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The Astonishing Promo

Blinkwatch 1999

When word came out that there was to be a second Astonishing X-Men book came, we were excited. Even moreso when this promo art came out.

Anticipation was high for a return of Blink in the same title where she flourished during the AoA. The only problem: she never appeared and was never intended to appear in the pages of the actual book. Marvel's ads used the above pic, but they included the question "Who will join?" in addition. While I maintain that it is dishonest to advertise using characters who will not be in the book, by refusing to comment on the promo, Marvel managed not to lie verbally.

In the aftermath of this incident, however, several notable Blink events occurred. First off came Gen X #56, which mentions Blink, for the first time since a caption in #1! Thinking that Monet has just died, Skin shouts:

"We try to make a difference in a freakin' world that makes us hide who we are, and what do we get for it? DEAD. First Blink, now Monet. It's NOT FAIR!"

Oddly reminiscent of Blink's last words in X-Men 37. Thanx to writer Jay Faerber for remembering Clarice!

The bad news is that the letters page to the same issue states:

"Blink is not going to be returning to the pages of Generation X anytime soon. She's dead, man, let her rest in peace."

Comments from Faerber indicated that the letter responses are written by his editors, who are presumably in a position to KNOW this, so this info is probably reliable.

Finally, on the eve of Lavender Darts' final update, issue number 14 of The Academy published an exclusive interview with Gen X and Blink creater Scott Lobdell. Here's an excerpt:

The Academy: Who created Blink and was there even a chance in heck of her coming back when you were writing the series?

Lobdell: Joe Mad and I created Blink. How can you not love this girl? And while NO, there was no plan to bring her back, there was certainly a way to when you consider her essentially off panel death and weird powers! I say . . . BRING BACK BLINK!

Strong words, from Blink's creator. Will they be answered? Only time will tell.

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