The X Marathon

Thoughts

Last issue promised a showdown between the new X-men and Alpha Flight, and this issue delivers. I’ve said before that Claremont writes great, inventive slugfests, making the most of inventively , showing and combining the X-powers. Byrne’s art has a verve that just adds to that.

Only this time he’s got another rival team to play with and the way they all interact, and spin out of control as the fight builds is tremendously entertaining.

Even after that fun, the issue has a great final twist.

Fun Panel

Alpha Flight. A great visual team. Just looking at this reveal makes me want to know so much more about these characters. And they don’t even have one of their best members “Puck” yet.

Any Googling

The world of comic book creator cameos spills over into the world of gossip as I ended up trying to find out who Darice was to John Byrne. Found nothing. Still at least she gets herself a cameo.

Actually the Calgary setting – the home town of John Byrne generally gets a great cameo in these issues. Quite a Google rabbit hole to find out the reality of a lot of the places shown in this issue. Especially the Calgary Stampede!

Thoughts

The epic journey the New X-men have been on since Issue 113 takes another twist when their plane returning to the US is hijacked by the Canadian government. They’ve tried once to recover Wolverine, and now they’re trying again. And this time they’ve brought a team.

The best teams immediately awaken your curiosity. You want to know how they interact, as characters and with their powers. The new X-men, bursting out the cover of Giant Size have that quality. So do Alpha Flight.

But this issue really teases that curiousity. The team are hinted at. We see their human alter-egos, and then glimpses of their powers. It’s a brilliant way of introducing them, wanting to see the team in all their glory becomes its own cliffhanger.

Not that its the only great thing about the issue. The thriller aspect of the kidnap is brilliantly executed, the plane hijack followed by an ambush at the airport. This is the comic at its most cinematic.

Fun Panel

This is how you take out a Wolverine!

That Don’t Make A Lick of Sense

Ok this is no fault of the comic, and everything to do with me being a complete nerd. As someone who had the TSR Marvel Superhero roleplaying game it outlined the upper strengths of all the powerhouse characters. And according to those rules, this act would have been impossible for Sasquatch. He’s not that strong according to TSR. This angers my nerd gene.

Mutant Mailbag Mayhem

This is the first time the letters page is witness to these strange cryptic details. What these were was one of the first things i looked up on my first day with the brand new-fangled internet.

Also a good way to track the growing success of the comic.

Thoughts

Both the front cover and letters page of this trumpet the fact that the comic has won an Eagle Award. It’s odd to see such an image, famous from UK comics in this period, on the cover of a US comic.

Not that it isn’t richly deserved, and this issue is a good indicator why. It’s the story of the team breaking into the mountain fortress base of an evil genius. A man who threatens a cataclysm unless his demands are met. There’s even an X-men making a heroic play that effectively takes him permanently out the team. In other words, its a very similar plot to issue 95 when the X-men had to try and thwart the nefarious Count Nefaria.

Similar, but better. Better across the board. The art is more dynamic and the script rips along at a fantastic pace. The villain’s plan is more credible and he, and his Mandroid minions present a far more credible threat. The finale where Banshee shreds his vocal chords to save the day is a legitimately heroic act, made even moreso when future issues goes on to show us the consequences.

It’s growing success, highlighted by the shift to a monthly release schedule, also means that the storytelling can be more confident when it comes to planning for the future. It end the action sequence early, leaving Claremont with several pages free to explore the team on downtime. Banshee comes out of his coma to find the others waiting to celebrate his recovery. It’s a two page sequence written so sharply that we get an insight into where all the characters are at this moment. Before using another two pages to set up future plots for further down the line.

Yes, the comic deserves to celebrate its Eagle aware. Reading it, you can see why.

Fun Panel

Always love an unorthodox team shot. And this is one of the best.

None More Claremont

Nothing like a good death to set up a future Claremont plot. Poor Angus, you grumpy old Scot.

Thoughts

I’ve missed Sunfire. I’ve missed his cool, idiosyncratic costume and his absurd levels of arrogance. Modern takes to reimagine him with a more conventional costume and a toned-down attitude seem to miss the point. He’s a proper arrogant hothead. Let him be him!

So it’s great we get him here at his arrogant best (worst?). His arrogance is a clear flaw and it plays great in scenes where he can get picked up on it or knocked down over it. Both Misty Knight and Colleen Wing have great moments in this issue, a sign that this X-team could definitely do with more women.

We also get more Wolverine backstory here including a nice tease about his name. “Lo-…”. There’s a few months now where it’s conceivable the guy’s called Lorenzo or Lodovico and I’m very much up for that.

Finally there’s another great slugfest. Yet again we see these X-men developing as a team, with highs and lows across the fight. It’s not just their inventive use of powers that’s memorable, it’s also the quick, efficient way we also get an insight into each character as they fight. I feel bad for Colossus’ screw up and so cheer when he redeems himself with an awesome truck stop.

Fun Panel

Difficult to pick on from a great issue, but I do love the use of Red to create this atmospheric panel. Nice work Glynis Wein

None More Claremont

“Welcome to the good ship Jinguichi Maru…”

Chris is back with his Twilight Zone style intros. Which is great, I love this style of starting a comic.

Thoughts

At first glance this issue feels like it’s another filler. Let’s stop the action to have another flashback for Xavier. But thankfully it’s a much better work than that.

Yes, the heart of it is a flashback but it feels an integral part to the ongoing narratives in the title. The last few issues have focused on the new X-men having their Savage Land adventure. Now it’s time to see what’s going on with those that have “survived”.

Phoenix is moving out the X-mansion – too many painful memories leaving Lilandra to comfort a mourning Xavier.

Dwelling on the past allows the issue to tell the story of Xavier’s first encounter with an Evil Mutant. Amahl Farouk. Inspiring him to seek to bring good humans and mutants together in the fight against monsters.

There’s a nice melancholy air to the writing of both these characters stories as they both reach the decision to move on with their lives. None of this is a setup for a contrived realisation that their friends are alive. It’s played straight. Had the others died, this is what they would do.

It also sets a nice little timer running with the adventures of the new X-men. When they get back “home” will it be too late because that “home” has moved on?

It was a Product of its Time

We’re back in the X-men universe’s Cairo here which means characters inexplicably drawn as slightly orc-ish. Still there’s more variety in the crowd scenes than before as we journey the bazaars of tourist Egypt.

Then Amahl Farouk appears. An obvious cliche but, I think, one that just about works for a stand-alone issue without being too egregious.

Obviously long-term readers know that this character has quite a story going forward. And i think it’s in subsequent appearances that the stereotype really becomes problematic.

Yes, this issue is basically Evil Stereotype gets defeated by brave white adventurer but National Stereotypes are written into the DNA of this title’s international outlook. It’s part of the variety. And they can’t all be good guys.

Mutant Mailbag Mayhem

There’s a great letter from Brenda Robnett at 2309 Calvin Street bemoaning the seeming downgrade in Phoenix’s powers. Brenda makes a great point and, while it’s not answered here, it’s clearly being taken serious.

Thoughts

The X-men go on a mission to storm the bag guys Super City HQ. This is classic adventure nonsense done fantastically well. All of the team get their moments, and plot their own course in the mission. Members get captured, the stakes get raised and then it all builds up to a final showdown.

Not much more to write about it. Just rollicking good fun. With a fabulous cover making great use of a speech bubble. Still love covers with speech bubbles.

Fun Panel

With these double page spreads Byrne, you are really spoiling us.

Mutant Mailbag Mayhem

There’s a nice reply to a letter here where its mentioned that Chris and John have “long terms plans” for Phoenix. I wonder how well they were developed at this point?

Thoughts

The problem with established comics universes is that, over time, the rules of the universe get established. Locations and people get defined, with their own growing backstory. For long-term readers this can mean that its hard to enjoy something new. Embark on a new run with an established character, and almost immediately they’re interacting with others and places that they have decades worth of history with.

Of course, the other side to that is that for some readers, this will be their first experience of such a person or location. The essential quality that made them cool that long term readers might be jaded about will seem fresh to them.

And this holds true for me with the Savage Land in these issues. First time I read these comics, the notion of this hidden world in the Antarctic, with its own incredible microclimate, where dinosaurs still roam and death is everywhere just felt so unexpected and fun. I now know the basic concept is hardly original having been a cliche since Doyle’s “The Lost World”, plus it had previous appearances in the Marvel Universe, developing its own continuity. But this was the first time for me, and it featured dinosaurs and a Tarzan-type with a Sabre-toothed Tiger buddy and some dastardly goings on in a volcano. And I loved it.

Fun Panel

Another glorious double page spread slightly undone in the Omnibus format. Stick it on a poster though. it’s lovely.

Any Googling

The appearance of Ka-Zar and Sauron would normally mean jumping online to find out what happened, but to be honest this issue had more than enough to make me feel like I wasn’t missing anything. Weirdly though, I ended up reading about Kirk Marston, the guy who ends up becoming the Petrified Man. Turns out he had quite a pre-history in Ka-Zar comics. He’s Dead now though.

None More Claremont

In one tiny panel, Nightcrawler throws a snowball at Wolverine. He reacts with fun. This is the first real taste of the bond that develops between these two, a friendship I’ve always loved.

Thoughts

The now-monthly title continues with another great issue. There’s a fabulous ongoing storyline that is now up and running – one that involves the new X-men trying to find their way home thought numerous adventures, while back at that home their friends assume they are dead, mourn and get on with their lives.

These plot strands are still gripping read in omnibus format, but what it must have been like back in 1978 when the comic would appear monthly, and there wasn’t even the internet to spoil upcoming developments. Hoping with each issue that the X-men would get home, but gripped by each new obstacle.

But even within the adventuring, Claremont find time for little character moments. Wolverine mourning Phoenix develops this side of his character further, while Cyclops realises who Corsair must have been. Its not an entirely credible moment, given that the realisation seems to come from Cyclops seeing his own reflection with some stubble, but its an economically told character beat and, crucially, makes me want him to meet up with the Starjammers again ASAP. If I’m honest, I just want more Starjammers full stop.

Fun Panel

An absolutely glorious moment from Byrne. A comic doing a single panel jump scare.

That Don’t Make A Lick of Sense

It seems a bit churlish to point out that Phoenix is now set up as an incredibly powerful mutant but seems completely unable to detect that her lover and friends are still alive. Nor does Xavier seem bothered to boot up Cerebro. So I won’t. Just ignore that last paragraph.

None More Claremont

As is standard for the title, Nightcrawler’s Germanness is illustrated by his occasional use of a German word isolated within English sentences. In this issue he decides to tell the kids of the Savage Land who all speak English for some unexplained reason what his tail is in German. As a German speaker, young me was delighted to see German words in my favourite comic.

Thoughts

As the front cover proudly boasts – the X-men makes it MONTHLY starting with this issue. From a failing mid-seventies title struggling with reprints – its a real testament to the way this title is turning itself around.

And this is another great issue. Claremont and Byrne are credited jointly as “raconteurs” for this issue, reflecting a partnership that is already delivering. At heart the story they tell in this issue is another battle between the X-men and Magneto but one where the heroes have had time to prepare and Cyclops has a strategy. How it plays out differently provides a great counterpoint to the previous issue.

It’s also a comic that packs a lot into its page count besides a great fight. We have cut aways to Magneto being a dick on Australia, and Xavier hanging out with Lilandra – a man worried about his proteges but clearly not enough to drag himself away from his Greek Island romantic getaway with the Bird Princess.

We get a bit more backstory for Storm, flashing out the details of her “orphan child thief” period, and in Nanny a deliciously nasty antagonist. And despite defeating Magneto, the issue ends with yet another great cliffhanger. Keep it coming you Raconteurs!

Fun Panel

The sequence where Storm tries to escape confinement by shaking off her headpiece and extracting a lock pick is a great little 9 panel piece of visual storytelling. Of which this is a delicate highlight

It was a Product of its Time

Erm… is Cairo people’s by Orcs in the Marvel Universe?

Thoughts

After the last issue’s cliffhanger, this issue is effectively Magneto outlining his plan for revenge and seemingly triumphing. It covers a lot of exposition, rehashing the tale of how Magneto was turned into an infant, and then how that was reversed. How he tracked down the X-men and how he now has them where he wants them.

As a result its a surprinsing wordy issue given that the plot is effectively Magneto takes on the New X-men and wins. Again. The fight is pretty basic here, each of the X-men step up in turn and try and take down Magneto – but then its pretty much established that these heroes are trained enough to know any differently. Cyclops is fully aware that they can’t win. And they don’t.

If you want a good idea of one of the things I love about comics this panel is a good summary – a fairground wagon controlled by an Evil Villain flies halfway round the world to his evil volcano lair. You don’t get that in most stories, and it looks visually stunning.

It’s an effectively journey from one cliffhanger to another surprisingly similar one. Yet again the X-men seem at the mercy of Magneto. But now the detail of his revenge has been outlined, a very creative revenge that promises a fascinating next issue.

Fun Panel

In the background of this panel – if you are keen eyed and quick-witted you might, just might, spot Magneto cleverly shadowing The Beast in a not-at-all-obvious manner. No wonder nobody in the circus battered an eyelid.

Any Googling

Footnotes tell us that since the X-men last encountered Magneto he’s had a run-in with Captain America and the Champions. Neither of them are Claremont stories, so I’m in no real rush to track them down. Although the synopsis of the Captain America annual seems bewildering. In it Magneto assembles a new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants comprised of “Burner, Lifter, Peepers, Shocker and Slither” (no, me neither) in order to kidnap two mutants. Their target consists of Mr Two, a normal sized person who keeps Mr One in his wristwratch. By contrast to this insanity, Champions 16 which sees Beast team up with Magneto to try and defeat Doctor Doom in a plot involving hypnogas seems quite sane.

None More Claremont

“The Gentleman’s Name is Magneto” gets another outing in this issue. I have absolutely no idea why Claremont is so attached to it.