Remove ads, unlock a dark mode theme, and get other perks by upgrading your account. Experience the website the way it's meant to be.

Jonathan Hickman’s ‘House of X’ Begins a New X-Men Chapter

Discussion in 'Article Discussion' started by Melody Bot, Jul 31, 2019.

  1. Melody Bot

    Your friendly little forum bot. Staff Member

    This article has been imported from chorus.fm for discussion. All of the forum rules still apply.

    My mileage varies when it comes to X-Men comics. As a Marvel Unlimited subscriber, I’ve always intended to dive into them from the beginning, but I decided to do that with Spider-Man first, and it’s been a slow process, to say the least. With so much history, there’s always something to read. That makes it hard to know where to begin, too, unless you do go back to the very beginning.

    Jonathan Hickman’s House of X is a new chapter for the X-Men, so if you’ve been looking for a jumping-on point, you can start here. Just go into it knowing that this first issue is a lot to take in. Charles Xavier has a plan for mutantkind, and it’s forming epically.

    Another thing to know going into the comic is that Powers of X will run alongside it. Hickman himself explained it on Twitter, so check out his thread before diving in.


    HOUSE OF X is out tomorrow, and following that a new issue of HOUSE OF X or POWERS OF X comes out every week for the next three months.

    Here are a few important things that haven't been mentioned anywhere, but you might want to be aware of…

    I/X

    — Jonathan Hickman (@JHickman) July 23, 2019

    I haven’t read a ton of Hickman’s work, but I did start Manhattan Projects and The Black Monday Murders. What I noticed right away was how in-depth he goes with his stories. They might be hard to follow at times, but when you look back on them, you understand why.

    I feel the same way about House of X after reading the first issue. I have no idea what to expect from the remainder of the story, but I'm expecting it to be big. With issues coming out every week (that includes Powers of X) from now until early October,there’s a lot of story that can unfold in 11 more issues.

    House of X gives us a look at Krakoa and plants the mutants as superiors who can help humans if the humans let them. The problem is that humans have never been able to accept the mutants and all of their abilities, many of which can be used for good.

    Just because this focuses on the X-Men, you can still expect appearances from other characters. The Fantastic Four show up, and Reed makes his stance known on how the X-Men are choosing to handle things. Instead of things escalating, Cyclops concedes because he knows that his issue is not with the Fantastic Four. The tension is evident there, and I imagine that won't be the last we see of them.

    If you've ever wondered which mutants are the most powerful, the page on Omega level mutants gives a good glimpse at that. Jean Grey (Marvel Girl), David Haller (Legion), and Erik Lehnsherr (Magento) make a list, among others. While many won't be a surprise, there were a few on the list who I didn't realize were quite that powerful.

    While the writing is dense and you're getting a lot of information, the art does an excellent job of keeping up with the story. You have the informational pages, but once you return to the various settings, you know right away how vast this world is going to be. Pepe Larraz, Marte Gracia, and VC's Clayton Cowles deserve just as much credit for taking this giant issue and engrossing you in the world. Without the artist, colorist, and letterer, this story wouldn't have come across in quite the same way.

    Lifelong X-Men fans might not be instantly sold on this series, but as someone who has struggled with where I should dive in, I'm planning on giving this a shot. The first issue blends in the science fiction in a way that isn't immediately overbearing, while still getting to the real, core issues that these characters face.

    Find House of X #1 at your local comic book shop.

     
    Kingjohn_654 and JeanRalphio like this.
  2. JeanRalphio

    Regular Supporter

    Decided to jump into X-men this week with Morrisons New X-men. Plan on being caught up six months from now when I can finally read this on the app. Love all the reactions I've seen.
     
    xapplexpiex, Kingjohn_654 and Deanna like this.
  3. Deanna

    Trusted Supporter

    There’s definitely plenty of X-Men on Unlimited to keep you busy until then!
     
    xapplexpiex and Kingjohn_654 like this.
  4. xapplexpiex

    sup? Supporter

    Excellent write-up, @Deanna

    I’d recommend East of West by Hickman over those other two series you said you started by him. It’s by far my favorite comic series.

    House of X was amazing and I plan on getting Powers of X tomorrow.
     
    Vivatoto likes this.
  5. Deanna

    Trusted Supporter

    Thank you!

    I've always been meaning to get to East of West. So many things I want to read (or watch), so little time. I'll for sure let you know when I get around to it though.
     
    xapplexpiex likes this.
  6. Vivatoto

    Royal Court of Princess Donut Prestigious

    Not the world’s biggest X-men fan but I love Hickman and these are great so far
     
    Deanna likes this.
  7. failinginplace

    Regular

    seeing this on the front page brings me so much joy it's insane. House of X and Powers of X were fantastic first issues these past two weeks. I love all the deep nerd (compliment) stuff that Hickman is doing, with the inserted info graphics and other details that give a fuller background to the rest of the story.

    Some of the things that are sticking out to me from House of X is the birthing of the mutants on Krakoa (one who very very closely resembles cyclops) and the info graphic for the Flowers for Mutants, specifically the No-Place flower which is described as sitting outside of Krakoa's knowledge and is a tumor. In the previous Astonishing X-Men series, Fantomex (Weapon XIII) sacrificed his mind on the astral plane to let Xavier's mind leave the plane and take up residence in his body. I'm wondering if something has gone screwy with that (see: Xavier's super not at al disarming half-smiles). I also wonder if many of the original X-Men as trapped in some sort of stasis in the No-Place and the current X-Men are the ones birthed by Krakoa (and presumably with the help of Mr Sinister?) and carrying out whatever the current agenda is. Questions like why Cyclops acted the way he did to the FF, and why is Jean back in her Marvel Girl costume when she wanted to embrace a post-phoenix life to me support the idea that this isn't reeeeally them. Also it's creepy as hell and I'm super digging this.

    Hickman is a fantastic writer. I've heard nothing but good things from his non-marvel work, but I've personally only read his Marvel stuff. His run on Fantastic Four and Future Foundation were nothing short of spectacular. His insane Avengers/New Avengers->Secret Wars run was also jaw dropping in the execution of something so large in scope. Check those out if you haven't already (future Franklin Richards is one of my all time favorites after his run). I have faith in Hickman's plan and cannot wait to see how this goes. You did a great write up and I look forward to more from you on this!
     
    sawhney[rusted]2 likes this.
  8. Deanna

    Trusted Supporter

    I think there was a lot of set up in the first issues for each one (plus they were both essentially double issues), but I loved it. I think it'll lead to something exciting with the X-Men. I likely won't cover it issue-to-issue since it's one a week. I'll probably check in halfway and then at the end of the 12 issues with write ups.

    I have Marvel Unlimited so I will definitely check out his other Marvel stuff when I have a chance! Thanks so much for checking this out and taking the time to respond!
     
    JeanRalphio and failinginplace like this.