tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post642479449306737525..comments2024-03-28T10:18:00.370-05:00Comments on Gentlemen of Leisure: X-amining X-Factor #62Austin Gortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-39250560367834500342015-10-28T14:46:42.521-05:002015-10-28T14:46:42.521-05:00Amusing that we come from totally different direct...Amusing that we come from totally different directions to it. I never caught the later Genosha stories, but the mere descriptions feel sacrilegious to me, because for me the first Genosha story had absolutely nothing wrong. I bought so into Claremont's Genosha that anything done differently from the original setup is at fault. I almost mentioned in my earlier comment already that the art is off, even by Lee, foremostly because it's not Silvestri/Leonardi.<br /><br />In a way the original Genosha story may have been peak Uncanny X-Men for me before every long story arc dear to me like Madelyne, Illyana, X-Factor the mutant-hunters gets burned in the Inferno (pun intended and I've been thinking like this for two decades now) and anything new (to me) that gets introduced didn't so much tickle my fancies, but even so I love Genegineer, his son who gets kicked to stomach by realities, Wipeout, Chief Magistrate Anderson & Magistrates... well Press Gang not so much, and the absurdity of Maddie going semi-inferno already while people are still in process of telling important story on apartheid and most of all Carol Danvers busting loose in a way that's the much needed FU to Avengers #200 which Avengers Annual #10 never succeeded to be. How funny that Maddie's sort-of premiere happened in that issue.<br /><br />Ravingly mad She-Reagan and vague promise of law drama and Cable ill fits into my Genosha.Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-10413430157714164332015-10-28T12:29:02.400-05:002015-10-28T12:29:02.400-05:00I tend to agree with Teemu on this one. I actually...I tend to agree with Teemu on this one. I actually did read "X-Tinction Agenda" in trade paperback format when I was a teenager, probably around 1992 or so, and other than the art in the Jim Lee chapters, it really did nothing for me back then, either.<br /><br />But then the only time I was ever interested in Genosha was when Magneto was its ruler, so that probably has something to do with it. I just don't like Hodge or the Magistrates or the Genegeneer or any of the stuff that comes with "classic" Genosha.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-56179454062888148012015-10-28T06:03:53.633-05:002015-10-28T06:03:53.633-05:00Well, it's plausible that a sizeable part of i...Well, it's plausible that a sizeable part of it may be because I have always had to fill in the blanks myself from specks of info gathered from references in later issues and short recap on editor's column. So I had caught all the most significant happenstances beforehand and mebbe pictured them in my head more to be awesome than (most of) the creators here actually delivered them.<br /><br />And the parts I didn't caught from the external sources are Hodge's kackling villainy that's bad fit to the Genosha thematics, Rictor's continuous poor imitation (with his unpaid dues) of Wolverine/Havok from the first Genosha story and Boom-Boom's apparent positioning as some kind of Dani Sue for the 90's, each of which are quite off-putting.<br /><br />I did know parts of the story beforehand, some other parts I could have lived without ever knowing, the very okay bit kind of get lost in the static and for me it's really hard not to compare X-Tinction Agenda as it's entirety to the high class stuff that next follows on UNCANNY by Claremont/Lee or what I caught of X-FACTOR by Claremont/Portacio.<br /><br />Of course I may just have been shielding myself all these years by telling meself "X-Tinction Agenda couldn't have been any good". It's one thing if they skip an issue here and there, but it gets really testing when they completely skip a meaningful crossover, especially compared to the massive exposure Inferno got only a year earlier when even our Spidey book kept doing it for four months.Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-11787705725804221802015-10-27T12:51:39.560-05:002015-10-27T12:51:39.560-05:00Agreed. Agreed. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-11833130094967064562015-10-27T12:51:29.164-05:002015-10-27T12:51:29.164-05:00I always thought when Rahne was in her transitiona...<i> I always thought when Rahne was in her transitional form, her clothing would just disappear, but it seems around this time she started to have her clothing </i><br /><br />It's always been a bit inconsistent, but usually falls on the side of Rahne being unclothed anytime part of the wolf is in play. She's definitely clothed in her transition form moving forward, but that makes sense, since that's now effectively her default form. <br /><br /><i>If there is one detriment to the story, its that the ending is a bit rushed. It takes place over literally 2 pages, no? It would have been nicer to have a few more pages devoted to the funeral, Rahne and Alex's decision to stay, and to the changes within the Genoshan government.</i><br /><br />Agreed. The fight scene with Hodge could have been significantly shortened and still covered the same beats (showdown w/Rahne & Rictor, one with Archangel, one with Cyclops & Havok), which would have left more room for the aftermath.<br /><br /><i>If anything, you could argue this is when the "80s" really ended for the X-titles</i><br /><br />Definitely. Claremont sticks around for a few more months, but with Simonson on her way out and the final Image founder to join the franchise coming aboard after this story, this is pretty much the death knell of 80s X-Men. <br /><br />Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-68994443028538245192015-10-27T12:45:41.099-05:002015-10-27T12:45:41.099-05:00Ooh… I do like that point about the symbolism of H...<i>Ooh… I do like that point about the symbolism of Hodge’s buried head.</i><br /><br />Thanks! I actually stumbled over that idea as I was writing the post. <br /><br /><i>After which Scott remarks to Logan, “There’s not another like her,” </i>with a totally straight face.<br /><br />Heh. I almost called that out. Simonson HAD to phrase it like that intentionally, right? <br /><br /><i>Favorite panel: It’s the old tiny-molecular-adhesive-firing-gun-hidden-in-your-mouth trick! </i><br /><br />I do kind of like the random, borderline silly gadgets Hodge has in his bizzaro body; one of the few things Bogdanove does well in his chapters is really sell the idea of Hodge as this outlandish, almost ridiculous grotesque hodgepodge (pun intended!) of sci-fi weaponry.<br />Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-9088038491638084332015-10-27T12:42:02.491-05:002015-10-27T12:42:02.491-05:00especially Rahne's "sad goodbye" fac...<i>especially Rahne's "sad goodbye" face, which is indistinguishable from the face my dog gives me when he's begging for a taste of my food</i><br /><br />Ha! <br /><br /><i>Why have Boom Boom give this eulogy full of "I heard that you..." comments when two people who had been teammates with both Warlock & Doug are right there and could deliver a less hearsay-heavy farewell?</i><br /><br />As wwk5d suggested, I've always taken it as Boom-Boom and Rictor pouring out the ashes and eulogizing Warlock because they were present when he died (at least in the general proximity). It's not necessarily the decision I would have made, but I can at least see the reasoning behind it. <br /><br />I'm much more bothered by the buxomy dress Boom-Boom is wearing to the funeral, but that's yet another problem with Bogdanove's art. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-74776509873414751482015-10-27T12:39:22.700-05:002015-10-27T12:39:22.700-05:00I only read the issues just now for your X-aminati...<i> I only read the issues just now for your X-aminations, and stripped of any sort of nostalgia for the story I just don't really feel it, at all.</i><br /><br />That's too bad. I really do think this story works on more levels than just nostalgia, but obviously, not for you. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-17400094307731104712015-10-26T15:30:43.502-05:002015-10-26T15:30:43.502-05:00Coincidence. Coincidence. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-64361500531080657612015-10-26T15:02:45.192-05:002015-10-26T15:02:45.192-05:00On closer scrutiny I take it back a bit, because t...On closer scrutiny I take it back a bit, because the initial Uncanny outings of Selene had her sport the other red gem brooch with the Hellfire Club pitchfork logo. The Havok-like brooch seem to have been in the Cap issues and in various isolated pin-ups. The question still stands though. Havok's gem, his brother's ruby quartz visor, and 10 y.o. Nathan's suggested red gem-powered Mr. Sinister android. Coincidence?Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-77061029691860566352015-10-26T09:52:03.232-05:002015-10-26T09:52:03.232-05:00It's end of an era to the former looks of the ...It's end of an era to the former looks of the Summers boys' classic looks, at least. It's open hair adventuring for both of them from now on.<br /><br />Havok's black costume always had that red gem thingy on the forehead the exact nature of which I believe was never opened. The costume was given to him by Larry Trask in the 60's and the ringlets originally had some power controlling qualities. They said nothing of the gem but in the story Trask blasted Havok right into the gem by some sort of remote controller to make him emit rather than store energy.<br /><br />I'm not trying to start anything but I'm deeply disturbed by the fact that in the close-ups some artists (Byrne on MTU for example) took some pains to draw it detailedly, and that Selene has occasionally sported a brooch <i>exactly</i> like it, and that her lycanthrope high priest von Roehm was specifically a jeweller by his trade and that the Living Pharaoh, when not amping himself with Havok was all about the Ruby Scarab, and everyone's feeding on power, cosmic or mutant, the color of which Infinity Gem coincidentally happens to be red.Teemunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-67932882001647747582015-10-25T02:36:45.882-05:002015-10-25T02:36:45.882-05:00"Though this marks the end of the "openl..."Though this marks the end of the "openly antagonistic towards the X-Men" iteration of Genosha, this is far from the last we'll see of the place"<br /><br />Poor Genosha. Marvel could never let it get a happy ending, it just kept being used as a tragic allegory. First South Africa, then the Balkans, then Israel/Palestine, then Grant Morrison blew it up, and CC's not so successful attempt at reviving it aside, it's pretty much a dead island at this point. Too bad. <br /><br />"Jim Lee provides the cover to this issue. Aside from Marvel Girl's boob-thrusting pose, it's pretty solid."<br /><br />It also compliments the cover to part 1 of this crossover rather nicely.<br /><br />"She's also gained the ability to transform into a massive wolf, something that never really comes up again."<br /><br />When we she shows up again in a few months, she's more or less back to her pre-mutate power levels, just much more savage. I think Bogdonove just really exaggerated the new more powerful and larger status she got in the last part of this crossover.<br /><br />"Wolverine is back to being mostly naked"<br /><br />And Jean once again decides to remove her mask. Seriously, what was Bogdonove's fascination with maskless Jean and half-naked Wolverine and Cyclops? Speaking of...<br /><br />"I can't stand the way he draw half-wolf, half-human Rahne less like a werewolf and more like a big dog."<br /><br />With breasts tastefully covered by slip of fabric! I always thought when Rahne was in her transitional form, her clothing would just disappear, but it seems around this time she started to have her clothing still show when she was in this form. I do know both Liefeld and Lee were also inconsistent with whether they drew her with clothing or not.<br /><br />With regards to the eulogy, it is a bit baffling, but I always assumed Boom-Boom and Rictor gave the eulogy as they were there in Genosha when Warlock died...or something? <br /><br />If there is one detriment to the story, its that the ending is a bit rushed. It takes place over literally 2 pages, no? It would have been nicer to have a few more pages devoted to the funeral, Rahne and Alex's decision to stay, and to the changes within the Genoshan government. Given how padded out the fight scene is this issue, they could have taken away a few pages from that.<br /><br />Overall, though, this is still a good solid story, and one of my favorite X-crossovers. The story itself is really good, as it does bring together many outstanding plot points rather well and ties them up. The X-men are more or less reunited as a team and the Genoshan subplot is brought to a close. Using Hodge, given his history with X-factor and some of the New Mutants, also works on both the symbolic level Teebore mentioned but also from a story point as well. It gives the conflict more meaning to have him there, especially given the limited or non-existent history X-factor and the New Mutants have with the Genoshans. And it was fun seeing all of the various teams finally meeting up and working together. <br /><br />The art does prevent the story from being regarded as a classic, which is too bad, given how good the story itself is. Too bad Walt Simonson couldn't come back for this story, especially as most of the stuff with Hodge and The Right happened during his run on the title. It was have been nice to have him close out that particular chapter of X-men history. <br /><br />If anything, you could argue this is when the "80s" really ended for the X-titles, as this is the last time CC and Simonson are running the line, so to speak. Next month, Simonson is gone from New Mutants and stays around X-factor for a couple months co-plotting before leaving, CC is more or less on his way out from Excaliber, and Lee and Harras will be exercising more control on Uncanny. The age of Liefeld, Lee, and Portacio starts next month...wwk5dnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-1238421802225437332015-10-24T20:49:20.052-05:002015-10-24T20:49:20.052-05:00Ooh… I do like that point about the symbolism of H...<br>Ooh… I do like that point about the symbolism of Hodge’s buried head.<br /><br /><i>// Jean rightly tells off Wolverine and Cyclops as the pair bicker over her. //</i><br /><br />After which Scott remarks to Logan, “There’s not another <i>like</i> her,” <i>with a totally straight face</i>.<br /><br />Favorite panel: It’s the old tiny-molecular-adhesive-firing-gun-hidden-in-your-mouth trick! <br /><br />The cover has me wondering if Lee was paying more attention to detail, in the sense of making sure that everything worked, yet at the same time reining in his tendency to overdue the hatching, because there was no inker to hand the piece off to / fall back on.<br /><br />Ditto what Mela said about the eulogy.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-55446104277189323612015-10-24T07:29:43.336-05:002015-10-24T07:29:43.336-05:00Agreed so much on the art, especially Rahne's ...Agreed so much on the art, especially Rahne's "sad goodbye" face, which is indistinguishable from the face my dog gives me when he's begging for a taste of my food. I liked Bogdanove's art in other stuff, but his art in this story is somehow worse than Liefeld.<br /><br />The funeral scene for Warlock always bugged me. Why have Boom Boom give this eulogy full of "I heard that you..." comments when two people who had been teammates with both Warlock & Doug are right there and could deliver a less hearsay-heavy farewell? It's one last baffling creative choice from a writer who really should've known better, I guess.Melahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05539894845356203447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-44504351366002947792015-10-23T16:15:23.686-05:002015-10-23T16:15:23.686-05:00I don't know. They never published one page fr...I don't know. They never published one page from the whole crossover for us, possibly for the same exact reason why they didn't publish Uncanny #262-264. I only read the issues just now for your X-aminations, and stripped of any sort of nostalgia for the story I just don't really feel it, at all.<br /><br />Hodge's square shaped tail reminds me terribly of something (Adams' Mojo on the Uncanny Annual?).<br /><br />Do the Summers boys have like <i>any</i> reason for holding hands on that one panel? My first reaction is to ask "what do they think they are, Fenris?", followed shortly by "<i>what!dotheythinktheyareFENRIS?!</i>"Teemunoreply@blogger.com