X-MAN #61 & #62, March-April 2000

 

Falling Forward

Credits:  Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mike Miller (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft’s Troy Peteri (letters)

Oh, no.  There really are two more issues of this run.  With a few months to kill, Terry Kavanagh has apparently decided to go high concept and just drop the reader into a story that has X-Man as the prisoner of a group of unnamed aliens.  Even though much of the issue is annoyingly vague, I have to acknowledge that this is more readable than the average issue of X-Man.  Mike Miller’s art is clean and attractive throughout the issue, and Kavanagh thankfully allows X-Man to be more than a brat this time.  Giving him amnesia, a haircut, and an entirely new environment helps.  The specific plot elements don’t add up to anything yet (the aliens apparently want slaves to dig holes for the sake of digging holes, X-Man’s telekinetic powers are now restricted to only direct physical contact, an alien baby is somehow important, a floating entity named Fuzz is helping him escape…), but as the opening chapter of the storyline, that’s forgivable.  

The Dark Side of the Sun

Credits:  Terry Kavanagh (writer), Ben Herrera (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft’s Troy Peteri (letters)

So, the baby rescued last issue turns out to be the sister of Urch, the alien that seems to control Fuzz and is helping X-Man escape.  (And Urch turns out to be a guh-guh-guh-girl.)  X-Man helps return the baby to Urch’s father, who is a thief kept in another chamber of the prison colony.  Eventually, Urch and X-Man make it to the surface, where X-Man realizes he’s on the Shi’ar homeworld.  This recalls issue #55, which had Shi’ar agents targeting X-Man because of his ties to the M’Kraan Crystal.  (X-Man’s connection to the M’Kraan Crystal goes all the way back to X-Men Omega, in case you’re wondering, although I don’t recall the specifics making a lot of sense.)  

Lilandra appears, eager to throw everyone back into the gulag, until X-Man uses his powers for more than just explosions and mentally shows her the pain the prison colony is inflicting on its inhabitants.  Lilandra has an abrupt change of heart, and X-Man and Urch are set free.  It’s possible the ending was meant to tie in with the “six months later” premise of the “Counter-X” revamp, as X-Man is sent on a tiny rocket ship home, a journey that just might take six months.  Of course, the opening of all of the “Counter-X” books assumed that a lot happened in the six month gap, so that makes X-Man’s time spent becoming a “mutant shaman” even more compressed if you think about just how long his ride home to Earth took.  Therefore, just assume he passed through one of those wormholes the Shi’ar are always using to get here quickly.

For connoisseurs of bad comics, Kavanagh’s final arc is a bit of a disappointment.  Yes, it does feature his trademark introduction of new characters that are poorly fleshed out (such as the mysterious Fuzz, and an alien ally that looks like Sleepwalker referred to as “a Darkle” that we’re supposed to believe will be important later), and there is some dubious plotting, like Lilandra instantly forgetting that X-Man is supposed to represent a severe threat to the entire universe.  Yet, the dialogue is actually tolerable, and the plot moves along at a steady pace.  Heck, even the basic premise of the arc isn’t so bad, and ultimately revealing the Shi’ar as the alien villains is a decent use of past continuity.  And, most surprising of all, X-Man remains a…well, not a good protagonist, but a noticeably-less-annoying one during the arc.  Where’s this guy been for the past five years?  A part of me wanted Kavanagh to go out with his wildest, sloppiest issues yet, but to his credit, he’s actually delivered two of the strongest issues of his run.

X-MAN #60 - February 2000

Out of the Loop
Credits:  Terry Kavanagh (writer), Ben Herrera (penciler), Scott Koblish and Rod Ramos (inkers), Matt Hicks (colors), Comicraft’s Jason Levine (letters)

Summary:  X-Man finds himself in an alternate world, one in which he never existed.  He sees foes he’s defeated, such as Morbius and the New Brotherhood, killing innocent civilians and various superheroes.  After using his telekinetic powers to save Kitty Pryde, X-Man realizes that he must be dreaming.  He wakes, and realizes that Caliban has been working for Apocalypse all along.  As X-Man is chained to a machine, Apocalypse gloats about his master plan.

Continuity Notes:  This story is concluded in X-Men #97.

“Huh?” Moment:  X-Man remarks that Scott and Jean aren’t with the X-Men in this world…one panel after we clearly see Jean fighting with the team.

Review:  Wow, is this really Terry Kavanagh’s last issue?  Where has the time gone, am I right?  I could’ve easily read four more years of this insightful, understated piece of classic heroic fiction.  C’mon, Marvel…why ditch the guy just when things were starting to warm up?

I considered compiling a list of every Terry Kavanagh storyline that was never resolved, or never made much sense in the first place, and all of the brave new directions that went nowhere, but why bother?  This stuff is awful.  Kavanagh never found a legitimate course to follow while writing this book for years, and to add insult to injury, his final issue is a half-hearted It’s A Wonderful Life reflection on all the good X-Man’s done over the years.  (Specifically, the issues Kavanagh has written.  I guess if Terry Kavanagh won’t pay tribute to Terry Kavanagh, no one else will.)  Goodness, without X-Man, Morbius would’ve turned Spider-Man into a vampire, the deadly Coldsnap-9 would’ve killed thousands of innocent people, and the X-Men would’ve been murdered by the New Brotherhood.  

In other words, X-Man is absolutely delusional.  And an egomaniac, since this is his dream.  What other superhero would have an extended dream sequence dedicated to how horrible life would be without his immaculate presence?  There’s not even a Clarence the Angel to guide him through this journey – this is simply how X-Man views himself in his dreams.  

What a way to say goodbye, Terry Kavanagh.  Reminding us just how unlikable you’ve made this brat over the years.

X-MAN #59 – January 2000

The Ties that Bond
Credits:  Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mike Miller (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters)

Summary:  X-Man spars against the Fantastic Four, and later submits to Mr. Fantastic’s scan, which will enable him to trace energy from the Age of Apocalypse.  Later, while bonding with Franklin Richards, a premonition leads X-Man to cut his visit short.  As he leaves the FF’s headquarters, he’s ambushed by Caliban, who now serves Apocalypse as Pestilence.  Caliban grabs X-Man and teleports away.

I Love the '90s: The Human Torch is singing Ricky Martin’s “La Vida Loca” while sharing a shower with X-Man.  If you’re looking for subtext, just remember this was written back in 1999.

Review:  I half-suspect Terry Kavanagh wrote this as a try-out for Fantastic Four.  The book was open following Claremont’s return to the X-Men, and Kavanagh had to know that he wouldn’t be on X-Man after the Counter-X relaunch, so it’s not a completely ridiculous theory.  Can you imagine what a fifty-issue run of a Terry Kavanagh Fantastic Four would be like?  

As horrific a thought that may be, Kavanagh actually does demonstrate some affection for the characters this issue.  None of the characterizations are deep, but everyone’s broadly in-character, and Kavanagh knows enough to at least pay a lot of lip service to the idea of family.  X-Man spends most of his downtime with the FF eating ice cream with five-year-old Franklin Richards, a character that just might be his intellectual rival.  They talk about how scary that mean ol’ Onslaught was, and reflect on how awesome psi-armor is.  Actual line of dialogue at the issue’s end:  “But you promised *snff* t’teach me how t’make *snff* *snff* psi-armor…”  “Next time, buddy.  There will be a next time, I swear…”

Seeing the bond between the team makes X-Man long for companionship, but he’s determined to begin yet another new direction in his life.  Now, he’s decided to track down all of the other escapees from the Age of Apocalypse in order to prevent them from somehow spoiling this virgin Earth (it seems to me that he should specifically target Apocalypse if that’s his goal, but whatever).  As X-Man explains to Mr. Fantastic:  “Took some trouble in Seattle to remind me o’ that, though.  Again.  Found an old friend and a new enemy, all in the same place…without even looking, guess that’s when I finally realized it’s time – it’s really time now – to start running after things, instead of away.”  So Kavanagh has X-Man acknowledge twice in one little speech that his life has been aimless – oh, for about fifty-nine issues now – and it’s time to do something about it.  

Kavanagh starts off this brave new direction by wasting the first half of this issue on a training sequence with the FF that’s unconvincingly played as a real fight, followed by numerous pages of X-Man chatting with the team, and then he gets attacked by Caliban on the final page and teleported away to participate in a crossover.  Yes, I’m convinced all of this title’s problems are solved now.

X-MAN #58 - December 1999

The Heart of Darkness

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mike Miller (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Summary: X-Man regains consciousness and rescues Threnody from an army of zombies. Taking her back to their old loft, X-Man learns that Threnody was almost killed by Madelyne Pryor, but revived by her powers when she was sent to the morgue. The dead are now attracted to her death energy and can no longer be controlled. After he saves her from another horde of zombies, Threnody reveals that she was only attracted to X-Man’s unique death energy and never truly loved him. She abandons him, then returns to her hiding place and cares for her baby.

Continuity Notes: A shadowy figure stalks X-Man throughout the issue, because this is X-Man and that’s what is supposed to happen every issue.

Review: Did Terry Kavanagh always intend to drag this Threnody mystery out over three-plus years, or did he know by this point that his time on X-Man was nearing its end? Regardless, this thing has stretched out over thirty-four issues, and it turns out Kavanagh still can’t bring himself to give us all of the answers. The issue opens with Threnody still pregnant, calling out to X-Man for help (even though the zombies surrounding her last issue weren’t bothering her at all). By the time he reaches her, she’s back to her normal unrealistic female comic book proportions. The story leads you to believe that maybe she’s absorbed too much “death energy” and is literally bloated from it at times, yet the issue ends with her returning home and picking up a baby. And, because this is Terry Kavanagh, we never actually see a baby, just the wrapped up blanket that may or may not contain a baby. This is what passes for a “big revelation” issue in X-Man. On the bright side…well…I guess Kavanagh actually tried to resolve something this issue, and Mike Miller’s zombies don’t look so bad. It’s X-Man, folks.

X-MAN #55-57, September-November 1999

Trouble on the Homefront

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mike Miller (penciler), Elmer, Koblish, & LaRosa (inks), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft’s Jason Levine (letters)

That cover has no real relevance to this issue, but I’m glad the editors were willing to let Andrew Robinson just go nuts during his short stint as cover artist. It’s certainly more interesting than anything that happens in the story.

X-Man’s Alaska trip continues, as he “bonds” with Cyclops in a clumsily written fishing scene. Trying to incorporate Cyclops and Phoenix into the book sounds fine in theory, but in practice it just emphasizes how vacant their relationship is. A few years earlier, Cable’s issues with Cyclops and Phoenix created a few memorable emotional scenes, while no one has ever seemed to care that much about X-Man’s relationship with his genetic parents. And every time we see Phoenix, it’s just a reminder that X-Man has the hots for her clone, which is something we all need to forget.

The action in the story comes from Modt and Jahf, the Shi’ar guardians of the M’Kraan Crystal. They’re on Earth to investigate the mysterious emergence of a portion of the Age of Apocalypse reality, which you might recall as the unexplained plot from the previous two issues. They target X-Man since a portion of that energy still surrounds him. Modt and Jahf disguise themselves as a critically injured father and son in order to test how X-Man will use his powers, and even though he uses them responsibly, Jahf is incensed when X-Man is able to see through their ruse. They of course fight for a few pages, but the battle ends when Modt decides that X-Man should be left alone. I actually admire Kavanagh’s ability to occasionally pull enemies like this out of nowhere, and it’s about time X-Man’s vague connection to the M’Kraan Crystal surfaced again, but this fight scene just drags on and its resolution is lame. (Why didn’t Modt stop the fight at the beginning?)

Finally, after having his costume destroyed, Cyclops offers X-Man the outfit he wore during the Walt Simonson days of X-Factor. I like the design, I’m glad someone thought to revive it, but it doesn’t look right on X-Man. Maybe it simply looks wrong without the cowl and visor, but for whatever reason, this is not a good fit. Marvel must realize this, because the color scheme is soon changed to darker colors, which does make the outfit more tolerable. Anyway, X-Man says goodbye, proclaiming that he’s got “a new look, new connections, and maybe…a whole new lease on life…” Yes, it’s time for X-Man’s annual “bold new direction!”

Greyville

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mike Miller (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inks), Mike Thomas (colors), Mark Bench (letters)

Oh, joy. It’s a “hero wakes up in fantasy world of his own making” storyline, this one set in the idyllic small town of Greyville. As tired as this premise is, I will say that Mike Miller’s art livens things up a bit. He apparently didn’t draw these issues as last minute fill-ins, which is normally how the X-office employed him, so we’re seeing a better representation of his skills. His renditions of Spider-Man and this arc’s “mystery foe” rival anything going on in the Spider-titles at the time.

Since X-Man doesn’t have much in the way of friends or a supporting cast, Kavanagh is forced to use Spider-Man, Threnody, Madelyne Pryor, Cable, and the AoA version of Forge to populate this “perfect world.” Hey, wasn’t that the title of an Amazing Spider-Man storyline from earlier in 1999? One that had Mysterio using his illusions on Spider-Man’s friends in an attempt to learn his secret ID? Hmm…anyway, the only segment of the story that doesn’t come across as filler is a brief scene that has a pregnant Threnody following X-Man’s trail. And Threnody, for some reason, now commands an army of zombies that rise from the sea, chanting her name. Yes, that makes perfect X-Man sense.

Behind the Curtain

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mike Miller (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inks), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft’s Troy Peteri (letters)

X-Man targets the Purple Man as the creator of the Greytown illusion, but soon learns that this is another fantasy. Eventually, Mysterio makes his presence known, revealing that he spotted X-Man at a carnival a few days earlier and has been using his illusion powers ever since to manipulate X-Man into committing crimes (and search his fantasies for Spider-Man’s secret ID, which he still refuses to reveal). Since X-Man is one of the few telepaths who hasn’t regained his or her telepathy following “Psi-War,” Kavanagh’s actually using the current continuity to his advantage, because it’s highly implausible that the strongest telepath on Earth could’ve been duped by Mysterio under normal circumstances.

And in case anyone cares, Mysterio is exhibiting new mind-control and hypnosis powers that he claims have been lost to mankind for over a millennium. I’m assuming this was thrown in to justify how Mysterio survived his suicide in Daredevil a few months before appearing in Amazing Spider-Man, which had him dismissing his suicide as a prank. Don’t worry about it, guys. The Spider-office has a nonsensical miniseries in the works that will bravely answer none of those questions.

The story ends with X-Man trapping Mysterio in his own illusion, a signal that his telepathy has conveniently returned. The exertion knocks him out, however, leaving him prey to Threnody and her army of the walking dead. Considering this title’s track record, though, I wouldn’t be surprised if the next issue opened with X-Man leading the Avengers on an attack against the Badoon, or aiding Speedball in his deadly battle against Count Plaqula.

X-MAN #53 & #54, July-August 1999

In Cold Blood

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (plot), Luke Ross (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Kevin Tinsley & Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft (letters)

That’s a nice cover, even though Cyclops and Phoenix don’t wear those costumes in the issue. As far as we can tell, they’re wearing their ‘90s outfits underneath heavy hiking gear. Another oddity: Terry Kavanagh is only credited with “Plot” this issue, and his credit looks like it was pasted in after the others were written. (“Plot” appears inside a white box, lettered in a different font than the other credits.) If someone else scripted this issue, he or she doesn’t have a noticeable style, although this seems less verbose than the typical Kavanagh issue. Finally, if anyone wants to make any jokes unfavorably comparing Terry Kavanagh to Truman Capote, go right ahead. Now, on to the issue…

The story opens with X-Man having a nightmare about the Age of Apocalypse, something we’re now told is a common occurrence. When he awakens, we discover he’s hiking an Alaskan mountain with Cyclops and Phoenix. A dream led him here, and his biological parents are helping him out presumably because they live close by. On the mountaintop they discover a pile of dead bodies, bizarrely merged into the rocks, along with an army of Infinite soldiers from the Age of Apocalypse. One of the human rebels’ Atlantic Sea Walls has also merged into the mountain, and its “mutant nullification grid” is inhibiting the heroes’ powers. As they attempt to dismantle it, they’re trailed by the mysterious cyborg Hatchet-9.

Apparently, I’ve stumbled upon the random issue of X-Man that isn’t bad at all. These tend to be the opening chapters of arcs that ultimately disappoint, though, so who knows what’s coming next. If an X-Man series had to exist, this should’ve been the direction it followed. It’s stupid to ignore his connection to Cyclops and Phoenix and his origins in the incredibly popular Age of Apocalypse. The abrupt opening also works as a pleasant surprise, although it does mean that the fifteen or so ongoing storylines Kavanagh still needs to get back to are on the backburner once again.

A Little Piece of Home

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Luke Ross (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mark Bernardo (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters)

Oh, never mind. This is terrible. Apparently the Atlantic Sea Wall from the previous issue is also housing an Infinite soldier cloning plant for Apocalypse, even though the Sea Walls are supposed to be the human rebels’ base (explaining the “mutant nullification grid” which is still a plot point this issue). Hatchet-9 makes his move against Phoenix, but Cyclops and X-Man arrive just in time for a rescue. She then returns the favor and helps them defeat the Infinite soldiers. And that’s essentially the extent of the drama in this issue.

Hatchet-9 is revealed as a human who joined Apocalypse’s cause by agreeing to become a cyborg, but I’m not sure how he’s supposed to be different from any of the Infinite soldiers, since they have the same origin. Outside of his unusual design, I have no idea why the creators felt he was worth using.

Because every X-Man story still needs a giant explosion, Kavanagh fulfills this issue’s quota by destroying the entire mountain after the Seawall implodes into itself. X-Man passes out, has a vision of the AoA Forge and Siryn, then wakes up in our reality. The baffling final panel is supposed to show X-Man and his parents standing on top of a mountain ledge, but inexplicably has them facing several miles of flat land. Luke Ross is a perfectly competent artist by this point, so I don’t know what happened here. Phoenix abruptly screams, “The ride’s not over yet!” for some reason, perhaps because they’re going to be hiking down that imaginary cliff, and that’s the story’s conclusion. Nothing resolved, no coherent hints at a future explanation. Typical X-Man.

X-MAN #51 & #52 - May & June 1999

Uninvited Guests

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mel Rubi (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft’s Jason & Troy (letters)

Ignoring the previous issue’s cliffhanger, the story opens with X-Man and Madelyne spending a weekend in the giant New York apartment he used to squat in (why doesn’t this owner ever return?). Nate mentally checks on the book’s forgotten supporting cast members and decides they don’t need him anymore, which is perhaps the greatest act of mercy he’s committed in this series so far. Another vague subplot is introduced, as a mystery woman -- wearing giant skulls as accessories -- is furious that Nate’s returned to “our” home with “my murderer.” I assume this is Threnody, but Mel Rubi’s females are so generic she could just as easily be a doppelganger for Madelyne.

Unaware of the shadowy woman, Nate teleports back to Ireland with Madelyne, where we finally pick up where the previous issue left off. The new friends Nate’s made at the inn are under attack by Strikesquad: Gauntlet, who have finally made their move after countless teases by Kavanagh. What follows is a messy fight scene that consists of X-Man and Gauntlet apparently destroying the same building over and over again, interspersed with wretched dialogue that alternates between stiff faux-military jargon and embarrassing slang (“An’ the phat ladies ain’t sung yet!”).

Apparently, even the people working on this comic can’t follow what’s happening -- a lettering mistake confuses long-haired white guy Ness with bald black guy Scanlon. This is a tight, single-panel close-up that leaves Scanlon’s face and bald head very visible. Do we need more evidence that Marvel was paying no attention to this book? Anyway, the shocking revelation at the issue’s end is that Gauntlet is a “multi-national, pan-governmental agency.” Um, yeah…so? What else were we supposed to assume about them?

All Fall Down

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Luke Ross (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft’s Jason & Troy (letters)

Luke Ross thankfully returns as artist this issue, but the fight scenes remain a chaotic mess. It’s hard to decipher what exactly is happening, but apparently Scanlon is murdered by a rogue Gauntlet member named Vise, who’s working for a mysterious doctor that’s the true power within Gauntlet. The murder moves the loyal Fontaine over to X-Man’s side. They team up and destroy Gauntlet’s ship, which crashes to Earth and apparently kills Vise and Ness. Ness, up until that second, had wasted his time defending a hole in the ground he thought contained Madelyne. It turns out that she teleported away and didn’t bother to tell him, which apparently ties in with her plot to kill him from issue #50. When Maddie sneaks away, she’s apparently aged fifty years after overexerting herself in the battle.

Later, X-Man and Fontaine appear over the devastated city of Dublin. The innkeepers X-Man considered friends yell at him for destroying their city, which leads to him screaming in frustration and apparently (there’s that word again) killing himself and Fontaine in a flash of light. Finally, more idiocy, as Threnody emerges from the shadows of X-Man’s New York apartment. Since the previous issue, she’s changed outfits again, and is now six months pregnant. So, in summary, more nonsense.

X-MAN #50 - April 1999

War of the Mutants Part Two: New Blood

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Luke Ross (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters)

Summary: X-Man confronts Emma, who promises to lead him to Dark Beast if he helps her rescue Generation X. She telepathically traces the team to the New York sewers, where they’re soon confronted by Dark Beast’s new band of villains. Emma slips out of the battle to face Dark Beast, as X-Man and Gaia free Generation X. Gaia discovers a Brood egg, spoiling Dark Beast’s scheme to infect Gen X with the aliens. Dark Beast is revealed as a hologram and disappears. Emma telepathically feeds X-Man information scanned from his monitors, which she says will lead him to Dark Beast. Madelyne Pryor arrives and teleports X-Man away to Ireland, unaware that the Gauntlet is hiding outside of their inn.

Continuity Notes:

• Madelyne is apparently trying to kill Ness, according to a brief subplot scene (check out the original art from this page here).
• Gaia is suddenly wearing her Generation X uniform, even though the previous installment ended with her in normal clothes.
• Dark Beast remarks that Emma performed “work” on his head when he arrived confused and disoriented on this world.That doesn’t make sense, given that they met in Generation X #-1, set ten years ago when Emma was sixteen.Dark Beast actually arrived in this world twenty years ago, according to X-Men Omega.
• X-Man seems to believe Fever Pitch is our reality’s version of Holocaust/Nemesis.(If that’s the case, who was the Holocaust Stryfe wrote of in Stryfe’s Strike File?)
• As for the rest of Dark Beast’s squad, the new members introduced this issue include Wynter (who’s being mentally controlled by Dark Beast), Obsidian the Dark, Integer, and Iron Maiden.

“Huh?” Moment: Emma tracks Dark Beast -- who, again, is mentally controlling one of his flunkies -- to his hidden lair with his psi-print. The same Dark Beast that’s revealed as a hologram just ten pages later. The story dismisses Emma’s ability to grab him by explaining that this is a “hard light” hologram…but how could hard light create thought patterns?

I Love the '90s: Emma instructs a nosey human student at the school to go watch The X-Files.

Review: This was the “War of the Mutants”?!? Wow...
So, after reviving the Emma Frost/Dark Beast mystery as the thread to tie this crossover together, what do we learn? That Emma helped repair Dark Beast’s mind after he arrived on this earth. (Never mind that the timeline doesn’t work, and none of the other AoA refugees were shown as severely mentally damaged following their arrival on this reality.) That’s the big reveal? Actually, is this even a reveal at all? Wasn’t this covered by the Generation X Flashback issue? If nothing new was supposed to be revealed, what was the point of this?

It certainly wasn’t to tease the idea of X-Man joining Generation X, since no character in the story ever seems to take the prospect seriously. It wasn’t to have X-Man team up with Generation X, since they barely appear in this issue, and are comatose for most of their brief appearance. If the story was supposed to be about the Dark Beast infecting Generation X with the Brood, that idea’s dismissed in the course of two panels. So, what’s left…the introduction of a new team for Dark Beast (who, perhaps, are still supposed to be called Gene Nation, even though the name never appears in the story)? That’s doubtful…Kavanagh doesn’t even seem slightly interested in the new characters. Even the revelation that Fever Pitch is potentially the once-popular AoA character Holocaust is treated as an afterthought. What we’re left with is a pointless crossover with a melodramatic, yet slightly generic, title that should’ve been saved for a higher-profile event. Or maybe a video game.

GENERATION X #50 - April 1999

War of the Mutants Part One: Divided We Fall

Credits: Jay Faerber (writer), Terry Dodson (penciler), Rachel Dodson (inker), John Kalisz (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Summary: As the school is opened to human students, Dark Beast and his minions spy on Gen X. When Emma Frost sees footage of X-Man on television, she telepathically reaches out to him. He senses her presence and discerns that Emma has a past with the Dark Beast. Meanwhile, Banshee sees surveillance footage of a helicopter abducting a student and races after him. In town, Gen X is attacked by the Dark Beast’s men. Gaia reaches Emma for help, but they’re suddenly interrupted by X-Man. Finally, Banshee tracks the helicopter to Vermont, where he's attacked by a large man.

Continuity Notes: The Dark Beast comments that he’s hidden in the sewers for decades to avoid being mistaken for this reality’s Hank McCoy. That’s irreconcilable with his earlier appearances, which audaciously claimed that he never even considered this reality had a Hank McCoy.

Emma’s sister Adrienne remarks that it’s good the school has changed its name back to “The Massachusetts Academy” given the public’s mistrust of Professor Xavier following the Onslaught event. That implies that the general public is aware that Xavier was Onslaught, which doesn’t work with continuity. At this point, even his identity as a mutant was still a secret.

Banshee is on the phone with a mystery man (?) who he’s recruiting as the school’s new gym teacher.

Dark Beast’s flunkies consist of new characters Membrain and Fever Pitch, along with a few leftover Gene Nation members, Hemingway and Vessel (whose names don’t seem to appear in this issue, which is annoying given how obscure these villains are).

Review: Generation X #1 and X-Man #1 didn’t debut in the same month, but due to the “Age of Apocalypse” storyline suspending Generation X for four months and X-Man continuing after the AoA stunt ended, they’ve run concurrent issue numbers since #5. No one thought to unite them for their twenty-fifth issues, but aren’t we lucky that someone’s decided to do a crossover during their fiftieth issues. (Of course, just two years later, they’ll reach cancellation together with their seventy-fifth issues. And the world is saved from gratuitous X-spinoffs forever…)

There is one obvious connection between X-Man and Generation X that hasn’t been explored yet, and that’s the teen angle. If Generation X is supposed to be training the next generation of mutants, and X-Man is a teenage mutant, the most powerful in the world, it makes sense to exploit that for one story. Another link would be Emma Frost’s past with X-Man’s arch-nemesis (whenever he bothers to remember X-Man), the Dark Beast. The exact nature of their relationship hasn’t been revealed at this point, even though Scott Lobdell hinted at their shared past early in Generation X’s run, and James Robinson detailed their first meeting in Generation X #-1.

I’m not sure if Jay Faerber was eager to participate in a crossover so early in his run, but he still works in a few decent ideas. Integrating the school with a new human student body opens the door to numerous story possibilities, making me wonder a) why no one’s done it before and b) why the concept was dismissed so quickly after Faerber’s exit. I’ll never understand the attitude that the X-teams shouldn’t be interacting with normal people. Isn’t this the entire point -- to train mutants to use their powers responsibly and be able to enter mainstream society? These titles have to be grounded in reality in order to work, so making the school a literal school and giving the team dozens of potential supporting cast members to interact with makes perfect sense.

Unfortunately, there’s no room to flesh out any of the new students this issue, but Faerber does find the space to split the team up into small groups and work in some characterization scenes. Husk is still angry at Chamber for brushing her off. Chamber doesn’t want to share the school with humans. Skin isn’t willing to believe all humans are bigots. M wants a tattoo to symbolize her ownership of her body. Synch is apparently the object of affection for M, Gaia, and Jubilee. Thankfully, the crossover material is simply used to justify the fight scenes, making this read like a standard Generation X issue that just happens to be concluded in X-Man.

X-MAN #48 & #49, February-March 1999

The Blood of the Righteous

Credits: Mark Bernardo (writer), Luke Ross (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Mark Bernardo returns for another fill-in, and he’s brought along one more obscure villain from the ‘80s. This time it’s the Crusader, a villain who’s only claim to fame is offending Pat Robertson, who happened to come across his debut in Thor. While the art is an improvement over Luke Ross’ ‘90s Spider-Man work, the story is a great disappointment when compared to Bernardo’s previous fill-in. The Crusader wants to kill the famous faith healer X-Man, X-Man meets a suicidal aspiring singer, and of course the two threads meet at the end. After X-Man saves her life during the battle, the singer’s inspired not to kill herself (< cheap shot > reading all of these X-Man comics has the opposite effect on me < /cheap shot >). The Crusader realizes the error of his ways and returns to his monastery after X-Man’s telekinetic hand wave destroys his mystic armor. The end. Twenty-three pages filled.

Skyfall

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Luke Ross (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft (letters)

It looks like Kavanagh has an issue to waste before next month’s Generation X crossover, so we’re treated to another flagrant time-killing one-off. X-Man discovers an alien craft crashing onto Earth, and wouldn’t you know it, the alien that emerges is a beautiful female he instantly falls in love with. Her name is Sylph, which in a massive coincidence is also an English word that means “slight and graceful female” or “an elemental soulless female being imagined to inhabit the air.” He protects her from her fellow aliens, which don ant-shaped bionic armor while hunting her for some reason.

After a brief fight scene, X-Man discovers that Sylph is a wanted criminal in her world. Specifically, she’s a doctor who killed thousands of her patients while experimenting on them. Her defense is that she was trying to stop a plague and her patients were dying anyway. X-Man claims that he doesn’t care about her rationalizations and won’t stand in the way of justice. Yet, in the very next panel, he declares that he won’t abandon her either. I have no idea what’s supposed to be happening in the next scene, but apparently he’s…going with her to join her punishment in the slave camps? Wha…? Luckily for all of us, his first glimpse of the camps shocks him so much he inadvertently lets go of Sylph’s hand, which causes him to instantly teleport back to Earth. (All of those events occur off-panel, by the way. X-Man has to explain what happened during his one-panel disappearance in a lengthy monologue.)

So, what did we learn today? The only woman X-Man finds more attractive than his mother is a genocidal maniac, and Terry Kavanagh is becoming progressively unglued. Seriously, was anyone at Marvel paying attention to this book by 1999? How on Earth did this thing get published?

X-MAN #47 - January 1999

Blood Brothers Part Three - Dreams End

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), J. H. Williams III (penciler), Mick Gray (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Summary: Madelyne joins Stryfe’s side, prompting Cable to grab X-Man and escape the pyramid. X-Man impulsively rushes back into Stryfe’s headquarters, forcing Madelyne to blow her cover and defend him. Stryfe responds by siphoning Madelyne’s psychic energy, nearly killing her, until Cable arrives and telekinetically holds her body together. Ness finally makes his way to the pyramid and urges X-Man not to live out the apocalyptic vision they shared. Rather than continue his dangerous telekinetic fight with Stryfe, X-Man attaches the power-siphon to Stryfe and leaves it on a feedback loop until it explodes. With the world saved, Cable and X-Man begin to grow closer.

Continuity Notes: X-Man’s telepathy is gone, although the previous issue strongly hinted that it returned after his encounter with Psynapse. He does receive one new power this issue, as he can now use telekinesis to shift his molecules and phase like Shadowcat. Also, a narrative caption describes Ness as a “recent exile of the long-hidden race known as Hellbent, last of the Night-Tribes, according to legend unspoken -- reduced to a single, secret Nest now -- people of the shadows, one and all.” Doesn’t that clear everything up?

I Love the ‘90s: X-Man’s costume now consists of the long, baggy shorts you might remember from the days of Korn and Limp Bizkit.

Review: So “Blood Brothers” ends, not with a horrific, population-clearing bang, but with a tiny whimper. Just as I’m unconvinced that the Techno-Gnomes were always a part of this storyline, I doubt the vision of X-Man killing half the planet from issue #39 was originally meant to play a role in the crossover. The details just don’t fit, down to the armor worn by X-Man’s opponent (it vaguely resembles Stryfe’s outfit, but is far from a match), to the design of the pyramid, to the clothes Ness wore in the vision. Plus, X-Man had long hair in the vision, which he only grew right before this arc began. The story has to stretch to make the connections work, such as X-Man’s realization that Cable’s arm resembles the armor worn by the man in his vision (not quite, it appears that he had metal arms underneath the gold and purple armor), and then dismisses all of the elements that don’t fit. There’s certainly no talk of reviving “the sleeper” a.k.a. “the world ender” a.k.a. character-probably-meant-to-be-Apocalypse, which is what the fight in #39 is all about. It reads as if Kavanagh had one of those epic-yet-vague plans for a future storyline, but later decided to cram them into an editorially mandated Cable crossover in order to give the story some significance. The vision material never worked anyway, because no one could possibly believe the comic’s ever going to have X-Man destroy half of the planet. Marvel can’t even keep Morlocks in the ground.

The strength of this storyline came from the pairing of the characters, which is where the final chapter falls short. Jean Grey and the Dark Riders have disappeared in-between chapters, Stryfe is a ranting loon like always, only now less entertaining, Madelyne makes an unconvincing turn to the dark side again, and Cable and X-Man spend most of the issue in a fight scene. This started as a promising examination of the Summers bloodline and all of the insanity it’s attracted, but ends with a bland fight scene. And, how exactly is Stryfe alive again…?

CABLE #63 - January 1999

Blood Brothers Part Two - Illusion of Doom

Credits: Joe Casey (writer), Stephen Platt w/Andy Smith (pencilers), Matt Banning w/Rodney Ramos (inker), Gloria Vasquez (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters)

Summary: Cable returns to the diner and reveals to Stacey that he’s a mutant. They talk, and Stacey promises Cable that she can handle his life. Cable returns home to rest and is greeted by Blaquesmith, who sends him on a mission to Latveria to stop Stryfe. Cable arrives, saving Madelyne from a mob and fighting Doombots until he meets Stryfe. Cable tries to rescue X-Man, but is soon defeated by Stryfe. Meanwhile, Irene is hired by the Daily Bugle and Ness meets with Blaquesmith in Tramahoi.

Continuity Notes: X-Man was nude when last seen as Stryfe’s prisoner. Now, he’s wearing the traditional superhero outfit (the one with a giant “X” on his chest) that he’ll later adopt in his regular series.

Review: This advances the plot of “Blood Brothers” by a mere four pages or so, but it does work as a continuation of Casey’s ongoing storylines. Following his near-death at the hands of SHIELD, Cable’s reevaluated his life and decided not to keep secrets from the people he cares about, which now includes Stacey. Casey still isn’t moving them into a romance, but he is building up their friendship in a believable way. Giving Cable a normal person to interact with is a reasonable idea, and using the events of the previous arc as the impetus for Cable to open up to her makes sense.

The story then moves into crossover territory, as Casey addresses what exactly Cable was doing before he abruptly dropped into the previous issue of X-Man. Casey pays some lip service towards Cable’s feelings about Stryfe’s resurrection, and his strained relationship with his mother Madelyne, but doesn’t get a lot of material out of the scenario. This is mostly about the fighting, and getting Cable in place for the final chapter of the story. It’s not as interesting as the first half of the issue, and it goes without saying that Stephen Platt isn’t anywhere near J. H. Williams’ level, making this an odd-looking crossover.

X-MAN #46 - Late December 1998

Blood Brothers Part One - Stormfront

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), J. H. Williams III (penciler), Mick Gray (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Summary: The pyramid that’s crashed into Latveria opens up, revealing Stryfe and the Dark Riders. X-Man discerns that Jean Grey is also a target, so he convinces Madelyne to teleport to America and protect her. As X-Man battles the Dark Riders, his full telepathic awareness is awakened by Psynapse. His mind touches Stryfe’s and he senses their connection. Stryfe captures X-Man and attempts to use one of Dr. Doom’s inventions to drain his power. Meanwhile, Madelyne rescues Jean Grey from the remaining Dark Riders, then teleports back to Latveria. She’s targeted by a mob, but rescued by Cable, who’s responded to Blaquesmith’s call. Elsewhere, Ness arrives in Tramahoi.

Continuity Notes: There’s no explanation yet for Stryfe’s return, but apparently being in Hell enabled him to avoid losing his telepathic powers. How exactly Psynapse retained his is unclear. The pyramid Stryfe arrives in is allegedly the same one X-Man saw in his apocalyptic vision.

Review: J. H. Williams III drew X-Man? That’s certainly a step up from the past few issues. Although this doesn’t look as good as Williams’ current work, or even his ’95 Wolverine annual, it’s still a nice job. His Stryfe looks particularly great. And why exactly is Stryfe in this comic? Since he’s genetically the same person as X-Man, it makes sense for the two to meet, but it would be nice to have some explanation for his resurrection. I seem to recall people ridiculing the dismissive justification for his return when this arc was published, so I’m not looking forward to the details. The idea that he would attack while Earth’s telepaths are at their weakest makes sense, though, and it manages to get some mileage out of “Psi-War.” I also confess to some fondness for the original Dark Riders, so I don’t mind seeing them again. I also received some nostalgic enjoyment from Madelyne Pryor’s solo mission, which had her recounting all of the reasons she hates Cyclops and Jean, yet still doing the right thing. The prelude issue for this crossover was weak, but the first official chapter definitely has its moments. Ignoring Stryfe’s abrupt resurrection, there’s a lot to like about the premise of this storyline, assuming you’re not afraid of certain areas of X-continuity. I just wonder why a story involving Cable, X-Man, Stryfe, Jean Grey, and Madelyne Pryor was so thoroughly ignored by the main X-titles.

X-MAN#45 - December 1998

Crossing Borders

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Mark Pajarillo (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Comicraft (letters), Mike Thomas (colors)

Summary: X-Man has another vision that shows him accidentally destroying the Earth. He awakens to discover a Techno-Gnome inserting the dream into his mind. After destroying the gnome, Madelyne teleports him to the location he sensed in his dream, the island of Tramahoi in the Philippines. After facing more Techno-Gnomes, X-Man discovers their creator, Blaquesmith. Blaquesmith tells X-Man and Madelyne that “he” has returned. They’re transported to Latveria, where they witness a pyramid falling out of the sky. Meanwhile, Slaine examines the remains of a Techno-Gnome for Ness. Suddenly, they’re attacked by Manx and the Shadow-Sisters. Following Slaine’s dying request, Ness doesn’t pursue the fight, but instead travels to Tramahoi.

Continuity Notes: Ness and Slaine are apparently members of a group called the Hellbent. Manx and the Shadow-Sisters consider them traitors, but no more information is given on their rivalry.

Production Note: Alan Davis receives a “special thanks” credit. He apparently drew the final page of the story, unless Mark Pajarillo radically changed his art style for the sake of one page.

Review: This is the prelude to “Blood Brothers,” a crossover between X-Man and Cable that consumes three issues of X-Man and only one issue of Cable. I can’t imagine anyone really wanted to participate in this, but Marvel still felt the need to connect Cable and X-Man periodically during this era, so this is what we’re stuck with. I doubt Kavanagh always intended Blaquesmith to be the mastermind behind the Techno-Gnomes when they were introduced several issues ago, but given the vague nature of the storyline so far, it’s impossible to tell where any of this was originally going. We’re now supposed to believe that Blaquesmith used the robots to “test” X-Man in preparation for this fight, and that no one was really in danger so long as Blaquesmith controlled the gnomes, which is a copout if nothing else. Given Blaquesmith’s previous appearances, this doesn’t sound like something he would do; but then again, Blaquesmith is still something of a cipher, so I guess it’s possible.

What’s really frustrating about the issue is the introduction of yet another shadowy mutant (?) group. We still have no idea who (Wit)Ness is, his new friend from last issue, Slaine, hasn’t been fleshed out, and now we’re exposed to Manx and the Shadow-Sisters -- a werewolf and two robed bald girls. Maybe they’re also “the Hellbent,” maybe they represent another organization, maybe Ness burned them on a coke deal…who knows, who cares. The amount of random crap Kavanagh throws against the wall in each issue of this book is staggering. I just can’t wait until the secret origin of the Gauntlet is revealed…and the doctor with X-Man’s powers returns…and the Hellfire Club makes its move…and Threnody makes her epic comeback…

X-MAN & THE INCREDIBLE HULK ‘98 - August 1998

Call of the Wild

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), ChrisCross (penciler), Caesar, Keith Williams, & Hector Collazo (inks), Comicraft (letters), Mark Bernardo (colors)

Summary: Still enraged after the death of Betty Banner, the Hulk tears through the Southwest until he reaches the Grand Canyon. Simultaneously, X-Man reaches Stonehenge while touring Europe. Both hear messages from Thanos, who is trapped in another dimension. X-Man uses his telekinesis to reach through the dimensional gap and strike Thanos. Hulk, who’s considering Thanos’ partnership offer, jumps through the dimensional breach and attacks X-Man. When Hulk realizes that Thanos always intended to double-cross him, he joins forces with X-Man. United, the heroes send Thanos back to his shadow dimension and return home.

Review: Another forgotten team-up annual, this one pairs the post-Peter David/killing-time-until-the-John Byrne-relaunch Hulk with…X-Man. Sure, why not? Before Kavanagh gets to the plot, he spends several pages establishing the respective status quos of the heroes, which is rare for an annual, since scheduling demands usually force them to use “light” continuity. As Kavanagh is the regular writer of X-Man, and Incredible Hulk is stuck in filler mode, this story doesn’t have to take place in a generic “recent past,” because Kavanagh has a pretty good idea of what will be going on when the issue is released.

Kavanagh doesn’t give the Hulk a lot to do -- he talks to Rick and Marlo, gets mad when he thinks about Betty, then jumps around for a few pages -- but in one poignant scene, Kavanagh does toss out the idea that the Hulk is starting to forget Betty’s face. This isn’t the dumb, childlike Hulk who might forget those details, this is the Hulk who…well, no one seemed to know how to define the Hulk after Betty’s death. He appears to be the surly, angry Hulk of the early issues, with Banner’s intellect perhaps subdued by the rage he feels following Betty’s death. However, he’s still able to make jokes, which isn’t indicative of someone blinded by anger. (I don’t think Hulk’s state of mind is conclusively dealt with until Paul Jenkins’ run, over a year later.) X-Man, meanwhile, is bumming around Europe, dealing with the loss of his telepathic powers. These scenes are surprisingly readable, considering how poorly the idea was conveyed in the monthly series. Instead of throwing X-Man into pointless fight scenes, Kavanagh spends some time exploring how X-Man gets around Europe without his usual tricks -- instantly translating everyone’s speech and telepathically sneaking his way past the border guards. He also has to wonder now if everyone’s secretly laughing at his hair.

When the story really begins, we’re expected to believe the Hulk is willing to join forces with Thanos in order to gain control of the vague “power” that’s being offered to him. Presumably, he wants to use this power to revive Betty, which would work as an understandable motivation. The story never explicitly says this is his goal, though, and based solely on Thanos’ spiel, it could be interpreted that Hulk is joining him on a “rule the world” quest. Either way, the Hulk looks foolish for siding with him. When X-Man senses Thanos’ evil, he’s adamant that the Hulk can’t join him, which leads to the obligatory hero vs. hero fight. This lasts until the Hulk realizes that Thanos was using him all along (!!!!), the heroes team up, and the bad guy is defeated. No surprises there, but ChrisCross’ kinetic art suits the fight scenes perfectly, and I have to admit that I like the sheer ridiculousness of X-Man creating “psionic armor” for the Hulk during the final battle. Clearly, this isn’t profound, but it works as a “big fight” comic, and the artist is perfectly suited for the material.

X-MAN #43-#44, October-November 1998

Inside Out

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Roger Cruz (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Comicraft (letters), Mark Bernardo (colors)

A killer stalks Dublin, as X-Man sleeps off his exhaustive act of heroism from the previous issue. Apparently, there’s no deep drama attached to his abrupt disappearance at the end of the last issue; Nate passed out and a mystery girl took him to a hotel (instead of a hospital) for some rest. Madelyne Pryor finally locates him, even though she doesn’t have telepathic powers at this point either, and declares he should be more “proactive.” She takes him into Dublin to investigate the murders. Since this is 1998 and apparently every freelancer is still obsessed with The X-Files, they have to do it as Scully and Mulder. Two problems with this -- Roger Cruz can’t draw likenesses at this point, and the characters just spent several pages discussing the loss of the telepathic powers that allow them to create these kinds of illusions.

Want more nonsense? X-Man senses the presence of “Age of Apocalypse radiation” at a murder scene, explodes with anger, and then flies into space with the Phoenix avatar wrapped around his body. If the idea is that Madelyne is supposed to be flying behind him, that’s not conveyed by the art at all (and she hasn’t been wielding the Phoenix Force, anyway). The story honestly reads as if X-Man has abruptly gained the Phoenix Force for absolutely no reason, and it magically disappears on the very next page. Also, reality warps created by time-traveling mutants leave behind radiation, it seems. That means X-Man hasn’t merely been annoying people since 1995, he’s been giving them cancer. Anyway, Madelyne tries to calm Nate down by giving him another open-mouth kiss, which leaves a giant smile on the kid’s face. Hooray, incest!

The insanity abates a bit, as X-Man and Maddie return to Earth and trace that unique AoA radiation. The other radiation spikes are in New York and Genosha, homes of the Dark Beast and Sugar Man respectively, leading Nate to believe Nemesis is the killer in Dublin. This is a decent use of misdirection, as we learn on the final page that a fiery duplicate of X-Man is the “true” killer. He’s chosen a girl’s dormitory to attack, which I’m sure isn’t going to tempt Cruz into any gratuitous cheesecake. Meanwhile, Ness is still stalking X-Man, and a shadowy figure speaks to a mechanical spider, which apparently ties in with the earthquake-creating “techno-gnome” from the previous issue. X-Man -- The Best Subplots in Town.

Nowhere to Hide...

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Roger Cruz (penciler), Bud LaRosa (inker), Comicraft (letters), Mike Thomas (colors)

Kavanagh goes for the double fake-out, revealing that the X-Man doppelganger really is Nemesis. He’s used his armor’s shape-changing abilities to pose as X-Man, for some reason, and steal the life force of the locals. Madelyne suddenly declares that their interest in the murders is over, now that Nate’s cleared himself, and teleports them away. I know that we’re still not entirely sure what this version of Madelyne is even supposed to be, but it bothers me that Kavanagh has casually given her teleportation powers. Even if she is a mere psychic projection, as Jeph Loeb originally hypothesized, that doesn’t mean she could just take someone along with her while jaunting. And if she is a creation of X-Man’s telepathic powers, shouldn’t she have disappeared after “Psi-War?”

Not only does Madelyne have a nonsensical origin and power set, but her characterization is still all over the place. Last issue, Madelyne was the one pushing X-Man to be less passive and stop the murders, and now she’s adamant that they give up. He refuses, and they return for a big fight scene that’s just as vague and illogical as anything else in this series. Using their combined telekinetic powers, they destroy Nemesis’ armor, which causes his “bio-energies” to explode. Somehow, the human form of Nemesis survives the explosion and plots a trip to New York, hoping the Dark Beast will build him new armor. His energy form also survived apparently, and it continues to kill innocents in Dublin. Or, perhaps, this is a dream belonging to Madelyne, who seems to have absorbed some of Nemesis’ “bio-energy.” It’s impossible to tell if the story’s intentionally cryptic, or just poorly executed.

Meanwhile, the Gauntlet (or “Strikesquad: Gauntlet” as it’s now known) subplot continues. Cruz wasn’t able to draw too many nubile co-eds in the main story, but Kavanagh’s given him several pages of a Titanic-obsessed teen, undressing for a shower, as she contemplates her role in the Gauntlet organization. They’ve also lost their psi-powers, and are unable to locate X-Man for whatever nefarious purpose Kavanagh still hasn’t gotten around to explaining. On the final page, another young female Gauntlet member, Vice, is introduced. Via a computer monitor, a shadowy figure informs her that he’s tracked X-Man to Dublin. But, hold on, that’s not enough ambiguity and shadowy figures...

Ness is in a large city, presumably New York, complaining to a mystery man named Slaine that he’s lost X-Man. Slaine owes Ness some form of debt and agrees to talk to “our people” about helping him. He also warns his “cousin” Ness that he might not be able to return to “the Nest.” Still in shadow, Slaine flies away, on wings that resemble either large batwings or the metal wings Apocalypse gave Archangel. Again, it’s hard to tell how much of this is intentionally ambiguous, but it’s not hard to see what a mess this book is. I thought “Messiah Complex” was a conscious effort to get this title out of the dumps, but it looks like it’s determined to stay there.