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The ’90s Revisited: X-Men #40

Posted on December 2, 2014 by Walt

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xmen040Legion Quest part 2: The Killing Time

Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Penciler: Andy Kubert
Inker: Matt Ryan
Letterer: Bill Oakley
Colorist: Kevin Somers
Editor: Bob Harras
Published by: Marvel Comics
Cover Date: January 1995
Cover Price: $1.95

Having responded to Jean’s distress, the other X-Men squad scours the desert for their missing teammates. On locating Jean but not the rest of the group, they rush her back to the temporary HQ, where she awakes and tells them about Legion. Meanwhile, in the past, the time-lost X-folks have no memory of who they are or what they’re doing in the past. Several weeks have passed for them, and they’re beginning to regain some memories, just not the key ones. Also in the past, Xavier and Magneto continue to interact as we see the growing friendship, as well as Xavier’s romance with Gabrielle Haller. Erik deals with an anonymous patient who unlocks painful memories. In the present, Cable and Domino arrive, and while they’re assessing things, a cosmic projection from Lilandra of the Shi’ar brings tidings of doom to the heroes of Earth…information authenticated by presence of numerous Watchers.

Going through this issue, I’ve realized that Andy Kubert is–alongside if not moreso than Jim Lee–probably my favorite X-Men artist. I love the looks of the characters in this issue, the layouts, etc. I normally don’t notice the art like this, but it hit me here, and actually added to my enjoyment of the issue.

The story’s not bad. While I’m reading these for the first time in years and without the context I’d had when I originally read them, I’m also noticing a similarity in the books that is quite pleasant–where I probably honestly would not be able to tell you for sure who did what issue’s story(ies) between this and Uncanny X-Men withOUT the credit boxes.

There’s a two-page “interlude” in this issue that addresses Wolverine’s absence (he left the X-Men after Fatal Attractions and from what I recall is just now returning to the mansion and the group)…and sets up his “final issue” for the next month. Almost a pointless bit, but well worthwhile all the same and fitting in the time of touching on numerous plots and not keeping a tight internal story “just” for the eventual collected volume.

I’d remembered the core of Legion Quest being four parts but couldn’t remember how it was broken down…with this issue, a lot of it came back…though I won’t elaborate here, as there are still several issues to cover.

While truthfully I’d forgotten all about this issue’s cover image, having it brought back to mind it is rather iconic–showing Legion with the flames all around. It stood out quite a bit to me back in the day, but being a middle chapter of this story and such it just didn’t stick with me the way the final chapter did. The issue doesn’t begin or end the story, just moves things along…but it was still very much a treat to re-read, and continues drawing me back in time myself, 20 years, to when I was a kid reading these for the first time…when the story was current and unfolding and not essentially a footnote in the history of the X-Men.

Filed under: The '90s Revisited | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

The ’90s Revisited: Uncanny X-Men #320

Posted on November 25, 2014 by Walt

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uncannyxmen320Legion Quest part 1: The Son Rises in the East

Plot: Scott Lobdell
Dialogue: Mark Waid
Penciler: Roger Cruz
Inker: Tim Townsend
Colors: Steve Buccellato
Letterer: Bill Oakley
Editor: Bob Harras
Published by: Marvel Comics
Cover Date: January 1995
Cover Price: $1.95

Making me think I missed a chapter, this issue opens on the action, as a squad of X-Men are in the midst of a “battle” with Legion–one in which they’re throwing everything they can at the boy, and the boy’s not even acknowledging them. The issue cycles between this battle and flashbacks to what brought the X-Men to this point–Gabrielle Haller and X-Factor reached out, and so these X-Men came to Israel to see what they could do. Legion finally acknowledges his attackers, jumping back in time with Storm to show her the moments before a jet’s crash that killed her mother. Returning to the present, Storm–despite her hurt and anger–pieces things together, and with the help of Psylocke and Bishop gets the group psychically tethered to Legion just before he makes his main jump back in time. Having used her own powers to anchor herself in the present, Jean is left behind with just enough consciousness to contact Xavier to let him know the X-Men and Legion are gone. Finally, in the depths of space, Lilandra, queen of the Shi’ar, is informed of the beginning of all that is.

This issue had several editions. The X-books at the time were presented in “Deluxe” and “standard” editions–the deluxe having higher quality paper, while the standard was the cheaper paper and (I believe) carried a cheaper cover price. The non-deluxe editions have never been on my radar, and so are being soundly ignored.

With the deluxe edition, there was the regular edition one would buy in comic shops…and there was a “gold edition” that was included in an issue of Wizard magazine. Not just some “ashcan” or “preview” or such, it was the issue in its entirety.

Other than that, there’s nothing (to me) all that remarkable about the cover or anything “iconic” to it. Though I recognize it on sight due to its place in my own life, it doesn’t otherwise stand out in and of itself.

The art is solid, and doesn’t particularly stand out to me, taken by itself. It’s certainly familiar, with the X-Men particularly recognizable, and really the only oddity to me is Iceman’s costume…I don’t recall this costume/appearance, and so at one point I was left wondering who he was while out of his iced-over form. Other than realizing that and wondering who the guy in the unfamiliar costume was, nothing else took me out of the story visually.

The story itself is quite good. I’d noticed Mark Waid‘s involvement with X-Men: Alpha or X-Men: Omega several years ago…and his name again stands out here. Lobdell provides us the plot while Waid supplies the dialogue…yet other than the names in the credits telling me that, I doubt I’d’ve noticed either one of them. For me, going back 20 years, the story just WAS. These were the X-Men, and I took ’em at face value.

Once I realized I had NOT missed a chapter and that we were being presented with some action before the “gap” was bridged with flashbacks, I was ok with the flow of the issue. I doubt this issue’s structure would fly in contemporary comics, as contemporary comics seem primarily written for the trade, and this structure would not play out in a single issue (there’d be an entire issue of action, then an issue of flashback, etc). It’s also sort of odd seeing so few characters involved, despite having appreciated that in the previous issue. But that was part of the premise, I believe–with two X-Men books, each would typically focus on a smaller set of characters from the overall continuity of the whole.

That also poses a bit of a problem here with no explanation given to Bobby’s linking back up with these characters, and where Archangel and Rogue went between the end of #320 and the start of this. However, this opens well given the context of the X-Factor issue, as we go from Legion flying off talking of making things better, and being confronted here with the flashbacks showing that he’s already been setting his plans in motion.

All in all, not a bad opening chapter with plenty of action and context as well as driving the story as a whole forward by the end of the issue. I definitely enjoy that within the pages of a single issue’s pages multiple scenes unfold…that this seems written as a full single issue rather than “just” a chapter of a six-issue arc.

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The ’90s Revisited: Uncanny X-Men #319

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Walt

90srevisited

uncannyxmen319Untapped Potential

Words: Scott Lobdell
Guest Penciler: Steve Epting
Inkers: Dan Green & Tim Townsend
Colorists: Buccellato, Becton, Hicks
Editor: Bob Harras
Published by: Marvel Comics
Cover Date: December 1994
Cover Price: $1.95

There’s something simply “familiar” about sitting and reading this issue, that brought back a lot of memories, and a certain feeling. This came out in late 1994–I was 13 at the time. (I’m 33 now). To that barely-a-teenager me, this was just another issue of an X-Men series I’d been following for over a year even as other X-books had lapsed.

Now looking back, this was a key issue on a number of fronts–primarily being a pre-prologue lead-in to Legion Quest, which itself was a prologue to the four-month Age of Apocalypse saga. This was–at least as I recall from having just re-read this issue but nothing earlier, recently–the issue Archangel and Psylocke officially became “a thing,” a relationship that carried across the next 16 or so years til The Dark Angel Saga in Uncanny X-Force a few years ago.

We have three main plots running through this issue: Rogue and Iceman are traveling to Bobby’s parents’ house for a visit. Bobby obviously has stuff eating at him, and Rogue tries to be a friend and get him to open up on the issues. She doesn’t get the greatest welcome from Bobby’s dad, though his mom tries to be a lot more hospitable. The visit overall does not go well, and Bobby storms out on some angry words. Rogue leaves as well with a calmer (but no less sharp) sharing of words.

Meanwhile, Warren (Archangel) and Betsy (Psylocke) are on a date that goes quite well, and leads to the two going back to Warren’s place and (verbally) officializing their relationship.

Finally, we follow Xavier in a dream in which he speaks to Magneto, reminiscing on their time in Israel some 20 years earlier. As the discussion progresses, Xavier begins to realize something isn’t quite right, as the dream moves from reminiscence to nightmare, resulting in Beast jolting Xavier awake–and Xavier explains that he fears his son Legion has recovered and is now more dangerous than ever before.

The art team presents a strong issue. The look was familiar, I had no problem recognizing any of the characters…and really, I quite enjoyed the way they looked. While I could not have said off the top of my head that Epting did the art for this issue, had done art (guest penciler or otherwise) on X-Men stuff from ’94, I recall the look of the issue, and as I re-read it this latest time, the only problem I had at all was disliking the shift from upright pages to “widescreen” pages where I had to physically turn the book in order to read a page. (Of course, I’ll take that over umpteen pointless double-page splashes).

Story-wise, this kept things moving, and while three simultaneous plots only allow a few pages for each, they were woven together well, and I didn’t feel any of them were particularly shorted or such–they and the issue as a whole just “worked.”

Back in the day, I was not familiar with Legion, so reading this the first time I doubt gave me any particular cause to think something big was up just from story context. I imagine I knew a bit about Legion and such, though, from other issues that flashed back, or at the very least from stuff about the then-upcoming “death” of Xavier and all that.

As noted above, I simply ENJOYED rereading this issue. It was cool to see Rogue and Bobby hanging out, and I recognized/identified with the two as they interacted, in a way I never did before. I’d forgotten about their time here, remembering only their “roadtrip” after continuity returned from the Age of Apocalypse stuff. And it was the characterizing of Xavier/Magneto’s relationship heading into the Age of Apocalypse that is certainly my favorite, and was at the time instrumental in DEFINING their relationship to me.

Though this issue works well enough just on its own–perhaps aided by my own memories–it’s also helped by my diving in here just before Legion Quest and remembering the impact that story had on me and looking forward to key moments and then the Age of Apocalypse saga itself.

Filed under: The '90s Revisited | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

On NOT Buying X-Men: Days of Future Past

Posted on October 14, 2014 by Walt

This is the second major disappointment for me, for a movie on home release that I was previously QUITE looking forward to purchasing.

xdofp_01

After being pretty satisfied last year with the BR3D/BRD/DVD/Digital release last year of The Wolverine, I thought for sure I’d be ok with X-Men: Days of Future Past. BUUUUUT…. The so-called “Ultimate Edition” is Blu-Ray 3D, Blu-Ray, and Digital.

Where the HECK is the DVD in the combo?

And for the Wal-Mart exclusive, a reprint of BOTH chapters of the original story…but it’s apparently some really skinny, tiny thing and not even a digest-sized or “mini” graphic novel. AND the box isn’t even sized properly for the item’s inclusion!

xdofp_03

The box is just an oversized thing that caves in and will surely DUMP the blu-ray case right at without provocation. If I didn’t turn the package over and squint at it and really stare to see in through the plastic, I’d’ve sworn they FORGOT to include the “Exclusive Edition” comic or that it was actually some “digital bonus” or such.

So what of a NON-“Ultimate” edition?

xdofp_02

Blu-Ray/Digital.

Again… Where. Is. The. DVD?!?

And this box has the same issue as far as that “bonus” comic.

There’s also a properly-sized cover version of…Blu-Ray/Digital. And there’s a coverless DVD.

I’m not interested in Blu-Ray 3D. I’m not interested in seeing my movies in 3D, PERIOD, theater or otherwise. I don’t have a 3D Blu-Ray player or 3D tv or the glasses or such. I’ve only reluctantly “upgraded” to Blu-Ray in the last several years, still QUITE happy with all the bargain DVDs and such I find and tv-on-dvd and all that.

I don’t mind (occasionally) paying a couple dollars more for a Blu-Ray/DVD combo…I can play the dvd in my computer, or pretty much anyone/everyone I know “at least” has a dvd player, so it’ll be watchable elsewhere/with others…even as I have the capability of watching the Blu-Ray while at home.

But this crap with putting 3D BluRay with BluRay and not including a DVD (even as a “bonus” if nothing else)?!?

Nah…sorry.

I’ll stick with the Redbox.

Filed under: NON-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Truly Bargain-Priced

Posted on September 23, 2014 by Walt

Tonight I stopped at a Booksmillion on a whim. I really was hoping they’d have something Ninja Turtles related that I’d want, but they didn’t. However, I found their bargain section (that includes a bunch of mostly-Marvel graphic novels) and came across these:

xmenfirstclasssept232014

These are those mid-size volumes–smaller than a standard-trim paperback, but larger than the actual “digest-sized” volumes.

But with about 5 issues of content each, for $3.97 each…quite the bargain indeed. These, that I know I’ll like from having read some of the First Class stuff in the past, or a $3.99 comic that’ll bug me for being $3.99? These are easily the better value(s).

Also rather pleased with myself at–not having a proper inventory–having photos of my shelves in my phone, so I can zoom in and see that I do or do not have certain volumes.

Here, I bought vol. 2 and left vol. 1 on the shelf at the store, as I saw vol. 1 in my photo of the shelf it’s on in my own collection.

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Axis Checklist – Act One: The Red Supremacy

Posted on September 3, 2014 by Walt

The Avengers & X-Men must unite to stop Red Skull, the greatest evil the Marvel Universe has ever known!

October 2014
Avengers & X-Men: Axis #1
Avengers & X-Men: Axis #2
Avengers & X-Men: Axis #3

Axis Tie-Ins
All-New X-Factor #15
Axis: Carnage #1 (of 3)
Axis: Hobgoblin #1 (of 3)
Axis: Revolutions #1 (of 4)
Deadpool #36
Loki: Agent of Asgard #7
Magneto #11
Uncanny Avengers #25

Source: Promotional Postcard (pictured below)

axis_act_one_checklist_red_supremacy_front

axis_act_one_checklist_red_supremacy_back

Filed under: Checklists, NON-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

X-Men Series 1 Revisited, Part 4

Posted on February 25, 2014 by Walt

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Jubilee was the first of the X-Men I was really introduced to–as the focal character for the audience in the 1990s cartoon. I was also introduced to Rogue in that same first episode, and Rogue at least has remained one of my favorite characters since.

I’ve more recently gotten to know more about several of these other characters–Captain Britain and Forge in particular. I’ve enjoyed Multiple Man and Quicksilver thanks to PAD‘s X-Factor.

In recent years, I’ve found that when I think about the age-old question of “what super-power would you want if you could have any power?” I have tended toward the idea of Multiple Man’s. That perhaps comes from the most recent (pre-All-New Marvel Now) X-Factor run…and moreso, the Madrox mini that immediately preceded it.

Boom Boom was used quite well in Nextwave several years back, and I can’t say I’ve ever cared much for Shatterstar…though the earliest memory I have of Shatterstar is the X-Force/Spider-Man crossover–one of my first-ever collected volumes..

This bunch of cards is fairly mediocre to me…nothing all that special and I didn’t learn anything new, really…

 

Click below to see the cards themselves.

Continue reading →

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X-Men Series 1 Revisited, Part 3

Posted on February 18, 2014 by Walt

019_027

It’s amazing the changes these characters have been through in the past 20 years. Outside of Kylun who at first glance I didn’t even recognize, I’m familiar with the others…and they’ve all been through plenty. Cable’s evolved from some mercenary to a full-realized character tied deeply into the history of the X-men universe and has been through a number of significant events–from X-Cutioner’s Song to Messiah Complex/Messiah War/Second Coming to the more recent Marvel Now Cable & X-Force stuff to the upcoming All-New Marvel Now X-Force series..

Archangel’s since gone back to Angel, to Dark Angel to whatever he is at present. Banshee co-led the school in Generation X and has since died and–for all I know–come back. Shadowcat has grown up big-time. Jean Grey’s died and actually stayed dead. Colossus has joined the Acolytes, then Excalibur, back to the X-Men, died, come back, been the host of Cyttorak, a part of the Phoenix Five, etc. Warpath’s been part of Wolverine’s X-Force, Polaris was “lost in space” with Havok and others after Rise & Fall of the Shi’Ar Empire and since come back…

While I don’t care for the aesthetics of the multi-colored X symbols on the cards, I think I’ve recognized that rather than being simply an amateurish inconsistency, these are actually color-coded by “team” or “group” with a gold X for the Gold Team X-men, etc.

Click below for the cards themselves..

Continue reading →

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X-Men Series 1 Revisited, Part 2

Posted on February 11, 2014 by Walt

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This is an interesting grouping of cards. I consciously learned the origin of Lockheed’s name, which is a bit tangential in a way that I can appreciate for such names.

Most of the information on these cards I was already aware of present-day, though it’s cool to learn that Storm’s greenhouse is actually a long-established thing–I just learned of it several weeks ago with a scene in Amazing X-Men #3 where Nightcrawler flashes back to a moment with Storm.

Cyclops’ costume shown on his card here is his most “iconic” to me–this was his current costume in the comics AND the cartoon when I first discovered the X-Men, and as it was maintained throughout most of the ’90s, it had plenty of time to grow on me, and was part of many key stories that stick out for me and were important parts of my growing up.

Gambit was still quite new at this point–and knowing what I know now his card is rather bland and boring here…but that’s with the character having existed less than 2 years, and it’s been over 20 years now SINCE the card was published.

As noted last week, this grouping of cards shows the lack of “awareness” of 9-pocket storage pages, as Lockheed’s car is “landscape” while all the others are “portrait” in layout.

Domino I was not all familiar with back in ’92/’93…but became a lot more aware of her in Cable’s own series in ’95/’96 after the Age of Apocalypse.

Click below to see the individual cards…

Continue reading →

Filed under: 2014, The '90s Revisited, X-Men Series I Revisited | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

X-Men Series 1 Revisited, Part 1

Posted on February 4, 2014 by Walt

This is definitely a strange set to look back to, having come out in 1992…22 years ago! At the same time, it’s rather cool to look back this far, as this is the X-Men just shy of my discovering them originally, and it’s cool to revisit what these characters’ status quo was then, given everything that’s come about SINCE.

It’s also a bit odd to consider the publisher of these cards–Impel–as I am almost certain they aren’t even around anymore, and that they passed the torch (so to speak) for the next series of X-Men cards that was published in 1993.

Especially compared to the Marvel Universe Series IV set, this seems rather amateurish in a way…with some of the cards being landscape oriented, others portrait, and seemingly not organized within the set with an awareness of the standard 9-pocket card pages these would often be stored in.

All of these first 9 are oriented the same way, but as we’ll see next week, the next 9 switch to virtually all portrait orientation, where much of the set remains before a switch back. The coloring on some of the cards–as we’ll see in later posts–also does not all go together for single pages. And yet the final 9-card grouping does make a single larger image.

This first grouping introduces us to a mix of characters from several of the then-current teams: the X-Men themselves, as well as X-Factor, X-Force, and Excalibur.

I don’t much care for the power grid on the backs of the cards–I’ve never cared for this sort of stat with characters, as stories are constantly changing things and these never seem–to me–to remain accurate. All the more for comparing the characters.

The short snippets are nice as a bit of introduction to the characters, and I like the note of their first appearance…a rather handy piece of information to have, even these 20-odd years later. The “X-tra Fact” is also a neat piece of info to have…particularly to help set these cards within the time they came out, as I’m looking back on them now.

I actually hadn’t realized until going through these for this post that Siryn first appeared in Spider-Woman and not a “regular” X-book somewhere.

Nothing too spectacular about these, though I do rather like the Jim Lee art, as well as the use of DIFFERENT art on the backs of the cards rather than a re-use of the front…showing that there was a bit of thought put into these.

[Click below to see the individual cards…]

Continue reading →

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