Mastodawn

@annaleen @charliejane but she would die when the wounds revert back to her

@mainsac @annaleen @charliejane These are presumably serious but non-fatal wounds. So she’d be injured, but could heal naturally. Would love to know what Charlie Jane thinks would happen if Escapade swapped out about-to-be fatal injuries before succumbing to them & the recipient then died. Would the injuries revert immediately and kill her as well? Would they revert back after the usual period? Would the recipient’s death prevent reversion of the wounds? Would they suddenly come back to life?

@cautionwip @mainsac @annaleen OK so this is a super interesting question... I think if Escapade had mortal wounds and managed to pass them to someone else, that person would indeed die. And then Escapade would have a few hours to figure out something to save herself — in my view, she'd take back the state that she passed to someone else, so she'd be mortally injured, not actually dead, when the swap wore off.

@cautionwip @mainsac @annaleen So Escapade would have a few hours to get herself to a healer (of whom there are many in the Marvel Universe) or some kind of stasis thing that could keep her alive.

Of course, I think if she was mortally injured, she'd try to pass those wounds to someone with a healing factor, like Wolverine, who wouldn't be actually killed. She tries to be ethical despite being a thief and a rogue.

@charliejane @cautionwip @annaleen if fighting wolverine or Deadpool those wounds would kill her right. Beyond that there are so many individuals that could kill her and her entire reality from across the universe. Basically these videos trying to word it as the most powerful instead of very powerful is a mistake or intentionally click bait

@mainsac @charliejane @annaleen

1) I dunno, first off, as stated she can swap away wounds unless they are instantly fatal (obviously a different case), giving her time to find a situation where she can be in a better position to survive them (ie, she gets a gut wound and is bleeding out - swaps the wounds and gets herself to a hospital where they have blood and surgeons available as opposed to a battle sitaution). Fatal is a situational condition, after all, so she can change the situation.

@mainsac @charliejane @annaleen
2) While she isn’t the most powerful character, she is definitely among the most versatile. I mean, she could theoretically swipe out the Power Cosmic from Galactica and kick him out of this part of the galaxy before they swapped back. Make Mr Fantastic into Mr Static and steal the Phoenix force long enough to total a few solar systems. Or get sucker punched by Squirrel Girl because all she swapped were powerful front teeth. Lotta breadth for story-telling.

@cautionwip @charliejane @annaleen these are some great what-if episodes waiting to happen!

@mainsac @charliejane @annaleen Seriously :)

I’m now wondering if she could swap out Squirrel Girl’s ill-defined but sorta canonical power of unbeatability. :) We need a Charlie Jane / Ryan North collab, I think.

@cautionwip @mainsac @annaleen There actually is an X-Men character whose power is "not losing." I can't remember her name right now.

@charliejane @mainsac @annaleen

Isca the Unbeaten (no props to me, I looked it up).

https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Isca_(Earth-616)

Isca (Earth-616)

Isca was one of the many ancient mutants who lived on the island of Okkara. The younger sister of Genesis, Isca spent her childhood playing games on the shores of her homeland. As a child, Isca lagged behind the other kids, but soon enough found herself unbeatable. This was the manifestation of her mutant gifts, which made her unable to lose. Genesis eventually married Apocalypse, a mutant warrior from a distant land. To celebrate the birth of her sister’s children, Isca forged the Scarab, a mig

Marvel Database

@cautionwip @charliejane @annaleen again she could be wiped from existence. Body could be instantly reduced to nothing. Her entire country or world or reality could be destroyed. I mean clearly saying she's the most powerful is just wrong. Let go of that flawed opinion and think the conversation can still bea great discussion of her awesome powers

@mainsac @charliejane @annaleen Obviously there was some hyperbole by the reviewer, but also obviously, what you’re saying is pretty much applicable to almost any character around. Ie - if you destroy them instantly they are destroyed. Well yes, that’s a tautology. For purposes of keeping stories enjoyable, very few characters are given god-like power to obliterate their enemies with no engagement or conflict. Makes for boring stories. Haven’t seen the Beyonder around in a while for example. :)

@cautionwip @mainsac @annaleen Obviously I didn't make that video! And I feel like "most powerful" is kind of relative and depends on your POV. Escapade could absolutely have the power of Galactus for a few hours. That said, the Marvel folks seemed a tad concerned that she was too powerful, which is why we emphasize that her power has limits: she has to be up close, it only lasts a few hours, and it often goes wrong.

@charliejane @mainsac @annaleen That makes sense. It’s the same issue that prompted the original depowering of Superman by John Byrne post-Crisis. How do you write stories that challenge a character that canonically juggles planets (though I sort of resented the retconning away of Superboy and Krypton, who I loved as a kid in the 70’s).

@charliejane @mainsac @annaleen
Step 1 : Goes to swap her wounds out to Wolverine.
Step 2 : Still bleeding out but now has an overpowering craving for cigars and shitty Canadian beer.
Step 3 : Tries again
Step 4 : Still bleeding out but knows how to culturally appropriate Japanese symbols and traditions. Starts tying Obi knot inspired tourniquets.

@charliejane @mainsac @annaleen I suppose if the wounds were caused by another person, she could always bounce them back to them, which seems ethically justifiable if a tad unheroic (but she’s a thief not a hero, after all). Can she swap with non-biological sentients? Eg if she were swiping some tech from Ultron’s lair and he showed up, could she swap her fleshy softness for his adamantium resistance? I would love to see Ultron taken out with a solid right hook. :)

MarkHennessey Jan 11, 2023

@annaleen @charliejane been meaning to pick up New Mutants

Yoko's Asterisk 🏳️‍⚧Jan 12, 2023

@Hennessey @annaleen I bet your local comics shop still has issues 31-33, or else you can get them online!