Interview: Murewa Ayodele Helps STORM Soar in New Solo Series

2024 year marks 49 years since the first appearance of Ororo Munroe, the superhero known as Storm, in the pages of Giant-Sized X-Men #1 in 1975. During her long and varied publication history, Storm has been many things. Hero. Goddess. X-Woman. Avenger. Leader. And from the beginning of the Krakoan Age of the X-Men of the past few years, Storm has played a pivotal part in steering the destiny of the Children of the Atom.

And following her role in saving Earth’s mutants and humans in “Fall of the House of X/Rise of the Powers of X,” Storm looks to be an even greater keystone of the Marvel Universe. To that end, over in the Avengers comic series, Ororo has rejoined Earth’s Mightiest Heroes to take her place among those titans, standing shoulder to shoulder with gods—literal and metaphorical—who walk the Earth.

But it’s not just in Avengers that Storm will show her worth. This week, Marvel is launching a brand-new solo comic book series focusing on the weather-wielding mutant. In Storm—written by Murewa Ayodele, with art by Lucas Werneck and colored by Alex Giumaraes—we see an Ororo who is using her vast power, experience, and resources to protect Earth not just to protect the planet’s people from threats here, but from the greater cosmos.

I spoke with Murewa Ayodele recently about how his personal history with Storm growing up impacted how he approached the character, where we find the Weather Goddess at the beginning of the debut issue, Ororo Munroe’s mission in this new “From the Ashes” X-Men era, and how Storm’s multifaceted past will inform her future.

Murewa Ayodele is a dynamo of a writer; look to his work on Akogun: Brutalizer of Gods for proof-positive confirmation of that. His work on Storm will surely be no less electric. (Also, check out our interview with Ayodele about Akogun here!)

STORM #1 cover

FreakSugar: Before we get into the book itself, what can you tell us about your personal relationship with Ororo and the X-Men?

Murewa Ayodele: The most popular mythological character over here in Western Nigeria is Sango and his wife, Oya. In Eastern Nigeria, it’s Amadioha. All three of them (Sango, Oya, and Amadioha) are storm gods. Literally, from East to West, we love anyone who can sling a thunderbolt. So, it was easy to gravitate more towards the lightning-wielding X-Men member every time I came across X-Men merch, movies, and YouTube explainer videos. Why not the comics? Well, we didn’t get Marvel Comics (print and digital) where I am from. YouTube explainer videos and website articles were the closest I got to reading American comics. Then I discovered and binged X-Men: The Animated Series. This series deepened my love for the franchise. When I eventually knew how to bypass country restrictions to get my hand on digital comics, I was in heaven because comic book Storm is much more badass than any other incarnation.

This is a long way of saying, like most kids, I gravitated towards Ororo because she had a design and a set of powers that I think are pretty cool. As I grew old enough to want more from my characters, I went out searching for more information and consuming more content about her. Now, her African heritage strengthens and assures me that I can shine bright no matter what continent I find myself in. Her pride helps me to never see myself as a victim – to keep working hard till I win. And now, writing her stories is literally earning me a living. It’s been great loving Ororo.

STORM #1 page 1

FS: Where do we find the weather goddess at the beginning of Storm?

MA: Ororo has been the Queen of Wakanda, Regent of Arakko, and now Avenger. She’s garnered resources and experiences over the years. Now, she’s brought those resources and experiences to Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America – to her new base of operation known as the Storm Sanctuary to become Earth’s protector. From there, she will face threats ranging from criminal gunmen to terrifying cosmic entities like Oblivion. Though her new base may be located in Atlanta, for Earth’s denizens, in their day of trouble, to find the weather goddess, they simply have to look to their skies, and they will see her with her helping hand stretched out.

FS: Storm has had to deal with A LOT in all caps the past few years, culminating with Fall of X and Rise of X. What is her state of mind at the beginning of the book?

MA: Haha! I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to give much detail here. Storm’s emotional state is such an intricate part of the plot, and getting to decode, discover, and watch it metamorphose is an experience I wouldn’t want to deprive the readers of. It’s half the fun of a new status quo. You’ll have to join us on October 2nd for the Storm ongoing series to get these answers.

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FS: Storm is having a well-deserved moment, with this book and her membership with the Avengers. To what do you attribute her continued appeal among so many fans?

MA: One thing no one tells you about being a comic book writer is the sheer amount of guilt that weighs down on you if your book doesn’t do well enough. Great editors and publishers put their names on the line for something you cooked up in your head while taking a shower. Retailers invest their hard-earned money into these projects. So, I was filled with so much love and gratitude towards Storm fans for their support when I heard how well the book was doing. Comic shops have personally told me the book did well for them in pre-orders. Some are already sold out and the book isn’t even out yet. Getting to see everyone’s sacrifices get rewarded in such a big way is super heartwarming.

Regarding why I think the support has been so monumental, honestly, I’m not sure myself. Lucas Werneck is doing the best work of his career on the book. Tom Brevoort, Anthony Blackwood, and the entire Marvel team are pushing the book hard. Al Ewing’s X-Men: Red and Disney’s X-Men ’97 also helped further prove to a larger and newer audience that Storm is a super compelling character when handled correctly. The Black Panther movies and many other great, black-led movies have proven black creators and characters can have mass appeal both within and outside African communities. In short, the stars have aligned, and we are determined to make history happen under its beaming magic with thrilling stories told in engaging new ways.

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FS: Lucas Werneck is no stranger to the X-world and his work is just breathtaking. What has the collaboration process been like with Lucas and the creative team?

MA: Lucas Werneck is a superstar artist that has worked with two of my favorite writers (Kieron Gillen and Gerry Duggan) on huge X-Men projects like “Sins of Sinister” and “Fall of the House of X.” Now that I’ve had the opportunity to work with Lucas, I’ve also now realized he is not only a superstar… he is a freaking genius. He brings a sophisticated creativity of unmatched beauty to every element on the page. The audience should prepare to have their minds blown as they follow this series because Lucas intensifies his mastery with each issue.

FS: This “From the Ashes” era is all about growth and change in the X-world. Did you have a mission statement in mind when you took on the book?

MA: 100%, I had a mission statement. It was, “Tell the greatest and most epic Storm story of all time! No pressure.”

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FS: What is the process like when writing Storm? Is there a certain mindset you get into that you don’t with other books?

MA: Writing Storm usually starts with anxiety that feels like a twenty-ton rock in my heart. It’s crippling and torturous. Every cell in my body rejects the huge responsibility of shepherding such a huge character. I have a ritual that involves praying, reading an issue of an all-time favorite comic, watching some anime action scenes, and finally soaking myself in some Brazilian phonk. By the end of this long ritual, I feel like MUREWA THE GREAT – THE SHAPER OF COSMIC DESTINIES. At this point, it’ll take The Above All himself to pry my fingers off the keyboard.

FS: Do you have a favorite Storm-centric story or stories that you keep revisiting?

MA: I’m a man of culture, so I revisit X-Women #1 by Chris Claremont and Milo Manara for an unhealthy amount of time (for the plot).

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FS: What are you reading right now?

MA: I’m reading a lot of books including all the X-books coming out right now and some great comics of the past that flew under my radar when they first got released. But if I’m to give a special shout-out to some of the currently ongoing books I’m reading, it’ll have to be Celestial Eyes by John Uche and Francis Goodluck, Saga by Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples, The Hunger and the Dusk by G. Willow Wilson and Chris Wildgoose, The Power Fantasy by Kieron Gillen and Caspar Wijngaard, The Sacrificers by Rick Remender and Max Fiumara, Aliens vs. Avengers by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribić, and Sousou no Frieren by Kanehito Yamada.

FS: Do you have any other projects that you’re working on that you’d like to discuss?

MA: I’m still in the pitching phase for most of my upcoming projects. But my creator-owned series with Dotun Akande titled Akogun: Brutalizer of Gods is being compiled into a trade paperback. If you haven’t read it yet, be sure to pick up the trade paperback. It’s gnarly, fun, and has all the makings that a person of culture would appreciate.

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FS: Is there anything you can tease about what we can expect in the series?

MA: There are some omniscient dangers that one can neither outrun nor hide from their gazes. To try to face them is to succumb to total obliteration. All one can do is exist in the ever-approaching threat of Oblivion. These are the class of challenges headed Ororo’s way in the new Storm series.

FS: If you had one final pitch for the comic, what would it be?

MA: The pitch is pretty simple. It’s the same pitch we got for Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Batman, Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman’s Venom, Tom King and Mitch Gerads’ Mister Miracle, Joss Whedon and John Cassaday’s Astonishing X-Men, and Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing. This is going to be peak fiction.

Storm #1 is on sale this Wednesday, October 2, 2024, from Marvel Comics.

From the official issue description: