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Rating: 
Summary: Some of Claremont's best work
Review: If you already own the original issues from Giant Sized X-Men to X-Men 137 or Essential X-Men Vol. 2, or some other TPB then this collection of stories from Classic X-Men is perfect for you. These collections of vignettes reveal much of the characterizations not revealed in the original issues and provide some key moments in the history of certain characters (especially the Magneto stories).Otherwise, I suggest trying to collect the original Classic X-Men comic books. If the condition of the comic book doesn't matter to you, and you only care about the stories, you could probably find all the Classic X-Men comics for under a dollar each. It's probably cheaper to do that than to buy all the trade paperbacks, plus I always preferred handling a comic book, than a TPB.
Rating:
Summary: Some of Claremont's best work
Review: If you already own the original issues from Giant Sized X-Men to X-Men 137 or Essential X-Men Vol. 2, or some other TPB then this collection of stories from Classic X-Men is perfect for you. These collections of vignettes reveal much of the characterizations not revealed in the original issues and provide some key moments in the history of certain characters (especially the Magneto stories). Otherwise, I suggest trying to collect the original Classic X-Men comic books. If the condition of the comic book doesn't matter to you, and you only care about the stories, you could probably find all the Classic X-Men comics for under a dollar each. It's probably cheaper to do that than to buy all the trade paperbacks, plus I always preferred handling a comic book, than a TPB.
Rating: 
Summary: Character-driven X-Men Stories
Review: If you enjoy character-driven stories about the X-Men of Marvel comics, if you like the X-Men stories of the 70s and 80s, or if you're a fan of Chris Claremont's writing, pick this up. Also, if you really like the Dark Phoenix Saga, you'll probably enjoy some of the Phoenix back-stories here. The baker's dozen of stories in this trade paperback are reprints of some of the early back-up stories from Classic X-Men. All are written by Claremont and illustrated (in color) by Jon Bolton. His style is less super-hero/comic book and more akin to illustration. The lines are softer and the emphasis is on storytelling and facial expressions. The stories show some of life behind the scenes of Uncanny X-Men stories from Giant-Sized X-Men #1/Uncanny 94 to about the Uncanny 120s. (I being specific for the rabid collectors). This book would be a great companion to Essential X-Men #1 (and #2 as well). It would also accompany The Dark Phoenix Saga book very well. The stories cover the aftermath of the battle against Krakoa, the impact of Thunderbird's death, the beginning of friendship between Jean and Storm, Nightcrawler's struggles with his appearance, Colossus' first love, the politics of the Hellfire Club, etc. I think the most powerful pieces are the ones about Jean/Phoenix. The idea is this: what if you were 24, in love, a hero, and one day you gained nearly unlimited power? How would you live life as a human once you became a god? The pieces here show Jean before her trip to space, during her transformation, and later, dealing with the effects. And they are beautiful. Buy yourself a treat: Get the first 2 Essential collections (or the DP Saga) and this collection and indulge your deep abiding love of the classic X-Men comics. Yes, they're about super heroes, but at heart they're about what kind of people we are and what kind of world we want to make. Then get Claremont's X-Men: Visionaries collection and be indulged further.
Rating:
Summary: Some Quieter Moments
Review: This volume collects the backstories printed in X-Men Classics from it's beginning through it's reprinting of the Dark Phoenix Saga. Basically, it's a collection of short stories about what happened "between the lines" of Uncanny at this period of the X-Men's history. Often they're quieter, relationship-driven stories as opposed to the action of the series proper. It helps if you have the stories that the vignettes are backing up in front of you for reference if you don't think you'll remember them - if you don't know what's going on you might be lost. Some of the vignettes are better than others, and of course your opinion will be colored by which characters you like most. Certainly two of the Nightcrawler stories are essential reading and some of the best material ever written for him. The first is "The Big Dare" - the notorious buddy classic in which Nightcrawler and Wolverine play a famous game of tag that results in Logan getting Kurt a little tipsy and daring him to walk down the street in public undisguised. The second is the beautiful tearjerker "The Gift", in which Kurt bonds with a little boy to whom he self-appoints himself guardian when he sees the child walking down the street alone in the middle of the night.
Rating: 
Summary: A good Package, But Pricey.
Review: Vignettes reprints the back-up stories from Classic X-Men #'s 1-13. As usual, Writer Chris Claremont's stories are too wordy, often giving extraneous information that the reader could glean from the art (By John Bolton, making a rare pen and ink appearance, a nice change of pace from his usual painting; The art is just as beautiful, no matter what medium he uses.). As a longtime Marvel fan, I found the stories complimented the older X-Men stories perfectly, giving me new insight into the old stories. The problem is, without the old stories, a new reader would be totally lost with most of these stories. The book is also over-priced for the scant 175 pages. Older X-Men fans will find a lot to cheer about, but readers who aren't up on their Mutant history will probably want to take a pass....
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