X-amining Uncanny X-Men #345

"Moving On"

June 1997

In a Nutshell

Maggott debuts while the X-Men (try to) head home. 

Plot: Scott Lobdell

Script: Ben Raab
Penciler: Joe Madureira (part 1), Melvin Rubi (part 2)
Inkers: Tim Townsend (part 1), Vlasco & Candelario (part 2)
Letters: Richard Starkings & Comicraft
Colors: Steve Buccellato and Team Bucce

Editor: Mark Powers
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

Plot

In Guatemala, Sister Maria de la Joya runs from an armored being demanding to know where Joseph is. She is rescued when the creature is attacked by two giant slugs, sent by a mutant named Maggott, who is also looking for Joseph. Meanwhile, on the Shi'ar homeworld, Lilandra laments the damage wrought by the Phalanx and expresses her gratitude towards the X-Men. Later, Joseph is uneasy in the midst of a celebration honoring the X-Men's victory given the loss of life. Rogue does her best to console him, and offers to tell him everything he wants to know about Magneto when they return home. Gambit skips the party, spending his time digging graves for the fallen as an act of atonement for his past actions. The next morning, the X-Men board a Shi'ar ship for home, with Lilandra appointing Deathbird as their escort. As the ship makes its way to the stargate, Bishop reads up on Deathbird's history, and is fascinated by what he finds. Deathbird is less than excited to see him digging into her past however, but their discussion is interrupted when the ship is knocked aside by the wake of an even larger, out-of-control starship. From the bridge, the X-Men watch as the larger ship crashes into the stargate, destroying it, just as the X-Men are pulled into the cosmic portal. 

Firsts and Other Notables

As touted on the cover, Uncanny X-Men #345 is the first appearance of Maggott (as well as his sentient slugs/digestive system, Eany and Meany, though all three go unnamed in  he story). 

Coming here, at the waning end of both Scott Lobdell and Joe Madureira's time on the series, Maggott will ultimately become a much different character than how he's introduced here, going from, visually, a fairly large, bulky guy to a more lanky one. He will also be presented over the next handful of issues as an older, more worldly character, only to later be retconned into a young man not much older than the Generation X kids (the cast of which he'll eventually join for a time). These early issues also suggest he is Australian, when he will later be established as a South African. 

The woman Maggott rescues is the nun who first discovered Joseph in Uncanny X-Men #327. She will next appear for Joseph's funeral in Uncanny X-Men #368. The identity of her mysterious armored ape-like/monster attacker remains a mystery, as do its motives for seeking out Joseph/Magneto. 

Mel Rubi splits art duties with Joe Mad in this issue, and rather than have them go back and forth, the issue is divided into two parts, with each penciller handling one part: Joe Mad on the Maggott intro and the X-Men's time on Chandrilar, and Rubi finishing out the issue with the material aboard the ship as the X-Men head home. 

With the "big" reveal of Gambit's mysterious, tortured past looming in issue #350, the teasing and foreshadowing gets amped up here, as Gambit spends an evening digging graves while thinking about how terrible the thing he dare not speak of was. 

The identity of the massive ship which destroys the stargate and interrupts the X-Men's return home is never revealed; it seems simply a narrative device to prompt the upcoming scattering of this group of characters. 

A Work in Progress

Lilandra, presumably from talking with the X-Men off-panel, has learned of the events of "Onslaught", and compares Xavier's actions there to her own handling of the war with the Kree in "Operation: Galactic Storm" (in which she authorized the use of the Nega Bomb that decimated much of the Kree homeworld and allowed the Shi'ar to conquer them). 

Bishop learns of — and is impressed by — Deathbird's past, as the pair grows closer. 

The Reference Section

Beast name drops Captain Picard (whom the X-Men have yet to but will soon meet) when the other ship appears. 

Young Love

Caught up in the throws of celebration, Beast suggests to Trish renewing their relationship; she rebuffs him (though it's not entirely clear why this even necessary, as the pair has been acting like they're romantically involved for much of this story previously). It's also established here that Trish was once a screenwriter, for what that's worth. 

For Sale

The new Heroes for Hire series gets a full page house ad. 

As does next month's Flashback month, in which most books interrupt their ongoing narratives for "#-1" issues featuring stories set in series' pasts. 

Bullpen Bulletins

Stan's soapbox is back 

Austin's Analysis
If it's remembered at all, Uncanny X-Men #345 is remembered for being the first appearance of Maggott. He's right there on the cover, after all, being touted as the next big thing. But there's actually precious little Maggott in the issue. Just a few pages of story — and he really only appears on one of those pages. The rest of the issue is pretty unremarkable wrap-up/setup, closing out the Phalanx/Shi'ar arc and moving the X-Men on to their next story. It's all pretty routine stuff, but the fact that artistic duties are split between Joe Mad and Mel Rubi actually makes it a case study for what a difference Joe Mad makes. Rubi's art isn't bad for the times; he's basically doing the standard Roger Cruz-esque "ape Jim Lee/Joe Mad" fill-in routine. But placed next to Madureira, it pales in comparison. Even though Rubi technically has the more action-packed portion of the X-Men material, Madureira's renderings of the X-Men attending a party and feeling angst are more energetic, moody, and effective. In the grand scheme of things, there's not much to Uncanny X-Men #345. But it does show how a strong artist can liven up a routine, unremarkable plot.

Next Issue

Sabretooth AND Mystique in one limited series? In THIS economy?!? It's time for the Sabretooth and Mystique miniseries. 

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