AMAZING X-MEN #4 – June 1995

On Consecrated Ground

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (plot), Andy Kubert (penciler), Matt Ryan (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Kevin Somers & Digital Chameleon (colors)

Summary

The Madri continue to torture Bishop, as Storm arrives to rescue him. Nearby, Quicksilver and Banshee break into the hidden room of Jamie Madrox, the originator of all of the Madri. They’re shocked to learn that the experiments used to enhance his powers have left him mentally handicapped. At the X-Men’s headquarters, Rogue’s team returns from their mission. They’re greeted by Colossus and Shadowcat, who tells Rogue that Quicksilver left a note saying that her son is still in the Morlock Tunnels. She goes underground to find him, and is reunited with Dazzler, Exodus, Lila Cheney, and Gambit. Rogue hysterically punches Gambit, asking him where her son is. Meanwhile, Banshee and Quicksilver are ambushed by Abyss. He taunts Banshee for being a coward, which leads Banshee to confront Abyss while Quicksilver escapes with Madrox. Banshee is absorbed into Abyss’ body, but his sonic scream is enough to tear Abyss and the temple apart. Madrox knows that Quicksilver is too good a man to kill him, so he willingly shuts down the Madri. The strain kills him, leaving the Madri empty husks. Mourning the loss of Banshee and Madrox, Quicksilver and Storm return home with Bishop. Nightcrawler and Destiny also arrive at the mansion. With most of Magneto’s plan falling into place, Quicksilver vows that Apocalypse will fall.

Production Note

Notice that Fabian Nicieza is only credited with “plot”, with no credit for a scripter listed. It’s possible that I’m reading too much into this, but considering the fact that Nicieza was open about the fact that his work was being rewritten at this point, I wonder if he asked not to be credited for the script in this issue.

Review

Like the rest of the AoA finale issues, this is an action-heavy story that at least resolves one of the plotlines. Amazing X-Men wasn’t given a specific goal like most of the other AoA books, as it shifted from having the X-Men herd refugees, to a Magneto/Apocalypse fight, to a rescue mission for Bishop. The multiple storylines prevent the final issue from feeling like much of a climax since Bishop’s kidnapping only happened one issue ago (and Bishop barely had a role in this specific series anyway). The story really relies on the action to work, and while Kubert’s figure drawing is sound, the action just seems stiff, with a lot of posing and not a lot of movement.

Quicksilver and Banshee’s moral dilemma over whether or not to kill Madrox has potential, but the script never sells the drama. At no point do you honestly think they’ll actually murder Madrox in order to complete the mission. And since this reality’s X-Men have previoiusly been shown to cross ethical lines, this is a scenario that could’ve worked with the proper scripting. The majority of the dialogue in this issue is dull and generic, which gives me more reason to believe that it’s not Nicieza’s work (And in some cases, the dialogue is just terrible, as Gambit actually says, “(Guido) was de only one who coulda brought ya baby outta dat mess alive!” This leads me to wonder how much knowledge Gambit has on the art of “birthin’ no babies.”). That snippet of Gambit’s dialogue is another clue, since it contradicts what actually happened in Gambit and the X-Ternals #4, which Nicieza did script. The climax in that story involved Gambit choosing to save Lila instead of taking baby Charles from Guido; not him leaving the baby with Guido for his own safety (although I guess it’s possible that Gambit’s just lying to Rogue to cover himself). The only character given any real personality in this issue is Abyss, who’s given some convincingly nasty dialogue. The rest of the issue is pretty boring, since the plot isn’t that interesting and the characters don’t have a lot of personality.

AMAZING X-MEN #3 – May 1995

Parents of the Atom

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Andy Kubert (penciler), Matt Ryan (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Kevin Somers & Digital Chameleon (colors)

Summary

Outside of Xavier’s estate, Magneto and Bishop are attacked by Vanisher and an army of Infinite soldiers. After fighting them off, Apocalypse appears. Magneto reconfigures Bishop’s plasma-rifle so that its blast will be strong enough to kill both him and Apocalypse. Apocalypse tells him that if he dies, he won’t be able to save his son Charles. Apocalypse boasts that Vanisher is currently kidnapping him in the secret tunnels beneath the grounds. Magneto drops the weapon, and is knocked unconscious by Apocalypse. Underneath the mansion, Vanisher confronts the robotic Nanny, who is keeping Charles safe inside her body. She draws her various weapons against him. Later, Quicksilver’s team of X-Men return home and find that Bishop and Magneto are gone. Iceman discovers Vanisher’s body underneath the mansion, and the team discerns that Nanny had to be his killer. Exodus and Dazzler search for Charles, while Quicksilver sends Iceman to tell Rogue that Magneto is missing. Soon, inside Angel’s nightclub, Quicksilver learns that Apocalypse is keeping Magneto captive in his Manhattan fortress, while Bishop is being interrogated by the Madri priests in Quebec. Quicksilver must choose between saving his father and Bishop, the man who might be the key to a better world. In Quebec, the Shadow King tries to mentally interrogate Bishop, but Bishop forces him out of his mind. Abyss arrives, promising to finish the job. Quicksilver returns to the mansion, and makes the decision that the X-Men must leave his father behind and go to Quebec to rescue Bishop.

Continuity Notes

According to Apocalypse, Magneto once forced his Celestial ship to crash into Earth. Their subsequent fight nearly killed Magneto, costing him the use of half of his powers. I haven’t been under the impression that Magneto’s been depowered in this reality, although he hasn’t had a lot of fight scenes yet. I assume that explicitly cutting his powers in half was an attempt to justify why the super-powerful Magneto of the “Fatal Attractions” crossover hadn’t stopped Apocalypse yet.

Review

This is an improvement over the previous issue, which was a disappointing action-heavy issue that didn’t exactly move things along. This issue opens with a rather large fight scene, but Nicieza’s still able to structure the story so that the events of the overall plotline aren’t stalling. The characters also feel more real here, as Angel is finally given a scene that shows that this version of the character at least has some depth. Quicksilver’s choice between saving Bishop or Magneto is also handled well, depicting Quicksilver’s anguish over the decision without giving in to too much melodrama. The story takes advantage of the volatile nature of the AoA reality by putting Magneto and his infant son in a situation that they might not survive, and by saddling Quicksilver with a dilemma without an easy solution. In the mainstream reality, it would be hard to actually sell the same drama with major characters (or babies), since most of the audience knows that they won’t die. And any time a hero is faced with a tough decision, he almost always ignores his own feelings and makes the most reasonable choice. Since this reality was coming to an end and most of the characters weren’t going to be needed soon, there’s really no sense of stability, making the story more effective. The darker portrayal of the X-Men also casts doubt on what Quicksilver might decide, giving his final decision to sacrifice his father more impact than it might’ve had in the mainstream reality. Of course, devoting so many issues to an extended “What If?” runs the risk of alienating the readers who view the whole thing as pointless, but I think the characterizations are strong enough here to make it work.

AMAZING X-MEN #2 – April 1995

Sacrificial Lambs

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Andy Kubert (penciler), Matt Ryan (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Kevin Somers/Digital Chamelon (colors)

Summary

The X-Men confront the Brotherhood, who have used Madison Jeffries’ power to take control of the Sentinels. Quicksilver orders the team to protect the humans while he chases after Jeffries and Copycat, who are escaping into a crowd of refugees. Jeffries reconfigures the Sentinels’ programming to attack Quicksilver, but Storm creates an electronic pulse to temporarily stop them. Banshee chases after the Brotherhood’s Madri priest and discovers the ark that brought them to Maine. Inside the ark, he learns that Apocalypse’s newest Horseman, Abyss, killed the Madri for failing the mission. Abyss threatens to kill the young boy he’s holding hostage if Quicksilver doesn’t arrive. Banshee gives Quicksilver the message, but Storm refuses to let him go alone. Storm rescues the boy from the ark, while Quicksilver fights Abyss. During the fight, Quicksilver manages to force Abyss inside the dimensional void inside his own body. They return with the boy, who is reunited with his family. Dazzler tells them that the Sentinels have been reprogrammed with Banshee’s harmonics, and are now helping the X-Men in the evacuation. Meanwhile, Sebastian Shaw has reported to Apocalypse that Angel told Gambit the X-Men’s secret location. Karma, the co-owner of Heaven with Angel, is being tortured for info on any security systems inside their headquarters. Apocalypse boasts that he’ll soon face Magneto and learn who is truly fit to survive.

Continuity Notes

The Brotherhood are revealed to be Spyne, Yeti, Arclight, Copycat, Madison Jeffries, and a Madri priest. The Madri are all duplicates of Jamie Madrox, as revealed in Gambit and the X-Ternals #1. Madison Jeffries is Box from Alpha Flight. Since Arclight is portrayed as a man here, I assume it’s not supposed to be the Marauder from the original reality.

Abyss says that he has a score to settle with Quicksilver, but when Quicksilver shows up it appears to be the first time they’ve met. When Quicksilver learns that there’s a new Horseman, he assumes that Abyss is taking Bastion’s place. Bastion hasn’t shown up in the Marvel Universe proper yet, so I don’t know if this was an intentional hint for a new character or if the name was just recycled a few years later.

Creative Differences

A Usenet post from Fabian Nicieza regarding this issue on the week of its release:

I wasn't going to say anything unless it was mentioned by more than one

person, and it was, so...
I will accept the nitpicks on EVERYTHING that was wrong with AMAZING X-MEN
#2 (of which, there was a LOT, whether they were my fault or not), but I
will NOT accept criticism for Banshee's ridiculous "harmonics"
reprogramming of the Sentinels!!
That rewrite surprised me (to say the least... to say the most would not
be nice).
In my original plot and script, QUICKSILVER is leaving the group to save
Jeremy and Exodus says, "What about the Sentinels? They're going to wake
up soon." and Q answers, "Talk to them." To which they all say, "Talk?!!"
Later, when Storm and Q return with the brat they saved, we find out that
indeed, the X-MEN did actually talk to them, trapping the Sentinels in a
logic bind and leading the robots to actually agree to accept the X-Men's
help.
I'm not saying my bit was great or nothing, but geez, it ain't worse than
"harmonics," is it?
I can take a hit and I'll dive on the grenade if I have to, I'm such a
wonderful guy, but I will NOT be blamed for harmonics! (that's my new
motto, catchy, ain't it?)

It’s worth noting that the lettering (a computer font), stays consistent throughout the entire scene, so it doesn’t stand out like a lot of the other rewrites in the past.

Review

This isn’t nearly as good as the first issue. While the first issue set an appropriate mood and introduced the cast in a credible way, this issue largely consists of unfocused fight scenes that don’t have a lot of payoff. It’s still drawn rather nicely by Andy Kubert, but that’s pretty much all this issue has going for it. There’s some attempt to invert Storm and Quicksilver’s personalities, so that she’s emotional and uninhibited while he’s repressed, drawing them together for a romance. It’s not a bad idea, but it seems a little forced and doesn’t really amount to much. The Brotherhood don’t offer any believable resistance to the X-Men, as most of them are defeated off-panel. The members were never identified by name anyway, so when Iceman lists the ones who have been taken care of, you’re forced to assume they were the same characters we saw earlier (it’s obvious who Yeti would be, but Spyne’s very obscure and this version of Arclight bears no resemblance to the established one). After looking through this issue twice, I have to assume that Jeffries and Copycat just escaped off-panel. This plot thread is picked up in Weapon X #2, but it's totally dropped in this issue.

The resolution to the Sentinel cliffhanger from last issue is feebly handled off-panel by giving Banshee new powers, apparently (“harmonics”?). Since Nicieza made it clear that this wasn’t his idea, you’ve got to wonder what role editorial interference had on the overall quality of this issue. The ‘90s reputation for incomprehensible stories is largely due to the inexperienced writing of many of the X-artists (which was actually a brief era), but the last-minute editorial rewriting can’t be overlooked, either. I don’t know how common the rewrites were at this point (even if the altered lettering sometimes provide a clue), but it seems like the disconnects between the creative teams and editorial only increase after the AoA is over.

AMAZING X-MEN #1 – March 1995

The Crossing Guards

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Andy Kubert (penciler), Matt Ryan (inker), Kevin Somers & Digital Chameleon (colorists), Richard Starkings/Comicraft (lettering)

Summary

In Maine, Copycat spies on the humans heading towards a harbor town. She reports to the other members of Apocalypse’s Brotherhood that the humans are expecting to escape. Meanwhile, the remaining X-Men (Quicksilver, Storm, Banshee, Exodus, Dazzler, and Iceman) train against a Sentinel while the rest of the team faces Apocalypse’s men in Chicago. The team’s preparing to help the Sentinel evacuation of the humans in Maine. Quicksilver practices installing a virus disc that will prevent the Sentinels from targeting them. Magneto appears, warning the team to be ready to face Apocalypse’s forces in Maine. He anticipates that the Sentinels will focus only on Apocalypse’s men after the disc is loaded into the Sentinels’ neural network. Iceman prepares to use his powers to send the team to Maine, but Magneto asks Exodus to try teleporting for the first time. The team arrives in Maine, where Storm promptly uses her powers to obscure the Sentinels’ arrival on Apocalypse’s radar. The Sentinels land, and immediately detect nearby mutants. While Dazzler creates holograms to distract them, Quicksilver loads the virus disc. The Sentinels announce that the mutants aren’t targets, but still attack Iceman when they see him. Quicksilver theorizes that the program did work, but it’s now protecting the wrong mutants. The Brotherhood appears, bragging that they were the ones who scrambled the disc.

Review

This is the strongest of the AoA issues so far. Andy Kubert’s pencils look remarkable, creating one of his best renditions of Magneto yet. He also does a great job with the redesigned Sentinels and Iceman. This is another issue that requires him to draw dozens of characters, but he keeps a consistent level of quality for most of the issue. Nicieza’s script is able to give the main characters firm personalities, while also presenting a villain like Copycat in a sympathetic light. The idea that the humans would be scared out of their minds of the Sentinels sent to rescue them is another nice touch that adds an additional layer of realism to the story. Rather than spending too much time on the setup, the story moves at a decent pace and concludes with a nice twist ending. The narration is excessively grim, but it suits the new world and doesn’t go overboard like some of Nicieza’s previous work.

Despite Marvel’s hard sell on this new world, there were always doubts that it would just turn out to be an extended What If? story. Nicieza at least tries to make the new world relevant by laying the groundwork for future stories that can be told in the original continuity. Showcasing several new powers for Iceman connects the AoA to the ongoing subplot about his true potential. Dazzler is given a power upgrade that also could’ve been carried over to the original reality. Exodus, a barely developed mystery man in the original continuity, at least has his first name (“Paris”) revealed here, which is more information than his original appearances gave. Unfortunately, Nicieza doesn’t last very long on the X-titles after the AoA and most of the hints dropped here don’t amount to anything. It’s still an admirable effort, though.

LINK – An interesting online conversation between Peter David and Fabian Nicieza that occurred after Marvel’s first cryptic press release hyping the AoA event was released.