Glob, Ernst, Martha, Anole -- that made them the right characters for this story? And what was the thought process behind their adult transformations?

Glob, Martha and Ernst are some of may favorite young characters and I think my affection for them goes back to my love of the Grant Morrison "New X-Men" run. And I liked the chemistry between Anole and Glob, so Anole quickly worked his way into the group.

And to clarify, these three characters have not been transformed into adults. The revelation of the four of them at the end of issue #8 certainly revealed a big change, but they have not been aged. It will all be made clear in issue #9, which may be my favorite issue we've done so far.

The end of issue #8 also revealed four new character designs -- that of the new Four Horsemen. xhx23x is curious about how those designs came to be.

Did you have any input on the design of the Future Horsemen? What was the thought process behind the choices?

I did not give Humberto [Ramos] any input on the designs. I chose the four characters that would become the Horsemen, but I left the design work and visual aspect totally up to him.

The characters were chosen because I wanted an eclectic and unexpected group. I'm also writing "Moon Knight," so I wanted to have some fun with that. Deadpool is everywhere so I was kind of having fun with that as well. And I had an idea for the Venom symbiote that will occur in issue #10, that I was excited about as well.

Alucard2099 has a question about one mutant in particular that you used in a previous "Extraordinary" issue.

Is Sunfire going to be on your roster of X-Men or will he disappear again?

We have not seen the last of Sunfire. I brought him into the fold in the Weirdworld arc for a very specific reason. Unfortunately I can't say any more at this time, but your question will be answered very soon.

Nightcrawler's gone through a lot in "Extraordinary" so far, and Crabadan has a question about his current state.

What's the current mental health state of Nightcrawler? He was seriously disrupted between "EXM" #1 to #5 and catatonic in "EXM" #6 and #7. But in "EXM" #8, he doesn't show any signs [of instability], so he was picked for a mission by Storm. Could you clarify this please?

This will be clarified in issue #11. Kurt is healing. As we saw in issues #6-7, Jean made great strides in breaking through to Kurt and starting that process.

Lemire Pushes "Extraordinary X-Men" Toward an Apocalyptic Future

And now here's MarvelMaster616 with this week's "Civil War II" question. Here goes:

In the "Civil War II" teaser for X-Men, Teen Jean showed signs of the Phoenix Force again. Will this be touched on at any point in your run? Where is Jean right now in terms of the development of her powers?

I cannot answer this one, sorry. Bendis would kill me if I said anything.

Well, we tried! Switching things up, Kamose1234 has a question about what's coming up in "Old Man Logan."

It's been interesting seeing the flashbacks of Wolverine's time with his family before their death at the hands of the Hulk Gang, but can we expect to see some of his adventures in the wasteland after the original event?

You definitely can. The next arc, "Bordertown," will give us new pieces of Logan's past/future. Specifically we will see how Logan met his wife, Maureen. And I probably shouldn't spoil this, but I feel guilty for not being to answer the other question, so in the arc following Bordertown we will be seeing Japan and other parts of the globe in the Wastelands timeline.

And lastly this week, RaptorPatrol has a very specific "Old Man Logan" question.

When you write Old "Silver Fox" Logan's dialogue, do you hear Sam Elliott's voice in your head? I do and it really makes his panels a lot more fun to read. Do you only hear your own voice when you write for such a diverse team?

I can't say Logan sounds like Sam Elliott to me, but I definitely hear his voice. But it's not an actor's voice... it's just Logan's. Yes, I hear all of their voices very clearly as I write. They all have Canadian accents.

Thanks to Jeff Lemire for taking on this week's questions!

Keep checking CBR for information on the next guest for X-POSITION!