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Marvel editorial has never been interested in streamlining their stories in graphic novel form so that you don't have repurchase stories that are contained elsewhere. This isn't the worst of their crime but it can make reading a chronology of sections of their universe difficult. While we are about to get into one of the very easiest eras to follow, we first have a few odds and ends to clear up before The Age Of Apocalypse. None of these books made the official Headcanon.  Mystique never heard of TLC.  Cable & X-Force Omnibus by Fabien Nicieza, Tony S Daniel, and Terry Dodson X-Force: Cable, Cannonball, Boom-Boom, Rictor, Warpath, Shatterstar, Domino, Siryn Also Featuring: Prosh, Thornn, Feral, Professor X, Beast, Emma Frost, Banshee, Jubilee, Husk, Dani Moonstar, Reignfire, Locus This review is purely for X-Force #39-43, which aren't collected elsewhere, for the other issues, check out my reviews of The Origin of Generation X: Tales of the Phalanx Covenant, Cable Classic Vol 2, Cable Classic Vol. 3, and Cable & X-Force Classic Volume 1. This is an odd weird reset after the Phalanx Covenant where Nicieza decides to move the team to a new homebase by making "The Professor" (Cable's AI interface) sentient, similar to what they did with Danger a decade or so later, and then having The Professor have to leave, meaning X-Force loses their computer system and Cable's ability to bodyslide. It's the most interesting thing Nicieza has done with the team so far. It does seem a bit clunky to give the Professor sentience and immediately remove him from the title, especially so close after the Phalanx storyline, but it's at least an interesting clunky. We then see a focus on Thorrn, a Morlock whose sister was the former X-Force member, Feral. Because no 90s X-Team could lack a canine- or feline-like hero with an aggressive streak. (See Wolverine, see Wolfsbane, see Kylun, etc.) Eventually, the team gets some downtime with the new New Mutants, Generation X, and then has an uninspiring adventure in NY. None of it is terrible. It moves the team in a new direction, as the entire X-corner of the Marvel Universe is about to be thrown into The Age Of Apocalypse. It's just kind of eh. If you like 90s X-Force, this is a perfectly acceptable story but it's neither crucial to continuity nor intriguing enough for someone who isn't a die-hard reader.  Cable Classic by Jeph Loeb, Larry Hama, David Brewer, Adam Kubert, Steve Skroce, and Ian Churchill 1st Appearances: Marrow Also Featuring Mikhail Rasputin, Colossus, Storm, Bishop, Thornn, Domino, Cannonball, Siryn, Wolverine, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Phalanx, Stephen Lang, Psylocke, Caliban, Foxbat, Beast, Dark Riders, Genesis, Gambit, Rogue, Angel, Professor X, Lilandra This review is focused on issues Cable #15, and #17-20. My review concerning Cable #16 and Wolverine #85 are in The Origin of Generation X: Tales of the Phalanx Covenant, and can best be summed up by the fact that I mentioned the best of The Phalanx Covenant issues in Origin Of Generation X were also collected in Generation X Classic, Vol. 1, with the worst issues missing. They're in this collection. The non-Phalanx portion of this collection focuses on Cable forging a stronger bond with his father, Cyclops, and on trying to figure out what happened to The Morlocks when Mikhail Rasputin seemed to kill himself, and take The Morlocks with him. Issue #15 is listed as the first appearance of Marrow but she's sort of a non-entity only referred to as Sarah in this collection. Thornn is the remaining Morlock, who we get a better look at in X-Force. Later, Caliban joins in the Morlock research, which leads to The Dark Riders and their new leader creating a new problem for Cable and the X-Men. This is a decent book. Especially if you skip over the Phalanx storyline. It's clearly laid out to bridge the gap between the Phalanx and Age Of Apocalypse, and it does so, even if it does so a little unevenly and without an interesting throughline. Cable fans may enjoy it for the lore, casual X-Men fans probably won't be too excited by it.  X-Factor Epic Afterlives by Kurt Busiek, JM DeMatteis, Todd Dezago, Scott Lobdell, Fabien Nicieza, John Francis Moore,Mtthew Friedman, Amy Meyer, Pat Broderick, Jan Duursema, Mat Broome, Bryan Hitch, Tony S Daniel, Ken Lashley, Paul Broges, Kerry Gamill, Roger Cruz,and Steve Epting X-Factor: Forge, Havoc, Polaris, Wolfsbane, Strong Guy, Random Also Featuring: Spider-Man, Flash Thompson, J Jonah Jameson, Robbie Robertson, Prof X, Storm, Moira MacTaggert, Val Cooper, Quicksilver, Haven, Prof Power, Malice, Mr Sinister, Ruckus, Hairbag, Slab, Gorgeous George, Blob Another book where we're going to skip some repeated issues because of the Phalanx Covenant. So this review is for Spider-Man & X-Factor Shadowgames, and X-Factor #101-105 & 107. There's a typical Marvel editorial snafu where this book is supposed to focus on what happens after Jamie Madrox died in the previous volume but this story begins with a Spider-Man crossover where Jamie Madrox is very much alive, even though he contributes very little to the story. The Spider-Man crossover is not super pertinent to X-Factor fans. It mainly reminds you that they work for the government, and it involves some inconsequential villains who I don't think we ever see again. Once we get to the main X-Factor title, it's mainly about how they are all very sad that Madrox is dead, which is appropriate and makes sense for the title. It then sees a long-term member decide to leave, has Storm and Forge resolve their love storyline from X-Men, tosses in a good old government conspiracy that ends up involving Malice and Mr. Sinister, and even gives us Professor X trying to determine Haven's intentions in the last collection. It's decent continuity but not an exciting set of stories. Skipping, the Phalanx stuff, there is a battle with the former Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants/Freedom Force that will feed into LegionQuest, which kicks of The Age Of Apocalypse. That's a lot of plot description for some fairly boring stories. I enjoyed David's run on X-Factor but, several creative teams later, it is definitely falling victim to the law of diminishing returns. The villains are forgettable, the grief and self-examination gets tiresome as it continues to dominate the story long after its expiration date, and the jokes get flatter and flatter as the title is passed to other writers. ] The whole collection is sloppy, as it collects several different storylines that don't so much intertwine as interrupt each other. None of them are bad but it's neither fully coherent nor incredibly entertaining. If you're not a completist, this is a real easy collection to skip, since the best parts are collected in The Phalanx Covenant or Age Of Apocalypse Prelude.  Rogue by Howard Mackie and Mike Wieringo
Also Featuring: Gambit Belladonna, Storm A completely forgettable Rogue & Gambit adventure that I've often wondered where to place in the continuity. In the Age Of Apocalypse Prelude, it's mentioned several times that this adventure takes place between issues. While it should be an important milestone in Rogue's history, the writing is just so flat, and the plot is so drawn out (there's about eight pages of story in this ninety-six page collection) that I can't recommend anyone track it down to read it, even if you're super invested in Rogue & Gambit's relationship. There's nothing here worth reading.
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January 2025
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