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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Nice guest character & strengths don't offset weaknesses, November 30, 2000
The standout character of the novel is the new student from Nebraska, Walter Nowland, codenamed "Statis" because of his ability to manipulate ambient static electricity. Walter is the only really three-dimensional character in the book, and he largely saves it from being completely pedestrian. He is also largely figuring out what menace the group faces, and for thwarting it. Walter is a very endearing character with surprising depth and originality, but the regular characters actually suffer by comparison. Unfortunately, this means that while Generation X isn't a complete waste of paper for fans of the series, it does little to supplement one's understanding of the regular characters. The novel leaves so much potential material untapped. Any one of the kids could easily be the focus of an entire novel. The fact that Generation X barely probed depths beyond what can be found in a regular issue of the comic book series was a disappointment. The lack of great character insights and exploration is not even offset by a great action-packed plot or compelling villain. The main plot basically has most of the team filled with despair. I actually found this very unusual and interesting. But I'm sure that many readers won't find malaise a sufficiently exciting central theme. One strong redeeming feature in the novel is Maggin's subtle but well-executed venture into areas of faith. Even when faced with a terminal illness, Walter has an amazingly positive attitude, due in part to guidance from beyond the grave (a ghost named Hiram) as well as faith in an afterlife. Maggin is a practicing Jew and has brought an intelligent, affirmative faith-based perspective to all of his novels, this one included. These elements are not overwhelming in the book, and are handled so generically and thoughtfully that they will not bother non-religious readers. But Maggin's appreciation of spirituality, ethical values, and non-quantifiable truths mark him as a student of such talented and well-rounded writers as C. S. Lewis, G. K. Chesteron, Orson Scott Card, and J. R. R. Tolkien. Unless you're a diehard fan of Generation X, Scott Lobdell, or Elliot S. Maggin, Generation X is a novel you should probably avoid. Fans of the series will find this prose treatment format interesting, especially as it was co-written by the series creator. Fans of Maggin's novels will find it interesting to see how this work fits in between his earlier Superman novels and his later masterpiece Kingdom Come. Thus, the novel may satisfy certain academic curiosities. But as a source of simple reading enjoyment, this book will only be read enthusiastically by young or fairly inexperienced readers.
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by J. Steven York
by J. Steven York
by Eluki BesShahar
by Tom Morgan
by Peter Sanderson
