Linkun: You have said in some of your letters that it was not your decision to actually have Penance be the true Monet which some of the fans seem upset over, that it was a plot line created by Lobdell. So in your opinion how do you feel about that revelation?

Larry Hama: It was not my decision to have Penance be the true Monet, but it wasn't Lobdell's idea either. The word came from editorial. It was a logical extension of the "Monet is really twins" plot line created by Scott. I knew it posed some continuity problems, but I also thought it was a pretty good idea. It was a real surprise.

Linkun: Okay, we understand that Penance IS Monet, and the old Monet was really Claudette and Nicole, but people are still confused why Penance was said to have been from Yugoslavia and named Yvette?

Hama: I did a fix of all those discrepancies in Gen X #45. I think I solved the problem rather neatly.

Linkun: What about the rumors of Maggott joining the team? In the book how old is he, just to give an estimation of how he might fit in with the group.

Hama: Editorial swears that Maggot isn't more than seventeen. He seems to have been written a lot older by most writers-- but then again, Scott and Jean are in their early twenties and they have always been written as if they were positively middle aged! Jubilee is THIRTEEN, but many artists draw her to look like she's nineteen or twenty!

Linkun: Correct me if I'm wrong, but in issue 79 of X-Men Cannonball, Husk's brother will be leaving the team to aid his sick mother, does this mean Paige will be (temporarily?) departing as well?

Hama: Paige is leaving for about three issues to go back home.

Linkun: I'm sure you've been asked this, but in Wizard 77 I think it was, it was said that the team would be taking a trip to Paris, and that Blink would be returning. Has the trip been pushed back, and what do you think on that? Will Blink be returning, and if not, how would you feel about her return as well as her character itself?

Hama: Blink is really and truly dead and won't be coming back. That is a direct order from on high. The kids WILL be taking a nice trip to Paris and maybe London. But first, they will have a nice day excursion to New York City.

Linkun: Are there any plans for a new addition to the team, besides Maggott? Such as Tracy Authier or Gaia?

Hama: Gaia will be on the team on a temporary basis after #45.

Linkun: How come after Monet was released from the Penance form, she acts the same as the way Claudette and Nicole portrayed her, even though she was mute and abused for a number of years? Shouldn't she at least brood a little?

Hama: I am not all that crazy about characters who brood, whine and kvetch. I hate those comic book females who are always running around with their palms nailed to their foreheads. For goodness sakes, some of them have more power than a small nuke and they're having anxiety fits over hangnails.

Linkun: I have heard some people commenting that Emma never had telekinesis, yet when Everett synched with her, he lifted everyone, except Claudette, off the ground? Are we mistaken, or has it just been mentioned very minimally?

Hama: I don't know where to draw the line on telekinesis. Some of Emma's powers as demonstrated in the past can only be explained by telekinesis although it isn't stated that she has it. It doesn't bother me that characters powers seem to grow over the years. If I remember correctly, Superman was originally only able to leap over tall buildings with a single bound and his top speed was that of a speeding locomotive. He can now move planets, and fly faster than light. An egregious example in the Marvel universe is Spider-man, who is now as strong as the Hulk. A wee bit o' telekinesis creeping up on Ms. Frost ain't so bad in the circumstances, nicht war?

Linkun: What do you have to say to those fans who are upset about the recent turn of events in this comic?

Hama: Get over it. I stopped buying Spider-Man when Steve Ditko left the book and Johnny Romita took over. Romita had been a ROMANCE ARTIST, for Pete's sake! Guess what? The sales on the Spider-Man book just kept climbing. I really liked the oddball Ditko style, but I was in the minority. There were MANY more people out there who liked the Romita look than those who liked the Ditko look. It is not a matter of one being better than the other-- it is personal taste.

I got actual DEATH THREATS when I took over Wolverine. They said I was ruining the character. Well, that book was near cancellation when I took it over, and within two years it was in the top three in sales.

Editorial seems to think that the people who liked Gen X the way it was are a minority of the POTENTIAL readership, who might like a more accessible book. Like I have said before, the reason for bringing me on the book was for CHANGE. Nobody in editorial could stand to read it. Everybody LOVED the art, but nobody could get into the characters or storyline.

Linkun: And finally, there have been rumors floating around the Internet saying that you will be leaving Generation X to pursue other projects, is this true?