Part 2
X-Men Alpha sets up the Age of Apocalypse with a surprising level of detail given the size of the single issue. But it doesn’t really set the story in motion beyond Bishop and Magneto encountering each other. The mobilization of Magneto’s forces takes place largely in Astonishing X-Men #1, and it’s from there that Amazing X-Men, Gambit and the X-Ternals, and X-Calibre spin out of.
Needless to say, getting the full, in-depth Age of Apocalypse experience requires reading every series and seeing the extent of world building and character development that went into the project. However, there is a much smaller number of truly essential issues that deliver key information. The series also don’t feed directly into each other and can be read independently from first issue to fourth. But they do reference each other repeatedly and as such there is a chronological order which is how they’ll be presented here.
Astonishing X-Men #1
ESSENTIAL | W: Scott Lobdell | P: Joe Madureira | I: Dan Green & Tim Townsend | C: Steve Buccellatto | L: Chris Eliopoulos
Magneto stands before his X-Men, preparing to send several on what may be a suicide mission to aid in the human evacuation by Eurasian forces on the northeastern coast. More important to him, though, is the information he’s recently gleaned from Bishop’s mind that suggests this timeline shouldn’t exist at all. Seeking confirmation, he prepares to dispatch Nightcrawler, Gambit, and Colossus to find the people and objects necessary to prove Bishop’s claims. While that is happening, Sunfire returns from Chicago to report on new cullings of the remaining human population in the area. Rogue takes the rest of X-Men to Chicago to battle Apocalypse’s forces there.
Astonishing X-Men #1 is the definition of “somber”–almost to the point of fatalism. It’s telling that Magneto is so willing to believe Bishop, despite the implications to himself, everyone he knows, and the entire world.
This is something the Age of Apocalypse offers that the main universe never can–a look at these characters when they have truly and finally failed. Yes, it is to a mutant enemy rather than a human enemy. But it’s something that can never happen in the original timeline. Like the end of Legion Quest where the real X-Men face an impending death that cannot be stopped, here the X-Men face a world that they have no real hope of changing. Lobdell captures the finality of that. At no point does Magneto say that he believes the X-Men have lost so much that they’ve reached a point of irrelevancy. But it absolutely reads like that’s what he believes. That said, he and his X-Men won’t go down without a fight–hence Rogue’s mission to stop the culling in Chicago. Quicksilver gives voice to this very idea at the end.
Possibly overlooked in this very plot heavy issue is some strong character explorations. This is one of Age of Apocalypse’s biggest successes. With just four issues to work with, each series so thoroughly develops its main characters that it feels like we’ve lived with them for years. The Rogue/Gambit scene is a perfect example of this. X-Men Chronicles #2 will eventually go into detail about what happened between Gambit, Magneto, and Rogue, but this issue already tells us everything we need to know in a short, emotional scene.
Madureira’s style takes a jump forward toward the more obviously manga-inspired style he is using by the end of his Uncanny X-Men run. His top-heavy body proportions evolve a little further with Sabretooth and Magneto. Character faces still show a relatively high level of nuance compared to his later Uncanny issues, but exaggerated mouth and eye expression is already creeping in.
The Sunfire design is without a doubt one of the most striking in the Age of Apocalypse pantheon of characters. Most character designs are simply tweaked and even with the changes wouldn’t necessarily be out of place in the original timeline. Sunfire is a definite exception. Perpetually on fire, a mask covering his burned face, and black clothing-like patches that almost look like leather bondage gear–Sunfire’s design very much reflects how damaged he is as a character.
Astonishing X-Men is a more in-depth character building exercise for the X-Men. It doesn’t have to jump around, introducing almost every Age of Apocalypse series like X-Men Alpha. It’s as essential in getting to know most of these characters as it is to setting up several of the series.
X-Calibre #1
W: Warren Ellis | P: Ken Lashley | I: Phil Moy, Bud Larosa & Phil Moy | C: Joe Rosas | L: Richard Starkings & Comicraft
“I remember it sold a crazy amount of issues. If I remember correctly, my first AoA issue sold something like 400,000 copies, which is insane. Also considering all the X-Men books during the event, mine was the least-selling book all of them.” -Ken Lashley
A woman calling herself Switchback takes a boat through an underground cave. She made a leap of faith, leaving her home in Detroit and looking for a fabled land where mutants and humans live in peace. Deposited at the far end of the river, Switchback finds a huge monk who calls himself Cain and says he will take her the rest of the way to Avalon. Meanwhile, a world away in North America, Nightcrawler begins searching for his mother, the “boatman” who takes people on the final leg of their journey to Avalon. Rumors abound that Mystique takes everything from the pilgrims and then leaves them to die. Kurt’s search takes him first to Angel and then, after some intimidation, to John Proudstar and the Ghost Dance. Proudstar’s church is the first step on the Infernal Gallop to Avalon. Elsewhere in the city, Apocalypse, having learned of Nightcrawler’s plan, dispatches Damask, Danielle Moonstar, and Dead Man Wade to find Avalon and destroy it. Meanwhile in Avalon, Switchback encounters Destiny for the first time, prompting her to have a vision of Avalon burning.
Age of Apocalypse’s Nightcrawler is a good example of character design informing character development. This is in stark contrast to characters like Gambit or Quicksilver, whose apparel and design says very little. Cruz did very little with Kurt in X-Men Alpha, keeping him a largely dark, shadowed character in the few panels he appears in. This leaves Lashley (who credits the character’s design to Joe Maduera) to finally give the character his due.
This is not a good natured Nightcrawler who somehow keeps his cool during a fight. His facial expressions in X-Calibre #1 range from angry to sinister. The swords on his back identify him as a fighter, likely prone to violence as a solution. The splash page that introduces Nightcrawler makes him look almost piratical.
Ellis’s script, on the other hand, tells us very little about Nightcrawler beyond showcasing his short fuse before taking action (almost immediately punching Warren when they meet and teleporting John Proudstar’s finger off when he speaks ill of Mystique). If Ellis tells us anything, it’s that Nightcrawler is angry and kind of a momma’s boy.
Making the Savage Land a kind of utopia that is separate from the rest of the world’s problems is a fun notion. It’s a reversal from the original timeline where the Savage Land is constantly living up to its name in one way or the other. Here it’s a tame place. This is one of the few changes that isn’t particularly logical–why would Xavier’s death change the nature of the Savage Land? But it is a logical place to set up Avalon.
And besides, who doesn’t want to see Cain Marko as a reformed pacifist monk?
X-Calibre #1 is an intriguing first issue but not a gripping one. Nightcrawler is almost more worried about finding his mother and discovering the truth about her than he is about Destiny who is integral to verifying Bishop’s claims. And surprisingly, despite Destiny’s importance to the Age of Apocalypse story, this doesn’t reach “must have” status.
Gambit and the X-Ternals #1
ESSENTIAL | W: Fabian Nicieza | P: Tony Daniel | I: Kevin Conrad | C: Marie Javins | L: Chris Eliopoulos
Gambit, Jubilee, Roberto Dacosta, and Guido Carosella make up the X-Ternals, a group of thieves doing a Robin Hood impression that benefits human refugees and the human resistance. They’re helped along by the non-mutant liaison, Lila Cheney. Thanks to Bishop, Magneto has learned about the M’Kraan Crystal. He recruited Gambit (in Astonishing X-Men #1) and is sending the team across the universe by re-awakening the mutant power Lila doesn’t even know she possesses. Just as the X-Ternals prepare to leave, they are ambushed by first the Madri and then Mudir Julio Richter and his Infinites. Lila’s power activates itself amid all the chaos and sends her, Gambit, the X-Ternals, and Richter deep into unknown space.
Magneto may have a loyal band of X-Men, but boy does he have PR problems with other good guy mutants. The X-Ternals are ready to fight him on sight, stopping only because Gambit is with him. Xavier never had that kind of problem, even with Cable and X-Force. In the ongoing comparison of Magneto and Xavier, this is definitely a knock against Magneto. And it’s not the only series where he gets a frosty reception. Magneto is definitely a heroic character in Age of Apocalypse, but there are small deficits here and there where he just doesn’t seem to measure up to 1990’s Charles Xavier.
Nicieza adds culture and complexity to Apocalypse’s various minions. Nicieza doesn’t make discovering this extra nuance easy, though–especially considering the state of the internet in 1995.
Narration in the book refers to Richter as “mudir” which is an Arabic term for director or manager. His subordinate Infinites operate out of a fedayeen station in lower Manhattan. “Fedayeen,” also an Arabic term, refers to military groups that are willing to sacrifice themselves for a larger campaign. Finally, Mudir Richter’s fedayeen Infinites are part of the Kurbaj Squadron. Nicieza again turns to an Arabic term–a kurbaj is a kind of whip that is primarily used for punishment or torture. None of this is necessary to understand or enjoy the issue, of course, but it’s a nice bit of additional world building. Apparently Richter is content to sacrifice Infinite after Infinite if it will get him out of middle management.
There is something fun in having the X books’ characters confused by going out into space to find the M’Kraan Crystal. It runs so completely counter to the “going to the corner store” kind of comfort that exists in the original timeline.
Readers get their first look at Strong Guy, Jubilee, and Sunspot (among other characters) in this issue. Strong Guy is 90s-ified with his metal arm but largely unchanged. The chief difference in Sunspot’s appearance is mainly a product of color design. His red costume provides an extreme contrast with his black fire when his powers are active. Jubilee’s new appearance isn’t particularly noteworthy, but she is a fun character to watch because of how physically expressive Daniel draws her.
Some artists tweak their styles in different ways during the Age of Apocalypse–sometimes in such a way that it influences their work afterward. That is not the case with Daniel whose style here is much the same as it was in his preceding issues of X-Force. And though it differs noticeably from his Spawn work that immediately follows these issues, that likely owes more to him trying to fit his style to a specific book. After Spawn, Daniel’s work hews closer to his work here.
Gambit and the X-Ternals #1 isn’t really essential on its own, but the series’ latter issues prove critical going into the event’s finale, X-Men Omega. And more than that, the Magneto-Rogue-Gambit triangle is one of Age of Apocalypse’s biggest character arcs. It’s introduced in X-Men Alpha, addressed in Astonishing X-Men #1, tracks through all of this series, and is even the major story element in X-Men Chronicles #2. Even in the Age of Apocalypse, the X-Men find a way to include soap opera drama.
Next Week…
The (probably insane) instructor duo of Kitty Pryde and Colossus lead their students in a team building exercise, Havok has a temper tantrum, and sentinels invade!