An Uncanny Readthrough: #251-275

Time to back away, folks. From UNCANNY X-MEN #251

As per usual, this post contains spoilers that shouldn’t matter to anyone who’s familiar with the contemporary X-Men. It’s also Part Nine of my quest to read UNCANNY X-MEN in its entirety, but you don’t need to check out my previous posts in order to read this one.

(If you want to, though, they’re available under my dedicated X-Men tag.)

These twenty-five issues are written by Chris Claremont. The twice-monthly schedule that rules a portion of this period means a large number of artists contribute their talents. Jim Lee co-plots and pencils ten issues, with inks by Scott Williams, Josef Rubinstein, and Art Thiebert. Marc Silvestri pencils seven issues, most often with inker Dan Green but once with Steve Leialoha. Bill Jaaska and Mike Collins contribute two issues each, all with inker Rubinstein, while Rick Leonardi (with inker Kent Williams) and Homage Studios also take on an issue each. #273, which concludes a crossover, features a few pages each by Whilce Portacio, Klaus Janson, John Byrne, Rick Leonardi, Marc Silvestri, Michael Golden, Larry Stroman, and Jim Lee, with inks by Scott Williams throughout.

And with these issues, I fear the bubble has burst. As of #251, we’re into another boring patch.

From where I stand, that's down to the lack of a coherent team feel. By this point in the X-Men’s history (ie, the late 80s/early 90s), Marvel’s mutants are spread across multiple books that take them on all sorts of divergent adventures. I’ve often cited UNCANNY X-MEN as a flagship title, but during this period it becomes a check-in title instead. Many of the issues carry subtitles like, “Featuring Storm/Magneto/Rogue/Wolverine/Whoever.” They give us a chance to see what individual characters are up to, possibly in company with another familiar face or two, but the sort of battles they fight mean there’s no need for the big team-ups that are an ensemble book’s bread and butter. The only larger arc we see across these issues occurs in small slices across many, many issues.

An Uncanny Readthrough: #226-250

The series in a nutshell. From UNCANNY X-MEN #244.

As always, this post contains spoilers that shouldn’t be of much consequence to anyone who’s familiar with the contemporary X-Men.

Welcome to Part VIII of my epic, UNCANNY-centric journey through the X-Men’s history. If you missed the first seven parts, you can find them under my dedicated X-Men tag. If that’s too much homework, you can jump in here with no worries.

That’s the nice thing about the X-Men. Everybody constantly talks about everything that’s ever happened to them, ever, so you needn’t worry about spoilers or confusion. Jump in anywhere! Enjoy the shenanigans!

But yes. Part VIII takes us from #226 to #250. These twenty-five issues ran from February 1988 to November 1989; slightly less than two years thanks to the introduction of a bi-monthly schedule with #233. Chris Claremont writes the scripts, and will continue to do so for a teensy bit longer. The title once again enters an era of artistic consistency as Marc Silvestri pencils the bulk of this segment, usually with inker Dan Green but also with Joe Rubinstein, Hilary Barta, and Steve Leialoha for an issue each. Rick Leonardi provides guest pencils four times with inks by Dan Green, Terry Austin, and P.Craig Russel, while Jim Lee pencils a single issue with inker Dan Green.

These creators recognize that no one could consider UNCANNY X-MEN a proper series if none of the characters ever faked their own death and/or went mad and tried to destroy the world. They also notice it’s been far too long since either of those things happened and proceed accordingly via two crossovers.

The first of these, Fall of the Mutants, is one of those comics events where each included series follows its own course. Readers needn’t jump back and forth between them to get the whole story, though you may wish to pop over to NEW MUTANTS and X-FACTOR to see how those teams deal with the fallout from the X-Men’s battle at Eagle Plaza. It’s all pretty low key, so far as interconnected stories go.

From the X-Men’s perspective, though, it’s intense. And after a lengthy struggle in the public eye (thanks to a mutant-friendly videographer who follows the X-Men into the breach), the whole team fakes their own deaths and goes to hide out in Australia without so much as informing their families they’re still alive and kicking. Because really, how else are they supposed to get a drop on the bad guys?

An Uncanny Readthrough: #201-225

Sometimes the X-Men end up in dark places. From UNCANNY X-MEN #204

As per usual, this post contains spoilers that shouldn’t have a huge effect on anyone who’s familiar with the contemporary X-men.

Welcome to Part VII of my attempt to read UNCANNY X-MEN in its entirety! If you missed my previous readthrough posts, you can find them under my dedicated X-Men tag.

#201-22 is written by Chris Claremont as we’ll be saying in regards to every segment for a little bit longer, but the series' period of artistic consistency has flown the coop. John Romita, Jr pencils seven of these twenty-five issues, mostly with inker Dan Green but, on one memorable occasion, with P. Craig Russell. (Russell drew SANDMAN #50, which for my money is the prettiest issue in the whole series.) Mark Sylvestri draws five nonconsecutive issues from #218 on, also with Dan Green. Otherwise, guest pencillers Rick Leonardi, Barry Windsor-Smith, Alan Davis, and Jackson Guice step in for two issues each, while Bret Blevins, Kerry Gammill, and June Brigman do single issues. Brigman is the first woman to draw UNCANNY X-MEN; a milestone a long time in coming.

An Uncanny Readthrough: #176-200

Mutants are officially born, not made. From UNCANNY X-MEN #176.

As per usual, this post contains spoilers that should be of little consequence to anyone who’s familiar with the modern X-Men, or with wider comics culture.

If you missed my early posts on this massive readthrough of mine, you can find them under my dedicated X-Men tag.

This slate of issues is written by Chris Claremont and pencilled almost entirely by John Romita, Jr; a big milestone for this title, with its frequent artistic shifts. Inker Dan Green appears in the credits most often, though Bob Wiacek, John Romita, Sr, and Steve Leialoha also lend their talents.

The two issues not pencilled by Romita--#186 and #198--are by Barry Windsor-Smith. We’ll talk about them a little more below.

And now, my friends, we stand in the Era of the Crossover.

NEW MUTANTS has found its footing and now often intersects with UNCANNY X-MEN in ways large and small. Members of the Power Pack appear as Special Guest Stars, with some indication the X-Men have done the same over in that all-ages series. Kitty and Wolverine disappear for a while to star in their own miniseries. There’s this whole thing with New York getting turned into a magical land from #189-91, with plenty of Special Guest Stars from other titles. And, of most relevance to modern readers, both SECRET WARS and SECRET WARS II go down in between the lines, with varying degrees of impact on UNCANNY.

These crossovers stand apart from the sort of thing we’ve seen before in that the creators try to present them as required reading. Yeah, you can power on through UNCANNY X-MEN without pausing to check out these other books, as in fact I did, but it’s no longer possible to get the full X-Story from UNCANNY alone, or from UNCANNY and the occasional miniseries about a beloved character (or two).

An Uncanny Readthrough: #151-175

Kitty Pryde knows what’s what. From UNCANNY X-MEN #168

As always, this post contains spoilers of the sort anyone who’s read some contemporary X-Men comics knows anyways.

I’m on a mission to read UNCANNY X-MEN in its entirely, twenty-five issues at a time. You’ll find all the previous posts under my X-Men tag, while this one covers #s 151-175, written by Chris Claremont and drawn by: Dave Cockrum and Bob Wiacek from #154 to #158 and #161 to #164; Paul Smith and Bob Wiacek from #165 to #170 and from #172 to #175 (with additional pencils on #175 by John Romita, Jr); and Jim Sherman, Bob McLeod, Joseph Rubenstein, Bill Sienkiwicz, Brent Anderson, and Walt Simonson, who all step in as guest artists for an issue or two.

These issues takes the X-Men in some bold new directions and bring them closer to becoming the team I remember from my teenage years, even as the creators strike new formative ground. While individual mutants have played a role in the wider Marvel Universe for years now, the X-Men’s core brand has always resided in this one series. Now, however, the creators set up and segue into two four-issue miniseries: one about Wolverine, perennial fan favourite, and another that covers Ilyana Rasputin and Storm’s years in the demon Belasco’s realm. Both miniseries have an impact on the stories the wider series aims to tell.

On top of this, Claremont lays the seeds for a continuing spinoff series about the New Mutants, a group of Kitty Pryde’s contemporaries whose arrival ensures the mansion is once again a school in deed as well as name. They’ll be important down the line.

Within UNCANNY X-MEN itself, we see our first lengthy story arc. The Brood storyline stretches over a solid thirteen issues, from #154 to #166 and eventually extends into NEW MUTANTS. While the creators still deliver the same sort of soap operatic side stories that are 80s comics' bread and butter, the focus always returns to this one, long storyline. It’s a big change from anything UNCANNY has done before, and one that hints at all sorts of experimentation to come in the form of extended crossover miniseries and, eventually, the now-standard six-issue story arc format.

An Uncanny Readthrough: #126-150

Sometimes good people become dark gods. From UNCANNY X-MEN #135

As always, this post contains spoilers that shouldn’t matter to anyone who’s read at least a little contemporary X-Men

Part V of my epic UNCANNY X-MEN read-through takes us into the early 80s with #s 126-150. This chunk is written by Chris Claremont with pencils and co-plotting by John Byrne through to #143. Brent Anderson provides guest pencils for #144, while Dave Cockrum & Joe Rubenstein are the regular artists from #145 on.

Things heat the hell up with these issues, which usher in a slew of characters and storylines set to become a core part of the X-Men canon. And in a surprising shift from the norm, many of them focus on the women.

Don’t get me wrong; UNCANNY X-MEN is still a male-dominated book. There are far more men than women on the page, and the womens’ storylines aren’t always handled well. At the same time, though, it’s clear Claremont and Byrne recognized the uneven male:female ratio of their cast and tried to do something about it, however awkward the results.

An Uncanny Readthrough: #94-125

From UNCANNY X-MEN #94

As always, this post contains spoilers that should be of no consequence to anyone who's read a few contemporary X-Men storylines.

UNCANNY X-MEN #67-93 consisted entirely of reprints, so my epic readthrough picks up again in 1975 with GIANT SIZE X-MEN #1 and its direct sequel, UNCANNY X-MEN #94, carrying through to #125. (You don’t need to read my previous posts to understand this one, but if you’re curious I’ll direct you to #1-25, #26-50, and #51-66.) After writer Len Wein and artist Dave Cockrum take a turn with GIANT SIZE, these issues mark the start of what you’ll often see called “writer Chris Claremont’s epic run,” with art and coplotting by Cockrum until John Byrne takes over as penciller and co-plotter with #112.

The book officially adds UNCANNY to the title as of #114, too.

Plenty happens before this momentous taxonomical shift, though. When the original team is kidnapped by a sentient island (as as happened to all of us, yeah?) in GIANT SIZE #1, Professor X scours the world for new recruits and discovers or reconnects with Nightcrawler (German), Wolverine (Canadian), Banshee (Irish), Storm (Kenyan), Sunfire (Japanese), Colossus (Russian), and Thunderbird (Apache). When all the original X-Men except Cyclops decide they’d rather pursue other careers, these newcomers take up the mantle.

An Uncanny Readthrough: #26-50

Never dispute the decision of Magneto! From UNCANNY X-MEN #44

Welcome to Part II of my slow-ass quest to read UNCANNY X-MEN in its entirety, twenty-five issues at at time. You can find Part I here, if you missed it, but rest assured this blog series, like the X-Men, works in any order you choose to read it. I do talk about some X-tropes and recurring characters, though, so a prior familiarity with the X-Men will stand you in good stead.

Be aware, too, that there are tons of inconsequential spoilers below.

By this point, X-MEN (as it’s still officially titled) is well and truly a monthly book. Roy Thomas scripts the main story through to #43. Gary Friedrich takes over from #44-46, while Arnold Drake takes up the task from #47 on. Werner Roth draws and co-plots the book through to #35, with Don Heck succeeding him from #38 to #44, when he begins laying out Roth’s pencils. Backup stories and occasional single issues are drawn and co-plotted by Jack Sparling, John Tarataglione, Ross Andru, and George Tuska. Artist Jim Steranko comes on board with #50 and introduces a whole new visual syntax for the X-Men, as discussed below.

So far as the stories themselves go, this is a relatively uneventful period. Yes, things happen. Yes, the X-Men go on scads of adventures. Thing is, few of them are enduring adventures; things that’re destined to crop up time and again over the next fifty years and become absolute staples of the team’s mythos.

My Year With Marvel: Uncanny X-Men #1-25

From UNCANNY X-MEN #1

I always tell interested parties it’s safe to jump into the X-Men at any point they please. The Marvel Universe’s peculiar chronology, Professor X’s predilection for mindwipes, and the entire cast’s refusal to shut up about every major thing that’s ever happened to them ensures the series is accessible to any new reader with a fair understanding of comics.

Still, I’ve always thought it might be fun to go back to the very beginning of UNCANNY X-MEN and read the whole thing through in order. So that’s what I’m doing.

Even though My Year With Marvel technically ends this week, I’ll continue to update y’all on my progress every twenty-five issues until I’ve either read everything on offer or my Marvel Unlimited subscription ends¹.

Okay, then. Let’s talk about UNCANNY X-MEN (still officially titled X-MEN at this point) #1-25.

My Year With Marvel: Miniseries Of My Youth Revisited

Last week I shared my recollections of two 1993 miniseries that made a big impression on me when I was a teenager: GAMBIT by Howard Mackie, Lee Weeks, and Klaus Janson and DAREDEVIL: THE MAN WITHOUT FEAR by Frank Miller and John Romita Jr. I reread both series right after the post went live, and I’m ready to weigh in on ‘em from an adult perspective.

GAMBIT, as previously stated, changed my life. It taught me the joys of contemporary superhero comics, introduced me to the X-Men, gave me another taste of New Orleans (a city I was already well on the way to loving), foreshadowed my adult preoccupation with (fictional) thieves and assassins, and placed some small emphasis on cards.

And does it hold up?

Surprisingly, yes.

My Year With Marvel: Miniseries Of My Youth

A couple months back, I sat down to write about DAREDEVIL, Marvel’s first Netflix show. And oh, how the words did flow.

Trouble was, most of those words concerned Frank Miller and John Romita Jr’s 1993 miniseries, which served as my introduction to the character and became a touchstone comic for me throughout the late 90s/early 2000s, even though the plot quickly faded. When it came to the show, I mostly wanted to talk about how it uses sound¹; a topic I lack the technical language to turn into a full post.

So I gave up and started writing about DAREDEVIL: THE MAN WITHOUT FEAR. Before long, the 1993 GAMBIT miniseries also crept into the mix, leaving me with some jaw on the two half-remembered touchstone miniseries of my youth.

My Year With Marvel: Alternate Universes

The Marvel Universe is really a multiverse; an assortment of disparate realities, some of which occasionally collide thanks to the influence of science and magic and other fun stuff like that. A fair few of these alternate realities have made it into miniseries form, either because they bumped up against Earth-616 (our core Marvel canon) or because somebody with decision-making ability said, “Hey, why don’t we explore what our characters might be like if things were like this instead of like that?”

Marvel’s alternate realities are no doubt most interesting for readers well steeped in the 616’s characters and backstory, but they can also hold appeal for people who’re just easing into it all. I want to highlight three of them today: two you can probably read even if you’re a Marvel newbie and one with a solid grounding in the larger storyline.

Earth X (1999); written by Jim Krueger, drawn by John Paul Leon

EARTH X opens a couple decades on from the Marvel Universe you’ll see in current continuity. Everyone has superpowers, from the heroes of old to the kid playing in the street. It’s been like this for close on ten years.

The Watcher--a moon-dweller tasked with observing everything that happens down below--was blinded immediately before the shift took place. He needs visual confirmation of what’s happening, so he calls upon Aaron Stack, aka Machine Man, to be his eyes as he searches for clues and watches the conflict between an aged Captain America and a new, youthful, Red Skull unfold.

My Year With Marvel: All-New X-Men

Every once in a while, I come across a comic that makes me want to gush my arse off. It’s maybe not one of the comics, and I recognize that it’s probably not best or most creative thing that’s ever been written, but it makes me so frickin’ happy that I want to share it with everyone.

That’s ALL-NEW X-MEN in a nutshell.

The premise is as follows: Cyclops has become a mutant revolutionary because of some heavy stuff that happened in another comic you don’t need to read in order to understand this one. Beast is terribly worried Cyclops is leading mutantkind towards genocide, and he figures the best way to avert this crisis is to pull the five original X-Men into the future just long enough to talk some sense into Cyclops. They’ll make a running visit, head on back to their own time, have their minds wiped by Professor Xavier (how kind of him), and carry on with their regularly scheduled lives.

It’s an ongoing series, so you can maybe guess things don’t work out as planned. Circumstances conspire to keep them in the present, and when it finally seems like they could head on back to their own time, they discover they’re stuck. Indefinitely.

And isn’t that just great for the space-time continuum?

Okay, so maybe it’s hell on the timeline, but let’s be real here: the X-Men’s timeline was pretty messed up to begin with. (Hence my decision to catch up on the team in whatever damned order I please.) And you know, I wouldn’t want the timeline to be all nice and orderly if it meant I’d have to miss out on this awesomeness.

My Year With Marvel: Catching Up With the X-Men

Back in the day, the X-Men were my jam. Teenage Me faithfully purchased both X-MEN and UNCANNY X-MEN each month, keen to see what was next for my favourite superteam.

Alas, Marvel eventually raised their prices, and money got tight, and I had to ditch both titles. We’ve discussed this sad, sad day before. I still ain’t entirely over it.

I attempted to ease back into the series when my library purchased the collected editions of Joss Whedon and John Cassaday's ASTONISHING X-MEN, but availability became an issue yet again when they failed to buy any of the series' subsequent volumes. Cue Sad Day 2: Return of the Sad.

Fast forward a goodly number of X-free years, and the X-Men headed the list of things I wanted to explore on Marvel Unlimited. But, being me, I did not do this. Oh, I read the 2005 Gambit and Rogue¹ series since I was always mighty partial to those two, but I sorta-kinda resisted getting back into the team’s core adventures.

Part of it was that the X-Men were really important to me when I was younger, and it’s always difficult to dive back into something you used to love. What if you don’t love it anymore? What if you can’t even see why you ever loved it in the first place? It's scary.

A bigger part was that there are so frickin' many X-books and I had no idea where to start.