New X-Men: Planet X (X-Men)

Rating:
Summary: Next Up....
Review: ...oh. This again. The simple, yet awe-inspiring arrival of yet another MasterPiece, thanks to the very strange and talented mind of Grant Morrison, and several extremely well talented artists. This is the same man who has, over the past 20 years, crafted industry changing pieces of art such as Animal Man, Doom Patrol, & JLA, and the least of these is nothing less than a brilliant forray into why comic books should be taken more seriously by the general literary community as actual works of art, meant, more often than not by the writers and artists, to be taken seriously and with a point at hand. Planet X is the last story arc in Mr. Morrison's run on New X-men, at least, the last continuity based, within the regular bounderies of the Marvel Universe, story arc. In this five part tale, Mr. Xorn is revealed in a brilliant stroke of shock and storytelling as none other Magneto, the X-men's arch nemises.....and to the regular readers of this title, that's just the start of the revelations and strange ideas, come to frutition in this arc, and the following arc, 'Here Comes Tomorrow',....think of it, a man in an iron mask, decieving and slowly taking the Institute apart, one mutant at a time, one idea at a time, one allegiance at a time, for the better part of three years...all while staying within the confines of an already very well known and well established character's bounderies...This is apparently the ending that Mr. Morrison had had in mind for the entire duration of his run, which more than anything, comes off, upon secoundary reading, as one gigantic,majestically thought out, statues quo smashing, very adult themed three year story. The strings of continuity and plot point are hauled together in this arc, or at least, the beginnings of this massive 'finishing up' begins with this arc. Kick. The School Riots. The Phoenix. The Xavier/Magneto ideology theme and why neither will survive beyond a certain point in time. The Jean/Cyclops/White Queen story. Wolverine. The students and their drives, intentions, and the eventual culmination of why there had to be students, actual students, introduced to the Institute at all. The E-gene subplot.Cassandra Nova. John Sublime and his U-men. The disintegration of the Xavier Institute and its values, points, traditions,relationships and characters. Going over the entire run up to this point, i realize that Morrison has had a reason for every spoken word, every situation, every character that came up as he wrote the title for these past three years. I won't spoil anything else, but i will say this;...once you've read 'Here Comes Tomorrow', the story arc following this one, go back and reread the entire 43 issue run, all at once. I promise that it all will make much more sense this time around. This is without any doubt, one of the very BEST runs that this tile has ever seen. Think of Morrison's work on this title, by and large, as a tree All the plots and storylines representing the roots as they spread out and feed the tree. Now imagine these roots, singular, yet very important aspects of this tree, running their course towards their final climax and purpose...feeding the tree. Growing the tree. In the end, no matter how far these roots, these mouths, strayed from their epicenter, their Whole, they all draw back together, making for one hellova tale.......Planet X is the start of this Great Unification. Far more adult, these mutants have dared to become...by leagues, far meaningful and poinant, too.
Hawksmoor...From The Bleed.

Rating:
Summary: Surprises surprises
Review: Grant Morrison's now legendary run on New X-Men offered up plenty of twists and revelations in this arc, including one of the biggest shocks of the year in comics. Xorn, the mutant healer that for the past few years has lived among the X-Men, is really Magneto; and with all the X-Men effectively immobilized, destroys New York City. Morrison has made the classic X-villain more fearsome and vendictive than the character has been in years, and in Planet X everything he's written begins to come together, setting the stage for Morrison's final storyarc on New X-Men, Here Comes Tomorrow. This is undoubtadly one of the best arcs to come out of an X-Men title since Claremont's heyday, but it's bittersweet because this signaled the end of Morrison's run. So many X-fans who had become disenchanted with the title after almost a decade of lame storyarcs, myself included, had become drawn back into the title thanks to Morrison's visionary storytelling and masterful plotting, and this book is a prime example. Phil Jimenez' art is just gorgeous, and it makes Planet X all the sweeter.

Rating:
Summary: Just good story telling and good art
Review: I've heard alot of criticism of Morrison's run on X-man. Having purchased and read TPB 1-7, I can safely say I'm glad I spend the time and the money. Morrison's more modern take on the X-men has been at time confusing but always fascinating. This is not a comic for people who don't want to think - Morrison's addresses alot of real life issues- drug addiction, infidelity, loneliness, betrayal, death and rebirth. Honestly, in the same way Chris Claremont addressed issues of racism in revolutionary run in X-men, so to does Morrison- in his own style and fashion.

And what can I say about the art- its gorgeous, really. I'm ready a couple of others TPB's at the moment and I'd pick the art in new X-men over anybody else I'm looking at. I'm a big story guy myself, with art being a secondary consideration in deciding what to read - however, the art really jumps out at you - I love the way Jiminez draws his characters- and I've enjoyed watching the characters evolve in his art (look no further then Esme- who goes from one of the generic Stepford Cukoos to a femme fatale of the highest order). You've simply got to check out Jiminez's art- its fantastic and his run on New X-men, like MOrrison's, has been of the highest quality.

For the record, this is NOT the book you want to pick up to sample Morrison's new X-men - one of the major surprises in the series is revealed in this issue and the surprise will literally be ruined if you know its coming- my suggestion is, start with book one (or at worst, start with book 4) and work your way forward. You'll be glad you did.

Rating:
Summary: Just good story telling and good art
Review: I've heard alot of criticism of Morrison's run on X-man. Having purchased and read TPB 1-7, I can safely say I'm glad I spend the time and the money. Morrison's more modern take on the X-men has been at time confusing but always fascinating. This is not a comic for people who don't want to think - Morrison's addresses alot of real life issues- drug addiction, infidelity, loneliness, betrayal, death and rebirth. Honestly, in the same way Chris Claremont addressed issues of racism in revolutionary run in X-men, so to does Morrison- in his own style and fashion.

And what can I say about the art- its gorgeous, really. I'm ready a couple of others TPB's at the moment and I'd pick the art in new X-men over anybody else I'm looking at. I'm a big story guy myself, with art being a secondary consideration in deciding what to read - however, the art really jumps out at you - I love the way Jiminez draws his characters- and I've enjoyed watching the characters evolve in his art (look no further then Esme- who goes from one of the generic Stepford Cukoos to a femme fatale of the highest order). You've simply got to check out Jiminez's art- its fantastic and his run on New X-men, like MOrrison's, has been of the highest quality.

For the record, this is NOT the book you want to pick up to sample Morrison's new X-men - one of the major surprises in the series is revealed in this issue and the surprise will literally be ruined if you know its coming- my suggestion is, start with book one (or at worst, start with book 4) and work your way forward. You'll be glad you did.

Rating:
Summary: It's all come to this
Review: If you want proof that Grant Morrison is the best writer to pen X-Men since Chris Claremont, look no further than Planet X. Collecting the five part storyarc which drops the biggest bombshell in comics of 2003. Xorn; a mutant healer that has lived among the X-Men for months, is Magneto. When Magneto reveals himself while all of the X-Men are effectively neutralized, he cripples Professor X again, destroys the school, and completely decimates New York City christening it New Genosha; all the while the Phoenix force continues to grow in Jean Grey, all concluding with a shocking climax and epilogue that sets the stage for Morrison's final New X-Men storyarc: Here Comes Tomorrow. Planet X proves that Morrison is still a brilliant writer, and his new turns on characters we have known and loved continues to impress. The art by Phil Jimenez is nothing short of beautiful, with Magneto looking absolutely fearsome. It's a shame that Morrison's run on New X-Men is over, so hopefully Marvel will find another high caliber scribe to take on the merry mutants. All in all, this is the best X-Men read in years.