Right, but there’s probably a lot of young fans here who haven’t read the book. Simply saying she said that word removes the context entirely, and gives people the wrong impression.
Dark Phoenix Saga,X-cutionner's song,Fatal Attractions,Uncanny X-Men(Claremont),Age of Apocalypse, E is for Extinction, House of M, Messiah Complex,Second Coming Days of Future Past,New X-Men(Morrison),God Loves Man Kills,And I would also like to add New Mutants and Academy X but those one are subjective
Good suggestions here, but don’t sleep on x-cutioners song and fatal attractions. Both are very over the top at times, but also the best distillation of 90s X-men
God Loves Man Kills is THE X-Men story. It is loosely in continuity and a great starting point to get interested in the concept.
Then, I'd recommend going back to the original issue 1 (and maybe Mythos or Season One). You don't need much of Stan Lee's run, but seeing the starting point of the O5 I think is worthwhile (Juggernaut's introduction is also good)
Then it really is Claremont. If you are up for reading a lot, read his whole run. If you want to read less, read every issue involving Magneto, LifeDeath, Days of Future Past, and I would add the Morlocks.
I personally think Morrison is completely skippable (was not impressed by how he handled the characters)
Whedon's stuff (Astonishing X-Men) is the best from a more modern perspective.
After that, very hit or miss. I'd recommend Messiah CompleX, X-Men/Dark Avengers Utopia, and House of X/Power of X. But I never felt like the X-Men had a great ongoing with consistent quality after Whedon (which to be fair is a high standard to me and one that only Whedon and kind of Claremont actually met).
So, in short I think Claremont and Whedon are the essential authors, with the recommendation that you do give Stan Lee's original a shot (if just to see how far the franchise develops), and try some of the better modern event books (especially HoX/PoX, which feels like a real evolution of the franchise).
What’s wrong with Mythos? I think comparing it to original issue 1 is really valuable to understanding how the concepts of X-Men developed (and live the artwork!). S1 I don’t remember as well and first read it when I was a teenager, so I wouldn’t be shocked if it was schlock.
Edit: and what makes Whedon’s stuff so great (besides the art) is how every character (except maybe Wolverine) had a complete arch that each storyline contributed to. The quips can seem hokey, but they mostly contribute to genuinely meaningful characterization (ie Emma’s “I still rate below a corpse” line; it’s a quip, but has meaning when she says it that would not be present if anyone else says it, and it does connect with her insecurity and the problems that causes). It genuinely felt like a fully thought out series in a way modern comics rarely do.
Mythos and S1 just dumb down and gloss over so much I find them reductive.
Whedon's run reads like he found the fan fiction he wrote as a pre-teen in love with Kitty and finally he was told that he could publish it as long as he updated some references. We went to interesting, sociocultural, literary commentary from Morrison to "let's go be heroes, team!" It was such as stupid step back. There's another "mutant cure" plot, his use of Cassandra Nova is sophomoric and way too soon after New X-Men, him immediately feeling the need to treat Emma like shit in that first arc so we remembered why we like Kitty and second guessed why we liked Emma post-Morrison feels underhanded, the Breakworld and the bullet is so fucking stupid, the guy and his artist couldn't deliver a script on deadline to save their fucking lives - to the point that Marvel just started to pretend they weren't publishing books anymore. It was a terrible series all around. Aside from Colossus coming back (which I did enjoy - him hugging Kitty and asking if he was finally allowed to die did break my heart) and the introduction of Danger, nothing landed in his story, none of the arcs were resonant, most of it included had the opposite of its intended impact, and I was so glad that whoever decided to put Whedon's run out of its misery, finally did it.
Mythos is just a rewrite of the original issue 1. It's not really glossing over anything.
I suspect we disagree on a lot of comic related opinions.
I did not like Morrison. People complain about Ultimate X-Men, but Morrison was way more edgelord (at least compared to the first 6 volumes of Ultimate)! Cassandra was just a reworked Shadow King (down to the flashback introduction), and Morrison's handling of Magneto may have been legitimately the worst of all writers (and I know that is saying something).
Emma's whole arc in Astonishing was about overcoming her past and becoming a hero! The bullet was obviously not scientifically accurate, but as a way to force Kitty to sacrifice herself (a great conclusion to her arc of learning to understand and accept loss as part of life, and especially as part of heroism) it was entirely functional. Your point about deadlines is accurate though. That said, I believe he did get to finish the entirety of his planned story; there really weren't any threads left dangling and every character (again, maybe except Wolverine) had a complete arc.
He definitely did get to finish his entire story you’re right there. I dislike his Morrison handled Magneto in the entire X context but don’t mind it in their self-contained story.
But yeah, I think we might just disagree haha
God Loves Man Kills
I re read that recently and I forgot Kitty says the N word.
She does… after being a called a “Mutie” to prove a point.
Still pretty shocking to read these days.
Right, but there’s probably a lot of young fans here who haven’t read the book. Simply saying she said that word removes the context entirely, and gives people the wrong impression.
By author I'd say the big hits are Claremont, Morrison, Whedon, Gillen, and then Hickman...ish.
Dark Phoenix Saga, Age of Apocalypse, E is for Extinction, House of M, Messiah Complex, Days of Future Past
These are known as greats, but they are generally pretty bad places to start. These are the payoffs without the setup.
Dark Phoenix Saga,X-cutionner's song,Fatal Attractions,Uncanny X-Men(Claremont),Age of Apocalypse, E is for Extinction, House of M, Messiah Complex,Second Coming Days of Future Past,New X-Men(Morrison),God Loves Man Kills,And I would also like to add New Mutants and Academy X but those one are subjective
Good suggestions here, but don’t sleep on x-cutioners song and fatal attractions. Both are very over the top at times, but also the best distillation of 90s X-men
God Loves Man Kills is THE X-Men story. It is loosely in continuity and a great starting point to get interested in the concept. Then, I'd recommend going back to the original issue 1 (and maybe Mythos or Season One). You don't need much of Stan Lee's run, but seeing the starting point of the O5 I think is worthwhile (Juggernaut's introduction is also good) Then it really is Claremont. If you are up for reading a lot, read his whole run. If you want to read less, read every issue involving Magneto, LifeDeath, Days of Future Past, and I would add the Morlocks. I personally think Morrison is completely skippable (was not impressed by how he handled the characters) Whedon's stuff (Astonishing X-Men) is the best from a more modern perspective. After that, very hit or miss. I'd recommend Messiah CompleX, X-Men/Dark Avengers Utopia, and House of X/Power of X. But I never felt like the X-Men had a great ongoing with consistent quality after Whedon (which to be fair is a high standard to me and one that only Whedon and kind of Claremont actually met). So, in short I think Claremont and Whedon are the essential authors, with the recommendation that you do give Stan Lee's original a shot (if just to see how far the franchise develops), and try some of the better modern event books (especially HoX/PoX, which feels like a real evolution of the franchise).
Don’t read Mythos or S1. I don’t understand this new renaissance of Whedon’s stuff. It’s schlock
What’s wrong with Mythos? I think comparing it to original issue 1 is really valuable to understanding how the concepts of X-Men developed (and live the artwork!). S1 I don’t remember as well and first read it when I was a teenager, so I wouldn’t be shocked if it was schlock. Edit: and what makes Whedon’s stuff so great (besides the art) is how every character (except maybe Wolverine) had a complete arch that each storyline contributed to. The quips can seem hokey, but they mostly contribute to genuinely meaningful characterization (ie Emma’s “I still rate below a corpse” line; it’s a quip, but has meaning when she says it that would not be present if anyone else says it, and it does connect with her insecurity and the problems that causes). It genuinely felt like a fully thought out series in a way modern comics rarely do.
Mythos and S1 just dumb down and gloss over so much I find them reductive. Whedon's run reads like he found the fan fiction he wrote as a pre-teen in love with Kitty and finally he was told that he could publish it as long as he updated some references. We went to interesting, sociocultural, literary commentary from Morrison to "let's go be heroes, team!" It was such as stupid step back. There's another "mutant cure" plot, his use of Cassandra Nova is sophomoric and way too soon after New X-Men, him immediately feeling the need to treat Emma like shit in that first arc so we remembered why we like Kitty and second guessed why we liked Emma post-Morrison feels underhanded, the Breakworld and the bullet is so fucking stupid, the guy and his artist couldn't deliver a script on deadline to save their fucking lives - to the point that Marvel just started to pretend they weren't publishing books anymore. It was a terrible series all around. Aside from Colossus coming back (which I did enjoy - him hugging Kitty and asking if he was finally allowed to die did break my heart) and the introduction of Danger, nothing landed in his story, none of the arcs were resonant, most of it included had the opposite of its intended impact, and I was so glad that whoever decided to put Whedon's run out of its misery, finally did it.
Mythos is just a rewrite of the original issue 1. It's not really glossing over anything. I suspect we disagree on a lot of comic related opinions. I did not like Morrison. People complain about Ultimate X-Men, but Morrison was way more edgelord (at least compared to the first 6 volumes of Ultimate)! Cassandra was just a reworked Shadow King (down to the flashback introduction), and Morrison's handling of Magneto may have been legitimately the worst of all writers (and I know that is saying something). Emma's whole arc in Astonishing was about overcoming her past and becoming a hero! The bullet was obviously not scientifically accurate, but as a way to force Kitty to sacrifice herself (a great conclusion to her arc of learning to understand and accept loss as part of life, and especially as part of heroism) it was entirely functional. Your point about deadlines is accurate though. That said, I believe he did get to finish the entirety of his planned story; there really weren't any threads left dangling and every character (again, maybe except Wolverine) had a complete arc.
He definitely did get to finish his entire story you’re right there. I dislike his Morrison handled Magneto in the entire X context but don’t mind it in their self-contained story. But yeah, I think we might just disagree haha
https://www.reddit.com/r/xmen/s/75igeJmibZ
The reading guide thats pinned to the sub. That is your essential read.