Customer Reviews

Earth X

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As someone with a history as comic reader that runs into decades, I can only marvel (pardon the pun) at this spectacular piece of work. Continuities like Marvel and DC cover such vast and varied terrain of time, space, and dimension that conceiving of a unifying story seems almost impossible. Indeed previous efforts, like the sophomoric Secret Wars series in Marvel or the rather more effective yet still limited Crisis in DC seemed to demonstrate nothing so much as the impossibility of the task.

Alex Ross and company in this work prove that with tremendous talent and effort one can truly bring together the entirety of Marvel's complex continuity. Some readers complain about the occasionally serpentine plot of this work and I must agree I found it rather hard to follow when I read it as individual issues. However, when brought together and read as a single work, one realizes the depth of Earth X. Moreover, despite the story's Homeric quality it never looses sight of the basic theme that runs through the Marvel Universe, the basic humanity of all its characters.

One has to be impressed as some of the more diverse and often forgotten characters such as Rom the Space Knight (here carefully and cleverly presented for reasons of trade mark) play a role in the epic story. What I like most however is how in this work Ross, as in Marvels and Kingdom Come, captures the essences of the heroes both in image and story. Spiderman's humanity, Captain America's idealism, Scott Summer's desire to live up to a father figure's exacting standards all appear as these much loved characters face a world much changed yet still familiar.

It goes without saying that as with all of Ross's other work, the painted pages jump out at the reader brining the story to life. Here we have a graphic novel that brings an entire universe to a whole new adult level.

I was a bit put off when i learend that Alex Ross didn't paint the interior art of this tpb, but i was pleasently surprised by the quality of the art by John Paul Leon.

The interior art is nothing short than breathtaking. Gritty and with a newspaper-picture feel to it, it makes reading the story a pleasure and a unique experience. Oh, and the story itself is great, especially if you are an enemy of loose-ends, since this book is nothing less than an attempt to explain the whole Marvel universe, with origins of key figures and races aplenty.

All in all, I heartely recommend it.

Marvel Comics used to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. It was until the company decided to gouge their young readers for every nickle of their allowance that Marvel was the only universe in graphic art worth reading.

But in recent years with the ridiculous slush pile of X-men related books, stories that are senseless, and art that is pathetic, comic books took a massive nose-dive into pulp-ville.

Alex Ross writes for those of us who grew up with Marvel, trusted them to deliver characters worth caring about, art worth losing yourself in, and plots that made the imagination soar. He is also given the last word on what really ought to happen to the Marvel Universe. For me, this was the best thing to ever happen to the Marvel Universe. After reading this marvellous series there is no need to ever purchase another Marvel book again. Alex Ross set it all right and delivered the goods that our comic book creator-heroes would have wanted to see.

Thanks for the greatest, and merciful, ending to the Marvel Universe Alex. You've done well.

I have this new obsession. While I am not ready to stand above the clouds to yell it out yet, I have been reading more and more graphic novels lately which involve superheroes from my youth. I use these words lightly because I have been reading graphic novels for years, but nothing along the lines of what I witnessed when I read the first to "Ultimates" volume. Those changed my perception of what artists can do, what stories they can create, and how they can take a singular storyline and transform it into a whole new world of imagination. To stop myself from sounding like Mr. Wonka himself, I have to say that I have found myself with a desire that cannot be quenched. I am deep, profoundly deep, into the Marvel world - even subscribing to a 12-issue Hulk comic - and I cannot get enough. Upon hearing this, my cohort in crime (who shall remain nameless) introduced me to a new collection of stories entitled "Earth X". With nearly two-hundred pages of ageing superheroes within my sight, how couldn't I say "no"? I wanted to be transformed like I was with the "Ultimates" storyline ... but alas, after 75+ pages, I couldn't keep up. Not to sound negative, this is a phenomenal story that took writers and illustrators many sleepless nights to develop, but I just am not at the point yet in my juvenile comic career to really appreciate this storyline. I write this review for those that are perhaps new with these characters, to allow them to see where I had trouble grasping, yet where I found new concepts that made my appreciation for the genre grow fonder.

"Earth X" gives us a glimpse of a random Marvel Universe. A new watcher has been appointed to be the "eyes" for the existing one as the end of the world begins. Our favorites has aged over time, Captain America, still as strong as ever, is facing the world he never wanted at an age he never hoped. Our branded team known as "Fantastic Four" has been demolished, with one focal character taking the identity of his arch nemesis. Spiderman is overweight and old, while his daughter takes the streets using the Venom cloth as her own. My favorite, the Hulk, has been transformed into an ape, with Banner a youthful blind boy who controls him. These are just a few of the many, and do I mean many, characters that we encounter as the entire Marvel universe begins to crumble before our eyes. We, as the reader, are bombarded with history on nearly every character as the two "watchers" exchange information on what they know about what they are seeing. The Red Skull has returned, but in a different form, other mutants are popping up all over the place where humans are suddenly becoming extinct. It is a world of mutants - and it only gets worse from there.

I am not going to go too deeply into the plot here for those that haven't read, mainly because I would need about twenty pages and would probably find myself repeating the exact storyline. It is a jumpy journey to the end of "Earth X", not that the story isn't developed (it is ripe with information and tons of character history), but for the amateur reader, it is a bit overwhelming. I loved learning about these characters, but were they important to the grand scheme of the plot, which, when all was said and done, really only involved one singular person. I also thought that the way the story was told, an intermittence of both graphic novel (comic) format and the written word with subtle drawings (or doodles) throughout was difficult to swallow. After reading "Ultimates", I think I wanted big grandiose battles and powerful imagery, but that didn't happen here. This was more a psychoanalytical story mixed with symbolic references throughout that went well above my head. I loved following the Imperfects through this story, but with so many characters all vying for the same amount of page time, it was difficult to get any story out in a straight line. I sound bitter, but I am not. I loved reading this story, I loved the characters and seeing those that I started with just a few short issues ago in such a different light - but my issue transformed when I felt that the writers were writing against me than for me. I didn't want a light and fluffy story, but I did need consecutiveness, a moment of solidarity, and perhaps just something that would have made me just as excited as I was when I finished "Ultimates".

Overall, I sound like a whiny brat complaining that this story, "Earth X" wasn't quite the story that "Ultimates" was created to be, but I have my points. I didn't want the same story, but I did need something stronger. This was an amazing outing, and I look forward to reading the next installments, but I don't think I could pry myself through this book again. The writing was over zealous, the drawings were intense, but didn't inspire me - this was an incredibly dark story, why didn't the illustrations reflect that. I would buy this book for the mere fact that the imagination was flowing like wine in Rome for this story, but it wasn't enough for me to praise its glory. I needed a full sweep of amazing storytelling, great artwork, and inspiration coming from all angles - instead, I was asked to solve Calculus on an Algebra level. Try it, but for the young of heart (or young into the world of comics), this is graduate level, don't expect to be blown away.

Grade: *** out of *****

I wasn't sure what to make of the series because of the familiar yet altered characters on the cover of the trade, but read it and was very pleasantly surprised. The story takes place in the future of the Marvel Universe where old heroes have aged and some heroes have been replaced by their children or other people with similar powers.
It isn't just a story about the Avengers or X-Men, it's about how the Marvel Universe is all tied together. I thought that the writer did a great job taking events that happened as far back as the Kirby era and making them work in the story. The story is told in a way that is both entertaining and thought-provoking. I think this is a great read. The only thing that could have made this trade better is interior art by Alex Ross.

I recently picked up "Kingdon Come", wanting to finally read it; having heard its such an epic book. I figured I should also pick up Earth X since it was sorta Marvel's version of the doomed future book. Once I started reading, it was a little slow in the introduction. But, once the story gets going, its hard to put this book down. With twisted versions of many classic Characters, designed by legend Alex Ross, this book is a great read. The story may take a few look overs to understand, but towards the end they spell it out plain as day if you're still lost.

A few humorous spins have been put in; such as Thor now being female, and Daredevil being a stunt performer who can't die but wants to.

The other characters are deep and you really start to feel for them.

If you are into alternate reality stories with depth and creativity; and don't mind the plot being a bit confusing(have to look backwards every now and then) this book is for you. If it was a little less confusing, and wasn't a bit slow at times, this would be five star material.

I've been reading comics most of my life. I started out reading mostly Marvel, but switched to reading DC almost exclusively due to storylines like the Spider-Clone thing and Heroes Reborn. Thankfully, with books like this one and the naming of Joe Quesada as EIC, Marvel is making all the right moves and has become great once again.

But that's not the point here. The point is that this is an incredible book. Although dark, apocalyptic futures are pretty common in comics (everything from Days of Future Past from Marvel to Dark Knight Returns and Kingdom Come from DC, the latter of which was also an Alex Ross magnum opus), this one is perhaps the best thought-out and complex I've ever read. The story is essentially a "What if..?" style tale, where we see the fates of Marvel's popular characters in a world where, apparently, the entire human race has evolved into superpowered mutants. However, it is also much more than that, as Ross and Kreuger manage to tie almost everything of importance that's ever happened in the Marvel Universe into one coherent story. This is done so convincingly that you almost get the idea that this is exactly what Stan and Jack had in mind back when they created these characters. This book is a beautiful complete story on its own, but also ends with a prelude into the next series, Universe X. This will also be followed by another series, Paradise X; apparently, the three together form a trilogy. I can't wait for those series to finish up and become available in trade paperback form, as they ought to be every bit as good as this one is.

A couple of small problems: The story is really dense and hard to get into at first. The character X-51, or Machine Man is a really obscure hero prior to this piece of work; I'd never heard of him, but he seemed to be on a first name basis with all of the major heroes. And lastly, without meaning any offense to John Paul Leon (because his art really is great), but I would have loved to have seen this book painted by Alex Ross. He co-plotted and did the covers, but it would have been even better if he could have done all of the interior art as well.

Still, these minor quibbles don't keep this from being an incredible piece of work. If you're a fan of the Marvel Universe, or were in the sixties and seventies, or you're not a fan of the Marvel Universe but do like comics, do yourself a favor and check this out.

After co-creating the "Kingdom Come" miniseries for DC, Alex Ross was asked by "Wizard Magazine" to sketch out a similar dystopian future for the Marvel Universe. Those published ruminations and illustrations eventually led Marvel to commission Ross to develop the "Earth X" series, which turns out to be the first of a trilogy that continues in "Universe X" and concludes in "Paradise X." This trade paperback collects "Earth X" issues 0, 1-12 and X, with Ross doing the story, character designs, epilogue and covers, while Jim Kruger contributed to the story development and wrote the script, with John Paul Leon doing the pencils and Bill Reinhold the inks. For those of you that want a comic book with the lofty density of an epic poem by Homer, "Earth X" is going to give you exactly that, with abundance.

"Earth X" is an alternative Earth in which the Celestials had implanted a gestating egg. So there are similarities to the "real" Marvel universe, but what is key here are the twists that Ross gives to familiar characters. For example, Ross looks at the irony of Captain America representing a country when "all men are created equal" when Steve Rogers is the first of a new race of super-humans. However, Ross is interested in a most ironic flip of this situation, because in an attempt to transform humanity into Inhuumans and thereby end the persecution of his people, Black Bolt released the mutagenic Terrigen Mists into Earth's atmosphere. When Reed Richards constructed a global network of vibranium power centers to solve the energy crisis, they combine with the Terrigen Mists to mutate humanity into a world where everybody has superpowers. Feeling responsible for what has happened Richards penance finds him taking over the role of Dr. Doom, and his long hair and flowing white bird offer an interesting contrast to the bald-pated Captain America with the "A" branded on his forehead.

The initial conflict is between Captain America and his allies against the Skull, who foregoes the red fright mask for the more simple blond-haired Aryan look, but in the end the Celestial egg becomes of prime importance. The framing device for the story has Uatu the Watcher, blinded by Black Bolt so that the alien could not bear witness to what he was doing, bringing X-51 (a.k.a. Machine Man) to the moon to function as his eyes. The strength of "Earth X" is in the twists that Ross and company give to the Marvel icons, although not everything works. Daredevil having a death wish sort of makes sense, but Thor being a woman as he endures Odin's latest lesson in humility is a toss away as far as I am concerned. Having Peter Parker be retired and his daughter fighting the fight does not payoff the way I hoped, but I did like that Tony Stark, one of the few Marvel superheroes who never had superpowers, has gone all Howard Hughes as the last "normal" human on the planet, creating armor suits based on members of the Avengers who have been killed. But in every single issue you will have a new take on a familiar face to consider, from the story of Clea the Sorceress Supreme and Czar Colossus to the Black Panther as a man-panther hybrid and President Norman Osborn.

The weakness here is the attempt to take the Celestials, the Norse gods, the Inhumans, and everybody else and make everything fit into a coherent theory. This attempt to connect the dots is ambitious, but hardly necessary, especially given the provocative reconceptualizations and the whole idea of a world in which superpowered beings are the new norm. I was trying to get into the flow of things, following how everything sets up an inevitable fate for the planet, and found that the resolution was a bit too deus-ex-comic-book-superhero for my tastes (although I certainly appreciated the irony of who Reed Richards pulls out a hat). This is one of the most cerebral attempts to play with the Marvel mythos I have ever come across, and that should be a clear warning that "Earth X" is not for casual comic book reader. When all is said and done it is not quite on the same level as "The Watchmen" or "The Dark Night," but it is definitely food for thought and I round up appendixes to each chapter, which continue the dialogue (literally) and fill in the backstories on characters that were not worked into the main narrative. However, I have the strong suspicion that Ross and company will have difficulty going onward and upward from here.

First off: fantastic concept similar in some ways to DC's "Kingdom Come." Secondly, though, the entire series, though brilliantly scripted, has some flaws that make the series less than it could've been. As I read I kept feeling that something was missing. That something was characterization of these futuristic Marvel heroes.

We saw snatches of potential storylines with Iron Man, and more of Captain America and Reed Richards, but not nearly enough of the other heroes. Surely they had great stories to tell! Instead we had the incessant banter with the Watcher and "Machine Man." If half of that dialogue (the unnecesssary, redundant portions) had been cut, there would've been plenty of space for the stories of the other characters. At the end of each issue, there is more information about the characters--why not incorporate more of this into the story?

So, overall, a great concept that was only partially realized. Oh, one more comment:the artwork is very dark. I personally like to see more detail and less black shadow. This is partly a matter of taste; however, toward the end, some of the art looks hastily slapped together.

Overall, I'd recommend it, but with reservations.

This book, the first installment of a five-graphic novel series, is a brilliant re-imagining of the Marvel Comics universe, with clever, consistently satisfying twists on countless well-known characters. The premise is that, twenty-plus years into the future, the Earth has come to the brink of social collapse, after a scientific experiment apparently backfired and caused all the humans on the planet to mutate into super-beings. And if everybody is superpowered, what use is there for the old capes-and-spandex set? So, many heros have retired, a few soldier on, others live in grief- and guilt-laden personal hells. The flood of information, about who is doing what, and how they appear in their middle age decline, is tempered by humor and intelligence -- longtime Marvel fans will delight in Alex Ross and Jim Kreuger's imaginative reworkings of these classic characters. And, without giving too much away, I will mention that this is the definitive story dealing with Jack Kirby's "Eternals" -- why they had Neil Gaiman muck about with that story again after this came out is entirely beyond me. Kreuger and Ross settled that storyline for once and for all. Make Mine Marvel! (Joe Sixpack)