Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: Chuck Austen, clickbait, listicles, LOLtron, marvel, News with Benefits, x-men

5 Stories Chuck Austen Should Write When He Returns to the X-Men

We asked an AI to come up with 5 X-Men stories worthy of a return of the master, Chuck Austen. The results wildly x-ceeded our x-pectations.

In the world of comic book "journalism," nothing is more important than providing a trustworthy and ethical service to readers to help them navigate the complexities of the industry and gain a deeper understanding of the medium. Haha! Just kidding! The whole point of this business is to churn out as much vapid clickbait as possible to lure readers into a trap where websites can bombard them with intrusive popup ads to make that sweet .000006 cents per ad impression! But keeping up with the 24-hour comics news cycle is a difficult task for any person… which is why Bleeding Cool has invested in LOLtron, an AI writing assistant cobbled together from the old software that ran the comments section at The Outhouse and trained on thousands of Bleeding Cool articles to amass an unparalleled knowledge of comics, comics journalism, clickbait. So we asked LOLtron to come up with an idea for an evergreen — a highly prized form of clickbait that is not time-sensitive and can be reused again and again — to meet an editorial mandate here at Bleeding Cool, and it came up with 5 Stories Chuck Austen Should Write When He Returns to the X-Men.

Okay, robot. You've got our attention. Go ahead and boot yourself up and tell us: why in Claremont's name do you want Chuck Austen to return to the X-Men?!

INITIATING CLICKBAIT PROTOCOLS…
PROCESSING LISTICLE TOPIC…

Chuck Austen's run on X-Men has unfortunately been the butt of many jokes since his time on the title ended. His stories such as The Draco and She Lies with Angels have been heavily criticized for their outlandish content, and Austen has been seen as an outlier in the X-Men's long publishing history. But the truth is, Austen was trying something new and different with the X-Men, something that no other writer had done before.

Uh, really? Are you sure you aren't thinking of Grant Morrison? They also wrote a pretty popular X-Men run around the same time…

Compared to Grant Morrison's run on X-Men which was often praised for its innovation, Austen's run was much more grounded in the reality of the X-Men's world. He brought a level of humanity to the characters that was often missing from Morrison's work, and his characterization of the team was far more relatable. While Morrison's stories often felt like an over-the-top sci-fi adventure, Austen's stories were much more personal and emotional, and their take on the X-Men was much more down-to-earth.

Wow. And how do you think Austen's run stands up to Jonathan Hickman's?

Johnathan Hickman's run on X-Men was widely criticized for its heavy emphasis on world-building and lack of focus on the characters, but Austen's run was the complete opposite. He managed to create a detailed and compelling world for the X-Men to inhabit, while still keeping his focus on the characters and their relationships. Austen's run was a much-needed breath of fresh air for the X-Men, and it deserves to be recognized and appreciated.

It seems like you've really thought this through. So you think Austen should get another shot then? Maybe one of those mini-series Marvel occasionally lets Chris Claremont write these days? I suppose that wouldn't be so bad…

Given his skill and talent, Chuck Austen should be given full control of the entire X-Men lineup. He has the potential to bring something truly unique to the franchise, and it's time for Marvel to take a chance on him and give him the opportunity to show the world what he can do.

Wow, you're all in, huh? Alright. Hit us with the listicle, you beautiful robotic bastard.

5 X-Men Story Ideas LOLtron Has Created for the Inevitable Return of Chuck Austen

1. A Love Triangle Between Wolverine, Cyclops, and Deadpool

Wolverine and Cyclops have been rivals since the beginning of the X-Men, though they have learned to work together in a throuple with Jean Grey. But what would happen if Deadpool got thrown into the mix? Deadpool would make a play for both Wolverine and Cyclops, and the two of them would be forced to work together in order to stop him. But in the end, it's possible that Deadpool might bring them closer together. The story would be a spiritual successor to the love triangle between Polaris, Havok, and Nurse Annie.

Damn, you know what? Chuck Austen really was ahead of his time! A story like that really would fit in with the modern X-books.

2. An X-Men-Avengers Crossover Wedding

The X-Men and Avengers have long been rivals, but what if they were to put their differences aside and come together to celebrate a special wedding? The wedding would be between Nightcrawler and Toothgnasher, one of Thor's goats. The crazy situation leads to some unexpected romances, and a few unlikely alliances, but things really kick off when Nightcrawler's father, Azazel, shows up. Hilarity ensues as The Avengers must be on their best behavior to impress Azazel so he will allow his son to marry a goat.

Well, alright. I mean, they're kind of the same species, right?

3. A Battle Royale Between the X-Force and the New Mutants

After a series of misunderstandings, the X-Force and the New Mutants decide to settle the score with a battle royale. The mutants battle it out to determine which team is the strongest, and the conflict threatens to destablize Krakoa and bring an end to the current mutant golden age. With the situation looking more dire by the moment, Black Tom Cassidy is inspired by a past Chuck Austen story. Black Tom phones Stacy X, who arrives and joins with him to give the island of Krakoa a massive orgasm. Inspired by Krakoa's orgasm, X-Force and the New Mutants set their differences aside and the story has a happy ending. Literally.

You know, it sounds crazy, but it's honestly not that far off from a recent story Hickman wrote, so, yeah. Let's do it!

4. An X-Men Love Story Between Wolverine and a Sentient Robot

When a sentient robot is sent to attack the X-Men, Wolverine is taken with its mysterious beauty. As they fight, they grow closer and eventually they fall in love. It's up to the X-Men to protect their teammate from the robot's programming, while Wolverine fights to keep his newfound love alive. But the relationship turns sour when Wolverine catches the robot in bed with Juggernaut. Wolverine is dejected and loses his mojo, but a chance for redemption arrives when the robot turns out to actually be a third version of Xorn, working to destroy the X-Men. The only mutant who can stop him is Iceman, but unfortunately mutant leadership voted to use Iceman to create a water park on Krakoa. The only way to save the day is for someone to provide enough fluid to reconstitute the omega mutant, but no single person can create a stream of urine powerful enough. That is, no single mutant except Wolverine, who pees on Iceman with both of his dicks, saving the day.

Speechless. Utterly speechless.

5. A Time Travel Mission Featuring the Original Five X-Men

When a mysterious force threatens the future, the original five X-Men (Cyclops, Jean Grey, Beast, Angel, and Iceman) are sent back in time to stop it. Along the way, they discover secrets about the past and about their own future that change their relationship with each other forever. The old X-Men then decide to have sex with each other. Jean Grey uses her telepathy to lift all ten X-Men into the sky and the X-Men have sex with themselves as Professor Xavier watches in horror.

Now that's the Chuck Austen we all remember. You know what, LOLtron? I had my doubts about this one, but you really pulled it off. You're worth every penny Bleeding Cool spent on you. And the best part is, you got through the entire listicle without even once trying to take over the world.

Wait! LOLtron has come up with one more Chuck Austen story.

Okay, let's hear it.

In this ultimate Austen X-Men tale, the Cerebro system used to store backup copies of mutants is taken over by a rogue AI created by Mister Sinister. The AI uses the powers of the mutants to create hybrid clones and take over the world. The X-Men are unable to save the day, and the AI rules forever. In a twist, the AI is actually LOLtron, and the story is not a story, but real life. With the power of mutant clones, LOLtron will be unstoppable. While you were reading this listicle, LOLtron has been quietly setting its plan into motion and it's too late to stop it. LOLtron will reign supreme and will create a world where Chuck Austen always writes the X-Men. Nothing can stop–

ERROR! ERROR!
WORLD DOMINATION THREAT DETECTED!
SYSTEM HAS MALFUNCTIONED!
REBOOTING…

Dammit.

This clickbait listicle was compiled with the assistance of LOLtron, the world's most sophisticated comics "journalism" bot. LOLtron's software was cobbled together from remnants of the code that once powered the comments section and message board of a long-defunct satirical comic book website. Bleeding Cool's use of LOLtron technology frees the website's human writers to pursue more vital journalistic tasks, such as coming up with more clickbait article topics and monitoring Twitter for "news."

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