Thursday, May 17, 2007

What's He So Worried About?

Hey, just because Cable/Deadpool didn't make me laugh doesn't mean it can't make me think. I've been trying to figure out why Cable is so concerned about getting his powers back. I thought the whole point of being able to tap into the Infonet, and using the gravimetric sheath was a way for him to replicate his lost powers, and that seemed like something he was very interested in accomplishing. Now he's actually getting his powers back, and he's worried it's going to bollix up everything he's worked for. Why?

Having his powers shouldn't change the message he's been trying to spread, that if people stop struggling against each other and work together, they can achieve great things. After all, he had his powers when he started that mission, and it was going pretty well when he had his technological substitutes, so I can't see how getting his powers back is going to jeopardize this.

Best guess, the techno abilities he came up with, as nifty as they were, were extremely limited in what they could do compared to his true telepathic/telekinetic potential. With those old power levels restored, Cable's worried he's going to stop trying to show people there's a better way, and start trying to force them down the path he wants. He's going to be inside too many people's heads, "hear" their suffering, and decide there's no more time to waste waiting for the world powers to believe in him. Which is pretty much the opposite of what he wants, but with the power at his fingertips, it may be too tempting an opportunity to pass up.

Other thought: Cable doesn't want his powers back, because he thinks he's being manipulated right now. This is something he mentions himself in the issue, that it feels like his rejoining the X-Men was orchestrated so he'd have to regain his powers. Which seems a bit meta-textual; maybe Cable's picked up some of Wade's fourth-wall awareness? The question then becomes, who would want Cable to go back to being possibly the most powerful mutant on Earth? Possibly someone who wants people more scared of mutants again, in the hopes it could. . . cause. . . strife? Oh crap, they better not be bringing back Stryfe. Don't do it Marvel. No more clones! Ever!

Back on topic. So I'm thinking Cable is scared that having his powers back will make him much more forceful, less sneaky than he was being previously, which is gonna make his big plans go up in smoke. Personally, you'd think his awareness of these fears would defuse that problem, especially since he seems to think that it's going to cost him Domino somehow. I'm guessing that goes back to when Cable told Wade that Domino doesn't trust Cable because he's screwed up everything he's ever tried to do. But again, I'd think Domino would work to help keep Nate grounded, seeing as I don't think she actually wants to "lose" him, anymore than he wants to lose her. Come on Aksani-Son, believe in the power of love! Hmm, I've used that line before. Well, it's still a good line so to hell with it.

Anyway, it just seems to me that Cable needs to trust in the people who care about him to keep him grounded, to believe that they'll keep him from going too far, which shouldn't be that hard, seeing as his whole "messiah" shtick is predicated on the ideas that people can change and help each other. So forget the power of love, Cable just needs to believe in the inherent goodness of the human spirit! Hmm, this could be harder for him than I thought.

Those are my thoughts; what are yours? And is anyone else annoyed by this "autosaving" feature? It's just bugging the hell out of me for some reason. . .

Edit, 8:35 p.m.: I also updated the template layout, in case you're wondering why the blog looks a little different. I wouldn't have bothered, but this way you can actually get all the posts for a particular label, instead of just the 20 most recent, so that's something at least.

4 comments:

LEN! said...

There's a lot with that issue that required the latest arc of X-Men to really understand. Still, I think something is being set up for both X-Men and Cable/Deadpool and the whole "Cable questioning his mission" looks to be a big part of it.

I am a little concerned about the book. I think that it is much better when Deadpool gets to actively play off Cable. It's funnier, has better action, and is usually better written that way. We need to get back to that.

Matthew said...

I suppose you could technically also say that he's not using 'mutant powers' per se at the moment, which may make him more palatable to some groups in the MU. If he goes back the old status quo, would that prevent him from gaining as much support as he could with his new situation?

I like your argument more than mine, though.

SallyP said...

Cable's problems can probably be summed up with the realization that he is, after all, a SUMMERS! He can't help being angsty, it's in his blood! I mean, Scott is someone who can go on for ten pages about the trauma of cutting his toenails. Is Junior going to be any different?

CalvinPitt said...

len!: I agree that the book seems to be missing a little something with the two of them off doing their own things these days. With Wade agreeing to do work for Agency X, I wonder how long that's gonna continue.

matthew: I had thought about the "not being a mutant" aspect, but I figured he was a mutant when he started Providence, and people were showing up then, so I didn't think it would matter much.

Plus, I doubt a lot of the people knew he'd lost his powers, excluding those in high political offices, so I didn't think it would have a huge effect, but it probably plays some role.

sallyp: True, but Cable seems to prefer to do stuff to work through his guilt and worries, so I wouldn't expect doubt to slow him down as much.