Rating: 
Summary: Superheroes Made Cool
Review: 'E if for Extinction' is easily the best X-Men story published in years. New X-Men, along the lines of 'Ultimate X-Men', is a thoroughly modern look at what superheroes do best: action on an unimaginable scale. Morrison's writing, more mature here than on his flawed 'JLA' run from the mid-90's but not nearly in the vein of his hyper-cerebral 'The Invisibles', is intelligent and witty, capturing the characters well (though it could be said he resorts to 'sound bite' writing too often, in the style of Mark Millar). The storyline is a masterstroke of originality, especially in light of the forty-odd years of continuity that precedes it. Quietly's art is maddeningly detailed and perfectly suited to the characters and their futuristic world. His squiggly line-work and the sparse inks of Townsend combine to create the best one-two punch in superhero art. This collection is highly recommended as is the hardcover volume that collects both 'E is for Extinction' and the two following arcs: 'Germ-Free Generation' and 'Imperial', though those stories suffer from rotating art teams of very different styles. For more Morrison/Quietly superheroic action, see JLA: Earth 2, a fantastic story set in a sinister alternate world.
Rating:
Summary: "To me my X-Men"
Review: After a series of convolted and plain old lame storylines (The Twelve, Operation: Zero Tolerance), Marvel finally had the good sense to get an acclaimed and truly gifted writer to take on everyone's favorite merry mutants. The great Grant Morrison, along with artist Frank Quitely began they're now classic run on X-Men (re-titled New X-Men) with E is for Extinction. Introducing us to Professor Xavier's evil twin sister Cassandra Nova and the mass genocide of the mutant populated island of Genosha was just the beginning of Morrison's brilliant run as the X-Men themselves are given a makeover. The spandex multi-colored suits are gone in place of practical black leather, and the attitude and tone of the book has become more adult as well. Many different themes are presented in this first collected volume: Cyclops and Jean Grey's marriage is under strain now more than ever, with Emma "White Queen" Frost in the middle of it. Beast grows more disenchanted, and Wolverine is at his berserker, claw popping best. We are also introduced to the mysterious mutant healer called Xorn; a character who would have a never even thought of impact before Morrison's run ended. Quitely's artwork is great and suits the book, no over muscled, cleavage busting (except for Emma that is) character models that were so apparent throughout various X-books during the 90's. All in all, if you were turned off by the X-Men a few years back after all the lame storylines, you should pick this book up and discover that Grant Morrison is the best writer to ever hit the X-Men since Chris Claremont.
Rating:
Summary: Out-Bloody-Standing!
Review: As a long time comics reader but strangely enough never a huge X-men fan I undertook the news of Grant Morrison's immpending writing debut on this title with a little trepidition. There is no doubt that Mr. Morrison is the greatest living writer of popular comics fiction working today, but could he takle a team of characters that I loathe and make me care about them? BOY CAN HE. New X-men is Brilliant!! I still really dislike the other X-men books but he has given all of the characters their own human traits and foibles something that no other writer for me has done. Highly Reccommended!!! Oh yeah check out the movie too.
Rating: 
Summary: You just can't lose
Review: At first glace, this seems like a miracle. Grant Morrison, one of mainstream comics' more creative thinkers and one of my personal favorites, on the X-Men, my absolute favorite comic as a child.It starts off slowly enough; the first issue was anticlimactic for me. But it picks up after that, in fact, it picks up and falls hard enough to destroy one of Marvel's weirdest countries. There's the standard Morrison twists, as his work is always in the details, like the devil. He pares down the X-Men into a manageable 5 members and focuses on them, which is a nice change in gears for Marvel's foremost title. Frank Quitely being involved elevated this project into the stratosphere. Quitely unique style seems to mesh well with whatever Morrison comes up with, and his run on X-Men is no exception. There are some fantastic pages, of that there's no doubt. If you like either Morrison, Quitely or the X-Men, you should definitely give this a shot if only to satisfy your burning curiosity.
Rating:
Summary: A new look at the X-men
Review: Despite their status as perennial mega-sellers, Marvel's two series featuring the superpowered mutants, the X-men, Uncanny X-men and X-men, have been prone to continuous revamping in the past few years. In the summer of 1997, two parallel events, Operation Zero Tolerance and The Trial of Gambit, ousted such popular X-men as Bishop, Cyclops and Gambit and replaced them with newcomers, Maggott, Cecelia Reyes and Marrow. In August of 1998, most of those characters were written out, making room for the return of Nightcrawler, Shadowcat and Colossus who augmented a line-up similar to the X-men's classic years in the late nineteen-seventies and early eighties. In April of 2000, another fixture from the team's golden era, writer, Chris Claremont returned, on the condition that he be given complete creative jurisdiction. He oversaw a massive reformation of the X-books, implementing a "time jump," in which the events of April's issues would occur six months after those of March's. Apparently, within this time window the X-men were dramatically changed as the team's line-up was completed altered and each character was redesigned visually. After every supposedly crucial reformation, though, the books settled back into the mediocrity that had been apparent since Mr. Claremont left in 1991, like vinegar returning to the top of Italian dressing a while after it is shaken. Soon the dangling subplots, ultimate predictability and the relative one-sidedness of each character returned and another epic reformatting was needed to keep the reader's interest. The cycle may have ended when Joe Quesada became Marvel's editor in chief in 2000. Mr. Quesada was bent on waking Marvel from its creative slumber, eliminating the boring and ultimately inconsequential storylines from its more historied titles, lessening the importance of retroactive continuity and gearing Marvel's titles towards the general young adult audience, not just obsessive comic book devotees or "fanboys." One of the first targets of his renovation was the X-men. Writer, Grant Morrison, who was renowned for his work on dark, edgy titles such as The New Adventures of Hitler and The Invisibles but who had also proven his ability to revitalize long-standing titles on DC Comics' JLA, was tapped to script the new storylines and Frank Quitely, who had worked with Mr. Morrison on a JLA mini-series, was hired to redesign the X-men and their headquarters, the X-Mansion, to better parallel the recent hit X-men film. So once again Marvel completely altered the X-books, reformatting the titles' covers, changing characters' uniforms, and chopping down the team's line-up (This time to Beast, Emma Frost, Phoenix, Cyclops, Professor Xavier and Wolverine). But alterations had been made to this variation of the X-men that had always been too risky for other reformers. The code of avoiding political hotspots had been broken, as Cyclops contributed to an assisted suicide and the X-men debated over employing capital punishment to reprimand a horrific supervillian. Topics such as Cyclops' and Phoenix's lovelife (including their sexuality) and Beast's insecurity about his monstrous appearance were tackled from new, more psychological angles. And, as a tragedy occurred on an enormous scale when the mutant-hunting Sentinels invaded Genosha and Professor Xavier made a seemingly unthinkable PR decision, readers were assured that this time, there would be no return to the ordinary that had followed other "reformations." Not since the X-men's golden years, when Jean Grey appeared to perish and Wolverine proposed to Japanese aristocratic matriarch, Mariko Yashinda, have readers been given such reassurance that every issue was too important to miss. Mr. Morrison likely completed extensive study on what had been missing from the X-men throughout the nineteen nineties. In his adaptation, the characters seem more complex and fascinating, the plot lines more surprising and the books in general more realistic and adult-orientated than they have in years. It is still too soon to tell but X-men: E is for Extinction, which reprints the first four issues of this latest incarnation of the X-men, may portray an actual revolution of the X-books. Finally.
Rating:
Summary: A "NEW" beginning
Review: E is for extinction is a good jump-on point for readers old and new. The X-universe is notorously complex but with a little patience it's a ride worth taking. Professor X has created a school were he helps young mutants learn to control their powers and abilities, unfortunatly mutantkind is curently under siege. Cassandra Nova, Professor X's evil twin sister, has aquired a dangerous new type of sentinel technology and is looking to destroy the mutant race. It's up to the X-men to stop her. The team consists of:1-Scott/Cyclops:Team Leader/resident hunk and husband to 2-Jean/Phoenix:The incredibly powerful girl next door and all around goody two shoes. 3-Emma/The White Queen:Conniving, ruthless, brilliant and beautiful. 4-Hank/Beast:The brilliant scientist that looks like a monster but has a heart of gold and 5-Logan/Wolverine:the other special man in Jeans a forbidden romance with the "wild and crazy overrated bad boy". The art in this first volume is pretty good, the storytelling is very good.Highly recommended. EP
Rating:
Summary: X-MEN Quality has returned.
Review: Finally! Well, Morrison's ideas are extensive, realistic and thoughtful. Sometimes it's like reading a deep new sf novel that my friend is into. Overall, I enjoy thinking of the implications and possibilities of his ideas and characters. I like how old ideas aren't being used and the team actually has a direction. It's difficult to describe with much success, be sure to borrow or buy a copy. I think the suits are alright, kind of dull and alike though. I wish comics were printed in magazine format, though, so the issues wouldn't end so fast...
Rating:
Summary: Best of the modern X-Men
Review: First and foremost: this is probably not for the casual comic reader or those unfamiliar with the genre, specifically the X-Men. This is not to say it is a difficult comic to understand, or that the concepts and/or art are too different than one might expect. It's that the story is best enjoyed by those who already know the characters and appreciate the situations they are put in.
That said, to put it simply: this is one of the best modern stories of the X-Men. I recommend you pick up previous issues to catch up on the action (a LOT has happened, from secondary mutations to super-sentinels to changes with Beast to the White Queen joining the good guys). It's a good idea to get this story along with the rest as the story-telling is best when view with the "big picture" - the fun comes with the build-up and anticipation.
The story is a grand epic written by Grant Morrison of JLA and Invisibles fame and with art by the very talented (although somewhat unreliable) Frank Quietly. Their run on "New X-Men" (with breaks from Quietly on regular occasion, especially as of late) has been heralded by fans and critics alike, as the New X-Men don a slightly renovated attitude and style.
Dramatic, action-packed, and with plenty of interesting twists, "E is for Extinction" brings great writing and great art together to produce an incredibly enjoyable story. Professor Charles Xavier has a twin sister who's bent on - what else - the destruction of mutantkind. Journey from the recesses of Professor X's mind to the depths of space with the Shi'iar kingdom on an adventure that is definitive Grant Morrison - holds no punches.
I'll leave it at that, as I don't want to give away too much of your fun.
"To me, my X-Men."
Rating:
Summary: The Thinking Person's X-Men
Review: Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly's interpretation of the X-Men is wonderfully strange and intelligent. Morrison's storyline is complex and layered with a level of subtlety and nuance that is rare in superhero comics. Married to this narrative, is Quietly's stylized and unique artwork which renders the X-Men as something more interesting than muscle-bound superheroes in brightly-colored lycra costumes. Together, they have created a refreshingly new interpretation of the X-Men that is unique and well-rendered. Under their direction, the new team consists of Prof. Xavier, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Emma Frost, The Beast and Wolverine. As the story opens, a new villain, Ms. Nova, is introduced who plans to wipe out the human race and create a new world comprised solely of "homo sapiens superior" (aka mutants). The evolution of her plans and the fate of human race unfold in a story that is interesting and exciting. Moreover, the pacing of the story, the visual perspective, and the layout of panels are superbly executed. Longtime readers will witness some uncharacteristically sensitive moments between Cyclops and Wolverine and learn of several new events that will effect familiar characters and places like Prof. X, the Sentinels and Genosha. Arguably one of the most interesting interpretations of the X-Men to have appeared in print, "E for Extinction" is highly recommended and worth reading more than once.
Rating:
Summary: "Jean and I are perfectly happy, Logan."
Review: Grant Morrison has mastered the team dynamic on nearly every book he's ever written (Doom Patrol, The Invisibles, JLA), and his New X-Men is a fabulous example. Cyclops is now the most interesting X-Man, new characters pop up every few pages, and the costumes are better than they have been in years. The overall feel of the book is a wonderful return to the inventiveness and wit of the Lee/Kirby days, and Frank Quitely's art is drop-dead gorgeous. Ethan Van Sciver pencils a serviceable coda to the main story, and begins his tenure as the "regular fill-in" artist on the book. Van Sciver is growing noticeably with each issue, so things look pretty good. Don't expect this story to self-contain, incidentally. Morrison won't wrap up anything until he's ready to leave the book, and the closest we come to a conclusion is the end of Imperial, the next story arc. These two books make a pretty good companion set.
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