tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post8648510459369320175..comments2024-03-28T10:18:00.370-05:00Comments on Gentlemen of Leisure: X-amining Uncanny X-Men #316Austin Gortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-89125730391276128512018-11-02T15:59:19.301-05:002018-11-02T15:59:19.301-05:00I remember I saw this very issue featured in a epi...I remember I saw this very issue featured in a episode of Boy Meets World. Cory Matthews had it on his desk and was surprised his teacher Mr. Turner was a x-fan and saying this is a great issue. that made the issue extra special to me. it was on the 2nd season 94-95. check out the video clip under. <br /><br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZ-n7Nb7m5Mfranciscohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13907504333419396147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-86047528400576189462018-10-28T09:53:01.031-05:002018-10-28T09:53:01.031-05:00The Cyclops Timeline fails to mention that Scott j...<br>The Cyclops Timeline fails to mention that Scott just ditches Madelyne and their child once Jean is found alive.<br /><br /><i>// we haven’t seen Cerebro detect a new mutant recently //</i><br /><br />I find it kind-of quaint to think of these potential recruits as <i>the</i> next generation of mutants when in the years since the ANAD X-Men and New Mutants were introduced we’ve seen the ill-advised “one in a million” reference to the existence of mutants on Earth truly manifest. Every time a mutant pops up it’s hard not to recall how the series’ earliest days were built almost exclusively around outreach to and/or the potential threat represented by newly detected mutants, but once whole groups of them start crawling out of the woodwork you have to wonder just how many untold stories of mutants turning Xavier down haven’t we seen and why Cerebro missed so many that it’s clear Xavier’s never encountered in the first place. Did he monitor the mutants who became the Acolytes — his past relationship with Amelia Voght notwithstanding — or, for that matter, did Magneto (or the Hellfire Club) before they crossed paths in Vol. II #1? The retconned existence of the Morlocks and Genosha, most of all, will always be static buzzing loudly in my head when considering the X-Men corpus. <i>So there are a half-dozen candidates for the school on file? It must be a slow month.</i><br /> <br /><i>// Emma is back in her own body, having been swapped with Iceman between issues by Professor X. //</i><br /><br />While the Phalanx having replaced the X-Men at the mansion between issues was a proper mystery, this should’ve happened on-panel or at least been dealt with through more than just one line in Sean’s internal monologue.<br /><br /><i>// Banshee recounts the various turns his life has taken //</i><br /><br />The character seen in <i>Giant-Size</i> #1 and onwards is hard to reconcile with the one introduced less than a decade before — his macabre visage alone is entirely different — but the reference to his checkered history was appreciated. I’ve always had a soft spot for Banshee and lamented his sidelining over the years, due in large part I think to his age in-universe and his status as hailing from the pre-ANAD era (older superheroes like the Justice Society, for whatever reasons, struck me as neat from my earliest comics reading), so I found it quite satisfying when the cool, confident competence born of that history was put on display.<br /><br /><i>// Beast has created a Heather Locklear Danger Room program. //</i><br /><br />Which is a very surprising thing to have Sean mention in reference to needing a workout, if you’re not hip to the contemporary aerobics-video reference, and quite possibly even if you are.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-73357061692632953332018-10-20T20:58:16.150-05:002018-10-20T20:58:16.150-05:00Ack, no. @Licinio -- I always read the comments se...Ack, no. @Licinio -- I always read the comments sections to see what you have to say because I noticed and appreciated your "this is what should have happened" takes on X-lore ages ago. They clearly come from a place of deep X-knowledge and love, and I very much like them. (I may or may not have bookmarked Teebore's X-Men vol. 2 #25 post just to read your comment about how the Blue/Gold relaunch _should_ have gone from time to time.) But this one -- this I just can't disagree with more.<br /><br />After the O5 X-Factor failed so miserably with Caliban and the proto-X-Terminators -- and then _again_ as the New Mutants' short-lived mentors -- giving Scott and Jean control of Generation X would have been completely unearned in-universe. (And, as Teebore notes, impossible in the real world editorial offices.)<br /><br />There is much I don't like about Generation X (the Morrison-esque "gross powers" among them), but there is lots to like in the book -- and right at the top of the list is Sean and Emma at co-headmasters. It's a wonderful, unexpected pairing that Lobdell writes consistently well and has in-universe roots back to that old New Mutants annual in which Banshee is portrayed as the New Mutants' former mentor. Really, Sean and Emma heading the Massachusetts is one of my all-time favorite pairings of X-characters in any X-book from any era.<br /><br />(I seem to have hit some sort of error here, so reposting.)Michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03665503542091489778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-60718442169384743572018-10-20T20:56:11.331-05:002018-10-20T20:56:11.331-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03665503542091489778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-89511676248826914902018-10-18T20:15:20.533-05:002018-10-18T20:15:20.533-05:00This issue has always been my go-to example of how...This issue has always been my go-to example of how below-average crossovers can have some great individual issues in them. Phalanx Covenant as a whole is aggressively mediocre, to be kind. The Phalanx themselves are a reasonably interesting idea (what if a bastardized version of Warlock became the new Sentinels?), but the weird, vague connections to the Technarch did them no favors and they never really felt like the threat their powers should have made them.<br /><br />But this? This issue is great. As Austin correctly noted, it's a suspense movie masquerading as a superhero comic. Just like any good horror movie, it starts slow with everything seemingly normal. (Well, by X-Men standards.) Slowly, your protagonist starts to notice a couple things that are just a little... off. Clever guy that he is, he finds a way to test his suspicions and has them confirmed. So he does the sensible thing and calls for help, only to learn all the roads are closed, the power generator is out, and the calls are coming from inside the house!<br /><br />Starting the story in media res was definitely the right choice. And those few panels of Banshee, sweat dripping from his face, and the slowly-dawning look of horror as he realizes literally ALL of the X-Men have been replaced by pod people... just excellent work by Madureira.<br /><br />It's almost a shame this was the first issue, because the rest of the crossover couldn't hope to compare. At least Generation Next is the best segment of the crossover, even if the later issues don't live up to this one.Drewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11195303135115277997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-34428089286203607232018-10-18T13:00:57.646-05:002018-10-18T13:00:57.646-05:00I'm in agreement. I love Claremont's New M...I'm in agreement. I love Claremont's New Mutants. I can't really compare Generation X to New Mutants, because it just wouldn't be fair, due to how much I love Claremont's New Mutants.<br /><br />That's nothing against Generation X though. The original Lobdell/Bachalo issues were very good, and that period of Generation X was one of the high points of this period of X-history, for me.<br />Some of the characters were less than interesting, on their own, with their weirdness for weirdness sake powers.<br />However, that shows just how good a job Lobdell and Bachalo did with the stories, that they turned in a quality comic.<br /><br />It wasn't Claremont's New Mutants, but that's ok, because it didn't need to be either. It did fine on its own, as long as you don't read it in the shadow of the quality of Claremont's New Mutants.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-24023854483158675642018-10-18T11:02:35.723-05:002018-10-18T11:02:35.723-05:00So, as I've noted many times before, this was ...So, as I've noted many times before, this was my first issue of UNCANNY as a monthly, never-miss-an-installment reader. I remained such through the rest of the 90s and into the 00s, finally dropping it during Chuck Austen's abominable run.<br /><br />I picked this one up since it was part of a crossover, but I stayed for Joe Madureira's artwork. Having never read EXCALIBUR or the previous fill-ins he did on UNCANNY, this was my first exposure to him, and it blew me away. To paraphrase myself from a post I did on my own blog a while back, Joe Mad was a revelation to me. I never knew a superhero comic could look like this. I have to imagine my reaction to him was the same as readers' reactions to Jim Lee a few years earlier or John Byrne in the 70s or Neal Adams in the 60s. I know this sounds like hyperbole, but it absolutely is not: I worshipped the ground this guy walked on for the remainder of his time on UNCANNY, more than I had any artist before or after. (Though my aversion to non-Marvel publishers kept me from following him to BATTLE CHASERS later in the 90s.)<br /><br />"Generation Next" is my favorite part of "Phalanx Covenant", and for a few reasons (mostly nostalgic in nature), "Phalanx" is possibly my favorite X-crossover of the 90s (even taking into account the fact that the "Life Signs" segment was so boring that I fell asleep while reading it). Partly that's because I have pretty vivid recollections of where I was when I read most of the issues. Partly it's because of the Joe Mad art, of course. I love his depictions of all the characters in the issue, particularly Banshee, Gambit, Rogue, and Storm. (Check out Storm's hair -- it goes down to her calves!)<br /><br />Plus, this storyline went a long way toward cementing Banshee as one of my favorite X-Men. I love how he uses his detective skills to sort of figure out something is amiss in the mansion, then acts immediately to save who he can and hit the road. He was the <i>de facto</i> team leader whenever Cyclops was out of action in the Claremont/Cockrum/Byrne run, and he quickly assumes that role here, as well. Plus, his original and best costume is back, albeit for a very brief run, which is nice to see. Between this, reading the afore-mentioned "All-New, All-Different" stuff in fairly close proximity to these stories, and the upcoming GENERATION X, Banshee had a pretty high profile for me in the 90s, and I generally consider him second to Cyclops as my favorite X-Man.<br /><br />(Though admittedly, I have possibly a weird list of favorite X-Men. Top five usucally consists of Cyclops, Banshee, Bishop, Psylocke, and Angel. Expand that to ten, and you get some of the characters you might actually expect, such as Beast and Wolverine.)<br /><br />But I think the real reason I like the crossover so much is that this is the point where the X-Men sort of "clicked" for me. It's hard to explain how, but up to this point I'd been reading X-MEN regularly for over a year, and picking up UNCANNY sporadically as crossovers warrented. I liked the X-Men a lot, and they were slowly but surely rising to eclipse Spider-Man as my favorite Marvel series. But right here, during "Phalanx Covenant" and its aftermath, is when some magical switch flipped on and the X-Men became the title(s) I looked forward to the most every month, which would remain the case pretty much up through "Zero Tolerance" three years or so later.<br /><br />And again, I can't really explain what happened to make this the case, but right about now and for some time after, the X-Men were firing on all cylinders as far as I was concerned, and they could rarely do any wrong.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-7844245218529651342018-10-18T10:36:31.288-05:002018-10-18T10:36:31.288-05:00I like this Storm outfit too. Madureira seems to h...I like this Storm outfit too. Madureira seems to have been a fan of the "All-New, All-Different" designs, considering he put Banshee back in his classic costume for this story, and he later brings back Storm's headdress. I think we see her sporting it while dressed in casual attire in an upcoming post-"Age of Apocalypse" issue.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-68753132454053584592018-10-18T10:34:14.998-05:002018-10-18T10:34:14.998-05:00I agree; it absolutely does depend on what you gre...I agree; it absolutely does depend on what you grew up with. I never read NEW MUTANTS; I didn't even bother with back issues when I was filling in my X-catalog, so I didn't read the series as it was first published, nor did I read it when I was getting into X-Men years later. I finally got around to it via Marvel's NEW MUTANTS CLASSIC trades when I was in my early thirties.<br /><br />So for me, Gen X is pretty much the one and only premier young mutant team -- which is why it irks me that they mostly all vanished, were killed, or were horribly mishandled in the years after their series ended. I'm sure I'll have plenty to say about that series once you start reviewing it here!<br /><br />(Though if we're totally honest here, my favorite character in GENERATION X was Banshee, rather than any of the students -- but I'm sure that went without saying!)Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-33968659623099868762018-10-18T09:36:45.047-05:002018-10-18T09:36:45.047-05:00I don't recall if it's ever revealed the e...I don't recall if it's ever revealed the exact mechanics of how Emplate created Penance. Offhand, I'd guess it's some handwavy connection to the same dark dimension that mutated him/he got stuck in. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-53790564372905894232018-10-18T06:11:06.315-05:002018-10-18T06:11:06.315-05:00How did Emplate transform Monet into Penance?
@Li...How did Emplate transform Monet into Penance?<br /><br />@Liciono Miranda: I suspect the reason Banshee was selected as mentor for GenX was due to Lobdell referencing New Mutants Annual #6.Nathan Adlerhttp://fanfix.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-66365680006152580192018-10-17T17:03:10.511-05:002018-10-17T17:03:10.511-05:00Banshee trying via computer to contact his fellow ...<i>Banshee trying via computer to contact his fellow X-Men, only to discover that of the twelve people in the School, the computer can only identify four </i><br /><br />That's one of those great moments that really underscores how like a horror movie this is. <br /><br /><i>although, when you think about it, wouldn't they be immune to psychic attacks?</i><br /><br />Yeah, the question of how much a telepath can affect a robot/android is...inconsistently presented, at best. I suppose, since the Phalanx are technically sentient (if all part of a collective hive mind), Emma can affect them since there is a "mind" there to read/control/inflict pain on (though the art definitely makes it look like she's telekinetically ripping them apart, which she shouldn't be able to do, robot or not). <br /><br /><i> If not, I suppose this was a further clue of the deception, like Warren wearing a red version of the Adams costume</i><br /><br />I think it's meant to be another visual clue. <br />Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-28081087197424938872018-10-17T16:58:42.631-05:002018-10-17T16:58:42.631-05:00Or, in other words, Claremont's NEW MUTANTS is...Or, in other words, Claremont's NEW MUTANTS is pretty great, and I definitely like it more than the bulk of GENERATION X, but at the same time, I'm not comfortable saying GENERATION X, a series which, for all its ups and downs, still had some good stuff going on, is inherently bad just because it fails to be as good as Claremont's NEW MUTANTS. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-40110839517451508162018-10-17T16:55:02.397-05:002018-10-17T16:55:02.397-05:00Cyclops and Marvel Girl has just returned from the...<i>Cyclops and Marvel Girl has just returned from their honeymoon. It was the perfect occasion. Instead, he just lingers around doing nothing useful.</i><br /><br />I just don't think the Powers-that-be wanted Cyclops & Jean off the X-Men. Recall that the animated series (in which they were both prominent featured) was still on the air, and Jubilee was already leaving the X-Men. After all the effort it took to to bring the X-Men back together, I don't think there was a desire to break them up (particularly since Banshee was written out early after the relaunch, and brought back just to set up his role in Gen X). <br /><br /><i>I heard that things got worse, and that Cyclops later killed Xavier, cheated on Jean and become a lunatic extremist who was killed of... by a disease. </i><br /><br />Cheated, then killed Xavier, then became an extremist who was killed off by M-Pox. But his younger self (along with the rest of the teenage original X-Men) has still been hanging around! <br /><br /><i>Or, you had the ones which no one could explain what was their power, like Synch</i><br /><br />Synch's power is actually the easiest to explain: he copies the powers of whomever is around him (ie he syncs up to them). But I agree, most of the Gen X powers are very Grant Morrison-esque, in that they sound cool, but don't make much sense. I still have no idea how, exactly, Paige's husking power works (like, how does one tear away one's skin?), and Chamber's whole "missing the bottom of his face" thing is suitably tragic, but again, I'm not sure how that works, exactly, in terms of him being a living human being. <br /><br />M being uber-powerful was, for better or worse, intentional. It's contrasted with the fact that, in the early goings, she was prone to periodic & random bursts of catatonia, in which she'd be functionally useless (so there was the contrast between her being the most useful member of the team in terms of her power, but also the least trustworthy, because she could black out at any time). The whole idea that she was outwardly perfect & super powerful but mentally something of a mess was also later explored to decent effect by Peter David in X-FACTOR. <br /><br /><i>Generation X is nothing compared to Claremont’s New Mutants</i><br /><br />I think it's really just a question of what you grew up with. I mean, of the New Mutants, the best of the bunch in terms of characterization are Sam, Dani & Illyana, but even then, a lot of what makes Sam great comes from Fabian Nicieza turning him into a great leader, and Illyana is, essentially, a more drawn-out retread of "Dark Phoenix Saga". Dani really is the purely Claremontian triumph of the lot. <br /><br />So yeah, I couldn't care less about Skin, Synch as a character never really achieved his potential, and Penance was always more of a plot device than anything (not unlike how Doug was a great concept but never realized his full potential, and I couldn't care less about Karma), but Jubilee, Chamber, M and Husk are still "Jubilee, Jono, Monet & Paige" to me, and there's a whole generation of readers out there for whom the group as a whole is their Claremont's New Mutants. <br />Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-58714477996264603682018-10-17T16:51:10.478-05:002018-10-17T16:51:10.478-05:00Oh, I loved this issue. Not so much the rest of th...Oh, I loved this issue. Not so much the rest of the arc, but this was a good beginning. My two favorite scenes: 1) Banshee trying via computer to contact his fellow X-Men, only to discover that of the twelve people in the School, the computer can only identify four ("Saints preserve us...").<br />And 2) Banshee's response to Phalanx-Rogue's question. "Aye...NOW YE LISTEN TO ME!" This is probably my favorite Banshee story. Him noticing something's wrong, confirming it, and then lashing out with the sonic scream. Great character moments. Oh, and he's wearing his green-and-yellow suit again (with a change of collar though).<br />Nice to see Emma back to her body and taking down the PhalanxStorm & Iceman. Although, when you think about it, wouldn't they be immune to psychic attacks?<br />I suppose Jubilee was out when the team was kidnapped, and her arrival coincided with Sean, and the Phalanx needed to wait until they too will be kidnapped, so they tricked her into the Danger Room for the time being.<br />I also enjoyed the Cyclops timeline, introducing me to several pictures like JB's portrayal of the second group in the Cockrum run, JRJr's Scott marrying Maddie, Walt S.' Scott holding his son, and Bill S's DoFP Xavier getting killed, although it took me a while to know where they originated (and with exception to JB and JRJr, who originated them).<br />Rather like PhalanxStorm's costume, a nice callback to her Cockrum original (sans headdress, two-piece separation, with long gloves). Did the real one ever wear it? If not, I suppose this was a further clue of the deception, like Warren wearing a red version of the Adams costume (unless this is the first time he is wearing any variation of the Adams suit period).<br />Also note PhalanxCyclops/Wolverine on the cover. angmc43@hotmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15379700547226493861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-69596659738105121222018-10-17T13:11:22.733-05:002018-10-17T13:11:22.733-05:00*M was perfect and too powerful. Look how many pow...*M was perfect and too powerful. Look how many powers she has above! Licínio Mirandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12545823888354348526noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-83380636714342547892018-10-17T13:09:29.684-05:002018-10-17T13:09:29.684-05:00This is the second time the most obvious person is...This is the second time the most obvious person is bypassed when picking a mentor to a new generation of mutants. Cyclops was the obvious choice to teach the New Mutants when Xavier was taken to the space in #200. In fact, he was the ideal person to become the overall leader of both X-Men and New Mutants, and not Magneto. (Readers forget that Xavier asked Magneto to replace him also as the leader of the X-Men as well, while Storm was field leader) This was never brought up again and it would have been great to see Cyclops’ resentment and rivalry with Storm when the X-Men were reformed in #1. Instead, Jim Lee opted to reboot the franchise and ignore everything. I see as a mistake.<br /><br />The second time was now, with the creation of Generation X. Cyclops and Marvel Girl has just returned from their honeymoon. It was the perfect occasion. Instead, he just lingers around doing nothing useful. He even leaves the X-Men for some time after Bastion and was later killed in that Apocalypse saga. I forgot the name of both events. At this point, I just hated X-Men. I heard that things got worse, and that Cyclops later killed Xavier, cheated on Jean and become a lunatic extremist who was killed of... by a disease. R.I.P. Cyclops. Killed by writers’ stupidity.<br /><br />In regards to Generation X, I can only say what I’ve said before here: I didn’t like the team. This is the era of “gross” powers. A guy with hanging skin, another with blown mouth, a girl who removes skin, etc. Then you had had Maggot guy. Or, you had the ones which no one could explain what was their power, like Synch. M was the one I hated. She was perfect and was too pepeful. Clearly a creator’s pet. Generation X is nothing compared to Claremont’s New Mutants. To this day, despite all awful writers, I still remember their names: Sam, Dani, Roberto, Rahne, Doug, and Illyana. Perfect cast.Licínio Mirandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12545823888354348526noreply@blogger.com