Crushing Krisis

Comic Books, Drag Race, & Life in New Zealand

comic books

Crushing Comics includes definitive comic book guides, essays about characters and titles, collecting strategies, comic reviews, and more!

Comic Book Review: Marvel’s Infinity #1

by

Monthly comic books are a bit like the local nightly news.

Whether a day is exciting or not, or whether you care or not, your local nightly news will find something to say about it. I haven’t seen it for over a decade, but some people watch it daily. Others just tune in when there is a big story to report on.

Ongoing comic books are a lot like that. They just keep happening, issue after issue, while comic book publishers find new things about them to hype every month. Some people devoutly collect each one, while others only buy stories with their favorite characters or creators.

Both in news and in comics, every once in a while there is a big event. A big news event is the kind of thing that causes TV networks to break into their regularly scheduled programming with an update from the national news bureau, and might keep you refreshing Twitter or CNN all day long.

Comic books have the equivalent in line-wide event books. These limited-run titles signal the arrival of a massive, world-altering story too big in scope to contain in a single 22-page issue. However, much like big news events, sometimes comic events are a lot of sound and fury signifying nothing, and after all the breathless coverage you wonder what the big deal was.

Which brings us to today’s topic…

Infinity - 0001Infinity #1 of 6  

Script and graphic design by Jonathan Hickman. Pencils by Jim Cheung. Inks by Mark Morales with John Livesay, David Meikis, and Jim Cheung. Color art by Justin Ponsor.

Rating: 2.5 of 5 – Okay

#140char review: Infinity #1: Hickman reveals a long-term plot in steady pulses. As usual, Cheung’s heroes are all thin-lipped teens. Solid (if bland) set-up

CK Says: Consider it.

Jonathan Hickman excels at writing entire forests of plot and motivations, and in the end Infinity #1 is just a single tree.

Marvel - Infinity - 0001 - interior01

You can tell that important plot points are being set up here. You can feel that certain foreboding exposition is actually the punch line of a dark joke we won’t be told for several issues.

Yet, on its own Infinity #1 just doesn’t excite.

Part of this is a heavy reliance on alien concepts (literally and figuratively). While the Giger-eseque alien Outrider and an entire subjugated society of Ahl-Gullo are made from whole cloth, bringing Space Knights back from the brink of obscurity is a delight. However, the resultingly spare speaking panels full of heroes leaves this thick book feeling a bit light on content.

Of those, only Captain America, Hawkeye, and Black Bolt get significant screen time here, and none of them are actually significant. The former two feel as though they appear just to appease whiners like me, though Black Bolt certainly makes his presence felt (and heard).

Jim Cheung is drawing both the bookends of this series, and those positions are likely the wisest choice. Cheung excels at creatures, cityscapes, gear, and explosions – all guaranteed in the opening and closing installments. His widescreen alien action will make you realize why comic book movies will never top the sheer audacity of settings and casting of actual comics.

Marvel - Infinity - 0001 - interior02

That said, films do have one up on Cheung: he’s merely average on faces. His heroes are no Robert Downey Jr. and Scarlett Johansson, handsome and distinct. Every last human being has the same thin-lipped, constipated teenager face – Cap’s just has a few extra wrinles. It made Cheung unmissable on Young Avengers and Children’s Crusade, but annoying here. His action is unclear, making the nimble escape of the Outrider a confusing muddle.

The real art-star of this book is colorist Justin Ponsor, who finds middle ground between Dean White reversed-white shading and Marvel’s infamously orange sunset color scheme. From the haunting red of the sunken eye-sockets of a tortured Caretaker to the dusty rainbow of superhero costumes pressed together in a chilly cargo hold, Ponsor finds the right tone for every page. It’s he who knocks it out of the park for the best splash pages of the book – the visceral vibration effect on Black Bolt’s seismic whisper and two full pages of Thanos’s shadowed face.

The lack of thrill in issue one isn’t a mood-killer. Hickman has yet to pen a disappointing arc of comics. The next two artists – Opena and Weaver – are two of the best in Marvel’s stable. And, in addition to five additional issues of Infinity, we’re also due for nine key Avengers issues to expand the plot – so, it’s likely Avengers #18 and New Avengers #9 will fill in the character beats I sorely missed in this issue. Plus, once we’ve traversed the entire forest, this particular tree will probably look much more interesting.

This isn’t a bad comic book, but you probably won’t go wrong simply picking up #2 when it hits in a few weeks.

PS: If you can, pick this book up digitally for a rather impressive Silver Surfer back-up story that isn’t present in the print edition.

X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #2: Second Genesis

A reading order for stories starting with Giant-Size X-Men #1 in May 1975 and ending with Uncanny X-Men #142 in February 1981. A part of Crushing Krisis’s Collecting X-Men: A Definitive Guide. Last updated March 2021.

Era #1: Original X-Men  X-Men Reading Order Guide  Era #3: New Mutants

What does Era #2: Second Genesis include?

This era of the X-Men Reading Order is focused on the beginning of the Bronze Age run of X-Men, starting from the introduction of the second generation team in Giant-Size X-Men #1. That includes all of the team’s stories through Dark Phoenix Saga, Kitty Pryde joining the team, and Days of Future Past.Giant Size X-Men (1975) #1

X-titles released in this era:

  • Giant Size X-Men (1975) #1 & Uncanny X-Men (1963) #94-142 – see Uncanny X-Men by Chris Claremont
  • Angel and Iceman in Champions #1-17 and various Champions guest appearances – see The Champions for collection information
  • Captain Britain in Captain Britain, Vol. 1 (1976-77) #1-39, Super Spider-Man and Captain Britain (1977) #231-247, Marvel Team-Up (1972) #65-66 (but not the remainder of his early material – that’s in the next era!) – see Captain Britain for collection information
  • Sabretooth’s debut in Iron Fist #14 and a full-team appearance in #15 – see Iron Fist for collection information

Later X-titles set in this era:

  • Giant Size X-Men (1975) #3-4
  • Back-up stories in Classic X-Men (1986) #1-44
  • Uncanny X-Men: First Class (2009) Giant Size & #1-8

Notes:

  • X-Men (1963) is often colloquially referred to as Uncanny X-Men (1963) even though the title did not officially pick up the “Uncanny” adjective until issue #142. That is my convention on Crushing Comics, as it’s all one volume of the same ongoing series.
  • Each issue of the Classic X-Men (1986) reprint series included a back-up story. While some back-ups corresponded to the issue they reprinted (as with the back-up in Classic X-Men (1986) #3 fitting with UXM #95), many stories are set much earlier or later in continuity. I’ve noted them in their proper reading order here, partially to assist folks who picked up the Classic X-Men omnibus, but from an “ease of reading” standpoint I feel you should read them in batches (which I have also indicated below).
  • I treat any Wolverine story that is after he gains his Adamantium in the Weapon X program but before he joins the team as being effectively a Silver Age story that occurred in parallel to Silver Age X-Men, thus they appear in the prior era of the guide.
  • Beast joined The Avengers with Avengers (1963) #137 and is not tracked as an X-Man in this era, though he does make appearances in UXM.

[Read more…] about X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #2: Second Genesis

X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #1: Original X-Men

A reading order for stories starting with X-Men #1 in September 1963 and prior to Giant-Size X-Men #1 in May 1975. A part of Crushing Krisis’s Collecting X-Men: A Definitive Guide. Last updated March 2021.

Era #0: Before X-Men  X-Men Reading Order Guide  Era #2: Second Genesis

What does Era #1: Original X-Men include?

This era of the X-Men Reading Order is focused on Silver Age X-Men. That includes all of their original Silver Age stories from Uncanny X-Men (1963) #1-66, their “gap years” of guest appearances prior to Giant-Size X-Men in 1975, and stories later inserted into the period (like Emma Frost and X-Men: The Hidden Years).Uncanny X-Men (1963) #1

X-titles released in this era:

Later X-titles set in this era:

Notes:

  • X-Men (1963) is often colloquially referred to as Uncanny X-Men (1963) even though the title did not officially pick up the “Uncanny” adjective until issue #142. That is my convention on Crushing Comics, as it’s all one volume of the same ongoing series.
  • I treat any Wolverine story that is after he gains his Adamantium in the Weapon X program as being effectively a Silver Age story that occurred in parallel to Silver Age X-Men, thus they appear in this era of the guide.
  • However, I do not cover every Wolverine story in the X-Men Reading Order – only the major ones! See Guide to Wolverine for a reading order of every Wolverine appearance.

[Read more…] about X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #1: Original X-Men

X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #5: X-Tinction

A reading order for stories starting from Uncanny X-Men #244 in May 1989 and ending with Uncanny X-Men #280 in September 1991, plus New Mutants, X-Factor, Excalibur, Wolverine, & more. A part of Crushing Krisis’s Collecting X-Men: A Definitive Guide. Last updated March 2021.

Era #3: New Mutants  X-Men Reading Order Guide  Era #5: X-Tinction

What does Era #5: X-Tinction include?

This era of the reading order focuses on a period where all of the X-Men teams are unravelling, and ends with each title in the franchise refocused for their sales dominance of the early 90s.

We begin this era with a flash of hope after a difficult run for the main X-Men team, who had been presumed dead to the world (including their many former teammates) since Fall of the Mutants.

The X-Men reconciled with X-Factor at the end of “Inferno,” with everyone happy to learn their friends were alive – including the revelation of Jean’s resurrection! Meanwhile, the New Mutants were rattled to find their friend Illyana reduced to childhood and Excalibur had barely agreed to become a team.

However, just a few issues later, the X-Men would be disbanded after a brutal fight with Master Mold, X-Factor would be stuck off the planet, New Mutants would see a key member perish, and Excalibur would be stranded across multiple dimensions!

In Uncanny X-Men, this leads to an unusual 18-month period where there was no X-Men team in the flagship X-Men title. Stories alternated between Wolverine’s adventures with Jubilee and glimpses at the scattered team, many of whom had no memories of their prior lives.

Meanwhile, Moira MacTaggert began to assemble a new team of mutants on Muir Island with the corrupting influence of the Shadow King looming over her. Wolverine and Jubilee collect Betsy Braddock, now in Kwannon’s body, while a mysteriously de-aged Storm meets Gambit, and Rogue is stranded in the Savage Land (where Magneto lurked, after abandoning the New Mutants in the wake of Inferno).

At the same time, Wolverine’s solo title delved into his long-hinted mysterious past. Despite many indications that Logan had lead a long and secret life prior to his joining the X-Men, up to this point there had been few concrete connections to it shown on the page. Claremont, Peter David, and finally long-time scripter Larry Hama teased both Logan’s connection to Sabretooth and fleshed out his connections in the Madripoor underworld, buiding up to the bombshell “Weapon X” flashback story in Marvel Comics Presents #72-84.

Chris Claremont began to reassemble the X-Men starting with “X-Tinction Agenda” in Uncanny X-Men #270. This crossover through all three main team titles served to further disband the classic New Mutants cast – which had just lost Dani to her other life as a Valkyrie but gained the paramilitary Cable as their new leader.

New Mutants runs for just three more issues after the end of “X-Tinction Agenda,” adding Shatterstar and Warpath to the team and seeing Deadpool’s debut. These are widely acknowledged (and collected) as a prelude to X-Force. The New Mutants were already dead and gone.

It all came to a climax in pair of stories. First, in X-Factor’s “Endgame,” Apocalypse takes a keen interest in Nathan Christopher Summers. Then, “The Muir Island Saga” brings together the remaining X-Men left unfound during “X-Tinction Agenda.” That set up a massive combined squad of primary X-Men for their face-off against Magneto at the beginning of the next Era, as well as an all-new X-Factor team.

Flagship X-Series in this era:

Ongoing X-titles released in this era (listed in order of age of series):

Limited Series released in this era (listed in alphabetical order):

  • Havok & Wolverine: Meltdown (1988) #1-4

Later X-titles set in this era:

  • X-Men: True Friends (1999) #1-3
  • Clandestine (2008) #1-5

Notes:

  • This era includes the events Atlantis Attacks, Acts of Vengeance, Days of Future Present, X-Tinction Agenda, Muir Island Saga, & Kings of Pain.
  • Wolverine’s legendary “Weapon X” story from Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #72-84 was published in this era, but it appears in Era 1 per its chronological placement.
  • The late 80s and early 90s was one of the most intertwined era of X-Men, including many instances where you need to switch back and forth between single issues! I have tried to vastly simplify that without creating too many spoilers.

[Read more…] about X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #5: X-Tinction

X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #4: X-Factor

A reading order for stories starting from Uncanny X-Men #201 in January 1986 and ending with Uncanny X-Men #243 in April 1989 (and X-Factor #40) in May 1989. A part of Crushing Krisis’s Collecting X-Men: A Definitive Guide. Last updated November 2018.

Era #3: New Mutants  X-Men Reading Order Guide  Era #5: X-Tinction

What does Era #4: X-Factor include?

This era of the X-Men Reading Order is focused on the time period where X-Men truly became a franchise, gaining three additional ongoing spin-off titles with X-Factor, Excalibur, and Wolverine – plus Wolverine’s run in Marvel Comics Presents and a handful of mini-series that covered the team’s first real, extended interactions with Fantastic Four and The Avengers!

It’s also the era just before the rise of the superstar artist altered the course of the X-Men. We see Marc Silvestri on some issues here and Jim Lee is still on his initial assignment on Alpha Flight. (Elsewhere at Marvel, Todd McFarlane had just made his leap from Incredible Hulk to Amazing Spider-Man at the end of this era.)

As the X-Men’s comic book footprint widened, so did the scope of their stories. Prior to this era, Chris Claremont had never penned a direct crossover between two X-Men titles, but here we got both Mutant Massacre and Inferno. Also, “Fall of the Mutants” this was the first time an ongoing bannered event ran across multiple titles.

This period saw the introduction or joining of X-Men who have been the primary cast of the franchise over the past thirty years. Claremont introduced Psylocke to American audiences, added Ann Nocenti’s Longshot to the team, finally made Dazzler and X-Men, brought Havok and Polaris into his fold for the first time, and made Forge a full-time cast member.

(At this point, we’re just waiting for the introductions of Jubilee, Gambit, and Bishop before we’ll have the full cast of adult X-Men recognized across all media.)

The story of this era of X-Men is very much about graduation and being an adult. That plays out differently across the three major team titles.

The X-Men largely have to fend for themselves with Xavier and then Magneto gone from an advisor role, and not all of their decisions are wise ones.

That leaves the team feeling more “grown up” than ever before under Claremont. Cyclops loses his leadership to Storm, Rachel Summers is whisked away by Spiral, and the light-hearted pair of Nightcrawler and Shadowcat leave to recover from serious injuries. In the midst of those changes, the X-Men face one of their most-horrific experiences with the decimation of the Morlocks in Mutant Massacre.

Without Cyclops around to butt heads with Wolverine or Storm, team tensions move down a generation to Rogue, Dazzler, and Psylocke. After the necessity of faking their own deaths, they move to a base in the desert wastes of Australia for the first half of the team’s “Outback Era.” They also encounter the island nation of Genosha for the first time, portraying the eventual extreme of anti-mutant discrimination in a situation that reflects both American slavery and the beginnings of the Holocaust.

X-Factor (1986) #1

Meanwhile, X-Factor reunites the original X-Men under their own direction for the first time due to the shocking resurrection of Jean Grey!(Fun fact: Before Kurt Busiek solved the problem of Jean’s resurrection, the fifth member was originally going to be Jean’s sister or Dazzler.)

The team wants to aiding the mutant race, but they pick an unfortunate way of doing it – by impersonating an anti-mutant task-force. Along the way, they introduce us to characters like Rictor, Rusty, Skids, and Artie, and expand the personalities of Boom Boom and Leech.

Finally, New Mutants has the feel of a group of kids who have graduated from intermediate school to college or university. Though they remain under the direction of Magneto for much of the era, they are on their own missions, making adult choices and sacrificing themselves – leading to the death of one member and depowering of another! At one point, Sunspot and Warlock break off from the rest of the team for their own series, Fallen Angels.

Altogether, these themes make for an era dense with story and thematic content.

Flagship X-Series in this era:

Ongoing X-titles released in this era (listed in order of age of series):

  • Alpha Flight (1983) #30-70 & Annual 1 – see Alpha Flight
  • Dazzler (1981) #41-41 [end of series] – see Dazzler
  • New Defenders (1983) #151-152 [end of series] – see Defenders
  • New Mutants (1983) #36-73 & Annuals 2-3 – see New & Young X-Men
  • X-Factor (1986) #1-40 & Annuals 1-3 – see X-Factor
  • Excalibur (1988) Special Edition & #1-7 – see Captain Britain & Excalibur
  • Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #1-17 (features Wolverine and others) – see Wolverine
  • Wolverine (1988) #1-3 – see Wolverine

Limited Series released in this era (listed in alphabetical order):

Later X-titles set in this era:

  • Wolverine: Doombringer (1997) – see Wolverine

Notes:

  • This era includes the events Secret Wars II, Mutant Massacre, Fall of the Mutants, Evolutionary War, and Inferno.

[Read more…] about X-Men Reading Order Guide – Era #4: X-Factor