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Friday, May 21, 2021

X-amining Uncanny X-Men #337

"Know Thy Enemy"
October 1996

In a Nutshell
The X-Men gather for breakfast while Wolverine has a heart-to-heart with Xavier.

Writer: Scott Lobdell
Penciler: Joe Madureira
Inkers: Tim Townsend & Vince Russell
Letters: Richard Starkings & Comicraft
Colors: Bucce & TB
Editor: Bob Harras

Plot
As Xavier sits in the early morning rain, looking upon the damaged X-Mansion, Wolverine tries to assuage the guilt wearing heavy on Xavier. Meanwhile, Bastion looks out over the massive crater left in the wake of Onslaught's defeat, while presidential candidate Graydon Creed gives an impassioned speech about the dangers of mutants, which prompts a watching J. Jonah Jameson to launch an investigation into Creed. At the boat house, Cyclops & Beast discuss Beast's recent captivity at the hands of his dark doppelgänger, while in the kitchen, Jean works on making breakfast while consoling a distraught Quicksilver. Elsewhere, Bastion arrives at a facility where his Zero Tolerance organization is examining the Sentinels co-opted by Onslaught. Back at the X-Mansion, Wolverine continues to argue with Xavier, while the rest of the X-Men slowly come together at the boat house for breakfast. Finally, Wolverine arrives, saying that Xavier isn't up for company, but that he tried. He joins the table, and appreciates that, for the moment at least, things may be slowly returning to normal. 

Firsts and Other Notables
Bastion pops up in this issue (with the setup for the next big X-Men crossover, "Operation: Zero Tolerance", having already begun before the launch of "Onslaught"), and a brief bit of narration hints at his origins (saying his purpose in destroying mutants comes from having stared into the eyes of his creator), though it doesn't quite fit with the later reveal that Bastion is a combo of Master Mold & Nimrod merged by the Siege Perilous (it's also a vague enough hint that it's not directly contradicted, either). 


Graydon Creed is using the events of "Onslaught" to further his anti-mutant presidential campaign (giving a speech photographed by Peter Parker), and he has caught the attention of J. Jonah Jameson, who decides to launch an investigation into Creed. This will grow to encompass Operation: Zero Tolerance as well, and be a running subplot in the X-books between now and that crossover. 


Bastion is attended to by an aide named Harper in this issue, who appears to be a shapeshifter of some kind (and thus, presumably, a mutant). This is the same Harper who met with Creed in X-Factor #123, though he looks much different there (but, again, shapeshifter). He will be a recurring, but minor, player in the ongoing "Operation: Zero Tolerance" build-up.  


A Work in Progress
Cyclops is shown in this issue to sleep wearing ruby quartz goggles (which, frankly, makes the most sense in terms of safety). 


They're still trying to make "Black Beast" as the name for Dark Beast happen. 


Beast suggests it's understandable that none of his closest friends noticed he had been replaced by an evil duplicate due to the fact that he's been spending so much time on his own, in his lab, of late. 


Quicksilver is staying with Scott & Jean at their boat house home in the wake of Crystal and Scarlet Witch disappearing into Onslaught (also, I get that this sort of thing is common in comics, but Jean's robe and pose in this panel has always struck me as too sexy for someone making breakfast in the company of a house guest). 


When Psylocke shows up for breakfast, she does so in uniform, and Jean notes that she's grown more emotionally distant of late. 


Wolverine tells Xavier that while he first joined the X-Men in order to get out of working for Department H, he struck around because of Professor X. 


There's a funny bit at the end of the issue where Gambit is admonished for calling Joseph "Magneto", only to learn that Cannonball skipped breakfast because he thought Magneto would be there. 


Austin's Analysis
Well, "Onslaught" itself is officially over, which means it's Lobdell's time to shine with another Post-Crossover Quiet Issue! While this one isn't as emotionally affecting as similar efforts in, say, Uncanny X-Men #297, it is nonetheless a strong example of the form. Like Cable #36, the shift in tone from the seemingly-endless churn of action in the crossover itself is in-and-of-itself refreshing, but beyond that, Lobdell uses the time to showcase some of the character interactions that were sidelined amongst the more arch drama of the crossover: Beast discussing his captivity with Cyclops, Quicksilver mourning the apparent loss of his wife and sister, Gambit's still-prickly feelings about Rogue & Joseph. The throughline to it all are the scenes between Wolverine & Xavier, with Wolverine trying to argue in favor of the good Xavier has done compared to the evil wrought by Onslaught. Again, while this perhaps isn't as affecting as the Jubilee/Xavier sequences at the end of "X-Cutioner's Song", it is to Lobdell's credit that, in the end, Wolverine doesn't "win"; Xavier ultimately sits out the "family" breakfast. This is part of a mini-arc for Xavier Lobdell is crafting that plays out here and in X-Men (vol. 2) #57, but all else aside, it's refreshing to see a character NOT respond immediately in a positive way to a heartfelt speech. All too often, what should be a period of emotional struggle for a character in a situation like Xavier's lasts as long as it takes for the character to hear an impassioned argument for why they're still a Good Person. Here, Wolverine made his case, and while the X-Men have mostly forgiven their mentor, in the end, Xavier still isn't ready to forgive himself.

Next Issue
Tomorrow, Xavier says goodbye in X-Men (vol. 2) #57. Next week, the Road to Onslaught

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9 comments:

  1. This was the first issue I read after my forced hiatus that saw me skipping Onslaught. I thought I came back later than this for some reason. Memory is a funny thing.

    The bit with Gambit questioning "Magneto's" new name has always stuck with me, even when the other beats of this story faded.

    I am positive I loved every panel of art when I first read this. I was a young, single male. Now those images of Jean and Betsy are more distracting than engaging. I'd like to think that means I've grown into a better person but it probably just means I outgrew titillation.

    Otherwise, this is a typically strong Lobdell post-crossover issue. There's just the right amount of lampshade and foreshadow to round out the interpersonal drama. It also means were now counting down to Lobdell's departure from the X-Men.

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    1. "I am positive I loved every panel of art when I first read this. I was a young, single male. Now those images of Jean and Betsy are more distracting than engaging. I'd like to think that means I've grown into a better person but it probably just means I outgrew titillation."

      I wish I could be as strong as you, Drew. I was a young, single male too, and I liked it all then. And, while I agree with Austin's note above, that Jean's attire is too overtly sexy to be making and serving breakfast to her friends and a houseguest, today as a 42-year-old married father, I still really like Madureira's depictions of her and Psylocke.

      On a personal note -- a friend of mine, who had been an X-Men fan during the "Outback" and "Mutant Genesis" eras, but had stopped reading around the time Jim Lee left, was at my house one day way back when, and saw this issue lying around -- so he flipped through it. He didn't like Madureira's work at all, feeling it was too cartoony for the X-Men. I remember he specifically didn't like the picture of Psylocke coming into the boathouse for whatever reason.

      Meanwhile, there I was, wishing every Marvel comic could've been drawn by Madureira! Nowadays, I still absolutely adore his work, and I love his X-Men, but I'm also more varied in my tastes. He's phenomenal, but guys like the Kuberts and John Romita, Jr. are just as valid in my mind, and what style I like more depends on what day of the week, and even what hour of the day, it is.

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    2. I still really love Joe Madyreira's art style. I have all of his X-Men and Battle Chasers stuff and I still like to read through it. I think my objection is that both women look like they're trying to be sexy in a scene where that really shouldn't be what's going on.

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    3. Yeah, that makes sense. It's almost the 90s Comics Code approved equivalent of all the gratuitous nude and sex scenes you get in pay cable and streaming series nowadays. There's rarely and reason for them; they're just there.

      That said, I do tend to stop and admire out-of-place cheesecake in a comic book story, even when I'm well aware it's gratuitous. It's like my brain goes, "For shame, Mr. Artist! There was no need for that. Oh well -- great job drawing it!" (Same applies for those pay cable scenes, too.)

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  2. I know Scott Lobdell isn't terribly beloved these days for personal reasons, but I will never understand why he had (and still seems to have) such a bum rap as a writer in the 90s. While not all equal, every one of his "quiet" issues is, in my opinion, on par with anything Chris Claremont ever wrote in a similar vein. This is a really good issue on several levels, and it's exactly the sort of thing readers need after a massive event like "Onslaught".

    One of my favorite touches was the interaction between Cyclops, Beast, and Iceman. Unfortunate Archangel wasn't able to join in, but as we'll see next issue (and hinted by Psylocke here), he has his own problems to deal with right now. But it was nice to see three of the original four "boys" goofing off for a couple pages.

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    1. "Bastion pops up in this issue (with the setup for the next big X-Men crossover, "Operation: Zero Tolerance", having already begun before the launch of "Onslaught")..."

      I've commented on this in the past, but I'll mention again that I loved how they used to do this in the 90s. "Age of Apocalypse" ends, and boom -- we're setting up "Onslaught" straight out of the gate. "Onslaught" ends, and we're immediately seeding "Operation: Zero Tolerance" (though really, O:ZT was being set up prior to "Onslaught" even started, with Bastion's few appearances in the immediate lead-up.

      Of course, I think the real reason for this O:ZT setup is because, as was discussed in some prior comments, Lobdell's original intention was for Bastion to attack the X-Men immediately after "Onslaught" ended, but Marvel decided to hold off for a while and build next year's crossover around that idea instead.

      "...it doesn't quite fit with the later reveal that Bastion is a combo of Master Mold & Nimrod merged by the Siege Perilous (it's also a vague enough hint that it's not directly contradicted, either)."

      I was wondering about this as I read it. Unlike Onslaught, I always thought Lobdell had a pretty good idea of what Bastion was when he created the character (though I could be wrong, and in any case, it was a lataer writer who actually depicted his origin). But Bastion could have fragmented memories of both his halves. The reference here could be of Master Mold remembering the first time it saw Bolivar Trask, or Nimrod remembering the first time he saw, uhh... well, I don't actually know who built Nimrod.

      Also, I like the subtlety of Bastion's anti-rain force field. It's there, but not commented upon at all. Nice touch to suggest he's more than he appears (even if he already is clearly not quite human).

      "...he has caught the attention of J. Jonah Jameson, who decides to launch an investigation into Creed."

      This is around the time when you start to get the idea Scott Lobdell really wants to write Spider-Man. We have Peter, Jonah, and Robbie here, followed by the sub-plot where Jonah investigates Creed -- and that includes a Spider-Man (Ben Reilly) guest appearance coming up, and then there's the (in?)famous UNCANNY issue which is entirely about Spidey (Peter) during O:ZT!

      "Quicksilver is staying with Scott & Jean at their boat house home in the wake of Crystal and Scarlet Witch disappearing into Onslaught..."

      I'm not sure if I knew yet that Quicksilver was getting his own series when I read this issue, because I'm pretty sure I remember wondering how long he'd stick around, and if he might become an X-Man. I still think that could've been interesting, having him and his de-aged father running around on the same team.

      "There's a funny bit at the end of the issue where Gambit is admonished for calling Joseph "Magneto", only to learn that Cannonball skipped breakfast because he thought Magneto would be there."

      I love the Bishop/Gambit "hostile bromance". I wish it had gotten more traction.

      Gambit joking that he's going to start calling himself "James" cracks me up, too, and it feels a little bit like Lobdell poking fun at himself for naming Magneto Joseph in the first place. But I actually thought the funniest bit in this scene was when Gambit came in out of the rain and said, "I knew if I wore this trench coat long enough, it'd come in handy!" That was a genuine laugh-out-loud moment.

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    2. Scott Lobdell claimed early on that Bastion was created to be a third point of view to break up the Xavier/Magneto dichotomy though that was obviously out the window very quickly. I don't know if that was misdirection on his part or if he just changed his mind at some point. Knowing Lobdell's style, it's probably the latter.

      As for Quicksilver, I didn't even know he had his own solo series until last year when I started creating a checklist of X-Men spin-offs to add to my collection.

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  3. I’m a sucker for these personal check-ins with teammates sitting around a table, etc., as I’ve probably said before, and I recognize this as quite a standout example despite not being invested in the larger plot. The Gambit stuff is indeed particularly good.

    // Jean's robe and pose in this panel has always struck me as too sexy for someone making breakfast in the company of a house guest //

    Yep.

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  4. It would be beyond stupid if any of the X-Men suddenly started going around calling himself James.

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