X-Men Legends (2021-) #7 by Larry Hama
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a classic slice of old school Wolverine action, which is exactly what you’d expect from an X-Men Legends issue written by Larry Hama. Wolverine and Jubilee are on the trail of some missing young mutants, which brings them into conflict with Lady Deathstrike and the Hand…because of course it does.

Which is not a complaint, this is great stuff! It’s also well drawn by Billy Tan, although I would have preferred to see him inked by someone else, but it seems that it’s increasingly common to have pencillers ink themselves, or to just skip straight to colours, these days. I guess it saves time and money…

I’m still not sure that there’s really a point to this book, other than nostalgia, but it’s pretty enjoyable stuff.

Get early access to all my reviews and read them a week before everyone else over on my Patreon!

View all my reviews

X-Men Legends #4 by Louise Simonson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a solid, nostalgic trip down memory lane that’s likely to satisfy fans of the Simonsons.

I’ll be honest, I would have enjoyed it a bit more if I could remember the story it’s leading into, but it’s been a very, very long time since I read this run of X-Factor.

Nevertheless, the writing is great and the artwork is superb, and the old school lettering is a particular treat.

We’re in for more X-Factor next time, but it’s a return to Peter David’s first run on the book, which should be interesting.

View all my reviews

X-Men Legends (2021-) #2 by Fabian Nicieza
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ah, yes, the second issue of X-Men Leg Ends! The series which brings you nothing by close ups of the feet of all your favourite X-Men! Marvel at Wolverine’s feet! Revel in Marvel Girl’s toes! It’s all feet all the time! And that’s why they didn’t get Rob Liefeld to draw it…

(Sorry, Rob)

Annnnd, that’s my April Fool’s joke out of the way, on with the review!

Well, there’s not really much more to say about this than I said in my review of #1. The writing’s great, the art is appropriately 90s, and it exists purely to tie up a loose end from Fabian Nicieza’s original X-Men run. If you care about these things, and I do, then you’ll love it. Otherwise your mileage is likely to vary. It does what it does and it does it very well.

It also explains why none of the characters involved have mentioned this in the last quarter of a century. Which is a good thing, it’s done well and it makes sense.

So, yeah, I enjoyed this, and I’m now looking forward to the Simonson’s taking over the book.

View all my reviews

X-Men Legends (2021-) #1 by Fabian Nicieza
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Marvel get Brett Booth to draw another X-Men book, but this time it works. And, if you’re able to set aside some things he’s said on social media in the past (and it’s understandable if you can’t) he does some pretty solid work on this book. It screams mid-nineties, sure, but that’s entirely appropriate as this is a story set after #39 of the nineties adjectiveless X-Men series, with repeated references to an issue of Captain Marvel from 1995.

As for that story, if the whole “third Summers brother” dangling plot thread has been bothering you for a quarter of a century and you really, really want the true identity and backstory of Adam-X “The Extreme” to be resolved…well, this is the comic for you. If you have NO IDEA what I’m talking about then, uh, you could do worse than listening to Jay & Miles X-Plain The X-Men who have, I know, covered it in depth. Well, in as much depth as obscure X-Men dangling plotlines from the mid-nineties deserve.

This book very much captures the feel of mid-nineties X-men comics, and how much you liked mid-nineties X-Men will probably determine how much you like enjoy this comic. The one thing that works against it is that, at the time, this plotline would almost certainly have been interwoven with several other ongoing plotlines. The fact that these aren’t slotted in between scene transitions actually feels a little jarring at times, and things feel a little rushed as a consequence. However, that’s definitely made up for with…well…just the thrill of finally having this gap filled.

Because, you see, I have spent the last twenty five years wondering about this, because I’m that kind of obsessive nerd. This book was made for me and people like me, and if I could travel back in time and tell my friends on the Comics And Anime forum on AOL not to worry, because in twenty five years time they’d go back and resolve this dangling plotline it would…well…it would be really, really weird, actually. But probably no weirder than a lot of my posts on that forum.

Anyway, yes, good comic is good, but your mileage may well vary.

View all my reviews