X-MEN GOLD IS LIKE ’80S CLAREMONT BINGO (AND THAT’S JUST FINE, BUB); Comic Book Resources, April 28, 2017

Kevin Melrose, Comic Book Resources; X-MEN GOLD IS LIKE ’80S CLAREMONT BINGO (AND THAT’S JUST FINE, BUB)

"The concept at the core of the X-Men, that they’re devoted to protecting a world that hates and fears them, is borderline brilliant...

In March’s “X-Men Prime” #1, Kitty Pryde moved the X-Mansion to Central Park, the very heart of Manhattan, where the newly minted Xavier Institute for Mutant Education and Outreach is literally surrounded by millions who hate and fear mutants, emotions fanned by the recent war with the Inhumans. Guggenheim gives voice to that sentiment with Lydia Nance, the media-savvy director of the Heritage Initiative think tank, who seems cut from the same cloth as William Stryker and Sen. Robert Kelly. However, he adds a new wrinkle with the added threat of mutant deportation, demonstrating that the themes of fear and prejudice in the X-Men titles are, sadly, once again as timely as ever."

CHRIS CLAREMONT & MORE EXPLORE THE LGBT CHARACTERS OF THE X-MEN; Comic Book Resources, 10/7/16

Meagan Damore, Comic Book Resources; CHRIS CLAREMONT & MORE EXPLORE THE LGBT CHARACTERS OF THE X-MEN:

"On Thursday evening, “Uncanny X-Men” legend Chris Claremont, “X-Factor” scribe Peter David, “Jean & Scott” cartoonist Max Wittert and Marvel editor Daniel Ketchum took the stage at New York Comic Con to discuss the X-Men’s LGBT legacy. Additionally, the creators shared how they feel about the direction of Marvel Television, whether Marvel is becoming more diverse and more."

Flame Con 2016: PRIDE & The X-Men with CHRIS CLAREMONT Panel; Newsarama, 9/2/16

C.K. Stewart, Newsarama; Flame Con 2016: PRIDE & The X-Men with CHRIS CLAREMONT Panel:

"Geeks OUT’s second annual LGBTQ pop culture event Flame Con boasted an expansive line-up of guests this year, but perhaps none with as storied a career and comics legacy as Chris Claremont. Claremont joined Superwoman's Phil Jimenez, Silk’s Tana Ford, and Flame Con director Josh Siegel for an hour-long discussion of his life, influences, and his iconic X-Men runs, particularly on New Mutants - a series that has resonated deeply with LGBTQ fans throughout the years."

Exclusive: X-Men's Chris Claremont talks through five key storylines; Empire, 4/6/16

Dorian Lynskey, Empire; Exclusive: X-Men's Chris Claremont talks through five key storylines:

"A major theme of your X-Men stories was using mutants as a metaphor for other persecuted groups. Where did that idea come from?

I went to Israel for two months in 1970 and worked on a kibbutz. It affected me on levels that I hadn’t anticipated, working on a daily basis with people who were actual survivors of the Holocaust. You’d see military patrols going by every day. We would have armed volunteers walking around the property all night. It brought home international conflicts on a very personal level.

With the X-Men, were you thinking only of antisemitism or racism and homophobia as well?

It was blended in. There’s a lot of talk online now that Magneto stands in for Malcolm X and Xavier stands in for Martin Luther King, which is totally valid but for me, being an immigrant white (Claremont was born in England), to make that analogy felt incredibly presumptuous. An equivalent analogy could be made to [Israeli prime minister] Menachem Begin as Magneto, evolving through his life from a terrorist in 1947 to a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 30 years later. That evolution was something I wanted to apply to the relationship between Xavier and Magneto. It’s an evolving 150-issue arc: Magneto’s resurrection as an angry, anti-human, pro-mutant terrorist. In #150 he lashes out and the person that gets hit is Kitty Pryde, a 13-year-old kid. His shattering realisation is: "What kind of monster have I become? Has what the Nazis did to me in the Shoah made me a Nazi?" Ultimately, my goal for the character was that he would come full circle and become Xavier’s heir, as headmaster of the school and leader of team. For me he was a much more fascinating character because of his flaws and there was always a risk that he might fall from grace...

Of course, you took the idea of mutants facing genocidal hatred to extremes with Days of Future Past (X-Men #141-142), where mutants are outlawed and murdered by the Sentinels…

The idea was to show our heroes why their fight is so necessary. There is a tragic cost to failure. The line we always used to describe these characters was ‘feared and hated by the world they are sworn to protect’. Their struggle is not simply to defeat the bad guys; it is to establish themselves as credible, honourable fellow citizens of the planet. The idea with Days Of Future Past was this is what’s lying in wait if you falter. If you ever needed a reason to try and try again, this is it."