Welcome, X-Fans, to another uncanny edition of X-Men Monday at AIPT!
What a time to be a fan of Laura Kinney. Not only did Wolverine star in the recently wrapped — and very fun — X-Terminators, but following Forge’s adventure in the Vault in the pages of X-Men, there are now two Lauras running around! And on top of all that, X-23: Deadly Regenesis, which revisits Laura’s earlier years, kicks off March 8, 2023.
To learn a bit more about what we can expect from this upcoming mini-series, we invited writer Erica Schultz to discuss and answer a few X-Fan questions.
Courtesy of Erica Schultz’s Twitter
AIPT: Welcome to X-Men Monday, Erica! Let’s start by going back to the beginning — what was your first X-Men experience as a fan?
Erica: First off, thank you very much for having me. This is really a fantastic honor.
What’s my first X-Men experience… hmm… Well, my older brother was my gateway into comics. I’d steal whatever he had lying around his room. At the time in the ’80s, it was Claremont and Byrne, then Claremont and Lee. Those were my first X-stories. I remember reading what was later packaged as Mutant Genesis with Jim Lee’s art.
Then X-Men: The Animated Series came out in 1992, and I watched that religiously. Being a freshman in high school, it wasn’t the coolest thing in the world to watch, but I didn’t care. It gave a literal voice to stories and characters I really enjoyed.
Later, in college, one of my best friends (still to this day) was a huge Marvel fan, and when I fell out of reading the books, he would always catch me up on things. Thanks, Kevin!
AIPT: Gotta shout out Kevin! Now, let’s dig into your relationship with Laura Kinney. What is it about the character you find appealing as a writer?
Erica: I met Laura like so many people did with her introduction in X-Men: Evolution. I thought it was a really interesting way to introduce a new character that was linked to one of Marvel’s most popular characters: Wolverine. The X-Men movie had just come out about two years before Laura’s debut, so mainstream audiences were being introduced to the concept of mutants.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
What makes Laura interesting is that she has a very different path from Logan. According to his earliest origins (Rose and Tom Logan, James Howlett, etc.), Logan was able to live his childhood. Despite being weaponized in adulthood, he had a choice. In pretty much all iterations of the character, Wolverine has had some agency and made decisions to be a part of this black ops team, or Department H. He had a choice. He made his choice.
Laura never had a choice. She never had a childhood. She was literally bred for a singular purpose. That purpose was to be a weapon. She never knew anything remotely close to a normal childhood. She never had friends. The closest thing she had to family was Dr. Kinney, and even her love is sometimes written as conditional. So while Logan and Laura share the same DNA, they don’t share the same backstory. This is what makes her interesting to write. She’s a “clone” of Logan with similar experiences, but also vastly different ones.
AIPT: Do you have an all-time favorite Laura story?
Erica: I’ve read all her solo series, so I don’t know if I have a favorite. I like All-New Wolverine as it introduces Gabby, Zelda, and Bellona. It also allows Laura to branch out a bit. Tom Taylor was the writer, but there was a revolving door of incredible talent on that book. David Lopez, David Navarrot, Nik Virella… the list goes on and on.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
I also enjoyed Mariko Tamaki and Juan Cabal’s work with the stories showcasing Gabby’s relationship with Laura. And who can forget Jonathan! Diego Olortegui, Marcio Fiorito, and Georges Duarte were also contributing artists on that run. It was interesting to see the Cuckoos and Old Man Logan, and even Deadpool show up.
AIPT: For readers who are learning about X-23: Deadly Regenesis for the first time, what’s your elevator pitch for the series?
Erica: I’m the WORST at the elevator pitch. I think I’ve come up with one good one in all these years. Okay… lemme think… Hmm… There’s a mantra Laura has in the book: I must do what others cannot, and that mantra takes on a different meaning in every issue. But if I had to do a real two-sentence logline, it’s maybe… Laura Kinney has been many things to many people, but who is she really? Delve into Laura’s past as she confronts old enemies and tries to heal wounds both physical and emotional.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
That was terrible. Sorry. I told you I’m the worst at this.
AIPT: Stop it, that was great! OK, so X-Fan Jaywalker612 was curious, with so many exciting developments in the modern X-Men universe (Krakoa, the Vault, Talon, etc.), what made you want to tell a Laura story set in the past?
Erica: Hi Jaywalker612. So the easy answer is: That was the assignment. I was given the option to do a story that was set in the past to help flesh out some more of who Laura is. I’ll admit that I’m not 100% up to date on the Krakoa storyline (though I know the basics), and with so many moving pieces, it would be really tough to try and fit a story into what’s going on (especially with the several X-books, crossovers, etc.).
Setting a story in the past has its own advantages and challenges, though. Because you know what’s going to come next, you can’t do anything that’ll mess up that continuity. Alternately, if you already know the ending of the story, that’s an advantage. That’s part of the puzzle you don’t already have to figure out.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
I really enjoyed the Utopia era, and Laura’s sabbatical from the island has a lot to do with her finding her place in the world of the X-Men, but also in the world at large. That’s important for all of us to try and find, so it was interesting to explore that with her.
AIPT: X-Fan moonage00daydream said an essential difference between Laura and Logan is that Laura never hides her wariness. She never postures, blusters, or plays the cynic; she simply watches, waits to trust you (or not), and however you feel about that while she watches and waits is not her problem. It’s honesty. Do you feel that’s an especially meaningful character trait to Laura, a person who is a clone, and one of many? Is honesty with herself and others a way that Laura asserts herself as herself?
Erica: Hi moonage00daydream. Laura is definitely all cards on the table most of the time, but I disagree that she’s honest with herself all the time, and this story aims to explore that. Laura is a survivor, and many times, survivors will do so by any means necessary. That means switching up tactics sometimes.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics and CBR
In the Utopia era, one of the things that made Laura feel ostracized from the younger X-Men like Bling was that she had no social graces. She was basically a feral animal. This was on display when the original X-Men came back from the past and Laura and Warren started a relationship. So Laura’s honest (like Tech in The Bad Batch), but she’s not entirely honest with herself. If she were, then she’d have an easier time understanding the uneasiness felt by her peers during this time.
I also think that unlike Logan, Laura hasn’t had literally decades to come to terms with her destructive past. We’re hoping this story set earlier will help show how Laura is able to reconcile some of her past deeds.
AIPT: Hellion. We got (and get) a lot of questions about Hellion. So for X-Fans Daniel, Carlos, Ren, Matt, Emma, and Ambaryerno, is there any chance Laura will interact with Julian in X-23: Deadly Regenesis? And if not, does he factor into the series in any way?
Erica: Hi Daniel, Carlos, Ren, Matt, Emma, and Ambaryerno. During this time, Julian is an important part of Laura’s life, but he’s only really in a flashback panel or two, if I’m being honest. Laura has to do some self-care in this series, and that means cutting herself off from pretty much everyone in order to find where she’s really going to fit.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
AIPT: One more for the Hellion fans — a hypothetical question. X-Fan Quid asks, do you think there’s still a chance for Laura and Julian?
Erica: Hi Quid, I know Laura has had a relationship with Synch when they were trapped (and there’s the whole Old Woman Laura thing where young Laura doesn’t remember, but Old Woman Laura does, blah, blah, blah, comics, comics, comics, haha!). If I’m thinking about it in the grand scheme of comics, I don’t think any relationship is ever dead. I mean, how many times have Rogue and Gambit broken up and gotten back together? Storm and T’Challa? Scott and Jean? Scott and Emma? And don’t get me STARTED on Hawkeye and his escapades! So I think there’s always a chance for Laura and Julian. Whether or not I’m given the go ahead to make that happen, I couldn’t tell ya! Not that I can’t tell you, it’s because no one has told ME yet. Hahaha!
AIPT: You’re welcome, Hellion fans. Next, X-Fan Larisa was wondering, what can we expect from Laura’s new villain, Haymaker?
Erica: Hi Larisa, so Haymaker is an interesting villain. They’ve been a part of Laura’s story long before Laura even knew it. One of the things we explore in this arc is collateral damage. Haymaker/Jordan is just that type of character. Their life took a dark turn and their rage led them to where they are.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
This story has a lot of healing in it. It also has a lot of pain. And it’s never comfortable to confront your past and try to make amends while still maintaining your pride. Let’s be honest, Laura is a prideful gal. So there’s going to be a lot of kick-ass action, and Laura is going to be put through her paces, but she’s also going to have to reconcile some of her past actions and how that affects others.
AIPT: Finally, what can readers look forward to in the visuals department from your collaborator, artist Edgar Salazar?
Erica: This is my first time working with Edgar, and the experience has been incredible. He’s a fantastic, talented, skilled artist who not only brings the action but also really hits on the quiet moments. Like I said above, there’s some emotional beats here that he hits that are so beautiful and tragic. It’s really breathtaking.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics and CBR
I was fortunate enough to meet Edgar at San Diego Comic-Con last year (2022) and chat. He’s a kind and generous creator, and he was very complimentary on my scripts. It’s always nice when an artist says, “You have an art background, don’t you? I can tell by the way you write. You write with the artist in mind.” That’s always such an incredible compliment.
I’ve rambled on a lot here, but I’ll end with this: I really hope that fans have half as much fun with X-23: Deadly Regenesis as I did working on it with Edgar, Brian, and our editors Mark [Basso] and Drew [Baumgartner]. Thanks for giving me a chance to chat about Laura, and I hope you all love her new story.
AIPT: Thank you for swinging by X-Men Monday, Erica! Remember, X-Fans, X-23: Deadly Regenesis #1 goes on sale March 8, 2023. And lucky for you, our friends at Marvel have provided an eXclusive first look at its lettered preview pages.
Writer: Erica Schultz
Artist: Edgar Salazar
Color Artist: Carlos Lopez
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover Artist: Kalman Andrasofszky
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
But wait, how about one more eXclusive treat before we send you off into the week? Here’s your first look at the cover to June’s X-23: Deadly Regenesis #4, courtesy of Kalman Andrasofszky.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Laura doesn’t look happy. Hopefully, a better week awaits you all.
Until next time, X-Fans, stay exceptional!
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