UNCANNY X-MEN #320 – January 1995

The Son Rises in the East

Credits: Scott Lobdell (plot), Mark Waid (script), Roger Cruz (penciler), Tim Townsend (inker), Steve Buccellato (colorist), Bill Oakley (letterer)

Summary

The X-Men travel to the Israeli desert at the request of Gabrielle Haller. Her son Legion has created an energy field around himself, and is crippling or destroying any military vehicles that approach him. When Storm tries to speak to him, Legion uses his newfound power to take them back in time to the day Storm’s parents were killed. When they go back to the present, Legion tells Storm that he’s created unheard of new chronal energies that will enable him to alter time. When Legion talks about his father’s legacy, Storm figures out that Legion is going back in time to somehow remake Professor Xavier’s dream. Storm orders Psylocke to link herself mentally to Bishop, who has been absorbing Legion’s chronal energy. This sends all of the nearby X-Men back into the past with Legion. Phoenix anchors herself and stays behind. She telepathically calls out to Professor Xavier for help before passing out. Meanwhile, the guardian of the M’Kraan Crystal, Janf, warns Lilandra that the end of reality is coming.

I Love the ‘90s

The editors ask fans to send in any type of feedback, saying “it’ll only cost ya 29 cents” to write in.

Review

This is the start of a brief crossover that sets up the “Age of Apocalypse” storyline. Mark Waid is the guest scripter, a role he’ll occasionally take on for the next few months. He’ll take over X-Men briefly next year, but nothing really comes of it. His script is a little sharper than Lobdell’s typical work, but there’s not that much of a difference. This issue really just serves to build up Legion’s new powers and to send the X-Men back into the past. Legion does come across as a formidable threat, and his dialogue thankfully doesn’t portray him as insane or childishly naïve. Far too many X-villains at this point are just labeled “crazy”, justifying whatever arbitrary action the writer wants them to do. Based on my memories of this story, though, Legion’s sanity is short-lived (maybe no one told Waid that Legion really is supposed to be nuts).

The selection of X-Men sent into the past seems odd. I understand that Bishop needs to go back into the past for upcoming plot reasons (due to his own history as a time traveler), so it makes sense that his team of X-Men would be featured. Of course, at this point, the Blue and Gold divisions have pretty much gone away, but the script explicitly refers to this as the Gold team. If that were the case, why would Psylocke go instead of Archangel? Phoenix is already there, so why would two telepaths go on the same mission? And since the team is confronting his son, why isn’t Professor Xavier with them? I know that some of the characters need to be in different places for future plot reasons, but there’s no in-story justification for any of this so far. We’re just supposed to accept the fact that the characters are where they are.

There’s another awkward scene where the team follows Legion back into the past, yet Phoenix inexplicitly stays behind. The way the scene is written makes it seem as if she isn’t aware of Storm’s plan to follow him, which doesn’t make sense because a) she’s a telepath and b) she was standing right next to Iceman just before he was sucked into the time vortex, too. Maybe the original idea was that Phoenix was supposed to stay behind to tell the other X-Men what happened, but that’s not communicated at all in the story. Aside from these awkward moments, though, it’s a pretty unobjectionable issue. The story mainly accomplishes what it’s supposed to, and Cruz’s art (unoriginal as it may be) doesn’t look so bad.

X-FACTOR #110 – January 1995

Creatures on the Loose

Credits: John Francis Moore (plot), Todd Dezago (script), Jan Duursema (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Matt Webb (colorist), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering)

Summary

After being teleported away by Legion, X-Factor reappears in a Madripoor harbor. The team is shocked to discover that they’ve landed on top of a spaceship. A giant monster emerges from the ship. When Guido tries to attack it, he’s knocked unconscious. A mystery man takes Guido away while X-Factor continues to fight the alien. At a nearby hotel, the mystery man reveals himself to be a tiny blue alien named Jornick. He’s been running from Lila Cheney, the mutant thief whose treasure he’s stolen. Lila suddenly appears and saves her former bodyguard, Guido, from Jornick. Jornick reveals that the monster in the harbor hatched from an alien egg he stole from Lila. After Lila threatens him, Jornick takes her to the treasure he stole. Lila tries to find a music box she needs, but Jornick has already gotten rid of it. Lila says that she needs it or else an entire star system will go to war. Lila uses her intergalactic teleportation powers to drop Jornick off at her space home. She then goes back to Madripoor and teleports the monster alien back to its home planet. Suddenly, a large spaceship looking for Lila arrives.

Creative Differences

In a very poorly re-lettered balloon, Havok theorizes that Legion must’ve teleported them to the middle of an alien attack in order to keep them busy while he escaped. I imagine this is an attempt to cover the massive coincidence that Legion’s teleportation would lead them to the middle of another adventure with Guido’s ex-employer.

Review

I guess this is supposed to be an attempt to emulate the goofier, less serious comics of the Silver Age. Giant monsters and tiny blue aliens are quite a departure from the character dramas and heavy thematic material of the X-books of this era. Ideally, this would be a nice change of pace for the title, but it turns out to be pretty dull. Most of the dialogue is bland and generic, and Guido’s standard wisecracks just aren’t funny. Really, for a story that’s supposed to be quick and light-hearted, it’s not fun at all to read. Duursema’s art looks rushed, and doesn’t really deliver on the comedy or action scenes. Definitely not the best work of anybody involved.

X-MEN UNLIMITED #7 – December 1994

Memories

Credits: Howard Mackie (writer), John Romita, Jr. (penciler), Joe Rubinstein (inker), Starkings/Comicraft (lettering), Matt Webb (colorist)

Summary

Storm, Gambit, and Phoenix travel to Cairo to visit Storm’s thief mentor, Achmed El-Gibar, in his final days. Candra and her devotee Bond also arrive in Cairo, hoping to recruit one of Achmed’s followers, a boy with “latent power” named Jamil. Karima, one of Achmed’s young street urchins, steals Phoenix’s purse and is confronted by Storm. She leads the team to Achmed’s home, where they’re ambushed by Jamil. Jamil is rebelling against Achmed and starting his own street gang. After the X-Men stop his attack, Jamil runs away and meets Candra and Bond in an alley. Candra bribes him with new clothes and a promise to show him the world. Jamil leads Candra and Bond to Achmed’s home, where they fight the X-Men. After a standoff with Storm, Candra leaves with Jamil. Achmed asks Storm to save Jamil from Candra so that his urchins will have a new leader before he dies.

After searching the city, the team finds Jamil. They’re attacked again by Candra and Bond, who trap them underneath a collapsed building. With Phoenix’s help, Storm fights through her claustrophobia and breaks free. They follow Jamil to Candra’s estate, where Jamil is being asked to kill fellow urchin Karima in order to prove his loyalty to Candra. The X-Men enter and stop Jamil from killing her. Storm challenges Candra to a duel over Jamil and she accepts. Gambit and Phoenix stop Bond and Jamil while Storm defeats Candra. When Candra regroups and tries to attack Storm from behind, Karima stabs her hand and stops her. Jamil refuses to go with Storm, saying that he will pay any price to get away from the streets of Cairo. Storm returns to Achmed, who tells her that she has not failed him, but has actually brought back a greater treasure. He asks her to look after the future of the urchins and then passes away. After leaving his side, Storm begins to train Karima to lead the urchins.

Continuity Note

As established in one of her earliest appearances, Storm grew up as a pickpocket in Cairo, and was mentored by Achmed El-Gibar.

Review

This seems to be the period where Howard Mackie found favor with the X-office. The Generation X preview special listed Mackie and Romita, Jr. as the new creative team on X-Men Unlimited, and even though this was Romita’s only issue, Mackie stayed with this book for the next few issues. He was also given the high-profile Rogue miniseries at this time, which I guess Marvel considered good enough to warrant future assignments. Within a year, he’ll be writing X-Factor, too. I know that his run on that title took a massive beating online, and since I hardly remember a thing about it, I’m not sure what to expect when I get to those issues.

Anyway, his debut on X-Men Unlimited isn’t very good, but it is better than his extremely weak Rogue miniseries. The fact that it’s contained to a single comic helps to hide the repetitious nature of the plot, while the Rogue mini’s four separate installments just emphasized the fact that she was fighting the same people over and over again. The characters at least have more sensible motives than what we saw in the Rogue mini, and the Romita art helps the fight scenes out a lot. There is the odd choice to portray Achmed El-Gibar, who takes street kids and trains them as thieves for his own profit, as some sort of hero, which makes me wonder how Mackie would feel if someone stole his own wallet while on vacation. Having Storm train the little girl to keep the tradition alive is also a strange ending, even though the story plays the scene straight and doesn’t present it with any moral ambiguity. I get that these are supposed to be street kids with nowhere else to go, but you would think that a hero like Storm would make an effort to teach them a better way to survive than just stealing. I haven’t read her earlier appearances in a while, but I don’t think we were ever supposed to think that Storm’s past as a thief was cool; it was supposed to show how hard her childhood was. The twist ending, that Karima will actually lead the urchins, isn’t that bad of a resolution. However, she’s hardly given anything to do in the story until this point and remains an extremely underdeveloped character throughout the entire issue. At no point in the story do you actually care about anything that happens to her. Instead of three separate fight scenes with Candra, some of that time should have been spent on building up her character. Aside from the fact that a very minor peripheral character dies, this reads like another inventory story. The rest of the issue consists of eight pin-ups (a few look like rejected covers) and two pages of letters, which reinforces just how pointless this series has become.

X-MEN #39 – December 1994

Birds of a Feather

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Terry Dodson (penciler), Matt Ryan (inker), Bill Oakley (letterer), Kevin Somers/Marie Javins/Digital Chameleon (colors)

Summary

Cyclops’ grandfather, Philip Summers, crashes his airplane in the Canadian wilderness. Adam X, X-Treme, smells the smoke from miles away and comes to his rescue. Adam tends to Philip’s wounds and the two begin to talk and become close. As Philip’s condition worsens, Adam builds a teepee to keep him warm during the night. Adam reveals to Philip that he’s an alien, but traveling the stars doesn’t mean anything to him because he feels empty inside. Philip tells him that he has more inside of him than most people, and that he would be honored to spend his final moments with him. As Philip approaches death, Adam X lightly cuts his hands and uses his power to ignite the electrolytes in blood to keep Philip warm. In the morning, the pair is discovered. Later, at the hospital, the doctor says that Philip’s vision is gone forever, but he will survive. After visiting his room, Jean Grey senses another person with Philip. She returns to find Adam X. Realizing that he’s a friend, she uses her telepathic powers so that Philip can see Adam’s space travels with his own eyes. As Adam X leaves, Jean senses that his sadness feels familiar to her. Unbeknownst to Jean, the incident is being watched by a mysterious figure, who is himself being watched by another mystery figure. Meanwhile in New Orleans, Bella Donna declares that the Assassins Guild will have revenge on Gambit at her father’s wake. Elsewhere, Legion has a vision from Destiny telling him that he will fulfill his father’s dream.

Continuity Notes

At the time this story was written, Adam X really was supposed to be the third Summers brother. This is the first issue to strongly hint at the revelation. As Nicieza has explained online, the original idea was that Kate Summers gave birth to Adam X after being taken away from her husband and (I believe) raped by D’Ken. This would make Adam X half-human and half-Shi’ar. The mystery figure watching the events at the end is supposed to be Eric the Red (as revealed in the mid-90s Captain Marvel series), and the figure watching Eric the Red is supposed to be Mr. Sinister. The mystery man being watched by another mystery man scene is taken directly from an issue of UXM from the 1970s (a reference that flew right past me as a kid).

Figuring out the chronology of this issue is a little difficult. Bella Donna is at her father’s wake, declaring revenge on Gambit, which is a scene covered in Rogue #1. The details don’t exactly match up, but it’s possible that her father had more than one service, I guess. Beast mentions that Gambit took off after Rogue, which also happened in Rogue #1. However, the scene with Legion takes place right after he wakes up from his coma, which happened simultaneously with Uncanny X-Men #319, which was supposed to take place after the Rogue miniseries. Got that?

Review

Knowing that the Adam X storyline never goes anywhere kind of makes this one feel pointless. Actually, knowing what Nicieza really had in mind for Adam X doesn’t help things out either. If Adam X is the offspring of Kate Summers and a Shi’ar alien, that means he doesn’t actually have Summers DNA (unless Cyclops’ parents were involved in an incestuous relationship, of course). So instead of this being a touching story about a young man meeting his paternal grandfather, it’s about a young man meeting the father of the man his mother was married to while he was conceived during her alien rape. That’s not really the same thing. Why exactly Nicieza was planning on that route instead of just revealing that Corsair (Cyclops’ father) impregnated an alien after his wife was killed, I don’t know. That would’ve given Adam X Summers’ DNA (thus explaining Sinister’s interest in him), instead of Whatever-Cyclops’ Mother’s-Maiden- Name-Is DNA.

Judged it on its own merits, it’s an okay story. It doesn’t come across as deep as I think Nicieza might’ve intended it to, but the emotional scenes aren’t bad and it is successful in making Adam X a little more likable. It is kind of funny to see a character with a codename like “X-Treme” using his powers to do something like help an old man after a plane crash. That’s definitely not a stereotypical ‘90s story. I didn’t like Dodson’s art when I first read this issue, but I can look at it now and see that he’s well suited for a story for like this. Overall, it’s not very good but it has a few moments.

GENERATION X #3 – January 1995

Dead Silence

Credits: Scott Lobdell (writer), Chris Bachalo (penciler), Mark Buckingham (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Steve Buccellato & Electric Crayon (colors)

Summary

Husk comes to Banshee’s aid, but is cut by Penance’s razor-sharp fingers. Penance runs away and is confronted by Synch and Jubilee. Synch’s aura creates a force field based on Penance’s diamond-hard skin. After failing to cut through the aura, Penance runs away again. Banshee sends Husk, who has gone into shock, back to the school with Synch. M and Emma Frost confront Penance. After M punches her out, Emma tries another psi-probe. The psychic backlash knocks her down, but she still finds nothing. M tries to grab Penance when she runs away, but Banshee stops her because he doesn’t want her to get cut. Jubilee follows Penance who meets Chamber in the woods. Penance apparently senses a kindred spirit in Chamber and finally stops running. Later, Skin and Husk have another Scrabble match while she recuperates. Husk asks Skin if he stayed behind because he was afraid of Penance tearing his skin, but he denies it. Meanwhile, a girl named Cordella tries to convince her mutant friend Mondo to come to America and become a superhero.

Review

The pacing on this series has certainly been leisurely. An entire issue dedicated to the team tracking one of its own members through the woods is pretty excessive, especially when you consider that a good portion of the last issue covered a lot of the same ground. The character work isn’t as strong in this issue, as the majority of the story is dedicated to short, choppy fight scenes with Penance. The resolution is a bit of a copout, which even Jubilee acknowledges at the end. The art saves a lot of this, as Bachalo creates an appropriate mood for a story set on a stormy night, while finding a nice balance between his unique style and a traditional superhero look.

When I first read this series, I remember being confused by some of the characters’ powers, which is a feeling that hasn’t gone away. In this issue, Husk says that she doesn’t know what happens to her original body if her altered form is damaged. The end of the issue shows her recovering in her original body after going into shock in her altered form. Didn’t the first issue already cover this? Emplate nearly killed Husk, but Jubilee pulled away that layer of skin to reveal a healthy body inside. If she unveils a new body every time she peels her skin off, how could the damage to the old body still affect her? Synch also has a strange moment, where the rainbow aura that surrounds his body turns into a forcefield after he’s exposed to Penance’s dense skin. What exactly is that rainbow thing? In his original appearances, Synch’s body “synched” with the mutants around him, taking on their powers. That’s simple enough, and it should be a workable superpower for the character. So if Synch were synching with Penance’s power, wouldn’t his skin become diamond-hard like hers? How exactly could just being around someone with hard skin give him a forcefield of all things? I guess we’re not supposed to think about this stuff too much, but these weird leaps of logic only serve to take me out of the story.

ROGUE #1-#4

ROGUE #1 – January 1995

An Affair to Remember

Credits: Howard Mackie (writer), Mike Wieringo (penciler), Terry Austin (inker), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Dana Moreshead & Mike Thomas (colors)

Summary

At the funeral for Bella Donna’s father, Candra appears. She asks Bella Donna, the new leader of the Assassins Guild, to consider renegotiating their old pacts. She also implies that she can do something about Gambit and Rogue. In New York, Rogue meets Gambit for lunch before leaving for her annual visit to Mississippi. She tells him about her childhood friend Cody, who she accidentally put into a coma after kissing him for the first time. Gambit tells her not to focus on the past, which upsets her. Later, Gambit asks Storm for advice on dealing with Rogue. He decides to follow her to Mississippi. In Mississippi, Rogue visits Cody’s hospital room, only to be ambushed by the Assassins Guild. They tell her that Cody will be safe as long as she cooperates. The Guild member Singer gives a message from Candra, who wants to punish Rogue for taking away her memories while she was in a coma. She tells Rogue that Gambit is next.

Continuity Note

Rogue accidentally touched Bella Donna during the Gambit miniseries while she was coming out of a coma. This lead to a subplot in X-Men where Rogue demonstrated some of Bella Donna’s character traits. I assume that revealing that Rogue took away Bella Donna’s memories is supposed to explain this (I guess the idea is that she absorbed some part of her consciousness), but Rogue had already stopped using her mannerisms by the time this mini saw print anyway.

Gimmicks

This miniseries was a part of the “Marvel “Select” series. Every issue has a cardstock cover with foil enhancements, bringing the cover price up a full dollar.

“Huh?” Moment

As Rogue buzzes past a fighter jet, she’s somehow able to overhear the comment the pilot makes about her in the cockpit. How exactly could she do that? Rogue has super-strength, not super-hearing.

Commercial Break

The upcoming “Age of Apocalypse” storyline is spoiled by an ad for Entertainment This Month. It reads, “The rumors are true! Professor X is dead!...Without Professor X, Magneto forms a new world where the hatred between mutants & humans explodes!” All of the AoA titles are listed, connecting their new names to the old ones. The ad copy also says that the X-Men are now “The Mutants’, which is used as a prefix for a few of the titles listed. That name never made it into the actual comics, but it’s interesting that it lasted this long in the planning stages.

Review

During the “Age of Apocalypse” storyline, Marvel did a good job of selling the concept by stopping publication of the entire line of X-books and replacing them with renamed titles that took place in the new continuity. With all of the familiar titles gone, it was much easier to buy into the reality of the AoA storyline. However, this miniseries began a month or so before the event began, so it ended up running throughout most of the AoA storyline, undermining the effect of the regular titles’ cancellation. This was pretty poor planning on somebody’s part. During the “X-Facts” hype page, the Rogue mini isn’t even listed on the checklist once the AoA storyline begins. (There was also a Bishop miniseries at this time, but I think it only ended up with one issue running concurrent with the AoA comics. Even as an X-completist, I didn’t buy the Bishop mini because it also cost $3 an issue and there was only such much my 9^th grade allowance could take).

I wish I could say this story was worth breaking the illusion of the AoA crossover, but this issue isn’t promising. A lot of it is just padding, as Rogue is given two pointless scenes to show off her powers in the beginning, and neither are at all interesting. The exaggerated Southern accents are pretty appalling, with one Assassins Guild member even spouting “it’s be her!” (That’s not a typo. “It’s be her”, as in “It is be her”.) Having Rogue visit Cody is a nice nod to her origin story and a good starting place for a solo adventure, but the rest of this reads like a sequel to the not-exactly-great Gambit mini. Wieringo’s art is nice, but I don’t think it meshes well with Austin’s inks. I think Austin was given some of the cartoonier artists to ink in the ‘90s because of his work with Art Adams, but I prefer a bolder line with Wieringo’s style.

ROGUE #2 – February 1995

Choices

Credits: Howard Mackie (writer), Mike Wieringo (penciler), Terry Austin (inks), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Dana Moreshead (colors)

Summary

In New Orleans, Tante Mattie warns Bella Donna about Cody’s condition, but she won’t listen. Tante Mattie tells her that someone will be coming to help him soon. Elsewhere, Rogue flies over a forest, not sure if she should find Cody or warn Gambit about Bella Donna. She collapses near a stream, where an image of Tante Mattie appears in the water. She tells Rogue not to worry about Cody and to find Gambit. On his way to Mississippi, Gambit is confronted by Assassin Guild members. Rogue arrives and helps him defeat the men. That night, Rogue asks Gambit to hold her while they regroup in front of a fire. She leaves for New Orleans in the middle of the night. As soon as she arrives, she’s attacked by the Assassins Guild.

Review

More padding. The characters are essentially in the same place they were at the end of the last issue, except Gambit now knows that Bella Donna is after him. The fight scenes aren’t very entertaining, and the villains are extremely dull. Mike Wieringo does a nice job on the water-image of Tante Mattie, but that’s the only interesting thing he’s given to draw. The big dilemma Rogue’s given is absurd – help the guy she put in a coma, or help her fellow mutant with superpowers. Gee, who do you think needs her more? And why exactly is Tante Mattie telling Rogue not to worry about Cody after she just told Bella Donna that he’s near death? Why would Tante Mattie want Rogue to find Gambit first when the story has already emphasized how much Cody needs help? Rogue’s characterization in this issue doesn’t work either. She often comes across as either needy or whiny, and her “touching” moment with Gambit just falls flat.

ROGUE #3 – March 1995

The Gauntlet

Credits: Howard Mackie (writer), Mike Wieringo (penciler), Terry Austin (inks), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Dana Moreshead (colors)

Summary

Rogue fights against a group of Assassin Guild members in New Orleans, and then heads to Bella Donna’s mansion. Meanwhile, Gambit goes against Rogue’s wishes and follows her to New Orleans. Ignoring the warnings of his cousin Lapin, Gambit enters the city, where he’s quickly ambushed by the Assassin Fifolet. After entering the Assassin Guild’s base, Rogue fights off an attack by Gris Gris, Fifolet, and the shapeshifter Questa. She finds Candra, who reveals that the Assassins have kidnapped Gambit, Cody, and Tante Mattie. Candra removes both Bella Donna and Rogue’s powers to watch them have a final battle. Bella Donna pulls out a knife and stabs Rogue in the shoulder.

Review

This is the first comic I’ve purchased specifically to review for this website. I never found this issue when the mini was being released, but even in my completist days that never really bothered me. This is one of those storylines I distinctly remember disliking when it first came out (I think I just viewed the whole thing as a waste of money, because I know I resented the cover price). Just like the previous issue, it’s filled with tiresome fight scenes that don’t serve to advance the story in any noticeable way. All that happens is that Gambit gets kidnapped and that Rogue loses her powers and is stabbed (a last page development spoiled by the cover). These events take up around six pages of this comic, while the rest is just obvious filler. There’s no drama to any of the extended fight scenes, with Rogue easily knocking her way through wave after wave of generic villains. Mackie makes one of the same mistakes he made in the Gambit miniseries, by having the characters repeatedly say that all of the Assassins Guild members have superpowers, while showing armies of Assassin goons with no powers at all. Rogue spends the first third of this comic fighting an army of generic Assassin Guild members, and the only thing we see that resembles a superpower is one member holding a glowing blade (which Rogue easily smashes). Aside from being boring, it’s just poorly executed.

ROGUE #4 – April 1995

Back To Life!

Credits: Howard Mackie (writer), Mike Wieringo (penciler), Terry Austin (inks), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Dana Moreshead & Digital Chameleon(colors)

Summary

Rogue runs away to nurse her wound. Candra tells Bella Donna that their powers will return soon, so she’d better finish Rogue while she can. Bella Donna and Rogue continue their fight downstairs while Gambit tries to free himself from Candra. After beating Bella Donna, Rogue returns to find Candra telekinetically crushing Gambit. She demands that Candra let him go, and Candra responds by launching Cody through the building and into the sky. Rogue tries to fly after Cody, but her powers still haven’t fully returned. Candra offers Rogue a chance to be free of her powers and have a normal life with Gambit if she lets Cody go. Rogue pushes against Canda’s telekinetic field and flies off to save Cody. She retrieves him, but Cody is clearly dying. Tante Mattie uses her powers to mentally reunite Rogue and Cody during his final moments. He tells her not to blame herself for the accident that left him in a coma. Cody then waves goodbye to Rogue and passes away.

Continuity Note

Candra says that Gambit “always” betrays her, which follows the hints laid in the Gambit mini that they have a history together.

Review

Now that it’s over, I feel confident as labeling this the most egregious cash grab coming out of the X-franchise at this point. As weak as Cable’s first year was, at least it didn’t have an overpriced gimmick cover on every issue. Including a story this mediocre as a part of a prestigious new line of titles is indefensible. With material like this, it’s not surprising that the “Marvel Select” line didn’t last. Rogue consistently comes across as either hesitant or whiny through most of the story, and really doesn’t do an awful lot to redeem herself in the final act. Mackie’s handling of her accent is often distracting, or just painfully bad. Rogue alternates between her standard “Ah” and the proper “I” for large sections of the story, misuses “y’all” for the singular instead of plural (this is basic Southern slang that for some reason comic creators always screw up), and sometimes says nonsensical garbage like “you’ve got to have made the choice” and “but this not a game, Belle.” (actually, it’s hard to tell if Mackie was trying to write a dialect or if “is” was just accidentally forgotten in that last example).

Even if you just want to enjoy this as an action-heavy story that showcases Rogue’s powers, the ending couldn’t be satisfying. Rogue takes out Bella Donna with a feeble punch that’s relegated to a small, simple panel. Candra is defeated indirectly because she wasn’t “prepared” for Rogue to break her telekinetic grip, which somehow leads to her being knocked unconscious. This conveniently happens when the story has less than five pages to go, of course. Any creative uses of Rogue’s absorption power aren’t seen at all, as she just punches her way through whatever threat arises. The ending with Rogue’s goodbye to Cody isn’t that bad, but it’s not enough to redeem such a weak story. You could get a lot of good material out of Rogue’s past with Cody and her guilt over his condition, but instead the miniseries wastes most of its time on having Rogue punching through seas of generic goons while fretting about Gambit. And since the story never offers any insights into their relationship or really gives Gambit anything to do, you’ve got to wonder what he’s doing here in the first place, aside from commercial reasons. Wieringo’s unique art remains nice to look at for most of the mini, but it’s too sedate to carry the bland story. I guess my allowance should’ve gone towards Bishop instead (at least John Ostrander wrote that one, I think).

X-FORCE #41 – December 1994

The Fun House

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Tony Daniel (penciler), Kevin Conrad (inker), Chris Eliopoulos & Bill Oakley (letterers), Marie Javins (colorist)

Summary

Thornn, Detective Jose Hidalgo, Cannonball, and Shatterstar search for Feral inside the abandoned tenement building. Feral emerges from the shadows and kidnaps Jose Hidalgo. Hidalgo tries to talk Feral into confessing to the murders of her family, but he isn’t able to reach her. Outside, Cable and Domino are monitoring the building, waiting for Feral to emerge. Domino is ready to take the shot, but Cable is adamant that Feral will not be killed. Thornn, Cannonball, and Shatterstar catch up to Feral. Feral blames Thornn for not protecting her from their alcoholic mother’s boyfriend, and brags that she knew how to deal with the problem. Feral drags Hidalgo to the roof where she kept her pigeon coop as a child.

Feral pushes Thornn into telling the truth about their family. Thornn remembers leaving Feral in charge of their younger sister while she went outside to play with Hidalgo. When Thornn came back, their sister was dead after falling down the stairs. Feral was smiling. Thorrn remembers that their mother always said that the birth of their sister drove their father away. She wonders if Feral believed it. No one knows if Feral pushed her sister or not, but she denies it. Feral then explains that their brother died while chasing her pigeons off of the roof. She blames him for not being able to hold on to the ledge.

Thorrn explains what happened to Harry Bellinger, their mother’s boyfriend. After repeatedly attempting to molest the sisters, he followed Thornn outside one night, dragged her into an alley and tried to rape her. Feral came from out of the shadows and killed him. The sisters stuffed his body between the walls of a nearby building, where it was only recently discovered. Cannonball asks about their mother. Feral reveals that her mother killed the pigeons in her coop to get back at her for killing her boyfriend. Feral brags that she killed her in retaliation. She then leaps at Cannonball, but he easily stops her. Detective Hidalgo places Feral and Thornn under arrest, although it’s unlikely that Thornn will be prosecuted for covering up Harry Bellinger’s murder. The MLF are blamed for breaking Thornn out of her prison transport earlier. Cable reveals to Cannonball that it was Dani Moonstar who suggested framing the MLF, and fed Feral the information that lead her to the tenement building.

Review

This is one of Nicieza’s best issues of X-Force, and probably the darkest story to be told in the X-books during this era. Using a gritty, urban crime story as an origin for Feral works surprisingly well, actually making her interesting for the first time. Feral was originally just violent and hateful because that’s what the cool characters were supposed to be, but now we learn that she’s been shaped by drug addicted parents, poverty, child molestation, rape, and murder (I hate to think about the Google hits I’ll get off of this). This could’ve been a cliché villain origin, but Nicieza makes it feel real. His ability to take the blank slates given to him at the start of this series and actually do something with them should be admired. The pacing of the story, which offers vague hints about the past while building to the climax, is nicely done. There’s a lot of backstory in this issue, but the story doesn’t feel cramped or rushed. Avoiding any superpowered showdowns between Feral and the team helps, since that’s not what this story is about (plus, Feral isn’t a legitimate threat for the entire team anyway). Daniel’s cartoony art isn’t really suited for a story with such grim themes, but it’s not distracting enough to drastically dampen the impact. This isn’t the type of material I’d like to see on a monthly basis in a superhero comic, but I think there is room for the occasional dark story that serves a purpose outside of nihilism.

UNCANNY X-MEN #319 – December 1994

Untapped Potential

Credits: Scott Lobdell (writer), Steve Epting (penciler), Dan Green & Tim Townsend (inkers), Chris Eliopoulos (letterer), Buccellato/Becton/Hicks (colorists)

Summary

On the way to visit his parents, Iceman and Rogue talk about his insecurities and her relationship with Gambit. During dinner, Iceman’s father continues to make racist comments and belittle Rogue. Iceman finally has enough and leaves. Later, Rogue comforts Iceman on their way home. Meanwhile, Archangel and Psylocke have a date in Manhattan. They decide not to hide their feelings and pursue a relationship. At the mansion, Xavier dreams a conversation with Magneto. Magneto tells Xavier that if he hadn’t stood in the way, Xavier’s vision would have been achieved by now. Magneto then turns into Legion, which snaps Xavier out of the dream. Xavier explains to Beast that Legion felt like a whole personality in his dream, which could be dangerous because his powers have never been gauged.

Continuity Note

Archangel explains to Psylocke that he still has his family fortune, even if Cameron Hodge took Worthington Enterprises from him (this is a reference to an old X-Factor storyline, although I think the idea that he retained any wealth is a retcon).

Production Note

The standard logo isn’t used on this cover in order to give the art more room. During the early days of the “Deluxe” revamp, Marvel did experiment with the cover layout a few times (like on the previous X-Factor cover). I liked the variety, but it seems like the experimentation didn’t last for very long.

Review

The last issue was the now-standard “quiet” issue after the crossover, while this one is a “quiet” pre-crossover issue. Knowing that the characters have to be in place for “Legion Quest” in the next issue, and that “Age of Apocalypse” would derail any new storylines for months, I guess Lobdell just decided to go with another talky issue. The scenes with Xavier mainly serve as an extended justification for Legion’s actions in the upcoming storyline, while the rest of the issue is devoted to character moments for a few X-Men. Epting isn’t given a lot of exciting visuals to draw, but he still turns in a decent job. He’s another artist that seemed too bland for me in my early teens, but I can appreciate what he’s doing now.

Iceman and Rogue are paired together again, as the insanely bigoted characterization of Iceman’s father continues. After he continually insults Rogue, Iceman comments that “it’s a wonder” he brings anyone over to meet him. Well, yes, it is. His father is portrayed as such a hateful, rude fool, you’ve got to figure that Iceman is an idiot for ever introducing him to anyone. It’s obvious that Lobdell is making a statement about the stupidity of racism, but when your story’s bigot is such an over-the-top crazy that no one in their right mind would ever want to speak to him, it strains the credibility too far (“Hey, Rogue…want to spend the weekend at my parents’ house, where you’ll be repeatedly insulted and treated like crap?”). The ending redeems this somewhat, as Iceman says that he always thought that his father was his inspiration for accepting people, but now he doesn’t know where that came from. This would imply that either his father’s changed for the worse over the years, or that Iceman is a terrible judge of character. I’m not sure which Lobdell is going for, but I like the scene.

The scenes between Rogue and Iceman aren’t bad. Iceman points out to Rogue that Gambit treats her horribly, which is something someone should’ve told her when the team found out he was already married. It’s also refreshing to see Rogue acting like a true friend and not just angsting over her powers or her relationship with Gambit. Iceman and Rogue play off each other pretty well, and it’s nice to see two of the X-Men who barely know each other interact. I think the creators were trying to set up a potential romance between the characters, but it went nowhere. At the very least, they should’ve maintained a friendship, but it’s been forgotten over the years. The other character subplot involves Archangel and Psylocke, which has the characters poking fun of the various relationship problems of the other X-Men (it’s interesting that Jean Grey’s multiple deaths are already a joke at this point). Having two X-Men pursue normal relationship isn’t a bad idea, but it's ruined in a year or so when the Crimson Dawn storyline emerges.

X-FACTOR #109 – December 1994

The Waking

Credits: John Francis Moore (plot), Todd Dezago (script), Jan Duursema (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Glynis Oliver (colors)

Summary

Mystique tries to choke Legion, but is stopped by his telekinetic blast. She escapes from the hospital room and leads X-Factor on a chase through Tel Aviv. Meanwhile, Legion goes to sleep and has a mental conversation with Destiny. She tells him to give a message to Mystique. Legion promises to find a way to make everything right and mentally contacts his father. At the Tel Aviv Marina, Mystique meets up with Avalanche. When X-Factor catches up with them, Avalanche uses his powers to create a tidal wave. Havok is able to block the water while Wolfsbane and Forge chase Mystique. Legion suddenly appears and lifts Mystique into a telekinetic bubble with him. He enters her mind and gives her Destiny’s cryptic message about reality changing. When the rest of X-Factor arrives and attacks Legion, he makes the entire team disappear. He leaves Mystique, promising to make everything better.

Creative Differences

Lots of word balloons and captions look doctored in this issue. The first page has a lot of awkward-looking exposition that doesn’t fit in with the rest of the lettering. Gabrielle Haller’s dialogue on page eighteen has been altered to say that Legion is imagining a conversation with his father, which connects the story to Uncanny X-Men #319. On page twenty-two, an added balloon clarifies that Avalanche is now in custody, and some of Legion’s dialogue when he sends X-Factor away on page twenty-nine is altered.

Review

This doesn’t work nearly as well as the previous issue, as it’s mainly an extended chase scene with a contrived ending. Mystique’s plan to avenge her friend’s death in the last issue was at least relatable, but now she’s back to her role as heartless murderer. The only depth given to Mystique is when she briefly considers saving Val Cooper from drowning because she’s been “useful” to her. Of course, she ends up leaving her to die anyway. Her desire to kill Legion was at least understandable, but now she’s just a generic villain on the run from the good guys. Any complexity the story might’ve had is gone. There is an attempt to use Forge’s past with Mystique, but she comes across as such a loon it doesn’t work either. Since the story just ends with Legion teleporting everyone off anyway, it looks like Moore should’ve just skipped another Mystique issue and gone ahead with next issue’s Lila Cheney story.

X-FORCE #40 – November 1994

Holding On

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Tony Daniel (penciler), Kevin Conrad w/Tim Townsend (inkers), Chris Eliopoulos (letterer), Marie Javins (colorist)

Summary

Thornn is arrested and charged with the murder of her mother, brother, and sister from years earlier. She’s interrogated by her childhood friend Jose Hidalgo, who became a police officer hoping to find out the truth about the murders. Meanwhile, Domino introduces X-Force to their newest headquarters, Arcade’s Murderworld. Shatterstar brags that they’ve taken the complex from Arcade and will fight back if he ever returns. Thornn’s arrest is generating anti-mutant protests outside of the police station where she’s being held. The one phone call she makes is to Cable, who actually has a law degree from Harvard. X-Force stops the Friends of Humanity from killing Thornn while she’s being transferred to prison, and then takes her to the building where she grew up. According to Cable’s plan, Thornn’s sister, Feral, is already there. Feral claims that she knows the real story behind the murders.

Continuity Notes

Domino says that her ex-husband comes from a long line of in-bred cousins. Was her ex-husband ever revealed?

It’s revealed that Cable graduated Harvard in 1988 and passed the New York bar exam the next year, which is really the strangest Cable revelation yet. A lot of people have speculated that the bar license he flashes is a fake, but Nicieza once said that he wanted this revelation to show that Cable is more than just a trigger-happy tough guy.

Review

This is supposed to be the start of a new era for the series, but it never really begins thanks to the “Age of Apocalypse” storyline and Nicieza’s removal from the book. The Murderworld headquarters gets an eight-page introduction, indicating that this was supposed to be a much bigger deal than it turned out to be. Moving the locale closer to Manhattan is supposed to give the cast new characters to interact with, and more normal settings to explore (Siryn mentions that she’d like a job at a flower shop, Domino lists all of the local colleges, etc.). This never happens, as the cast just ends up isolating itself inside the X-Men’s mansion after “Age of Apocalypse” ends. It’s too bad Nicieza’s plans didn’t go through, since the move would’ve helped to differentiate the title and give it a new direction.

This is one of the storylines I can distinctly remember after fourteen years, and it holds up very well. Feral and Thornn are one-note characters from the Liefeld days on the book that most writers probably would’ve tossed away by this point. Nicieza is actually able to create a realistic backstory for the characters that doesn’t require him to reinvent their personalities. I like the use of Detective Hidalgo as a figure from their past and as the driving force behind the story. Showing the real people Feral and Thorrn knew before they joined the Morlocks helps the story to feel grounded, which is appropriate for the subject matter. Daniel’s art, unfortunately, is often too cartoony for a gritty story about a young woman killing her entire family. He does pull some of the acting off, but too many of the facial expressions consist of teeth-gritting or just total blankness. The last few pages look especially loose, suggesting that he might’ve had some deadline troubles with this issue.

CABLE #19 – January 1995

The Dark Ride Part 3 – In the Name of the Father

Credits: Jeph Loeb (writer), Steve Skroce (penciler), Mike Sellers & Kevin Conrad (inkers), Mike Thomas (colors), Starkings & Comicraft (lettering)

Summary

Cable tells Tyler that he will surrender if Tyler lets his friends go. He agrees, and Cable gives Storm his X-medallion before teleporting away with Tyler. The medallion is actually a homing device, which Storm and Domino use with Caliban’s tracking abilities to follow Cable. Tyler takes Cable to Apocalypse’s last known base, where he reveals that he slaughtered the residents of Akkaba in order to prevent Apocalypse from doing it in the future. He renounces the name Tyler Dayspring and renames himself “Genesis”. Storm, Caliban, and Domino find Apocalypse’s fortress in the desert and break in. Genesis drains Cable’s power with a siphon machine while Cable tries to telepathically talk him out of following Apocalypse’s footsteps. Storm and the others reach Genesis’ chamber and fight the Dark Riders, enabling Cable to break free in the confusion. As Storm destroys Apocalypse’s machinery, the fortress begins to fall apart. Cable tries to convince Genesis to go with him, but he teleports away with the Dark Riders. After escaping, Domino realizes that Cable’s heart isn’t cold when she sees him mourning over a photo of his wife and son. Meanwhile, a shadowy figure emerges from the ruins of Apocalypse’s fortress.

We Get Letters

On the letters page, there’s a letter from a fan distressed about the rumor that Marvel might cancel the X-books. As odd as that sounds, it really was the early hype sent out to promote the “Age of Apocalypse” story. I remember Wizard running the rumor in their news section, even documenting the time of day they were calling Marvel to get a statement (I think they were calling on a late Friday afternoon and could only get a cryptic comment from Scott Lobdell). After the solicitations for the upcoming Marvel releases came out, the spin was that the story of the X-Men was over and that the new “AoA” titles would represent a new beginning for the line. Marvel really had a lot of commitment to selling this event.

Review

Jeph Loeb’s first arc ends, and even though it isn’t a very compelling story, it does raise the quality of the title to “readable” at least. Instead of just fighting random foes from the various corners of the X-universe, Cable now has an emotional stake in the events of the story, which is a pretty basic element that most issues of this series have missed so far. Cable's son, Tyler, did show up earlier in the series, but it was in the middle of an awkward storyline that mainly served as a convoluted origin story for Cable. This storyline, at least, is a straightforward adventure story that actually focuses on Tyler. Unfortunately, he doesn’t come across as a very engaging character, as he’s just a crazed loon with a nonsensical plan. Because he was brainwashed by Stryfe into becoming this, there is some element of tragedy that the story is able to convey, but it doesn’t make Tyler himself more interesting. Loeb’s real accomplishment is in showing Cable’s reaction to the events, which helps to make him more sympathetic and human. The dynamic between Domino and Caliban also works pretty well, offering the first glimpse of a potential supporting cast for this series. None of this stuff is particularly great, but it is at least competent, and it helps to make the book feel like more than just a flagrant cash grab.

X-FACTOR #108 – November 1994

Promised Vengeance

Credits: John Francis Moore (plot), Todd Dezago (script), Jan Duursema (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Richard Starkings/Comicraft (lettering), Glynis Oliver (colorist)

Summary

Forge asks Rogue and Nightcrawler to use his hologram technology to replay Mystique’s death in Mississippi. Forge suggests that Rogue didn’t make sure Mystique was alive because she didn’t want her taken into custody, or because she really did want her dead. Angered, Rogue leaves with Nightcrawler. Nick Fury appears, with videotape evidence from the Israeli embassy of a shapechanger creating a travel visa for one of Avalanche’s aliases. Havok and Guido investigate Avalanche’s hideout, but he manages to escape. Further investigation at the Israeli embassy shows that the personal files of Gabrielle Haller were accessed by Mystique. Haller is the mother of Legion, the mutant who killed Mystique’s longtime confidant, Destiny, months earlier. X-Factor heads to the Tel Aviv hospital where the comatose Legion is being treated. Wolfsbane follows Mystique’s scent and leads the team to confront her as she prepares to inject Legion with poison. Mystique’s body suddenly jerks, tossing the syringe away, as Legion awakes from his coma.

Continuity Notes

Legion is the autistic son of Professor Xavier and Gabrielle Haller. Legion has three distinct personalities and often behaves erratically. He killed Destiny in Uncanny X-Men #255 (his wiki page says that he was under the Shadow King's influence at the time, but I think that came later).

Creative Differences

There are quite a few awkward hand-lettered balloons that don’t fit in with the computer lettering. Most of them are used to repeatedly clarify Mystique’s powers, which is kind of excessive.

Review

This is the beginning of an attempt to integrate X-Factor more closely with the other X-titles. The Generation X preview special had sections dedicated to every X-title, and most of the write-ups for the spinoffs emphasized how important they were going to be for the larger picture. More than once the editors mentioned their desire to eliminate the idea that any title was peripheral. It doesn’t look like this storyline would actually impact the other titles at first, but it does lay the groundwork for the massive “Age of Apocalypse” crossover. The previous issue’s fill-in even gets to play a tangential role in this story, as it’s revealed that Blob was being used as a distraction by Mystique to keep any attention away from her. I’m sure if it were published today, X-Factor #107 would’ve had a “Countdown to the Dawn of the Age of Apocalypse!” banner somewhere on that hot pink cover. The books maintained a tight connection throughout the “Age of Apocalypse” storyline, but I seem to remember most of the spinoffs going back to their own directions after the event was over.

Mystique returns after “dying” just a few months earlier in the infamous X-Men Unlimited #4. One of the larger plot holes in that issue, why Rogue didn’t bother to search for Mystique’s body, is addressed by new writer John Francis Moore (who for some reason isn't scripting at this time). Moore tries to make something out of the absurdity of Rogue’s inaction by using it as a character moment for both her and Forge (showing that Rogue has conflicted feelings about her mother, and that Forge has rotten people skills), so it at least comes across as more than a continuity patch. The rest of the issue is dedicated to Mystique’s plans for revenge over a story that was published in 1989. That comic was already five years old at this point, so it felt a little forced even then, but Moore and Dezago do an admirable job of making it work. X-Factor’s role as government agents and their connection the previous government mutant team lead by Mystique help to make the story feel unique to this title, which is always a plus. The pacing of the story works fine and thankfully doesn’t spend too much time on red herrings like the Avalanche fight. Duursema’s art is a little too “90s” on certain pages, but I still like most of it. This is actually the strongest issue of X-Factor in months, now that I think about it. The story moves at a decent speed, and it actually feels like something is happening again.

CABLE #18 – December 1994

The Dark Ride Part 2 – Judgement Day

Credits: Jeph Loeb (writer), Steve Skroce (penciler), Sellers/Lowe/Barta/Carani/Ryan/Branch (inkers), Mike Thomas (colors), Richard Starkings/Comicraft (lettering)

Summary

Cable, Domino, Storm, and Caliban travel to Egypt to find the Dark Riders. Caliban tracks down one of Tusk’s Underlings, who says that he’s the only one who escaped after Tusk Prime and his brothers were defeated by the new Dark Riders. The Underling leads the team through the desert where they’re attacked by the Dark Riders and Tusk Prime, who has actually joined the new team. Cable again uses his telekinetic powers in the battle, while Storm undoes the sandstorm created by Hurricane. The Dark Riders teleport the team away to the town of Akkaba. Cable says that this was the birthplace of Apocalypse. In Cable’s future, Apocalypse slaughtered everyone in the town after Cable and his rebels settled there. Cable’s distraught to see the town massacred once more in the present day. When a man in an armored suit appears, Cable thinks that it’s Apocalypse, but he reveals himself to be Cable’s son, Tyler.

Continuity Note

Cable says that can’t teleport, or “bodyslide”, since the Professor left Earth in X-Force #39.

Review

It’s another fight-chase-fight issue. The action scenes aren’t as monotonous as I was expecting, but there is one annoying moment where Storm suddenly decides to stop a giant sandstorm after implying a few pages earlier that she couldn’t because it was unnaturally created. Basically, she can’t stop it until the plot decides to let her to, which doesn’t work. Loeb tries to develop Cable’s character by having Storm teach him about the bond the X-Men share, but this seems like ground Nicieza’s already covered in X-Force. Loeb is able to give all of the characters distinctive voices, though, which helps to make the book feel less generic than it has before. Bringing back Tyler as a villain is a good move, since he’s a character that relates uniquely to Cable, and he’s been underused in this series so far. Skroce’s art has a few rough patches, probably due to the six inkers, but I enjoy most of what he’s doing. His fight scenes are energetic and the storytelling and layouts work pretty well.