Customer Reviews

Essential Classic X-Men, Vol. 3 (Marvel Essentials)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the one you've been waiting for. It includes all of the classic Adams/Thomas stories as well as a couple of issues before, and some issues after. This collection is fleshed out with other books like "Amazing Adventures" starring the Beast when he first got blue and furry, and X-Men appearances in "The Incredible Hulk" and "Marvel Team Up" which were published after the X-Men book was essentially canceled (they just reprinted earlier issues with new covers from issues 66 through 93).

If you're not familiar with these issues, this volume is a great, inexpensive way to get your hands on these classics and see what all the fuss is about.

The artwork is still eye-popping and revolutionary, nearly four decades later. Neal Adams' beautiful pencils under Tom Palmer's superb inks are still the high-water-mark for comic art. And more, it's just plain FUN.

Marvel had already decided that this book was headed for cancellation when Adams came on board; the pressure was off and he could do what he liked on the book with Roy Thomas as a willing (eager!) collaborator. They took a listless book with a miserable rogues gallery and turned it into a run for the ages.

There is a story (probably apocryphal) that when Neal handed in the pencilled pages for issue 54, one of the Marvel Bullpen stalwarts was so astonished by them he dropped the pages on the floor. I don't know if that story is true, but these are definitely jaw dropping, if not page dropping.

If you're a Neal Adams fan, you'll definitely want to get your hands on this book.

The stories without Adams are okay, but nothing to brag about. This book also suffers from the ongoing problem with all the Marvel "Essential" books: no color at all, which is a shame. Adams colored his own stuff in his run, and it's a shame to lose that.

I really enjoyed Essential X-Men v. 2, but this volume was a disappointment. oddly enough, it starts getting overdone when Roy Thomas and Neal Adams hop on board, to make it an "important" title. the "anti-mutant" hysteria has always been a bit overdone in these X-comics and they sure let us know it here, too. Adams is a phenomenal artist, and has a great layout sense. the best thing he did was re-design the Angel's awfully colored costume.
these stories are not meant to be read one after the other. Angel uses the phrase "... one who used to be known as The AVENGING Angel" in about 4-5 issues in a row, which wouldn't be so noticeable at one a month.
so it's good, but you can see Marvel knew it was pulling the plug. the X-Men were eventually revived, but it's funny to think it was cancelled more than once in the day.
David

I recommend this volume and think it is important reading in terms of the history of everyone's favorite band of mutant heroes. ESSENTIAL X-MEN volume 3 reprints such pivotal events as the introduction of Havok, the return of the believed to be dead Professor X, the debut of Sunfire and the stories that introduced us to the further mutated, furry Beast. Without question the highlights are the stories drawn by Neal Adams which rank among the best X-Men comics from any era. Other than that the stories and art are average at best but still interesting in terms of the evolution of the X-Men. The cover gallery at the back is a nice bonus addition as well. I recommend reading John Byrne's underrated X-Men: The Hidden Years series in conjunction with this volume.

Way before the X-Men legacy became as convoluted as it is today with mutants everywhere, this book collects early sagas. Here is a chance to read the origins of the X-Men that are still around today: Cyclops, Jean Gray, Ice Man, Havoc, Polaris, the Beast (pre-furry)and Angel. The stories were scripted by Roy Thomas, Gary Friedrich & Arnold Drake and reflected early anti-mutant sentiments. The same great villains were here then: Magneto, Mento, Sauron and Sentinels.
The artwork was by a host of excellent illustrators, including a budding Barry Windsor-Smith, Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, Werner Roth and Don Heck. The foundations created then are still the backbone to the many series today. Read and enoy, mutany lovers!

I'm an "X-Men" fan through and through, but the weakness in the later issues of the original run of the series were fairly weak. The waning sales that led to its near-cancellation are pretty apparent. It's a decent collection, all in all, but not nearly as good as anything you would find in "Essential Classic X-Men Vol. 2" or "Essential X-Men Vol. 1," the before and after of this book.

The highlight of this collection is the justly-acclaimed run of comics drawn by Neal Adams, which even in black & white has a vitality and motion that is just amazing compared to those by other artists in this collection like Don Heck, Herb Trimpe and Tom Sutton. Adams was considered one of the great artists of the late 1960s, and the nine issues he drew in this collection offers proof that his reputation was well-earned.

Writer Roy Thomas also was working at a high level, introducing Havok and Sauron and writing a cycle of stories that featured the Sentinels and Magneto in the Savage Land.

The rest of the collection is a real hodge-podge of stories. There's a six-issue series where the Beast leaves the team and turns into the furry superhero that is more well-known today, and some individual issues of other titles where the X-Men or its members guest-starred. Most are enjoyable, though the art on the issues starring the Beast suffers from being in black and white.

This is a very nice collection for any fan of the X-Men or Neal Adams. I knocked one star off simply because the remaining stories aren't quite up to the same standard, but I still heartily recommend this volume. For a more in-depth review of the collection search ``goldenrulecomics'' on squidoo.com.

This volume of Classic X-Men in the Essential series wraps up the original run of the uncanny mutants, as well as filling in their guest appearances before they really took off with Giant-Size X-Men #1.
After the mutant title was relegated to repeats, the highlight of the X-Men appearances is the Beast's run in Amazing Adventures. This is the story of when he turned colors and became fuzzy. It's well-written and shows true evolution of the character. I'm glad they could fill out this series to lead into the Essential X-Men series.

If you're really into the X-Men and what to read/collect the stories, then this is for you. Otherwise, the storytelling is not that fantastic. Introductions of Havok and other mainstays of the X-Men universe are great to learn.

If you are looking for Lee/Kirby you will be disappointed. But if you take it for what it is you will enjoy it. It is well written and the artist have their own style worth seeing. This gives a silver age guy like me closure to the original X-Men.