And his name is Proteus.
Originally written 11-14-10
Lead by Cyclops, the X-Men have survived one threat after the next but not without suffering some type of loss. Sean Cassidey aka the Banshee has lost his mutant ability the sonic scream, while saving Japan from Moses Magnum. However, the challenges continue as enemies both old and new begin to surface. Black Tom Cassidey and Juggernaut plot revenge, in addition, the X-Men soon find themselves in a deadly battle with a very powerful and blood thirsty mutant. -summary
This volume felt quite similar to the previous. Once again, the series featured a couple of uninteresting villains but it was Chris Claremont's stellar writing that saved the stories for me. Despite his talent though, I still found myself wanting to take breaks during the first four stories. Fortunately, the pace began to pick up right at the middle and end with a strong finish. Marvel Masterworks: This TPB collects issues 122-131, along with Annual # 3. The story picks up heavily around issue # 127, and later begins to build up into one of the series most important events.
The first stories have a small amount of character development with Cyclops attempting to form the X-Men into a better team, as well as Colossus attempting to overcome his own fear. One would wonder what a man whom can turn into solid steel could possibly be afraid of; but I think this adds a certain amount of depth to the character. Many of the other characters receive the same treatment, and it works because it shows that these superheroes with extraordinary powers are humans too. However, I just can't completely shake the feel that these stories are more filler than anything else. The X-Men soon have to battle with an assassin for hire by the name of Arcade. This man captures them and attempts to kill them in his psychotic amusement park called Murder World. There's quite a bit of imagination here and Claremont makes it fairly entertaining; but I was never interested in the Arcade character, and I always saw him as a very cheap imitation of the Joker. Plus the exact same two part story guest stars Spider-Man for a meaningless appearance.
The stories really don't get much better as of yet. The X-Men annual takes place in between the main story and yanks a character from the pages of the Avengers named Arkon. The battle with him is ok, but I found the story to be on the boring side a little bit. I was never gripped to it. Things soon pick up when the X-Men travel to Muir Island after they receive a distress call. This is when the story grabs the reader by the neck.
The X-Men dive into battle with a very powerful mutant named Proteus. This young man has the ability to alter reality itself. In addition, he's incredibly blood thirsty and kills without remorse. This story was actually retold in the X-Men Animated Series. For those who saw and remember those episodes and thought that the battles with Proteus were awesome, in which they were, will be amazed to see that the cartoon did him very little justice. In fact, the cartoon is so watered down in comparison. Proteus completely bends reality and turns streets completely in 90 degree angles and transforms houses into angry swarms of bees. The comic is also very different in Proteus personality, because he is evil incarnate here and his main purposes are survival and cold-blooded murder. The final portion of the series begins the epic Dark Phoenix Saga, and along the way, features the first appearances of Kitty Pride aka Shadowcat, Alison Blair aka Dazzler, and The Hellfire Club, which is made up of a group of wealthy mutants. Here in this arc, small story elements which were introduced in previous issues begin to take form.
The artwork by John Byrne continues to impress. The female characters are drawn with much sex appeal, and the standout is definitely the scantily clad Emma Frost aka The White Queen. The character designs are consistent and very nice, with some nice images of Phoenix in full flaming bird mode. The action panels are incredible once they catch their stride. The battles with Proteus are by far the most imaginative.
The story ends on a cliffhanger leaving many loose ends but everything is tied up later. This volume was very exciting for me towards the end, and I think most X-Men fans will come away feeling satisfied. I highly recommend this volume along with the next. Trust me, you'll be cursing yourself if you don't get them together.
Pros: Very strong middle and end, excellent battles
Cons: Weak start, Ends on cliffhanger