REVIEW: Generation X #87 (Reminiscing the Great X-Pectations)

This is it, the final showdown! Will the original Generation X and Jubilee’s lovable losers save M from her brother Emplate!? Check out our bittersweet review for the series EPIC and nostalgic filled finale!!

Generation X 87 – Vampire Jubilee Cover (only for Solicitations)

Generation X: Survival of the Fittest by Amilcar Pinna

Generation X: Farewell Artwork by Amilcar Pinna and Felipe Sobreiro

Generation X: Class of 2017 by Amilcar Pinna

GENERATION X # 87
Writer: Christina Strain
Penciler: Amilcar Pinna
Color Artists: Felipe Sobreiro
Cover Artists: Terry & Rachel Dodson
Publisher: Marvel Comics

?WARNING: This Review Contains Major Spoilers!!?

Previously:

Jubilee went after Kid Omega who ran away with Krakoa. She tried to talk to him and invited him to come back home. Their talk was interrupted when Jubilee got a report that the school disappeared from Central Park. Concerned and worried about his friends, Kid Omega went home with her.
Back at the school Hindsight, Morph, Nature Girl and Eye Boy with Shogo were hiding inside one of the school’s Science laboratory from M-Plate who was trying to find them by following Shogo’s cry. They were able to escape from M-Plate’s grasp thanks to their mentors Chamber and Husk who attacked M-Plate. The kids ran into another room finding Bling! who was having a panic attack due to M-Plate’s presence. Overpowered, M-Plate was able to beat up both Chamber and Husk. Hindsight had a plan and told his classmates he knew how they could slow her down and find a way to resync the school back to their reality. Hindsight then tried to attack M-Plate from behind but was unsuccessful. M-Plate captured Hindsight and tried to feed on Hindsight which activated and absorbed his psychometry powers. He/She then threw Hindsight off from her/him. Morph worried rushed himself to Hindsight. Hindsight told his classmates where M-Plate’s assistant, D.O.A was hiding and informed them that D.O.A. was the one keeping the school unsynced from reality. Bling! overcame her anxieties and faced M-Plate to give her friends some time to find D.O.A. Nature Girl and Eye Boy with Shogo went to where D.O.A. was hiding. Nature Girl was able to request the rats to defeat D.O.A. and re-synched the school back to their reality. Back inside the school, Chamber, Husk and the kids were almost defeated by M-Plate but luckily, Jubilee and Kid Omega arrived on time. Jubilee had a one on one fight M-Plate. M-Plate mocked Jubilee, used its telekinetic power, removed Jubilee’s amulet that was protecting her from the sun and threw her off outside, exposing and burning her under the sun. Kid Omega got pissed seeing that one of his mentors was about to die, he used his part of the shard of the Phoenix force on Jubilee. Suddenly Jubilee was no longer burning but was shocked to see that she regained her Plasmoid powers back!

What You’ll Find Out:
Jubilee was surprised to see her powers back and she was even more surprised that she was no longer a vampire. Jubilee then saw Eye-Boy, Nature Girl and her son, Shogo. She was worried that Shogo might have seen her burning earlier, under the Sun. Eye-boy reassured her that he came prepared this time and managed to not have Shogo witness her mom getting burned. Nature Girl informed her that the Phoenix shard Kid Omega had was the one that revived and saved her.

Jubilee then blasted her way inside the school where M-Plate was attacking her students and her friends, Chamber and Husk. Everyone was also surprised to see Jubilee having her power back. M-Plate, who held Kid Omega threw him aside to attack Jubilee. M-Plate and Jubilee then had an explosive showdown outside the school. Chamber and Husk went after them and joined in the fight to help Jubilee save their friend Monet.

Meanwhile, the kids noticed that M-Plate strangely did not even try to feed and copy Kid Omega’s power. Hindsight revealed to them that he was responsible for that. He explained that it was the reason why he threw himself at M-Plate so that it could copy his power. He further explained that when M-Plate used his power it actually weakens the link between Emplate and Monet. Morph asked Kid Omega if he could telepathically inform their mentors about this but unfortunately, Kid Omega revealed that he had lost his powers after he used up the Phoenix force shard to save Jubilee. Morph and Bling! then came up with a plan.

Outside, the original Generation X fought hard to defeat their foe. Suddenly Bling! attacked M-Plate head on but it was able to block her. It was then revealed that she wasn’t Bling! but Morph in the guise of Bling! who attacked M-Plate as a distraction. The real Bling! came behind M-Plate unnoticed and touched M-Plate kickstarting the psychometry power it copied from Hindsight and getting Bling!’s memories. This then weakened M-Plate. Nature Girl took advantage of the situation and commanded eagles to attack and distract M-Plate more. Eye-Boy shouted at Jubilee what was happening to M-Plate due to Hindsight’s power. Jubilee then relayed the messaged to Chamber and Husk and the three heroes grabbed M-Plate causing the psychometry powers to kick start again and displaying all their Generation X memories.

This then weakened Emplate’s grasp on her sister which caused him to split away from M. Emplate attempted to reunite with M, but Jubilee blasted at him to stop him from doing so. Struggling to keep himself in sync with the reality Emplate decided to retreat the battlefield.
Later (or could be a day later), at the school’s infirmary, Jubilee checked on Monet after breaking free from her brother. Monet reassured Jubilee that she was fine. The two ladies then looked at Benjamin Deeds and Quentin Quire who was being medically examined by Phoebe Cuckoo. Quire was being examined for losing his powers after using the Phoenix Shard. Monet complimented that Jubilee might be doing something right for having one of her students exchanging that kind of power to save her. Jubilee then approached Quentin and Benjamin. She thanked Quentin for what he did to save her, despite that he had lost his powers in doing so. Quentin asked Jubilee if she could talk to Kitty Pryde about him staying in the school. Jubilee replied that she will if that was what Quentin wanted. This made Benjamin hugged his roommate out of happiness hearing he would stay behind with them.

At the school’s hallways, Paige approached Jonothon who was carrying Shogo and opened about his current relationship with Jubilee. Paige gave her blessing and approval with the relationship with a condition that Jono wouldn’t pull any of his sad-boy moments like he used to when they were together back in their younger days. Jubilee arrived on time interrupting the conversation and asked what they were talking about. Paige said she had to check on Monet and left them. Jono replied to Jubilee’s question that he and Paige were only reminiscing. The two then planned on having dinner at Jubilee’s quarters, which she was excited because she could now eat real food again.
Nearby, Benjamin Deeds and Nathaniel Carver had a chat about the time M-Plate attacked them. Benjamin expressed how worried he was for Nathaniel when he was unconscious. Nathaniel responded that being around with Benjamin and being in the school made him feel safe. Benjamin opened up saying that he wanted to kiss Nathaniel and the two made out. This also activated Nathaniel’s psychometry power which made him see Benjamin’s past, from the time he was a student under Cyclops mutant revolution days to the time they first met and developed feelings.A few days later, the kids were preparing for a surprise party for Roxy. Trevor approached Lin, concerned about the bargain she made with the rats. Lin responded to him to not worry and that she’ll handle it. She added that if ever that time came, she promised that she will keep him safe. Quentin approaches both Nathaniel and Benjamin who were chatting. Quentin mentioned Nathaniel’s codename, Hindsight, which he liked. Roxy who was holding Cessily Kincaid hands approached the group, complementing the codename Quentin Quire gave for Nathaniel. Everybody did not expect her to come so early. Roxy confused asked what she came in early for. Everybody then popped their party poppers and greeted her a Bon Voyage. Roxy was surprised and happy with the gesture her classmates did for her, and she said to them that she won’t be gone too long and will come back soon.
Baby Shogo the called out Roxy’s name. Roxy was then approached by Jonothan and Jubilee who was holding Shogo. Jubilee baked cookies and prepared it for Roxy’s trip. Roxy asked forgiveness to Jubilee for being a difficult student. Jubilee replied that when she was younger she never apologized for being feisty and neither should Roxy. Jonothan then gave Roxy a new scarf to remind her that she was not alone. Roxy thanked and hugged Jonothon for his gift.
Kitty Pryde then talked with Jubilee, congratulating her for the job she had done with her students. Jubilee then discussed further that she doesn’t think it was a good idea to turn their backs on the children and ask them to leave. Kitty responded that they already discussed this and the safety of the kids. Jubilee then further explained that of course, she agreed that they don’t want to throw the students into battle, but instead of forcing them out. She suggested to let the students choose if they would want to stay with them or leave. Because growing up, Jubilee realized that they can’t always choose their family, but it doesn’t mean they can make a new one.

What Just Happened:
A very exciting issue indeed. It was great to see Jubilee using her mutant powers again. And I love how she points out how she forgot how to control her plasmoids after years of losing it. Despite getting canceled earlier than planned (it was originally planned to have at least 16 issues and would continue if the series did well in the market), Christina Strain made sure she was going to make this ending worth it. Strain was still able to execute some of the plans she had been planning and developing since the series began. To enumerate: Jubilee getting her powers back, Hindsight and Morph’s relationship, Bling! finally overcoming her anxieties, Husk addressing Chamber’s and Jubilee’s relationship. That’s a lot to fit in on a single issue that didn’t even get enough pages to at least give the story more time to end properly. But again, Christina Strain managed to fit in everything while making sure everything made sense and was addressed accordingly.

Pinna’s art, while the most talked about in the entire series, did a pretty awesome job this issue. He was able to execute a lot of exciting moments and made the book flow like I was watching a series. There were minor awkward angles and perspective issue, but I think it was what had added the charm to the book and I love how he was able to capture the multiple Generation X flashbacks in one page. Looking at it got me all nostalgic and made me realize how I really wanted the original team to be back again and sadly just when we get to see them in this relaunch, it had to be on the last issue. It was really great to see Synch, Skin, and Penance in during the flashback sequence. You can really sense that Pinna put in all his heart for the last book and he paid so much attention to every detail. Even the characters’ body language and actions spoke louder than words. From Jubilee’s kick-ass attitude, Eye-Boy’s awkwardness, to how Morph delicately handled Hindsight carefully during battle, to how he drew every love team in the book intimately (Jubilee + Chamber with Shogo, Morph + Hindsight, Eye-Boy + Nature Girl, and Bling! + Mercury holding hands.)

Sobreiro’s coloring did it again for this issue as well. I really like how he colored Jubilee’s colorful plasmoids (PAF as how she would refer to it back then.) Everything looked vibrant and pleasing to the eyes. The great thing I loved about Pinna’s and Sobreiro’s collaboration was how they tried to really capture the original look and colors of the characters during the flashbacks. I really think the creative team loved their work on this book. They made sure they’ve paid much attention to the details and history of the original Generation X books.

Now since the book ended, I would also like to review the series relaunch as a whole. Most fans had mixed reaction about this after they announced the cast and how everything started out slow. I think in my opinion, it had something to do with the fact that most readers are now after instant gratification. I don’t blame them, especially with how Marvel has been pricing their books, fans now expect that the story is worth the price for every issue. Sadly, this book was written like it was meant to be for a graphic novel. Christina Strain wrote the series focusing on characters studies and development which for some felt slow. From the start, back on issue one I already had the assumption that this book would take time to develop but as soon as I got how the characters were interacting, I knew that this was a book that will have a focus on the characters struggling to fit in because they were being sidelined (in a way discriminated) by their own community for having what they thought was not Battle ready powers. I was also curious how these kids would form a bond seeing that they all had different personalities. I think it really captured what a young adult series should be. It was not only focused on the kids but also with Jubilee who was struggling to take care of her son and become a mentor for these young individuals while fearing that she might hurt them due to her vampirism. This meant that even the lead adult character/mentor was also struggling to fit in which I think was a good formula for the series.

Like many others, I was also disappointed when I found out that the series did not focus on the original team. However, I noticed that Christina Strain was actually trying to capture the original team characteristics and highlighting how similar they were to the newer kids. After reading and enjoying how the new kids were developing, I started to care for them more and I actually liked who they are now compared to their days during Wolverine and the X-Men. They had more depth and character to them, Strain made them very relatable too. It was how I usually remember X-Books were during the golden age. Even the new relationships formed didn’t feel forced. All in all, the series felt natural and if given the chance, would have been a great book. So, I won’t deny how frustrated and sad I am that this series had to end.

Since I am a huge fan of the original series and as a bonus, I had also compiled all pages/art from the original Generation X books that were featured during the major flashback of the original team to mirror the one that Pinna wonderfully drew for this book. Also, I had listed down the issues they came from for reference:

The TOP part from Left to Right:

1. Jono using his powers to form a heart on his “promise” note to Paige was in Generation X vol. 1 #44 (1998)
2. Chamber giving apples to Penance was in Generation X vol. 1 #4 (1995)
3. Skin and Husk playing Scrabble was in Generation X vol. 1 #2 (1994)
4. Jubilee captured by Bastion in Zero Tolerance was in Generation X vol. 1 #27 (1997)

From BOTTOM part from Left to Right:

1. Chamber leaving Husk was in Generation X vol. 1 #23 (1997)
2. Chamber and Skin hitchhiking was in Generation X vol. 1 #20 (1996)
3. The Death of Synch was in Generation X vol. 1 #70 (2000)
4. M and Jubilee grieving the death of Synch was in Generation X vol. 1 #72 (2001)

Hope you guys liked the extra effort I did to show my love for the series and to also tell you guys how much the creative team (Christina Strain, Amilcar Pinna, and Felipe Sobreiro ) paid a lot of attention to every detail just to make sure the captured and honor the original book. Also, encouraging the newer readers/fans to check out the original series.

I also want to take this opportunity to also thank the creative team Christina Strain, Amilcar Pinna, and Felipe Sobreiro for a wonderful job they’ve done for this book.

Pros:

• Almicar Pinna’s art improved and looked awesome
• Wonderfully written by Christina Strain, despite the ending felt forced she was still able to answer and tackle a lot of the unanswered plot holes and foreshadowing she was building for the series.
• Felipe Sobreiro coloring gave life to the whole book
• Original Generation X battling out M-Plate was epic and the way the students helped their mentors were exciting and a good way to showcase both old and new casts!
• It was awesome how the creative team used Hindsight’s powers to give us all the epic flashbacks and nostalgic moments. Especially that original Generation X flashback
• We get to see Skin, Synch, and Penance during the flashback!!

Cons:

• This book getting canceled
• What’s Nature Girl’s bargain with the Rats? Hopefully, this will get addressed soon in later X-books
• Fear that these wonderfully developed casts will be sidelined again in future books.

Rating: 10/10

Final Thought:
Explosive, exciting, very fun to read with a heart-warming ending! It is sad that Marvel did not give the series a chance to grow, especially now that fans are starting to get interested in the series. Nonetheless, the creative team made sure that they gave all they can for the finale. Despite the ending feeling rushed, Christina Strain made sure to tackle most of the unanswered plot she was building (except for Nature Girl’s bargain with the Rats.) A fantastic read indeed and hopefully we will get to see more of Jubilee, Chamber, Husk, M and their class of lovable loser in future X-titles again.

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