X-Tremists #2 pg 16 (Jeanty art, Poggi inks, Williams story) - start of Psylocke and Blob love story

Age of X-Man was a really fun take on creating a perfect world where mutants thrive and the world is drama free (free of all love relationships, or so it seems, just because it’s forbidden doesn’t mean it’s completely hidden).

This page marks the start of the love story between Psylocke (Betsy Braddock) and Blob (Fred Dukes). On this page, she confronts him about a note she finds discussing feelings he has for her. These types of relationships and feelings are forbidden. He asks her to come in so they can discuss and before he can finish she is already through the door.

I absolutely loved this story that Williams created along with the art from combo Jeanty/Poggi. We get to see the softer side of both of these characters. Seeing Blob in this light was what drew me more to this series than any of the other titles. It was such a fresh look and really great storyline for these two randomly paired opposites (in the regular 616 universe). As soon as Psylocke entered Blob’s house, I wanted it to just continue these moments further and further. In the series, this is a start to something really magnetic, the chemistry and playfulness between these two was one of those incidents that you wanted more and more of, it was a comic drug that I couldn’t get enough of. Waiting each month for the next issue to come out, ultimately became weekly/daily countdown til it finally came out. It had been a long time since I was so enthralled and there have only been so many titles that did this to me especially in the past decade or so.

The gentle Blob and uninhibited Psylocke is portrayed beautifully by Jeanty/Poggi, the bottom panel tells it all. The panel to panel art, composition and design is very cinematic, but only in the sense of a really well conceived edit cutting back and forth for a dramatic dinner scene. I hate saying this but I want every page between these two, mainly for all the pages inside Blob’s house. I know that’s an unlikely reality, but will put it out there, this is my second page so far (see the table crawl page, one of my favorites). That’s what this series made me feel, it’s didn’t end strongly but definitely created a world that I can only one day hope we see again. I know I am not alone in my feelings for this palpable connection between these two, as it randomly came up in conversation with someone earlier this week, unprompted, for a short series that came out years ago. I was glad to see that I wasn’t alone in the love for these moments, that this art and medium brings.

Also I really love this page as we get to hear why Psylocke hated moths so much, the beautiful butterfly despising the ugly moth, the story continues with Blob discussing the innate fatal attractions that can’t be denied . . . between the moth and light bulbs . . . wink wink.