X-MEN/ALPHA FLIGHT #2 - June 1998

Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot…

Credits: John Cassaday & Ben Raab (writers), John Cassaday (artist), Steve Oliff (colors), Moon Monkey Graphics (letters)

Summary: Professor Xavier trains Alpha Flight in the Danger Room, in preparation for their attack on Hydra. Using Cerebro, the X-Men are tracked to Hydra’s hidden base. Before the battle, Shaman has a vision of Guardian’s death, which he fears is coming true when Guardian is locked in a room with Strucker and his men. The rest of Alpha Flight frees the X-Men, and the teams unite to rescue Guardian. Strucker escapes, but the heroes depart on good terms.

Continuity Notes: Someone noticed last issue’s continuity mistake, as Vindicator is now being called Guardian. The premonition of Guardian’s death comes true, spoiler alert, in Alpha Flight #12.

Review: This is the big action finale, so it’s a much quicker read than the previous issue. The story begins with Alpha Flight inexplicably fighting the original X-Men for several pages, before the audience is informed that it’s merely a Danger Room scenario. This sets the pace for the rest of the comic, as the action barely stops until the final few pages. The big action is also an excuse for Cassaday to let out the giant panels he’s now known for, making this even more of an Astonishing X-Men prototype.

Woven into the violence are a few attempts to humanize the teams, such as Shaman’s premonition of Guardian’s death. This leads to some amount of tension in the climax, even if you have to know it's a red herring, as Sasquatch bangs futilely on the locked doors while Guardian is trapped inside with Strucker. When the teams unite and rescue Guardian, Shaman is grateful the premonition was wrong, but wonders if his vision might come true some other day. If you’re an Alpha Flight fan, you know what’s coming next. Really, this is a two-part tribute to Marvel fans of that era. It’s certainly enjoyable on its own merits, but if you grew up with ‘80s Marvel, it works on a different level. It’s hard not to like any story that opens with the classic Alpha Flight lineup training in the Danger Room against the original X-Men, especially when Cassaday is drawing it.

X-MEN/ALPHA FLIGHT #1 - May 1998

Survivors

Credits: Ben Raab & John Cassaday (writers), John Cassaday (artist), Heisler & Heisler (letters), Jason Wright (colors)

Summary: Vindicator visits Gary Cody, who informs him he’s trying to resume Department H’s funding of Alpha Flight. Meanwhile, Colossus and Kitty Pryde go on their first date. They’re abruptly attacked by armored men. The X-Men join the fight, but are teleported away. Watching on television, Vindicator recognizes the designs as his own. He discovers that Cody sold the designs to Hydra in order to fund Alpha Flight. Professor Xavier calls Vindicator for help, who in turn contacts Alpha Flight.

Continuity Notes: This story is set during Cyclops’ return to the team, following his sabbatical after Phoenix’s death, circa Uncanny X-Men #150. Xavier assumes Baron von Strucker from Hydra wants revenge for their encounter decades earlier, recounted in Uncanny X-Men #161. Alpha Flight’s battle with the Master from Alpha Flight #4 is also referenced in a footnote, which means Vindicator should be going by “Guardian” at this point.

Production Note: This is a two-issue miniseries, each issue is forty-eight pages with ads and a cover price of $2.99.

Review: A John Cassaday penciled X-Men story with strong nostalgic ties to the ‘80s…why does that sound familiar? Since Marvel rarely released X-Men comics entirely set in the past during this era, I have a feeling this was intended as something of a special project. Bringing in John Cassaday is another indication someone viewed this as unique, even if he wasn’t nearly as well-known during these days. The unusual two-issue format was, I suspect, also a nod towards the original X-Men/Alpha Flight limited series. Unfortunately, the market had been thoroughly flooded with X-product by this point, so I have a feeling much of the target audience missed out on it.

It’s obvious Ben Raab has a true affection for the Claremont-era X-Men, and while his callbacks in Excalibur were hit-or-miss, this issue really captures the feeling of that era. The bulk of the issue is spent on character moments as the action story develops in the background, allowing the reader to touch base with Cyclops and Wolverine as they deal with the loss of Phoenix, Nightcrawler and Storm discussing his insecurity over his place on the team, and Colossus and Kitty’s first date. The sense of family is evoked as Cyclops and Professor Xavier worry about letting Kitty go out at night, while Storm and Wolverine defend her right to be a kid.

I’ve never read a comic written by John Cassaday solo, but I wonder if he’s responsible for the credible dialogue and more coherent plotting. This is one of the few times I’ve seen Raab paired with an above average artist, so I’m sure that’s already helping his script. While this isn’t quite the Cassady famous for Astonishing X-Men (there’s less of an Adam Hughes influence, and presumably not as much photo referencing), it’s still an outstanding job. He draws an iconic rendition of the early ‘80s X-Men, and the action sequences are just as interesting as the conversation scenes. My one complaint would be the portrayal of Canadian bureaucrat, Gary Cody. I haven’t read all of John Byrne’s Alpha Flight run, but I do recall Cody as a decent guy who tried to do right by the team. Unless later stories revised his character, I have a hard time believing he would be dumb, naïve, or corrupt enough to sell armored battle suits to Hydra.

X-MEN #72 & UXM #352 – February 1998

X-Men #72

Life Lessons

Credits: Joe Kelly (writer), Carlos Pacheco (penciler), Art Thibert (inker), Comicraft (lettering), Liquid! (colors)

Summary: Wolverine spars with Marrow, testing her to see if she’s truly willing to become an X-Man. When he thinks that she’s willing to submit, Marrow sucker punches him and stabs him in the throat. Wolverine goes into a rage, and is subdued by Cannonball. Marrow runs away, back to the secret place where Callisto is recovering. Meanwhile, Sabra informs Gabrielle Haller that Erik Lensherr was a false identity created for Magneto. They track down Georg Odekirk, the man who created the counterfeit identity, shortly after he's killed by Magneto.

Continuity Notes: Gabrielle Haller is trying to use her influence as an ambassador to free Xavier from federal custody. It’s amusing that she’s more concerned about this than the X-Men seem to be (although Phoenix does briefly search for him mentally in this month's UXM).

Storm tells Cannonball that Marrow “attempt(ed) to kill hundreds to further her goals”, which seems to be a quiet retconning of any actual murders on her part.

According to Magneto, he changed his name to Erik Lensherr after he went into hiding, following his lethal attack on his daughter’s killers. He kills Georg Odekirk because the identity he created doesn’t stand up to scrutiny in the modern age.

Review: This issue is almost entirely dedicated to justifying Marrow’s place on the team, which isn’t an easy thing to pull off. There is at least a little retconning going on, but Kelly really doesn’t go for any cheap outs. Marrow doesn’t break down and cry, Storm doesn’t decide to forgive and move on, and Wolverine doesn’t get to intimidate Marrow into falling in line. Marrow remains nasty and mean, with the only indication that she’s willing to change coming from Wolverine’s speculation that “somewhere in that mess you call a brain, part of you wants something better”. Having Marrow stab Wolverine just when he seems to be getting through to her is a nice twist. It might come across as Kelly selling Marrow a little too hard, but I think it works within the context of the story. Cannonball also has a strong portrayal, as he tries to convince the others to follow Xavier's example and give Marrow a second chance, even when there’s no compelling reason for the team to do so. I still think adding Marrow to the team was a dumb move, but Kelly gets a lot of material out of the idea in this issue.

The Magneto subplot, on the other hand, is just ridiculous. I assume it was motivated by Marvel retroactively deciding that too much of Magneto’s past had been revealed, which might be a legitimate concern. Casually revealing that Erik Lensherr was a fake name, and having Magneto callously kill the man who created it, doesn’t work at all. It brings Magneto back into cartoonish supervillainy, which undermines most of the interesting things you can do with the character.

Uncanny X-Men #352

In Sin Air

Credits: Steve Seagle (writer), Hamner/Edwards/Banks/Dodson/Williams/Cassaday (pencilers), Martin/Edwards/Holdredge/Dodson/Gray/Cassaday (inkers), Comicraft (lettering), Steve Oliff (colors)

Summary: While flying to their new home in Alaska, Cyclops and Phoenix encounter an otherworldly entity that AIM is attempting to steal from another group of scientists. At first, the entity lashes out at the passengers, forcing them to relive their darkest moments. When the plane goes out of control, Phoenix convinces the entity to find the good in humanity and calm the passengers, allowing the pilot to land the plane. Meanwhile, Archangel returns to the X-Men’s mansion, but receives a cold reception from teammates who feel that he isn’t taking his responsibilities seriously.

Review: This is another issue that reads like filler, although it’s enjoyable enough. It’s probably most notable for containing six pencilers and six inkers, which makes me wonder just how far off-schedule this title was at the time. I think this is John Cassady’s first time drawing the X-Men, although his style is so different than his Astonishing X-Men work, it might as well be a different artist. None of the pencilers in this issue are incompetent, but their styles are all over the place, and pages seem to have been assigned at random. A three-page scene that has Archangel getting told off by the X-Men somehow ends up with two different artists with totally incompatible styles, making the issue seem like even more of a rush job. I don’t care for the Archangel subplot, which goes out of its way to make him a self-centered goof, but the main story has its moments. I like the psychological angle Seagle adds to the story, and introducing normal, human neighbors for the Summers is a good idea (which, unfortunately, was quickly dismissed).