MARVEL
MASTERWORKS: THE
UNCANNY X-MEN VOL.
5
(Marvel, 2005; Hardcover)
Collects
Uncanny
X-Men
Nos. 132-140,
Uncanny
X-Men Annual
No. 4, Phoenix:
The Untold Story
No. 1, and the
Phoenix story from
Bizarre
Adventures
No. 27 (cover
dates April, 1980- April, 1984)
Writer:
Chris Claremont and John Byrne (co-plotter)
Artists:
John Byrne (penciler), Terry Austin (inker); Annual 4- John Romita,
Jr. (penciler) and Bob McLeod (inker)
Lennon
and McCartney. Simon and Garfunkel. Claremont and Byrne. Like all
great creative partnerships which produced art which has lasted
through the ages, it was no picnic for those involved in the creative
process. Two captains cannot steer a ship. The best creative
partnerships can play off of the strengths of each creator involved,
resulting in the sum being greater than the whole of its parts. Over
time, things can become heated, and like the first two partnerships
that I mentioned, Claremont and Byrne “broke up”...but that
didn't happen until three issues after the ones collected in this
book.
I
have read these issues dozens of times, and their brilliance shines
no less now than it did on the first read. Issue 132 metaphorically
knocked the wind out of me as a teenager. The X-Men got their asses
handed to them by the Hellfire Club. Time was that mutants were a
rare, special thing, with only a dozen or two floating around the
entire Marvel Universe. So it was a surprise for the X-Men to stumble
upon this cabal of older, more powerful mutants who were more skilled
in the use of their powers than The X-Men.
There
was a time when Wolverine did not suck. No kids, I wouldn't lie to
you. There was a time when a spray of bullets could wind the guy,
where he could get knocked out in combat, or he could even get tired.
The immortal, omnipotent ninja who heals instantly from an atom bomb
did not exist when these issues were published. Wolverine was a
feisty, cocky brawler. No “honor”, no martial arts discipline,
only a slight healing factor. He developed a sense of smell during
this era, “tracking” people by scent. His costume changed to the
brown one that I grew up on in issue 139. Right around that time we
found out his name: Logan. Wolverine was once one of my favorite
characters. Now, he is unbelievable and unlikable on every level. I
think that I even saw some promo art for a new series where he uses a
gun for chrissakes. Yeah, because a guy with an unbreakable skeleton
and claws needs a firearm. Sheesh.
Issue
133 is the first Wolverine “solo” story where we really see him
cut loose. It's totally badass on all levels and should make anyone
who thinks that immortal omnipotent ninja Wolverine is a good idea
feel foolish.
Time
was that Cyclops and Professor X were good guys, noble leaders even.
Nowadays...sigh. It's a pity that these characters are dead to me,
having been crapped up beyond redemption. I have not bought any new
X-Men comics in years, and won't buy one ever again unless Claremont
and Byrne reunite to bring the magic back.
The
Dark Phoenix Saga...what is there to say, aside from comic book
deaths once had meaning and weight. Issue 137 is brilliant, with the
team in the fight of their lives with the life of a teammate hanging
in the balance. This issue became a hot book after the fact because
it was, first and foremost, a great story. Nowadays comic book
deaths are a meaningless, dime a dozen marketing gimmick to be undone
in a year's time. Those stunts have all but made a mockery of
powerful stories like this. The rewritten word balloons in Phoenix:
The Untold Story were crap. The original ending, as published in
that one-shot, would have been forgettable.
The
icing on this delicious cake is the Alpha Flight/ Wendigo two parter
in issues 139 and 140. I met John Byrne at the Mid-Ohio Con in
Columbus, Ohio in 2004, the last convention appearance that he made.
He hosted a panel but everyone was too shy to ask him questions.
Never one to know when to shut up, I proceeded to ask him endless
questions. After the panel I stood in line to get my Uncanny
X-Men Masterworks Volume 4 signed by him. (It was the current
volume at that time.) I apologized for my endless questions and
proclaimed my love for his work on this title. He told me a few
tidbits of things that he intended to happen in issue 139 during the
sequence where Nightcrawler went out to the Jeep to get their gear,
and how it was colored incorrectly in the original issue (sun instead
of moon, making it daylight instead of night time) and how there
weren't supposed to be any words on that page. It was supposed to be
colored red, like how the Wendigo would see things in infrared. He
signed my book, and I got Chris Claremont to sign it at the Motor
City Con a year or two later. It's like having a copy of Abbey
Road signed by Lennon and McCartney.
Annual
4 marks the first time that future X-Men artist John Romita, Jr. took
a stab at the title. I really miss comics that had such depth and
characterization while being action packed. Comics that didn't rely
on variant covers, crossovers, or cursing to be “cool”.
John
Byrne is my all time favorite comic book artist, with the power of
Kirby combined with the fluidity of Neal Adams. Claremont is one of
the greats. For as much as people complain that his writing is
“overly wordy” they fail to understand how much depth he gave
these characters. The fact is that without Claremont you would not
have the X-Men today, period. He built the “franchise” into what
it is, and for that he deserves more respect than he gets from fans
these days. When he's dead and gone you'll all come out of the
woodwork and state how much you loved his writing. I choose to say it
while he's still alive.
I
must also give props to Tom Orzechowski, the greatest letter in the
history of comic books. His clear, artistic hand lettering lent an
air of elegance to everything that he applied his pen to. Letterers
are like the cable company or the utility company...you never notice
them unless they are not working right.
These
issues are art of the highest order and should be packed up, along
with the entire Beatles catalog, and sent on an interstellar journey
to show aliens what beauty the human mind is capable of conceiving.
Junk
Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.
The
OCD zone- Marvel Masterworks are my poison of choice. This
particular era of the Masterworks program was one of transition, from
one of embarrassing mistakes to becoming the gold standard for comics
restoration that many companies now employ.
I
have bought and read this material so many times it is sad and sick.
I had the originals via back issues in 1987-1988...then the original
Uncanny X-Men: Dark Phoenix Saga trade paperback...then again
in Essential X-Men Vol. 2...then this book...at least the
first version of this book that I bought.* Then I bought this
copy...and will possibly upgrade to the Omnibus.
*Way
back when, I used to actually pre-order all of my books through my
LCS (local comic shop for you civilians out there). They ordered the
variant cover, which I hate because it has a number on the spine
which is the number of the book in the entire line rather than the
volume number in that particular line. I bought it anyways, but
immediately regretted it. I sold it for a nice sum once the variant
went out of print and then bought this “standard consumer edition”
online.
DVD-style
Extras included in this book: All are one
page each.
#132
page 6 original art by John Byrne and Terry Austin.
#132
page 15 original art by John Byrne and Terry Austin.
#133
page 11 original art by John Byrne and Terry Austin.
#132
original cover art by John Byrne and Terry Austin.
#137
original cover art by John Byrne and Terry Austin.
Unused
splash page for issue 138, which had to be scrapped because Jean Grey
died in #137.
Linework
and Color restoration rating: 4.25 out of 5. While the color
palette is faithful to the original publications, the linework has
noticeable pixelation in a handful of spots. Most folks wouldn't even
notice it, but I tend to skew uber-anal retentive. Masterworks
editor Cory Sedlmeier and company have since made the pilgrimage to
the Sparta warehouse and performed the Herculean effort of organizing
and cataloging Marvel's film library, revealing pristine film sources
that have resulted in the line wide upgrade that we have seen in the
various Omnibus hardcovers and 2009-on softcover Masterworks.
The softcover release (linked below for sale from site sponsor In
Stock Trades) has improved restoration over this hardcover
release. These same superior files will be employed in the
forthcoming Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 2, due out in 2014.
These things can be confusing for new readers of the program, but
elder statesmen like myself are here to help you guys and gals out.
Paper
rating: 4.5 out of 5. Glossy coated stock paper was the order of
the day for the Masterworks program of 2005. While not optimal
for material with flat coloring, it is still a nice paper with a good
weight to it.
Binding
rating: 4.5 out of 5. This era of Masterworks were perfect bound,
which in English means that they had glued binding. They still laid
pretty flat in one hand and didn't bother me much at the time of
release. It was the mousetrap glued binding books that would surface
in late 2005 that would raise the ire of the faithful, but that is a
story for another time...
