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Title: X-Men Inferno by Chris Claremont, Louise Simonson, Marc Sylvestri, Walt Simonson, Bret Blevins ISBN: 0-7851-0222-1 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: December, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.38 (8 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Intriguing new direction...but not quite the best X-outing.
Comment: The X-Men are mainly known as mutant crusaders, heroes defending mutantkind, both from humanity and from itself. When the arena changes, it's usually to a sci-fi space adventure (Shi'Ar Empire, etc.) or an alternate reality (Days of Future Past) rather than a more fantasy-based setting. So, being a fantasy buff, I was naturally excited to read Inferno and find out how the X-Men (and their spinoff teams) dealt with supernatural threats and adventures.
The story is complex, as is par for the course in a Claremont book. Cyclops's ex-wife Madelyne Pryor makes a bargain with a demon to find their son, who apparently vanished some time ago. The New Mutants are stuck in Limbo, the dimension that had up till now been ruled by their teammate, Colossus's little sister Illyana. She ends up making a bargain with the same demon (a lovely fellow named N'astirh) to win back the mystic artifact that marks her as Limbo's ruler. As expected when one deals with demons, both Maddie and Illyana are betrayed, Maddie to Mr. Sinister (whose connection to her is both surprising and not altogether unexpected), and Illyana to S'ym, her former subordinate and rival for Limbo's throne.
The result? Hell on Earth. Limbo's demons end up taking over Manhattan, turning the place into a devil's-funhouse parody of itself, and it takes the combined efforts of the X-Men (comprised at this time of Storm, Rogue, Psylocke, Havok, Longshot, Dazzler, Colossus, and Wolverine), X-Factor (the original X-Men, including a Jean Grey who is somehow stripped of her telepathy by her resurrection), and the New Mutants (Cannonball, Wolfsbane, Sunspot, Warlock, Mirage, and Illyana herself), as well as a few minor mutants (including the future Rictor and Meltdown of X-Force fame) to break the spell over the city. The mutants go through a game of "tag, who's it?" with the bad guys, defeating S'ym, N'astirh, and finally Madelyne herself before finally realizing that Inferno's true mastermind is, though inadvertently, none other than Mr. Sinister.
Claremont, as always, does a wonderful job of storytelling with both the X-Men and New Mutants titles, but Walt Simonson (X-Factor's writer) doesn't quite live up. His dialogue is disjointed and at times hard to follow, while at the same time having a kind of childish simplicity to it. As for Inferno's art...well, Silvestri ranks among the greats, like Jim Lee and John Byrne, but Louise Simonson's pencils seem simplistic and blocky, and the New Mutants artist (whose name escapes me) has a tendency to be more cartoony than anything else.
Flaws notwithstanding, Inferno makes for a good read, and its supernatural premise is a breath of fresh air from the human vs. mutant and space-alien invasions the X-Men usually put up with. It did have the potential to be much, much better, though.
Rating: 5
Summary: excellent
Comment: this was a spectacular story, that had 2 different parts. one was the story of magick to darkchilde, & her loosing control of limbo. the other was madelyne pryor to goblin queen trying to unleash hell on earth. the connecting factor of these 2 was the evil demon n'astirh, but he gets knocked out towards the middle & once the illyana story finishes up, its all about maddie, & her connecton to the evil Sinister. he is the real villain of this piece & by the end you'll really be hating him.
Rating: 5
Summary: Strike a match
Comment: I was still a kid when the Inferno saga hit Marvel Comics, and I remember it fondly. At that time all the Marvel books began to show traces of the demonic chaos emanating from NYC, but the mutant teams were right at the heart of it. I don't want to spoil anything for those of you who don't know the various X-Men plots; I'll just say that Mr. Claremont wrapped up the Phoenix saga in a way that was completely unexpected, creepy, over-the-top, and super fun. (But come to think of it, was it really wrapped up? I stopped reading comics shortly after this so I don't know.)
I was always a big fan of Marc Silvestri's art. He was totally overshadowed by Todd McFarlane, who at the time was illustrating Spider-Man en route to a legendary career. I liked McFarlane and felt that he was perfect for Spider-Man, but Silvestri's mastery of draftsmanship, anatomy, and facial expressions were in another league altogether. He and inker Dan Greene put a rough surface on their art, giving it a rushed, sketchy look, but their attention to the form underneath was perfect. But I think this roughness turned off a lot of people during the Sharper Image 80s.
Anyway, Silvestri's X-Men were terrific, and his demons were very cool, especially N'astirrh. The other artists were (if my memory serves me correctly) Rob Leifield on New Mutants, who was very good, and Walt Simonson on X-Factor, who really wasn't very good but didn't stink. Ultimately, the book is great because it's classic Chris Claremont, with an awesome villian (Mr. Sinister) and an ingenious damsel-in-distress (Maddie Pryor)-turned-femme-fatale (the Goblin Queen), and with masterful action sequences that are only less intense than the explosive personal confrontations. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes superhero comics: believe me, you'll enjoy it.
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Title: X-Men: Mutant Massacre by Chris Claremont, Chris Claremount, Alan Davis, John Romita ISBN: 0785102248 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: 01 October, 2001 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: X-Tinction Agenda (X-Men)(STAR0364) by Chris Claremont, Louise Simonson, Rob Liefeld ISBN: 0871359227 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: November, 1992 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: X Men: The Fall of the Mutants by Chris Claremont, Louise Simonson, Walter Simonson ISBN: 0785108254 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: February, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: X-Cutioner's Song: Featuring the X-Men, X-Factor and X-Force by Scott Lobdell, Peter David, Fabian Niceza, Fabian Nicieza, Kelly Corvese, Bob Harras ISBN: 0785100253 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: May, 1994 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: X-Men: From the Ashes by Chris Claremont, Paul Smith, Bob Wiacek, John S. Romita, Walter Simonson ISBN: 0871356155 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: March, 1991 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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