tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post6822209572490554131..comments2024-03-27T11:32:34.392-07:00Comments on NOT A HOAX! NOT A DREAM!: X-MEN: BISHOP'S CROSSINGMatthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-85288001721505336412018-06-25T11:36:56.706-07:002018-06-25T11:36:56.706-07:00Thanks for the info! That's really bizarre, bu...Thanks for the info! That's really bizarre, but not necessarily surprising. It wasn't until somewhere around the mid-00s that Marvel really got their act together with regards to comprehensive reprints (and DC still hasn't figured it out yet, which is maddening at this point).<br /><br />I agree; Portacio's work on UNCANNY, especially in the earliest issues from his run, is outstanding. As a kid I actually liked him more than Jim Lee. Nowadays I see flaws and merits in each, though I might give Lee the overall nod -- but I still love certain aspects of Portacio's work from this period more than Lee's.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-19156096066760808052018-06-24T10:47:02.423-07:002018-06-24T10:47:02.423-07:00"These contents may seem a mish-mash, but the..."These contents may seem a mish-mash, but there's logic behind their inclusion. The book gets its name from UNCANNY 281 - 288, which introduce time-displaced mutant Bishop and follow his path to joining the X-Men. I believe at one time in the nineties, there was a trade paperback called BISHOP'S CROSSING as well, which contained only these eight issues."<br /><br />Actually, for some inexplicable reason, "The Coming of Bishop" TPB from the late nineties ended up completely omitting "Uncanny X-Men" #281, which was the first issue of the relaunch under Whilce Portacio and sets up the Gold Team's mission to the Hellfire Club. The TPB starts with issue #282, which plops the reader right smack-dab in the middle of a huge battle with little-to-no context! Absolutely bizarre decision on Marvel's part, though I guess the reasoning was that Bishop's actual first appearance was #282 (not #281), but it was still a totally-weird thing to encounter back in the day. Plus issue #281 boasts some absolutely GORGEOUS Portacio-artwork that I lamented was never collected until this hardcover finally came out.The Bandsaw Vigilantenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-18916666431995582162017-11-08T09:31:26.284-08:002017-11-08T09:31:26.284-08:00Thanks for the comment! I just read your essay and...Thanks for the comment! I just read your essay and you said a lot of stuff I agree with, though I'll have to agree to disagree with you on Claremont/Byrne. That's my favorite X-Men run of all (actually it's Claremont/Cockrum/Byrne/Cockrumm/Smith that I consider to be the best), with this era following close behind.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-86421879566681613702017-11-04T14:50:07.299-07:002017-11-04T14:50:07.299-07:00I prefer this era over its Claremontian predecesso...I prefer this era over its Claremontian predecessor. Not for everyone ? It sure as hell was for me...<br />https://devilkais.deviantart.com/art/Best-X-Men-Run-519531141Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-33343624177506627752016-06-27T10:22:00.364-07:002016-06-27T10:22:00.364-07:00"Hey, thanks for the plug!"
No problem...."<b>Hey, thanks for the plug!</b>"<br /><br />No problem. Weird as it seems, your posts on these issues got me really excited to write about the book above. Even I can't quite understand why I love the Portacio UNCANNY so much, other than nostalgia, but I really do.<br /><br />"...<b>it now strikes me more like his fill-in work on EXCALIBUR, an attempt to clean up a mess moreso than craft a legitimate story.</b>"<br /><br />It's certainly possible Lobdell didn't even know he <b>was</b> the ongoing writer at this point. In fact, I may be misremembering but I think I recall some interview where he said he was asked on for no guaranteed period of time, but they never asked him to leave, so he just kept writing.<br /><br />And the Mikhail thing is pretty dumb. Much as I like the stories which bring him back, he could've been any character. Colossus's brother should have stayed a memory.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-34872375059184018822016-06-22T12:46:15.617-07:002016-06-22T12:46:15.617-07:00Hey, thanks for the plug!
I won't say much, ...Hey, thanks for the plug! <br /><br />I won't say much, for free of stepping on my own toes, but I did want to add to this: <br /><br /><i> followed by a tale of the Morlocks and Mikhail which is generally considered an early nadir for Lobdell.</i><br /><br />That Morlock story is definitely a dud, though I do feel for Lobdell. It's pretty clear that no one outside of Portacio had any desire to do anything with Mikhail, nor any idea what to do with him. That Morlock story is just one big write out for the character, and while it's not very good and technically part of Lobdell's run, it now strikes me more like his fill-in work on EXCALIBUR, an attempt to clean up a mess moreso than craft a legitimate story. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-18647114856311455412016-06-16T09:57:09.541-07:002016-06-16T09:57:09.541-07:00Y'know, I never really noticed when exactly Bi...Y'know, I never really noticed when exactly Bishop's power changed. I would bet it occurred when his creator, Portacio, left the series and other artists took over.<br /><br />I agree some of this stuff isn't great and is a little out there, and there are definitely some behind-the-scenes cracks showing. Even after Scott Lobdell becomes the regular writer I'm not sure he figure it out for a while. I'd say it's somewhere around issue 300 that he really becomes comfortable with the series and characters.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7105844689832543332.post-39561432825717626912016-06-15T16:56:19.986-07:002016-06-15T16:56:19.986-07:00Ah, the start of the post-Claremont X-Men. Probabl...Ah, the start of the post-Claremont X-Men. Probably the least confusing part of that era, since it was just beginning...<br /><br />I actually really liked Bishop's original power, which seemed to just be redirecting energy back to his opponents the same way he received it-- e.g. if Storm zaps him with lightning, he zaps back with lightning. It was less pseudo-sciencey than "concussive force blasts" (although I suppose the latter is more or less the same as Cyclops' energy beams). I also like how his super-stilted "I refuse to use contractions ever" way of speaking hadn't taken root yet, although it did begin to appear in its nascent stages.<br /><br />I don't know. Some of the stories here are weird to me, especially like the Sunfire one, although I thought Byrne did a good job scripting it. On the other hand, some of the issues here are fairly solid: I thought Lobdell's dialogue for the Witness was quite fun, and the X-Traitor thing certainly wasn't a bad idea. More than anything, though, you can kind of feel that the series was in flux during this era. Tomás el American personhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17246967967264252363noreply@blogger.com