The Early Years: First Class

There is a lot of change ahead for the X-Men, including a very different roster. Some founding X-Men members are dropping off the team for a while, and they will be missed. This is the end of the “good old days” of the original five: Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel, and Marvel Girl. So lets look back at who these characters are and what they accomplished in their first tenure with the X-Men.

A Big Green Goodbye

The X-Men have only once chance to save Professor X, and his name is Bruce Banner. Unfortunately, his other name is The Incredible Hulk. The secret to saving Charles is locked inside the mind of a monster, and it’ll take everything they have to get it out. The X-Men have had run-ins with the Avengers in the past, but this is actually their first encounter with the Hulk. Issue 66 shows us how this team performs against the most powerful brute force on planet Earth. This is also the final issue of this titles early run, before taking a five year hiatus. The days of Scott, Bobby, Jean, Hank, and Warren end here, for now.

Origin: Angel

Finally, Angel gets his origin told in the back pages of issues 54-56. This is the origin story that I was most excited to read. I might not have mentioned this before, but Angel has always been one of my favorite X-Men. He is my favorite original team member. Warren Worthington III is a very tortured soul, suffering from deep seated body image issues that Ben Grimm and Curt Connors might understand.

His origin stands out from the others in that he became a superhero completely on his own, fighting crime and busting crooks before the Professor ever discovered him. Warren even had an original costume that we’ve never seen before.

When Mutants Clash

The adventure continues in issue 45, before spilling over into the pages of Avengers for their second crossover. The teams will again battle with each other when they should be stopping super villains. Our story begins with Angel still looking for help after his run in with Red Robin. The rest of the team is still being held captive by Magneto’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Will Angel return in time? Will his team be forced to help themselves? Is this the best panel of Magneto art that I’ve seen yet? YES!

Red Raven, Red Raven

Thing weren’t looking too good for the X-Men once Magneto had them in his evil clutches. In this issue a member of the team will make a daring escape, and set out on a quest to find help. Starting two issues ago, each installment is focusing on a different character or two, and their names get top billing. First it was Charles, and then Magneto, but here it is Angel. Issue 44 is the first time the series ever spends a considerable amount of time focused on just his character.

The Gang Gets Ugly

At the end of issue 39, the team once again gets new uniforms. They’re very colorful and I guess they’re indicative of the time period, but man… this team is a fashion disaster. The blue and gold motif is gone and instead the team is a mess of primary colors. This was an attempt to make them each look more distinct, but they end up looking pretty stupid.

Revenge of the Juggernaut

We finally see what’s behind that old door and holy crap it’s the Juggernaut! Nice! He looks unconscious, he’s chained up, and he must have been in there for months. I can only imagine how pissed he’s going to be when he wakes up. It’s a good thing the Professor decided to go mess with him while the X-Men are away on vacation. Issue 32 begins a two part Juggernaut story, and one I’m excited to read.

El Tigre and the Ego

We don’t have any new mutants yet, but we do have a villain with some real powers. Issues 25 and 26 tell the story of El Tigre, an infamous treasure hunter who plundered tombs and riches across the world. He is in South America hunting for a treasure left behind by the Mayans. What he finds will grant him the power to become the all powerful Kukulcan, an ancient Mayan god. However, it will come with a price.

Meanwhile, things between Jean and Scott are heating up. The two of them continue to fawn over each other, and yet somehow no one is more of a little girl than Warren Worthington III. His jealousy and arrogance will cause him to do something that could tear the group apart. These issues are filled with drama and adventure, and I enjoyed them far more than most of the recent episodic revolving villains.

Ladies love cool Warren.

 

X-Men Face to Face

Getting back to All New X-Men, the X-Men from 1963 are coming face to face with the X-Men from 2013. This is having a strong effect on each character, but they’re not all reacting the same way. Some of them are taking it rather well, while others are finding it hard to adjust.

The younger X-Men are shown a terrible future, where they have aged fifty years and not much of Xavier’s dream has been accomplished. They have to hear some horrible news, such as Xavier’s death at the hands of Cyclops. They are in disbelief. The present day X-Men are forced to look upon their younger selves, when they were full of so much hope and so much potential. They were kids. Such a thing forces someone to look back at how they lived their life and realize the choices that they made.

How each person reacts is a really good illustration of their personalities, so lets take this moment to get to know them each a little better.