UNCANNY X-MEN #385 (October 2000)

Shell Game

Credits: Chris Claremont (writer), German Garcia, Michael Ryan, and Randy Green (pencils), Panosian/Pepoy/Ketcham (inks), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Richard Isanove (colors)

Summary: Gambit’s team of X-Men raid an upscale party in Madripoor, aiding the Goth and Crimson Pirates in abducting several attendees. Rogue’s crew of X-Men arrive, stunned to see their teammates working with the villains. The two teams fight, with Rogue’s side apparently losing. Unbeknownst to their opponents, Gambit has touched skin with Rogue, imparting unto her the means of defeating the Goth’s leader. After everyone is teleported to their secret Chinese base, the united X-Men attack Tullamore Voge and his slavers. Rogue, having absorbed Gambit’s power, overloads the Goth’s leader with energy. The resulting explosion kills him, and enables the X-Men to defeat the slavers. Gambit, recognizing Rogue’s discomfort with killing their opponent, offers her his support.

UNCANNY X-MEN #384 (September 2000)

Crimson Pirates

Credits: Chris Claremont (writer), Adam Kubert (penciler), Tim Townsend w/Lary Stucker (inks), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Richard Isanove (colors)

Summary: The Crimson Pirates abduct Defense Minister Demetri Koniev, threatening his family if he doesn’t cooperate. Meanwhile, at the former KGB headquarters, Deb Levin and Major Vazhin join the X-Men in interrogating Tullamore Voge. Phoenix attempts to invade his thoughts, only to connect with Wolverine, using Cerebro in New York. While informing her of the Goth’s attack, Voge nabs Wolverine and nearly transforms him into a slave. Phoenix shunts him out of the Astral Plane just in time. Cable, however, is altered after entering Voge’s mind. He appears to be suddenly cured of the techno-organic virus, just as Minister Koniev appears outside, demanding entrance. When Vazhin refuses, the Crimson Pirates attack. The X-Men are robbed of their victory when Cable betrays the team. Facing a barrage from the Pirates, Beast is forced to retreat with Phoenix and Deb.

UNCANNY X-MEN #383 (August 2000)

Moscow Knights

Credits: Chris Claremont (writer), Adam Kubert (penciler), Tim Townsend w/Dan Panosian (inkers), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Richard Isanove (colors)

Summary: In Moscow, Storm evokes the name of her thief mentor El-Gibar to solicit the aid of mobster Simyon Kurasov. She explains Azlexei Vazhin called in a favor owed by the Thieves Guild to have Gambit recruit the X-Men. Their mission was to free Vazhin’s associate, Deb Levin, from The Slash, a seedy club run by the mysterious Ransome Sole. Storm remained as backup, while Phoenix, Gambit, Cable, and Beast were captured by Sole’s young slave, a mutant named Sketch. With Simyon’s help, Storm arrives in time to stop a slave auction overseen by Sole. Bidding for the X-Men are representatives of the Neo’s Shockwave Riders, and the interdimensional slaver known as Tullamore Voge. With the aid of Sketch, the X-Men overcome Sole and his flunkies: Big Casino, Revenant, Manacle, Bludgeon, and Cudgel. The Shockwave Riders teleport away Sole and his lackeys, but Deb Levin is freed, and Tullamore Voge taken into custody.

UNCANNY X-MEN #382 (July 2000)

Lost Souls

Credits: Chris Claremont (writer), Tom Raney (penciler), Scott Hanna (inker), Comicraft’s Saida Temofonte (letters), Brian Haberlin (colors)

Summary: Cable offers the team psychic protection to enter Phoenix’s mind. Soon, he must also defend her body from a new attack by the Shockwave Riders. Phoenix successfully defends herself inside the mind of the dying Shockwave Rider, but is unprepared for the astral arrival of the Lost Souls. The shadowy Neo faction invade the minds of the X-Men, manipulating their greatest fears, pressuring them to give in to despair. Phoenix overpowers their dark force, then uses her powers to revive the dying Shockwave Rider. The X-Men attempt to part peacefully with the Neo soldiers. Later, Gambit urges the team to join him on a mission he declares more important than the Neo.

UNCANNY X-MEN #381 (June 2000)

Night of Masques

Credits: Chris Claremont (writer), Adam Kubert (penciler), Tim Townsend (inker), Comicraft’s Wes Abbott (letters), Richard Isanove (colors)

           

Summary: In the midst of Venice’s Carnival, Phoenix takes Cable to an abandoned, underground “library” she first visited as a youth with Professor Xavier. While reminiscing, she notices psychic calling cards left by Gambit. Beast and Storm soon arrive, citing notes from Gambit, directing them to Venice. Suddenly, a Neo faction called the Shockwave Riders targets Phoenix and Cable. Their Psishark enters Phoenix’s mind, consuming her memories. Most Neo teleport after their defeat, but one remains for questioning. He wills himself to die; to the team’s shock, Phoenix enters his dying mind, determined to retrieve her memories.

UNCANNY X-MEN #280 - September 1991

One Step Back -- Two Steps Forward

Credits:  Fabian Nicieza (writer), Andy Kubert w/Steven Butler (pencilers), Inks-R-us (inks), Joe Rosas (colors), Tom Orzechowski (letters), Lois Buhalis (lettering assist, not credited)

Summary:  Xavier arrives on the remains of Muir Island to discover Marvel Girl has telekinetically protected her teammates from Legion’s explosion.  The possessed Legion attempts to kill Xavier, but is chased away by Storm.  The heroes split in two -- one group will sever Shadow King’s link to the physical realm and the other will protect Xavier as he fights Shadow King in the Astral Plane.  During Xavier’s battle in the Astral Plane, Shadow King shatters Xavier’s back, crippling him.  Meanwhile, Forge forces Psylocke to use her psychic knife on Polaris, which breaks Shadow King’s connection to the physical realm.  Shadow King disappears, but Legion is left in a coma.

Continuity Notes:  

• According to Xavier, there “isn't much left of Muir Island."  Not that any giant explosion has ever had a real impact on Muir Island.
• Colossus has suddenly arrived on Muir Island in-between issues.  Rogue is also wearing a different outfit once again, as she’s back to her tattered clothing from UXM #274 (!).
• Xavier arrives with two SHIELD psi-operatives, DeMarco and Heacock.  They’re killed by the possessed Legion.
• Rogue comments that Polaris has shrunk after she’s rescued from the Shadow King’s “psychic magnifier” device.  This ends her period as a super-strong female bodybuilder, which has never received an in-continuity explanation as far as I know (even though we do have some idea of Claremont’s original plan.)

Review:  Considering the behind-the-scenes chaos that was going on at the time, this is a better conclusion than I would’ve expected.  The story does get dragged down by more repetitive scenes of the heroes fighting brainwashed heroes (including another uninspired Wolverine vs. Gambit rematch), but that isn’t as large a part of the issue as I remembered.  In reality, Nicieza does a credible job bringing everything to a close, keeping track of most of the massive cast while also leaving enough room for Xavier to be the star of the issue.  His first-person narration isn’t quite a match for what Claremont was able to accomplish in the previous issue, but the sentiment feels genuine and the scripting is true to Xavier’s character.  Nicieza’s strongest moment is when he introduces Xavier’s fear that Legion legitimately enjoys being under the Shadow King’s thrall, and that it might just be Shadow King who’s cured Legion of his schizophrenia.  That’s the kind of character work that’s usually forgotten in these densely packed crossovers, and it’s a relief to see such a Claremont-esque idea show up so soon after his departure.

What doesn’t work about the issue isn’t too hard to guess.  There are too many characters, many aren’t properly introduced, and the conclusion to this giant battle that’s been teased for literally years occurs over the course of a few panels.  Apparently, all that was needed for the Shadow King to fall was Psylocke to stab Polaris with her psychic knife -- which means Psylocke was so weak as a telepath that she couldn’t fight off the Shadow King’s influence, but did possess enough power to ultimately defeat him.  Okay, then.  The most irritating aspect of the issue would be the crippling yet again of Professor Xavier, which is such an obvious play to nostalgia that it’s hard not to roll your eyes.  This is an early sign of the Bob Harras “Back to Basics” approach, which sees nostalgia trump even rudimentary plot development.  There’s no great story following Xavier’s injury -- he just goes back to living in a chair (albeit in a space-age one designed by Jim Lee.)  There’s no compelling reason for the X-Men and X-Factor to rebuild the school and live together again -- it’s not as if they show even the slightest interest in treating it as a school for the next few years.  There was never much of a reason for the fully-grown Peter Parker to suddenly act like a teenager again in the late ‘90s either; but hey, those old stories are classics, which means they must be milked for all eternity.  There is a time for “Back to Basics,” as evidenced by the late ‘90s revamps of books like The Avengers and Captain America, but there has to be more to the concept than simple nostalgia.

UNCANNY X-MEN #279 - August 1991

Bad to the Bone

Credits:  Chris Claremont & Fabian Nicieza (writers), Andy Kubert (penciler), Scott Williams (inker), Glynis Oliver (colors), Tom Orzechowski and Lois Buhalis as “Team Append-X” (letters)

Summary:  Xavier and Stevie try to escape Colossus in the mansion’s underground complex.  Inside the Danger Room, Xavier sets a trap.  As Colossus continues to resist, Xavier realizes that the only way to break the Shadow King’s hold is to reach into Colossus’ mind and revive his memories of the X-Men.  On Muir Island, Forge attempts to place a neural inhibitor on the X-Men in order to block the Shadow King’s influence.  When Rogue attacks, he’s forced to fight back.  In New York, Xavier stops a Shadow King-possessed mob from killing a child.  He then proclaims that he must call on X-Factor for help.

Continuity Notes:  

• Colossus, at this point in continuity, was living as artist Peter Nichols after having his memory erased by the Siege Perilous.
• In-between chapters of the story, the X-Men on Muir Island have regained consciousness and begun fighting each other.  Rogue is also wearing a new costume that’s appeared with no explanation.
• Wolverine warns Gambit not to throw any more of his "psyche-charged knives" at him, as Gambit’s knives make perhaps their final appearance.  (Although the art is so unclear, you could just as easily say that Gambit threw playing cards at Wolverine.)  This is also the only time Gambit’s powers are referred to as "psyche-charged,” which I can only assume was a mistake made by Nicieza, who had never written the character before.

Creative Differences:  This issue marks Chris Claremont’s final issue of the series, although there are no editorial remarks regarding his departure.  As Claremont explained in previous interviews, "The editor (Bob Harras) at that point made the decision that I should no longer plot the book," Claremont told Seriejournalen.dk. "And when he made that decision I made my decision, which was that I wasn't going to stay on it if I wasn't plotting it and left. The transition occurred on page 12 of Uncanny X-Men #279 (in 1991). That's the last page I wrote."  Source: 
http://www.uncannyxmen.net/showarticle.asp?fldAuto=2989

Review:  I don’t think anyone imagined Chris Claremont’s UXM exit happening like this; no double-sized farewell, no poignant look back on the past, no career retrospective.  He just leaves in-between pages eleven and twelve, replaced by a writer that was still largely unknown at the time.  And, let's be honest, that second half of the issue is kind of terrible.  I have no idea if Claremont left any concrete plans for the rest of the issue, or if he even plotted all of the issue and Nicieza was left only to script it, but it reads as flagrant time-killer.  The X-Men, magically recuperated since last issue’s cliffhanger, waste most of the final twelve pages getting into pointless fights, on a Muir Island that suddenly resembles a South American jungle for some reason.  Jubilee runs off in a huff to join the female half of the team, while Gambit and Wolverine have a half-hearted rematch of their fight in UXM #273.  And of course the speech patterns are all wrong.  The dialogue brings us classics like “Pitstain Potpourri!  Wol-VER-ine!  Do we have to be stinkin’ an’ sweatin’ out here?!” along with some melodramatic posturing from Wolverine about “hunters” and “prey.”  

Let’s not dwell on the negative, though.  The first half is a dramatic chase sequence, with Claremont doing a fine job scripting Xavier’s first-person narration, reminding me of the work done to save his final issue of X-Factor.  Having Xavier revive Colossus’ memories of the X-Men is a bit of a copout, an editorial necessity that has to be executed before he rejoins the team, but Claremont’s script actually makes you feel for both Xavier and Colossus during the moment.  (As Xavier points out, he’s effectively ending the only peace Colossus has known in his adult life.)  And Andy Kubert, making his debut as a fill-in artist, does a decent job of following the Jim Lee style without turning into a copycat.  You can see some early examples of his aversion to drawing feet, but overall, Kubert is able to emphasize just how scary Colossus could actually be and add some excitement that was missing from the previous issue.  With the help of Scott Williams’ inks, he also keeps the cast “on-model,” even giving Stevie Hunter that unique look that didn’t exist until Jim Lee got his hands on her. 

UNCANNY X-MEN #278 - July 1991

The Battle of Muir Isle

Credits:  Chris Claremont (writer), Paul Smith (penciler), Hilary Barta (inker), Joe Rosas (colors), Tom Orzechowski (letters)

Summary:  Professor Xavier hijacks Excalibur’s Blackbird from WHO’s headquarters.  He travels to America to use Cerebro, while the X-Men investigate Muir Island.  The team is soon attacked by the occupants of the island, who are now under the Shadow King’s control.  In America, Xavier encounters Stevie Hunter, who is being chased by Colossus.  Shadow King reveals himself, boasting that Colossus is now his.

Continuity Notes:  

• Since their previous appearances, Rogue and Guido have arrived on Muir Island.  Shadow King is apparently using his powers, combined with Legion’s, to draw mutants to the island.  Rogue is surprised to discover just how intense the mutants train in “The Arena,” Moira MacTaggert’s new replacement for the Danger Room.  
• We’re told that Excalibur is missing at this time, but no footnotes point to any Excalibur issues that explain why.
• Xavier speculates that the worldwide psychic static he senses is caused by the Shadow King, although this should be beyond his abilities.  Later, in a chapter not written by Claremont, we’ll discover Polaris is the cause.

Review:  And this begins “The Muir Island Saga,” the crossover that will soon mark Chris Claremont’s departure from Uncanny X-Men.  In retrospect, probably the only significance of the storyline lies in the behind-the-scenes drama.  “The Muir Island Saga” does have its moments, but too much of the story consists of heroes fighting brainwashed heroes.  As a reader at the time, it was kind of exciting to see this long-running Shadow King subplot paid off, and to have Rogue and Colossus reunited with the team, but I can definitely recall being ready for the crossover to just end at a certain point.  

The first chapter reunites Chris Claremont with Paul Smith, who is about as far away from Jim Lee at this stage as you can imagine.  He isn’t really recognizable as the Paul Smith from the early ‘80s, either, as he’s dropped most of his oversized, bold figures and cartoony expressions.  This is a densely packed issue, filled with the large cast of X-Men from this era and the large cast of B-listers relegated to Muir Island, so it’s arguable he simply didn’t have the room to show off this time.  Most of the issue consists of six to ten-panel pages, mainly concerned with getting characters to where they need to be and then putting them in a fight scene.  

There are nice little moments, the ones Claremont can be counted on even during a cramped crossover, such as Banshee and Siryn’s confrontation, or seeing how Xavier responds to someone like Gambit having joined the X-Men in his absence.  And it is enjoyable as a fan to see the X-Men actually be proactive for a change and investigate a threat, rather than wait around to be attacked.  However, the majority of the issue just feels rushed, which isn't a good sign in the very first chapter in a crossover.

UNCANNY X-MEN Annual #15 - August 1991

Kings of Pain Part 3 - Queens of Sacrifice

Credits:  Fabian Nicieza (writer), Tom Raney (penciler), Joe Rubenstein & Co. (inks), Brad Vancata (colors), Joe Rosen (letters)

Summary:  X-Force and the New Warriors arrive on Muir Island and are promptly attacked by its Shadow King-influenced inhabitants.  When Cable explains to Moira MacTaggart that Harness and Piecemeal are absorbing her son’s energy, she stops the fight.  The teams unite and travel to Edinburgh to stop Harness and Piecemeal.  During the battle, Harness’ armor is damaged, revealing Harness as a female.  The teams are even more shocked to discover Harness is Piecemeal’s mother.  Soon, Piecemeal absorbs so much energy he disappears in a fog; in his place is a shadowy figure claiming to be both Proteus and Piecemeal.  Suddenly, the energy explodes.

Continuity Notes:  

• Who exactly is supposed to be on Muir Island at this point is hard to keep track of.  Madrox and Siryn are now there, following the Fallen Angels miniseries, but characters last seen on the Island like Amanda Sefton, Sharon Friedlander, and Tom Corsi are gone.
• Shatterstar uses his energy-blasting powers yet again this issue.  Feral is also still in a developmental stage, as she’s deferential to Cable during battle.   The Feral we’ll see in the ongoing X-Force series is relentlessly nasty and would only grudgingly obey any orders.

Creative Differences:  Some added word balloons on page thirty-three clarify what Silhouette’s powers are.

Approved By The Comics Code Authority:  Both Namorita and Polaris have gratuitous thong shots this issue.

I Love the '90s:  Harness is totally going to surrender to the Edinburgh police…“NOT!”

Review:  So, how did this end up as the Uncanny X-Men annual?  Well, during the “Shattered Star” period that had the X-Men split across the globe, most of them suffering amnesia, the closest thing Marvel had to a united X-team was the collection of minor characters on Muir Island.  (Many of them not even mutants.)  I seem to recall the Muir Island team was actually listed as the X-Men on some piece of merchandising Marvel released circa 1990; Marvel couldn’t really point to another group of characters and call them the X-Men, so they had to make do.  

By the time of the 1991 annuals, however, there was a united X-team; a large lineup that famously posed together for the cover of Uncanny X-Men #275.  Figuring out how to cram that team into a story that’s taking place before the big crossover set on Muir Island was problematic, however.  Plus, it’s possible that work began on these annuals long before the specific lineup in the monthly title was nailed down (at one point, Guido used to make it into group shots of the X-Men on promo images).  So, working in one final appearance of the Muir Island team before “The Muir Island Saga” makes sense, plus it gives Nicieza an opportunity to use Moira MacTaggart in the story.  This might not be the X-Men that people actually wanted to see in an Uncanny X-Men annual, but I can understand the logic behind the decision.

Much of the story is spent recapping the previous installments, along with the original Proteus storyline from the late ‘70s in Uncanny X-Men.  The plot also has to address the fact that the Muir Island team is currently possessed by the Shadow King, which gets hand-waved fairly quickly after a pointless fight scene.  (And even Bob Harras’ footnotes seem to indicate he’s not entirely sure what’s supposed to be going on at Muir Island.)  Given the circumstances of the plot, this should be an opportunity for Nicieza to do some heavy, emotional work with Moira, but she spends the bulk of the issue merely barking out orders to the teams or spouting pseudo-scientific gibberish.  There are around two dozen characters in this story by now, and because they spend most of this story fighting one another, there really is no room for something thoughtful and quiet, like Nicieza’s previous portrayal of Moira in Classic X-Men #36.  That’s not to say the characters are entirely generic, though.  The idea that Piecemeal is being exploited because of his powers ties in with an early (and quickly ignored) theme of the X-Force series; that this team isn’t going to take mutant oppression lightly.  And Nicieza is still able to work in some fun interactions amongst the New Warriors cast, so it’s not a complete loss.  

Visually, Tom Raney’s art is all over the place, which is probably a combination of him being a new artist and being inked by an unknown number of unnamed inkers.  The best pages show Raney has a real talent for drawing multiple characters and complex designs.  I also remember being genuinely grossed out by his portrayal of the corpulent Piecemeal as a kid.  That stuff is disturbing.

The Killing Stroke Part Two - The Razor’s Edge

Credits:  Fabian Nicieza (writer), Jerry DeCaire (penciler), Joe Rubenstein (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Joe Rosen (letters)

Summary:  The surviving members of Freedom Force flee with Dr. Kurtzmann.  When Blob and Pyro are cornered, they decide to kill Dr. Kurtzmann to prevent Desert Sword from taking him.  Meanwhile, Crimson Commando and Avalanche are severely injured by landmines outside the Kuwait International Airport.

I Love the ‘90s:  I would say most of the members of Desert Sword are too politically incorrect to appear today, at least not without a few indignant internet editorials.

Review:  The dismantling of Freedom Force continues, and this time the tiny page count actively works against the story.  Because everything feels rushed, Pyro’s decision to kill Dr. Kurtzmann and the possible death of more Freedom Force members just lack any real drama.  And once Desert Sword exits the shadows and makes a real appearance, it’s obvious that most of these guys are Marvel Comics Presents material at best.  Jerry DeCaire’s art is very attractive, though, reminding me of Kerry Gammill’s work from this era.  Despite its flaws, this is still more entertaining than most annual backups.

The Origin of the X-Men

Credits:  Len Kaminski (writer), Ernie Stiner (penciler), Don Hudson (inker), Kevin Tinsley (colors), Joe Rosen (letters)

Summary:  Major Domo presents the history of the X-Men to Mojo.  Mojo refuses to believe it, however, telling him to do more research.

Review:  It’s another history lesson back-up.  There’s little here for anyone who already knows the history, but the Mojo angle thankfully isn’t used as an excuse for a thousand Hollywood references this time.  Ernie Stiner’s art is reminiscent of early Mike Mignola, which helps to alleviate some of the boredom.

The Enemy Within

Credits:  Len Kaminski (writer), Kirk Jarvinen (penciler), Brad Vancata (inks/colors), Mike Heisler (letters)

Summary:  In a nightmare, Wolverine is stalked by his adamantium skeleton.

Approved By The Comics Code Authority:  Wolverine is nude throughout the story, covered by tastefully placed shadows.

Review:  I’ve always liked this back-up, mainly due to Kirk Jarvinen’s art.  He’s the first non-Jim Lee artist that I thought could draw a Jim Lee-style Wolverine right.  The visual of an animated adamantium skeleton forcibly merging with Wolverine also creeped me out as a kid.  The story’s too short to really work as a psychological piece, but Kaminski gets the basic idea across.  Not a bad way to close out the annual at all.

UNCANNY X-MEN #277 - June 1991

Free Charley

Credits:  Chris Claremont (writer), Jim Lee (penciler), Scott Williams (inker), Joe Rosas (colors), Tom Orzechowski (letters)

Summary:  Gambit ambushes the Skrull-Starjammers while the X-Men attack their ship from the outside.  Meanwhile, Lila Cheney responds to the telepathic prompting in Deathbird’s head and teleports them to the Skrull’s secret location.  Deathbird is captured as the Skrull impersonating Xavier steals the telepathic powers of Xavier, Psylocke, and Oracle.  Lila teleports, then returns with the X-Men.  The Skrulls are defeated and Deathbird willingly gives up her crown to Lilandra.  Banshee informs Xavier of events on Earth, and after Xavier reads Storm’s memories, he realizes the Shadow King has returned.  Lila teleports the X-Men back to Earth.  Meanwhile, a Shadow King-possessed Colossus targets Stevie Hunter.

Continuity Notes:  

• The special breed of Skrulls impersonating the X-Men and Starjammers are called “War-Skrulls” for the first time.  They discorporate after being defeated, leaving no answers as to their mysterious origins.
• Xavier reveals that he’s been subconsciously influencing Deathbird since being captured, which explains how she knew to contact Lila Cheney, and then the X-Men, in the first place.
• However briefly, this issue marks the first time Xavier meets Forge, Jubilee, Psylocke, and Gambit.
• Another “sinister” Gambit hint:  He tells the Skrull-Starjammers that they can’t kill Banshee because he hasn’t learned Banshee's secrets yet.

We Get Letters:  The letters page announces the ongoing X-Men series for the first time.  The plan is for Chris Claremont to write both monthly titles.

Review:  This is Jim Lee’s final Uncanny X-Men issue, even though he’ll of course go on to do another year of X-Men issues.  It’s also the last Uncanny X-Men issue to feature Chris Claremont telling stories at his own pace without an inordinate amount of editorial influence.  The next issue begins the “Muir Island Saga,” which began life as a truncated version of a story arc Claremont intended to run until Uncanny X-Men #300.  Claremont probably wasn’t thrilled to see his long-term plans rushed to fit into a three-month crossover, or the idea of a more traditional X-Men with Xavier at the helm, but he seemed willing to stick around at the time.  He’s gone before “Muir Island Saga” is even finished, though, reportedly because he resented the idea that he could only script and not plot stories in the future.

Where does that leave this issue?  There don’t seem to be any obvious cracks beneath the surface, unless you count Xavier’s abrupt decision to return to Earth and take care of Shadow King.  As a reader, however, that scene’s kind of a welcome relief.  Rather than dragging the mystery out for even more months, Xavier’s given an opportunity to discover something’s wrong and then immediately declares he’s going to take action about it.  Remember how rarely we ever saw the X-Men aggressively deal with Mr. Sinister, the Marauders, Genosha, the Reavers, etc.  The X-Men aren’t really big on tying up loose ends, so it’s hard to complain about the team actually showing some gumption.  And the conclusion to the Skrull arc is also a lot of fun.  This issue has one of my favorite moments of this era, Gambit giving Gladiator “the whole deck” right into the gut (and notice that it's not "de whole deck"), so it’s hard for me not to get caught up in a little nostalgia.  Claremont also manages to give most of the characters something to do in the plot, and throw in little bits of dialogue that show he’s given some thought to everyone’s point of view (such as Xavier commenting that he doesn’t recognize most of these “X-Men”).  Lee and Williams’ art is also as dynamic as usual, and the colors still hold up fairly well, even if the book’s printed on terrible paper.  

UNCANNY X-MEN #276 - May 1991

Double Death

Credits:  Chris Claremont (writer), Jim Lee (penciler), Scott Williams (inker), Joe Rosas (colors), Patrick Brosseau (letters)

Summary:  Gambit and Jubilee stop Xavier from executing Deathbird, which attracts the attention of the remaining X-Men.  Xavier’s guards have already placed Gambit and Jubilee in custody before the X-Men arrive, but Wolverine discerns something’s wrong when he finds Jubilee’s earring on the ground.  He strikes and kills Xavier.  Psylocke incapacities Wolverine, while Lila Cheney teleports Deathbird and the rest of the X-Men away.  Lila takes them to the decimated planet of the P!ndyr, which Deathbird claims is just one of Xavier’s victims.  Soon, the team is attacked by the Starjammers.  Deathbird and Lila abruptly teleport away.  Meanwhile, Jubilee and Wolverine discover the real Xavier and Psylocke are the Skrulls’ captives.  A Skrull named Prime adopts Xavier’s identity and telepathically brings Lilandra under his control.  

Continuity Notes:  

• Gambit implies to Jubilee that he’s dressed as a hero so he feels obligated to play the part.  Another hint that he might not be as altruistic as he seems.  The Skrull-Xavier comments that Gambit's thoughts are “like quicksilver” and are difficult to pin down.
• This issue confirms that Xavier (or at least his Skrull impersonator) is the “Warlord” that Lila Cheney was running from months earlier.
• Gambit isn’t shown with Jubilee at the end, but his presence is hinted at earlier, as we see a mystery hand playing Solitaire onboard the Starjammer’s ship.
• Skrulls traditionally cannot take on the powers of the superhumans they impersonate.  The creators get around this by having the aliens use a giant macguffin device that allows them to absorb mutant powers into a matrix and imprint them on a special breed of Skrull (later identified as “War-Skrulls”).

Approved By The Comics Code Authority:  Both Wolverine and Jubilee are (tastefully) nude when they’re thrown into the Skrull’s matrix.

Review:  As you would expect from a Chris Claremont comic from this era, it’s a densely packed story filled with a few dozen characters, the team is split apart, there’s a little bit of mind control, and villains are masquerading as heroes.  It’s not a quick read, but the story absolutely maintained my interest as a child, and as an adult I’m able to appreciate it on a different level and pick up on little bits I never noticed before (like that mystery hand playing Solitaire, for instance.)  For a young reader not familiar with all of the cheats that a comic writer can employ, reading the opening half of this issue was a bizarre experience.  I had a strong suspicion that Xavier wouldn’t turn out to truly be a villain, but seeing Wolverine kill him, and then Psylocke turn on Wolverine and the X-Men team up with Deathbird just made this story feel like a very big deal indeed.  

All of the little character bits also helped to draw me into the world.  Maybe Gambit’s jokes are covering his true motives?  Is Jubilee right; has Psylocke been waiting to double-cross Wolverine all along?  Forge even gives a poetic soliloquy about the veneer of civilization and the horrors of war.  Like I’ve said before, I loved this stuff as a kid because I didn’t feel as if I was being spoken down to, and even if this chapter is largely devoted to getting the characters in place for the climax, it still feels like actual care was placed in crafting the story.  And even assuming that all of those words bored some kids, Jim Lee’s art had to get some kind of reaction out of them.  Not only are all of the characters beautifully rendered (to the point that every single female character vaguely resembles early ‘90s Cindy Crawford), but the spacecrafts, guns, and alien technology are very ambitious for a mainstream comic of the era.  Since the bulk of the audience had no idea Lee was drawing much of his inspiration from anime, that had to make this material even more impressive.