Post by Soundwave on May 13, 2011 9:16:15 GMT -5
Just finished re-read Excalibur, what a wonderful book it was, with a great cast. Excalibur was the first time in ages that Xavier became a prominent character again and was written this well. And that's not even to mention Magneto. He was always a formidable and creative adversary under Claremont's pen, but he's always been the most interesting when reformed -- definitely one of the highlights in this incarnation of Excalibur.
Another highlight was Callisto; I loved her playful, fearless, rugged personality. And the tentacles were awesome on her; she was definitely a favourite of mine in this book, and easily the most fun member.
Karima Shapandar was introduced in a flashback of some issue of Unlimited X-Men years ago as part of Neal Shaara's back-story but it wasn't until this book that she resurfaced and became her own character. Ironically, she was more popular than Neal ever was.
The new characters also showed promise: Hub, Freakshow, and especially "Wicked," who also had a sharp design. None of the characters went anywhere once the book was cancelled, not Xavier, not magneto, not Callisto, or Karima, and certainly not the kids and Shola, who probably all got de-powered by the Scarlet Witch (might as well.)
This book had barely begun before Marvel scrapped it in favour of "House of Yawn." Claremont's stories hold up so well still after decades, while those wide-company events (crossovers) become outdated after merely a couple of years. Quite unfortunate how this unique book had to be hijacked and then canned for the flavour-of-the-day crossover. Will Marvel ever drop those cheap gimmicks and opt for good stories and good characters instead?
All the cool stuff that was yet to come... at least it got some kind of closure in X-Men: the End.
We didn't even get to see Hub's mentor, Chimére, and what was she all about. And why no one (save for Cal and Xavier) recognised Magneto -- not even in costume, not even by Unus & Toad, two of his past follower. Another unresolved mystery.
Gotta mention Aaron Lopersti's artwork, not only was it detailed and super attractive, he was a pretty good storyteller. His designs were very nice, too. (particularly for Callisto, "Wicked," and Hub.)
Lopresti's fast, he did all 14 issues with no guest pencillers or fill-in artists, except for one - which he could if Marvel hadn't tagged him to illustrate one of their "House of M" tie-ins instead (New X-Men: Mutant Academy.)
Another highlight was Callisto; I loved her playful, fearless, rugged personality. And the tentacles were awesome on her; she was definitely a favourite of mine in this book, and easily the most fun member.
Karima Shapandar was introduced in a flashback of some issue of Unlimited X-Men years ago as part of Neal Shaara's back-story but it wasn't until this book that she resurfaced and became her own character. Ironically, she was more popular than Neal ever was.
The new characters also showed promise: Hub, Freakshow, and especially "Wicked," who also had a sharp design. None of the characters went anywhere once the book was cancelled, not Xavier, not magneto, not Callisto, or Karima, and certainly not the kids and Shola, who probably all got de-powered by the Scarlet Witch (might as well.)
This book had barely begun before Marvel scrapped it in favour of "House of Yawn." Claremont's stories hold up so well still after decades, while those wide-company events (crossovers) become outdated after merely a couple of years. Quite unfortunate how this unique book had to be hijacked and then canned for the flavour-of-the-day crossover. Will Marvel ever drop those cheap gimmicks and opt for good stories and good characters instead?
All the cool stuff that was yet to come... at least it got some kind of closure in X-Men: the End.
We didn't even get to see Hub's mentor, Chimére, and what was she all about. And why no one (save for Cal and Xavier) recognised Magneto -- not even in costume, not even by Unus & Toad, two of his past follower. Another unresolved mystery.
Gotta mention Aaron Lopersti's artwork, not only was it detailed and super attractive, he was a pretty good storyteller. His designs were very nice, too. (particularly for Callisto, "Wicked," and Hub.)
Lopresti's fast, he did all 14 issues with no guest pencillers or fill-in artists, except for one - which he could if Marvel hadn't tagged him to illustrate one of their "House of M" tie-ins instead (New X-Men: Mutant Academy.)