Norbert C. Schwartz
May 4, 2008, 09:22 am
<a href=" http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/marvel/xmendws/XMNLEG210_col.jpg" target="_blank"><img src=" http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/marvel/xmendws/XMNLEG210_colt.jpg" alt="X-Men Legacy #210" hspace=10 align=left></a> Reviewer: Norbert Schwartz, Jantipa@gmail.com
“If you attack me again, I´ll shut your powers down permanently with post-hypnotic inhibitions…”
Writer: Mike Carey
Art: Scot Eaton
Inkers: John Dell and Andrew Hennessy
Colorist: Frank D’Armata
Flashback sequences
Art: Greg Land
Inker: Jay Leisten
Colorist: Brian Reber
Letterer: Cory Petit
Production: Anthony Dial
Assistant Editor: Will Panzo
Editor: Nick Lowe
Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Published by: Marvel Comics (www.marvel.com)
He has been a teacher, a thinker, a leader, a political activist, a scientist. The creator of a vision for a whole species. It´s hard to think of a real world equivalent for Professor X. Martin Luther King Jr. probably served as an inspiration for the Professor. The original character, as envisioned by Lee and Kirby, was a straightforward, dry, ethical and cerebral man. He was very different from what we know today.
Charles Francis Xavier has a very long history, if you doubt it, just read the wiki on him. But when he started the X-Men, most of his life was unknown, a mystery, which led to the possibility of many things being retconned.
The issue is that Professor Xavier is important, both inside and outside comics. Xavier represented the pacifist political discourse, while Magneto spoke the words of racists and extremists (like “we are the future, Charles; not them…” in the film). Heck, I am a teacher, and the way I see my work is influenced by how Professor X was shown to teach his pupils (specific skill development, continuous practice…). I believe that his words against discrimination have left an impression in the minds of many readers.
Thus, I didn´t feel comfortable with those retcons that made of him a manipulative, cold intellectual. The alternate versions of Xavier, like the ultimate one, do not have the ethical strengths of the original one. The ultimate Xavier read the minds and manipulated the memories of everybody without much compulsion or remorse, even those of his pupils. And let´s skip a talk about how the Chief Caulder has changed since the intervention of Morrison in Doom Patrol.
And the question here is: When you have the power and the responsibility, do the ends justify the means? Apparently, the writers have thought that they do, at least for the last ten years. From Claremont to Whedon, they have retconned several parts of the Professor´s life, taking him away from his original ethos. Now it appears that an intelligent leader can´t behave ethically, can´t respect the rights of the others.
Just try to imagine having the kind of responsibilities Xavier has had all along his mature life. The school, the whole race, the philosophy. Sometimes there are sacrifices to be made, sometimes you have to choose the lesser evil. But there is a difference between that and crossing the line of respect for human rights and human dignity. And some authors have written Xavier as not minding that line.
Carey has been doing a very good work in the series, The issues that featured Rogue´s team were excellent, and everybody, including Rogue, got very good characterization. Still, I was afraid this was going to be another retconning of specific times of Xavier´s life, to show how much of a bastard he can be. So far, I am happy to say I was wrong. It has been more of a revision than a retconning. Carey has taken the chore of considering Xavier´s actions throughout his life and what consequences they had. He´s not changing anything, though in some events he does add context and dialogue to give the event more sense and depth.
Carey seems to be reviewing Xavier´s life by themes, more than by stages (as I had supposed he would do, misled by the covers), inserting scenes from the past as they relate and give sense to the events in the present. X-Men Legacy doesn´t deal only with Professor Xavier, but with different, and even opposing visions on mutantkind, with ways of being a leader, with ways of reacting to the extinction of a species. Xavier dared to create a vision for his species, dared to be a leader and an educator, he dared to take a political standpoint. And each of those actions has had consequences.
In this issue, we are shown what telepathic combat really is (I think). No fancy mind bolts or psychic armors. Exodus attacks Xavier with memories of his failures trying to break him, to bend his will. And that serves well for reviewing some other chapters in Xavier´s life. It is very illustrative to see that Xavier doesn´t only feel responsible for Danger or Legion, but also for the Genosha genocide. Exodus also asks Xavier a variant of the Hitler-as-a-boy question: if he had the chance of killing Trask´s relatives to avoid genocide, why didn´t he do it? And the Xavier I missed came back, the ethical Xavier answers that it is an obscene idea. Contrasted with the memory of Xavier training Vulcan´s team and Moira´s questioning of his almost messianic impositions of ideals on the kids, it is an interesting jump.
And then, when Xavier seems to be about to yield, we are remembered why Xavier´s mind is the most powerful weapon in the planet. He just mindblasts the hell out of Exodus. Exodus, down on the floor, reveals to Xavier that he meant to propose him the leadership of the Acolytes (an idea I must admit I liked for a moment or two). And Xavier turns down the invitation. Xavier leading a pseudo-religious movement is one of the few things we haven´t seen yet, not even in the pumped up visions of Morrison.
An interesting question being posed here is: What would be left of Xavier if his memories were lost? For that matter, what would be left of any human if he lost his memories? How much of a human´s personality is made by his experiences and his memories It´s not the first time he´s had this kind of problems (Cassandra Nova comes to my mind), but it will be interesting how Carey takes advantage of this situation to advance the development of this character. Carey has decided to clean the slate of Xavier. He is using the brain damage/memory loss to reconstruct Xavier, and he seems to be going to give him back his moral fiber. A more human Xavier, but not a morally corrupt one (I hope)
At first, Exodus´s team (who look more like a new Brotherhood than like Acolytes) appeared like a rag-tag band of left-overs from other teams, but after seeing how Carey is handling them, it becomes clear why they were chosen. They are the voices of the different perspectives of the mutant situation, from Voght to Cargill, from Karima to Random, those are the different perspectives on the extinction of mutantkind, of the effects of genome loss.
The art and coloring are good, adequate to the tone of the story. Greg land's art, on some moments feels vertigoesque, reminding me of Chris Weston a bit. Xavier is evidently based on Patrick Stuart more than Yul Brynner (the original model used by Lee and Kirby). I like how Magneto looks weak and powerless… human. Computer effects really work on the psychic combat scenes, making the atmosphere almost liquid.
I didn´t like either Decimation or Messiah Complex so much. I felt that Marvel was about to enter the problem of the development of mutantkind culture (led by Morrison), and it was all thrown away; and Messiah complex was simply unsatisfying. But now, with the perspective of time, it becomes evident that these have been maneuvers to create possibilities of fresh stories (and I suspect a skrull plot too, but that would be a hypothetical spoiler). Some authors have capitalized on the event and its consequences (mostly Peter David and Carey) and have given us excellent stories. In that sense, X-men Legacy is accomplishing its objectives very satisfactorily.
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xhalf.jpg
‘Buy this issue online now from X-WORLD and save!’ ( http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopexd.asp?id=26704)
“If you attack me again, I´ll shut your powers down permanently with post-hypnotic inhibitions…”
Writer: Mike Carey
Art: Scot Eaton
Inkers: John Dell and Andrew Hennessy
Colorist: Frank D’Armata
Flashback sequences
Art: Greg Land
Inker: Jay Leisten
Colorist: Brian Reber
Letterer: Cory Petit
Production: Anthony Dial
Assistant Editor: Will Panzo
Editor: Nick Lowe
Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Published by: Marvel Comics (www.marvel.com)
He has been a teacher, a thinker, a leader, a political activist, a scientist. The creator of a vision for a whole species. It´s hard to think of a real world equivalent for Professor X. Martin Luther King Jr. probably served as an inspiration for the Professor. The original character, as envisioned by Lee and Kirby, was a straightforward, dry, ethical and cerebral man. He was very different from what we know today.
Charles Francis Xavier has a very long history, if you doubt it, just read the wiki on him. But when he started the X-Men, most of his life was unknown, a mystery, which led to the possibility of many things being retconned.
The issue is that Professor Xavier is important, both inside and outside comics. Xavier represented the pacifist political discourse, while Magneto spoke the words of racists and extremists (like “we are the future, Charles; not them…” in the film). Heck, I am a teacher, and the way I see my work is influenced by how Professor X was shown to teach his pupils (specific skill development, continuous practice…). I believe that his words against discrimination have left an impression in the minds of many readers.
Thus, I didn´t feel comfortable with those retcons that made of him a manipulative, cold intellectual. The alternate versions of Xavier, like the ultimate one, do not have the ethical strengths of the original one. The ultimate Xavier read the minds and manipulated the memories of everybody without much compulsion or remorse, even those of his pupils. And let´s skip a talk about how the Chief Caulder has changed since the intervention of Morrison in Doom Patrol.
And the question here is: When you have the power and the responsibility, do the ends justify the means? Apparently, the writers have thought that they do, at least for the last ten years. From Claremont to Whedon, they have retconned several parts of the Professor´s life, taking him away from his original ethos. Now it appears that an intelligent leader can´t behave ethically, can´t respect the rights of the others.
Just try to imagine having the kind of responsibilities Xavier has had all along his mature life. The school, the whole race, the philosophy. Sometimes there are sacrifices to be made, sometimes you have to choose the lesser evil. But there is a difference between that and crossing the line of respect for human rights and human dignity. And some authors have written Xavier as not minding that line.
Carey has been doing a very good work in the series, The issues that featured Rogue´s team were excellent, and everybody, including Rogue, got very good characterization. Still, I was afraid this was going to be another retconning of specific times of Xavier´s life, to show how much of a bastard he can be. So far, I am happy to say I was wrong. It has been more of a revision than a retconning. Carey has taken the chore of considering Xavier´s actions throughout his life and what consequences they had. He´s not changing anything, though in some events he does add context and dialogue to give the event more sense and depth.
Carey seems to be reviewing Xavier´s life by themes, more than by stages (as I had supposed he would do, misled by the covers), inserting scenes from the past as they relate and give sense to the events in the present. X-Men Legacy doesn´t deal only with Professor Xavier, but with different, and even opposing visions on mutantkind, with ways of being a leader, with ways of reacting to the extinction of a species. Xavier dared to create a vision for his species, dared to be a leader and an educator, he dared to take a political standpoint. And each of those actions has had consequences.
In this issue, we are shown what telepathic combat really is (I think). No fancy mind bolts or psychic armors. Exodus attacks Xavier with memories of his failures trying to break him, to bend his will. And that serves well for reviewing some other chapters in Xavier´s life. It is very illustrative to see that Xavier doesn´t only feel responsible for Danger or Legion, but also for the Genosha genocide. Exodus also asks Xavier a variant of the Hitler-as-a-boy question: if he had the chance of killing Trask´s relatives to avoid genocide, why didn´t he do it? And the Xavier I missed came back, the ethical Xavier answers that it is an obscene idea. Contrasted with the memory of Xavier training Vulcan´s team and Moira´s questioning of his almost messianic impositions of ideals on the kids, it is an interesting jump.
And then, when Xavier seems to be about to yield, we are remembered why Xavier´s mind is the most powerful weapon in the planet. He just mindblasts the hell out of Exodus. Exodus, down on the floor, reveals to Xavier that he meant to propose him the leadership of the Acolytes (an idea I must admit I liked for a moment or two). And Xavier turns down the invitation. Xavier leading a pseudo-religious movement is one of the few things we haven´t seen yet, not even in the pumped up visions of Morrison.
An interesting question being posed here is: What would be left of Xavier if his memories were lost? For that matter, what would be left of any human if he lost his memories? How much of a human´s personality is made by his experiences and his memories It´s not the first time he´s had this kind of problems (Cassandra Nova comes to my mind), but it will be interesting how Carey takes advantage of this situation to advance the development of this character. Carey has decided to clean the slate of Xavier. He is using the brain damage/memory loss to reconstruct Xavier, and he seems to be going to give him back his moral fiber. A more human Xavier, but not a morally corrupt one (I hope)
At first, Exodus´s team (who look more like a new Brotherhood than like Acolytes) appeared like a rag-tag band of left-overs from other teams, but after seeing how Carey is handling them, it becomes clear why they were chosen. They are the voices of the different perspectives of the mutant situation, from Voght to Cargill, from Karima to Random, those are the different perspectives on the extinction of mutantkind, of the effects of genome loss.
The art and coloring are good, adequate to the tone of the story. Greg land's art, on some moments feels vertigoesque, reminding me of Chris Weston a bit. Xavier is evidently based on Patrick Stuart more than Yul Brynner (the original model used by Lee and Kirby). I like how Magneto looks weak and powerless… human. Computer effects really work on the psychic combat scenes, making the atmosphere almost liquid.
I didn´t like either Decimation or Messiah Complex so much. I felt that Marvel was about to enter the problem of the development of mutantkind culture (led by Morrison), and it was all thrown away; and Messiah complex was simply unsatisfying. But now, with the perspective of time, it becomes evident that these have been maneuvers to create possibilities of fresh stories (and I suspect a skrull plot too, but that would be a hypothetical spoiler). Some authors have capitalized on the event and its consequences (mostly Peter David and Carey) and have given us excellent stories. In that sense, X-men Legacy is accomplishing its objectives very satisfactorily.
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xhalf.jpg
‘Buy this issue online now from X-WORLD and save!’ ( http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopexd.asp?id=26704)