Brian Wilkinson
Feb 8, 2003, 07:00 pm
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/exiles22.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/exiles22t.jpg" align=left alt="Exiles #22"></a>Loyal X-Fan readers may have noticed a distinct lack of reviews in the featured articles section of the main page recently, and may be wondering what's happened to them. Well, never fear, for X-Fan is still doing reviews, and the list of the most recent critiques has not gone far. Just under the Lead Story graphic, in fact!
In the meantime, here are some of our featured reviews this week. We welcome you to check them out!
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X-TREME X-MEN YEAR IN REVIEW
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/previews/x-tremegiant.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/previews/x-tremegiant-t.jpg" align=left alt="X-Treme X-Men 'Schism' preview"></a>Reviewer: Brian E. Wilkinson, bewilkinson@yahoo.ca
Quick Rating: Great!
For some, it’s classic X-Men at its best, for others, it’s a step backwards in time. For all, hopefully, it’s been one heck of an entertaining ride.
Written by: Chris Claremont
Covers by: Salvador Larroca, Rodolfo Migliari
Art by: Salvador Larroca, Arthur Ranson
Colors by: Liquid!
Letters by: Tom Orzechowski
Assistant Editor: Lynne Yoshii
Editor: Andrew Lis
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
I think its become an art form.
After all, Chris Claremont has written about the X-Men for more than half the time they existed. Since the book began in 1963 under the pencils of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, no other single individual has so been tied to a Marvel legacy other than Chris Claremont.
What makes this legacy even more special is that no one else writes them as well as he does. After all, when you create many of its main characters, and raise them as if they were your own children (and if you think about it, over 25 years of being a part of your characters makes them not unlike your own children), you form a special bond with them. Though some argue that his best stories are well behind him, after reading the past year’s worth of X-Treme X-Men issues, I think the best is yet to come.
After all, Claremont has been paired with one of the finest artists in the industry. Salvador Larroca has consistently wowed even the most cautious fan with his incredible attention to detail, the finer emotions displayed by the characters, and the incredible brilliance of his action sequences. Marvel wisely teamed Larroca with a man who has such a huge streak of working month after month on the same book, for Larroca himself has NEVER missed a single issue of X-Treme X-Men to date, managing even to pen the X-Treme X-Men 2001 Annual as well.
For the full text of this review, click here (http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15625).
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EXILES #22 REVIEW
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/exiles22.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/exiles22t.jpg" align=left alt="Exiles #22"></a>Reviewer: Jim Lemoine, darkkelf@earthlink.net
Quick Rating: Excellent!
Story Title: Legacy – Conclusion
An Exile exits as the team faces the task of destroying the Earth!
Written by: Judd Winick
Pencilled by: Jim Calafiore
Inked by: Jon Holdredge with Eric Cannon
Colored by: Transparency Digital
Lettered by: Paul Tutrone
Cover by: Mike McKone
Assisted by: Nova Ren Suma
Edited by: Mike Raicht & Mike Marts
Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
So I’ve been saying for the last couple of months, sure, Exiles is still a great book, but is it really up to the high standards of the past? Has the current Legacy arc really equaled some of the great moments in the history of this series? The first two issues of the trilogy weren’t monumentally breathtaking, and my question has been, can Winick turn this story around and make it another “A World Apart”?
And now that I’ve read the final installment, I believe the answer is, without a doubt, yes. This is one of the best Exiles issues we’ve seen yet. And when you’re talking about a book as consistently high-quality as this series, that’s saying a lot.
This is the second time in the history of Exiles that we as fans have known that an Exile would leave the team, one way or another, by the end of the series. The first time this happened was in the conclusion to “A World Apart,” Exiles #10. However, I find it difficult to compare that issue with this month’s installment; instead, the issue I’d most easily liken to Exiles #22 would be Milligan and Allred’s X-Force #128. In both issues, the writer delivered an emotionally supercharged story, and in both the artist took his work to a whole new level. Just as Milligan did in the “Someone Dies” issue, Winick plays a bait-and-switch game with his readers: just when you think you’ve figured out who’s going to go, it turns out it was somebody else all along.
For the full text of this review, click here (http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15600).
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HULK/WOLVERINE: SIX HOURS #2 REVIEW
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/hulkwolv2.jpg.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/hulkwolv2t.jpg" align=left alt="Hulk/Wolverine: Six Hours #2"></a>Reviewer: Brandon Yates, brandonyates@zentertainment.com
Quick Rating: Average
Story Title: 6 Hours, part 2 of 4
Don't let the cover fool you; Logan has worse problems than a hulked out gamma brow, as the Shredder enters the picture!
Written by: Bruce Jones
Cover by: Simon Bisley
Art by: Scott Kolins
Colors by: Lee Loughridge
Letters by: Dave Sharpe
Editor: John Miesegaes
Supervising Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
Instead of speeding up in its second issue, as I expected it to, Hulk/Wolverine: Six Hours is becoming hardly worth six minutes of my time. Yes, Bruce Jones has a tight grip on Bruce Banner's characterization but his Wolverine is par; I'm finding myself enjoying the misadventures of Dying Kyle & Company more than the exploits of this comic's headliners.
As the issue begins, Banner has been separated from young Kyle, pilot Margie, and criminals Whitie & Cid. Meanwhile, Mr. Gavino, who we must infer to be a mob boss because he plays golf and says "mooks," makes a call in to a hired hitman named The Shredder, an enhanced human who has long, pointy Lady Deathstrike fingers on his right hand.
Although I'm still liking this series somewhat, it's only because I'm a huge Bruce Jones fan and seeing little continuity nods to The Incredible Hulk, like Banner's tentative control of the Hulk's might without the transformation, is fun. There is an intense feel of evil with a couple of the baddies in this series, particularly Whitie and The Shredder, but I don't yet see a sufficient amount of 'light' to counteract the gloom. Logan and Banner join forces way too comfortably and, in their search for Kyle, come off as the Hardy Boys from Hell with their mundane collaboration. And when we're not seeing that we're seeing Shredder murder innocent senior citizens! Where is the hope?!
For the full text of this review, click here (http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15472).
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X-Fan is also on the search for new talent to add to our reviewing pool! If you think you have the right stuff, then send a submission to X-Fan Editor, Brian E. Wilkinson at bewilkinson@yahoo.ca today. Currently, we are seeking reviewers for all of Marvel's current and upcoming non X-title releases. Good luck!
In the meantime, here are some of our featured reviews this week. We welcome you to check them out!
<center><hr width=50%></center>
X-TREME X-MEN YEAR IN REVIEW
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/previews/x-tremegiant.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/previews/x-tremegiant-t.jpg" align=left alt="X-Treme X-Men 'Schism' preview"></a>Reviewer: Brian E. Wilkinson, bewilkinson@yahoo.ca
Quick Rating: Great!
For some, it’s classic X-Men at its best, for others, it’s a step backwards in time. For all, hopefully, it’s been one heck of an entertaining ride.
Written by: Chris Claremont
Covers by: Salvador Larroca, Rodolfo Migliari
Art by: Salvador Larroca, Arthur Ranson
Colors by: Liquid!
Letters by: Tom Orzechowski
Assistant Editor: Lynne Yoshii
Editor: Andrew Lis
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
I think its become an art form.
After all, Chris Claremont has written about the X-Men for more than half the time they existed. Since the book began in 1963 under the pencils of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, no other single individual has so been tied to a Marvel legacy other than Chris Claremont.
What makes this legacy even more special is that no one else writes them as well as he does. After all, when you create many of its main characters, and raise them as if they were your own children (and if you think about it, over 25 years of being a part of your characters makes them not unlike your own children), you form a special bond with them. Though some argue that his best stories are well behind him, after reading the past year’s worth of X-Treme X-Men issues, I think the best is yet to come.
After all, Claremont has been paired with one of the finest artists in the industry. Salvador Larroca has consistently wowed even the most cautious fan with his incredible attention to detail, the finer emotions displayed by the characters, and the incredible brilliance of his action sequences. Marvel wisely teamed Larroca with a man who has such a huge streak of working month after month on the same book, for Larroca himself has NEVER missed a single issue of X-Treme X-Men to date, managing even to pen the X-Treme X-Men 2001 Annual as well.
For the full text of this review, click here (http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15625).
<center><hr width=50%></center>
EXILES #22 REVIEW
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/exiles22.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/exiles22t.jpg" align=left alt="Exiles #22"></a>Reviewer: Jim Lemoine, darkkelf@earthlink.net
Quick Rating: Excellent!
Story Title: Legacy – Conclusion
An Exile exits as the team faces the task of destroying the Earth!
Written by: Judd Winick
Pencilled by: Jim Calafiore
Inked by: Jon Holdredge with Eric Cannon
Colored by: Transparency Digital
Lettered by: Paul Tutrone
Cover by: Mike McKone
Assisted by: Nova Ren Suma
Edited by: Mike Raicht & Mike Marts
Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
So I’ve been saying for the last couple of months, sure, Exiles is still a great book, but is it really up to the high standards of the past? Has the current Legacy arc really equaled some of the great moments in the history of this series? The first two issues of the trilogy weren’t monumentally breathtaking, and my question has been, can Winick turn this story around and make it another “A World Apart”?
And now that I’ve read the final installment, I believe the answer is, without a doubt, yes. This is one of the best Exiles issues we’ve seen yet. And when you’re talking about a book as consistently high-quality as this series, that’s saying a lot.
This is the second time in the history of Exiles that we as fans have known that an Exile would leave the team, one way or another, by the end of the series. The first time this happened was in the conclusion to “A World Apart,” Exiles #10. However, I find it difficult to compare that issue with this month’s installment; instead, the issue I’d most easily liken to Exiles #22 would be Milligan and Allred’s X-Force #128. In both issues, the writer delivered an emotionally supercharged story, and in both the artist took his work to a whole new level. Just as Milligan did in the “Someone Dies” issue, Winick plays a bait-and-switch game with his readers: just when you think you’ve figured out who’s going to go, it turns out it was somebody else all along.
For the full text of this review, click here (http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15600).
<center><hr width=50%></center>
HULK/WOLVERINE: SIX HOURS #2 REVIEW
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/hulkwolv2.jpg.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/hulkwolv2t.jpg" align=left alt="Hulk/Wolverine: Six Hours #2"></a>Reviewer: Brandon Yates, brandonyates@zentertainment.com
Quick Rating: Average
Story Title: 6 Hours, part 2 of 4
Don't let the cover fool you; Logan has worse problems than a hulked out gamma brow, as the Shredder enters the picture!
Written by: Bruce Jones
Cover by: Simon Bisley
Art by: Scott Kolins
Colors by: Lee Loughridge
Letters by: Dave Sharpe
Editor: John Miesegaes
Supervising Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
Instead of speeding up in its second issue, as I expected it to, Hulk/Wolverine: Six Hours is becoming hardly worth six minutes of my time. Yes, Bruce Jones has a tight grip on Bruce Banner's characterization but his Wolverine is par; I'm finding myself enjoying the misadventures of Dying Kyle & Company more than the exploits of this comic's headliners.
As the issue begins, Banner has been separated from young Kyle, pilot Margie, and criminals Whitie & Cid. Meanwhile, Mr. Gavino, who we must infer to be a mob boss because he plays golf and says "mooks," makes a call in to a hired hitman named The Shredder, an enhanced human who has long, pointy Lady Deathstrike fingers on his right hand.
Although I'm still liking this series somewhat, it's only because I'm a huge Bruce Jones fan and seeing little continuity nods to The Incredible Hulk, like Banner's tentative control of the Hulk's might without the transformation, is fun. There is an intense feel of evil with a couple of the baddies in this series, particularly Whitie and The Shredder, but I don't yet see a sufficient amount of 'light' to counteract the gloom. Logan and Banner join forces way too comfortably and, in their search for Kyle, come off as the Hardy Boys from Hell with their mundane collaboration. And when we're not seeing that we're seeing Shredder murder innocent senior citizens! Where is the hope?!
For the full text of this review, click here (http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15472).
<center><hr width=50%></center>
X-Fan is also on the search for new talent to add to our reviewing pool! If you think you have the right stuff, then send a submission to X-Fan Editor, Brian E. Wilkinson at bewilkinson@yahoo.ca today. Currently, we are seeking reviewers for all of Marvel's current and upcoming non X-title releases. Good luck!