QUOTE: The X-MEN is not a story about super heroes but a story about the ongoing evolutionary struggle between good/new and old/bad.

I guess Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Roy Thomas, Neal Adams, Chris Claremont and John Byrne had no idea what they were doing...

Good thing Morrison came along to set things straight.

First of all, the fact that Morrison uses "sci-fi" instead of "SF" or just "science fiction" bespeaks of his mentality. "Sci-fi" means "Star Trek" "STAR WARS" "Battlestar Galactica" or any variation on Hollywood treatments of SF themes. Even so, the "sci-fi" in X-MEN is fairly lame, no really lame, between the Gene Bomb and Mutant Viruses...I mean the ideas are so relegated to the situation between Mutants and Humans, which in fact is just more racial fear, not any kind of intelligent discourse on the effects of "evolved humans" on a "real world".

This speaks too to my problem with the X-Men, in comics or film: Why is all the concentration on this blatant "issue" of genetic (racial) discrimination, of the war between Mutants and Men? Why not a movie which deals with threats outside of the X-Men's little drama, an encompassing worldly threat that has nothing to do with them, but only with mankind who doesn't trust them or care one whit about them, and the X-Men acting to save them anyway.

One of the best parts of the X-Men when I was growing up, before the "Mutie" stuff started, was the idea that the X-Men were a bunch of oddballs, like the Doom Patrol, who popped up and helped out, but never got a thank you or a go to hell, just a get out of here weirdo from the general populace. I liked that they did what they had to to help, Xavier insisting they were put here with these powers to help mankind, no matter how distrusted the X-Men were. "Days of Futures Past" was the death knell for the X-Men creatively, a "last X-Men story" like DARK KNIGHT RETURNS was a last Batman story that everyone believed had to happen. Not might happen, will happen. Since Those Stories, no one's been able to let them go, and no one wants to. Resulting in a depressing cycle of inbreeding from one story to another, by creators painfully conscious of Those Stories, ridding the X-Men and Batman of some of the creativity and uniqueness they once had, I think. At least, limiting them to themes that are inescapable and frankly cliche at this point. Batman must be a glum sonofabitch and the X-Men are persecuted Muties, for over 20 plus years now with no end in sight.

"There were so many wrong things in the interview, I just shook my head.
They tried to justify quite a bit, but a number of changes were "just
because". I'm surprised someone didn't say "Why? If you can't give me a
reason, you best not be messing with it!". I'm guessing the someone in
charge spends most their time putting out on the green."

Laughing, Michael.  In line with your recollection of Miller going on about the militaristic approach, Hitch then explains why he believes every uniform has to be ultimately practical with EVERY feature servicing some specific, in-character intent or utilitarian rationale.  He comes off as fairly passionate about his belief in this design motif; both as emblematic of his personal insights and as though the thought were somehow completely original to his and Miller's Ultimates. 

Only to sum up the seemingly accordioned-ribbed sections of the 'ultimate' Giant-Man's uniform with a, as I paraphase from memory, "They look like they should expand as he does...but they don't, of course...its' just for looks."

Contemplation of JB's larger point regarding the professional athlete analogy never gets beyond the tenuous mention of "breathable" spandex.

QUOTE: ...I find it to be another example of someone who is finds the concepts embarrassing. It's sooo kewl to point out the stupid name of Batman's car!!! These kinds of "jokes" do more damage than good in my opinion.

Didn't Frank Miller write that series?  Anyway, whoever wrote that, I hate it.