GAMBIT #14 - March 2000

 

The Sunset Dawn Book 3: Tomorrow Starts Today

Credits:  Fabian Nicieza (writer), Anthony Williams (penciler), Andy Lanning (inker), Tom Smith (colors), Comicraft’s Troy Peteri (letters)

Summary:  In 1891, the Thieves Guild finds Ozymandias’ chamber.  Candra enters, thanking the Guild for showing her the way to Apocalypse’s secret library.  She imprisons Ozymandias as the Guild researches the texts of the Old Kingdom.  Meanwhile, Sinister stabilizes Courier’s cellular structure, but is unable to allow him to return to his original male form.  Sinister uses a drilling device to take Gambit and Courier to Ozymandias’ chamber.  There, Sinister defeats Candra, leaving her vulnerable to her fellow Externals, who are angered by her power play.  Sinister removes the knowledge of the Old Kingdom from the Thieves Guild and surgically places it inside Gambit’s brain.  After Sinister disappears, Gambit reveals to Courier that they’re stranded in the past.

Continuity Notes:  

• Two subplot scenes set up future events in the series.  Rogue is visited by Fontanelle and told to help Gambit’s friends in Latveria, while Archangel receives an assignment from New Son to kill Gambit.
• According to Ozymandias, the Old Kingdom predates even Apocalypse’s birth.
• Sinister’s ability to shapeshift and seeming immortality comes from the cell sample Gambit allows him to take from Courier.  He assumes Courier can kill the sample, as he did in Gambit #9, but Courier is unable to repeat the same stunt for unknown reasons.
• Later on, the idea of Sinister implanting secrets of the Old Kingdom in Gambit’s brain is somehow folded into the mysterious vial (or “bullet” as Nicieza used to call it) from Uncanny X-Men #350.

Review:  You might remember the first hint of Gambit’s time traveling adventure came all the way back in issue #2, when Tante Mattie had a dream/flashback of Gambit saving her as a little girl.  That event never works into this storyline, but Nicieza does throw in a reference to it on the next to last page, assuring us that Gambit will get around to saving Tante Mattie before returning home.  If that leads you to believe that the time travel arc suffered from some last minute rewrites, or never really congealed the way it was supposed to, I can’t argue with you.  For the first two chapters, I think the art was the major hindrance of the storyline, as the late nineteenth century setting and steampunk elements just didn’t translate.  The story had promise, though.  This issue, characters kind of pop up when needed, important plot developments occur with little-to-no explanation, and the event that was originally used to foreshadow this storyline finally occurs (we’re told) off-panel.  

Plus, Gambit’s still stuck in the past, and if memory serves, the resolution of how exactly he returned is botched.  It boils down to “he used his powers in a new way,” which is of course a stretch, but the execution was also hindered by the six month gap that was inserted into all of the X-books in early 2000.  Gambit’s stuck in the past, six month gap, bam!  He’s back.  And he’s leader of the Thieves Guild, so I hope you guys aren’t absolutely sick of those pests yet.  In fairness, Nicieza does use Ozymandias in a smart way this issue, playing off his original characterization as Apocalypse’s slave/librarian.  And, even if her plan goes nowhere, this is one of the few times we’ve ever seen Candra show some ambition and actually do anything.  But as far as Gambit goes, this isn’t a bad place to just say goodbye.  You can always look online if you really want to find out who New Son was, anyway.

GAMBIT #13 - February 2000

The Sunset Dawn, Book 2: The Black Womb

Credits:  Fabian Nicieza (writer), Anthony Williams (penciler), Andy Lanning (inker), Tom Smith (colors), Comicraft’s Troy Peteri (letters)

Summary:  Gambit arrives in 1891 New York, along with Courier and his father, Jean Luc Lebeau.  Courier uses his metamorph abilities to change into a woman and visit obstetrician Nathan Milbury (a.k.a. Sinister).  Sinister immediately detects something odd in Courier’s blood and takes him captive.  Meanwhile, the Thieves Guild runs into Gambit.  Jean Luc is pressured into betraying Gambit and returning to his Guild.  After regaining consciousness, Gambit finds the Guild, who are now captives in Sinister’s lair.  Sinister makes Gambit an offer to save Courier’s life.  

Continuity Notes:  Gambit briefly meets Amanda Mueller, the woman at the center of the “Black Womb” scandal.  She worked with Sinister during his genetic experiments on fetuses, a plot point Nicieza apparently had plans for later.  He touched on “Black Womb” a bit in the initial X-Men Forever miniseries, I believe establishing Toad’s connection to the experiments years later, but I don’t think the storyline ever had a real conclusion.

I Love the '90s:  Courier tells Gambit that he isn’t “king of the world” as he poses on the ship’s bow.

Review:  Nicieza is still trying to do the impossible and craft a decent Thieves Guild story, and even if this arc doesn’t make the actual Guild that interesting, the overall story is actually fun.  One reason why this works is because the Thieves Guild is just one element of the story; there’s just as much time spent on Mr. Sinister as there is on the Guild.  And I’ve always liked nineteenth century Sinister, so no complaints there.  Gambit and Courier’s brotherly relationship, which mainly consists of them insulting each other, also plays a large role in the story, doing a lot to lighten the mood.  It’s obvious Nicieza has done a lot of research into this era of New York, making this feel more authentic than the average time travel story.  Unfortunately, the art doesn’t do a lot to evoke the feel of late nineteenth century New York.  There’s nothing particularly wrong with Anthony Williams’ work, and I understand that this was done as a quickie fill-in, it just doesn’t do enough to sell the environment.  1891 New York should feel gritty and dirty, but the art (and colors) feel very clean and smooth.

UNCANNY X-MEN Annual ‘99 - February 2000

Utopia Perdida
Credits:  Ben Raab (writer), Anthony Williams (penciler), Troy Hubbs & Scott Koblish (inkers), Colorgraphix (colors), Jon Babcock (letters)

Summary:  Jake and Sophia, a mutant/human couple in Genosha, face bigotry.  Magneto unexpectedly enters and defends their love, causing the citizens to change their mind.  Meanwhile, Wolverine, Archangel, Nightcrawler, Shadowcat, and Jubilee receive a distress signal from Genosha while on their way to Egypt.  They land and meet Madrox, who called for help after Magneto kidnapped Forge.  Wolverine frees Forge from captivity and buys him the time he needs to reverse the effects of the mind-control device that’s forcing Genosha into tranquility.  As the X-Men battle Magneto, he drops the charade and reveals himself as Exodus.  Exodus claims that he’s renounced all prejudice and merely wanted to bring peace to Genosha.  When the public’s free will returns, Jake and Sophia are targeted again and murdered.

Continuity Notes: 

• This group of X-Men is flying to Egypt to face Apocalypse, following the events of Wolverine #147.
• According to Madrox, Xavier sent him and Forge to work undercover in Genosha after Magneto was granted authority by the UN.
• The High Evolutionary makes a cameo at the end, observing the murders of Jake and Sophia.  He blames the aberration of mutants for the conflict, setting up his role in the next mini-event for the X-titles.

I Love the '90s:  Jubilee blesses us with a “What’s the dillie-o?” and one bizarre reference to Homey the Clown.

Review:  Overlooking the cover, which is one of the most egregious cover spoilers I’ve ever seen, this annual serves as a nice example of how to write a story that fits within the edges of continuity without coming across as filler.  In fact, it’s hard to think of a Magneto-era Genosha story that’s any better than this one.  Ben Raab could be an inconsistent writer during this period, but the ropey plotting and corny dialogue that often dragged Excalibur down can barely be found here.  Anthony Williams also produces much stronger work than was evident in his numerous fill-ins during the late ‘90s, leading me to believe he wasn’t given a last minute deadline to deal with this time.

Rather than presenting Genosha as the island of horrible mutant oppression, Raab explores the idea that the formerly oppressed mutants could be just as prejudiced as the humans.  There’s no peace in Genosha because neither group can trust the another, creating an interesting hook for the story.  How would Magneto react to a human/mutant romance?  Is he so far gone at this point that he’s going to prevent humans from touching precious mutants, or would he make a real stand for equality?  The truth is, the story doesn’t give us an answer, because Magneto doesn’t appear.  (Presumably because Apocalypse has already kidnapped him for the main crossover.)  Instead, a disguised Exodus takes his place, and decides to abuse his telepathic powers and simply force everyone to get along.  Madrox is allowed to briefly present the counter argument, essentially saying that this might be what it takes to have peace in Genosha, but of course he’s quickly rebuffed by Forge.  The heroes do the right thing and restore the public’s free will, which inevitably ends in the death of two innocent people.  A depressing ending, of course, but it works as a reminder of what a nightmare Genosha is supposed to be.  Compare this to say, Magneto Rex, and it’s easy to see how poorly the status quo was usually handled.

X-FORCE #97 - December 1999

Cracked Foundation

Credits:  John Francis Moore (writer), Anthony Williams (penciler), Scott Elmer (inker), Mike Thomas (colors), Chris Eliopoulos (letters)

Summary:  Selene takes Sunspot to the Damocles Foundation headquarters, where the Reignfire symbiote is being injected into a Gatherer in order to reawaken it.  Selene and Sunspot are abducted by Sword and detained.  Meanwhile, X-Force visits Sledge, following the revelation of Cannonball’s forgotten adventure.  Ulysses Dragonblood and Arcadia Deville are with him.  With the help of Veeg, they teleport X-Force to the Damocles Foundation, hoping to stop the reawaking of the Gatherer.  The heroes reunite with Sunspot, but Selene betrays everyone by using magic to reanimate the Gatherer.  Moonstar and Arcadia combine their reality warping powers and destroy the Gatherer and Reignfire.  Furious, Selene swears revenge.

Continuity Notes: 

• Following the events of Fantastic Four Annual ’99, Selene now leads the Hellfire Club.
• Ulysses reveals the origin of his brother, Odysseus Indigo.  Indigo is a Deviant who left the tribe and formed his own splinter group of Eternals, Deviants, and humans, all determined to “create and control the next species that will rule the planet.”  Ulysses was a member until he realized his brother’s interests were “entirely selfish.”  He left with Arcadia. 
•  Sledge tells Cannonball that he’s a Deviant who also abandoned his people.  He claims that he views himself as an American, and was offered citizenship after he aided the State Department in the 1950s.
• The Gatherer de-evolves Sword into primitive lizard creatures while under Selene’s control.
• Arcadia and Moonstar now sense a strange connection following their encounter in X-Force #83.  Arcadia says she’s now having dreams about the Demon Bear.
  
  

Review:  Plot, plot, plot, plot.  It’s not necessarily a bad plot, mind you, and this is one of Anthony Williams’ better fill-in issues, so it does look nice enough, but this is yet another issue that’s more about the Damocles Foundation than X-Force.  The character hooks are fairly weak (Cannonball now remembers meeting Sledge, and Arcadia and Moonstar now have a vague connection), so too often this comes across as generic heroes fighting a generic menace.  The one interesting play on past continuity, Selene’s offer to Sunspot to claim his place in the Hellfire Club (presumably a reference to his deceased father’s membership), is quickly ignored so that the multi-faceted uber-plot must be fed.  In a way, it’s impressive that Moore’s brought together almost every aspect of his several years on the title into one giant storyline, but unfortunately, it’s a massive story about a rogue Deviant and his numerous plot devices that doesn’t relate to the characters in an engaging way.

SCARE TACTICS #8 - July 1997

Weird Load (Convergence Part Four)

Credits: Len Kaminski (writer), Anthony Williams (penciler), Andy Lanning (inker), Pat Prentice (letterer), James Sinclair (colorist)

Summary: Fate and Sentinel explain to the Scare Tactics that the Conclave’s power is being usurped by a mystery entity. Etrigan, who’s already met the team, senses Topaz is spying on the group as an insect. He forces Topaz to reveal himself, just as “Sentinel” reveals himself as an Emerald agent. He unleashes an army of Emerald Shocktroopers that are soon defeated. However, Scare Tactics member Jimmy is left mortally wounded.

Irrelevant Continuity: Fate already knows the Scare Tactics team, and apparently had a role in their creation when he broke them out of something called the “R-Complex.”

I Love the ‘90s: Nina of the Scare Tactics likes Fate’s outfit. Not.

Total N00B: I have no idea if this group is actually called “Scare Tactics,” and at no point in the story is their connection to Fate and Etrigan made clear. In fact, the basic premise of the series is never explained.

Review: How could this be the final chapter of the crossover? Absolutely nothing is resolved! I sometimes wonder if DC even wanted new readers in the first place…honestly, if you’ve never read Scare Tactics before, why would you ever want to buy another issue after reading this? And I say this as a fan of Len Kaminski. The reader is left with no clear idea on what the premise of the title is, what most of the characters are named, or why any of these events are happening. I remember ads for Scare Tactics that promoted it as a group of monsters that pose as a rock band…a ridiculous premise, but one that could work well as a comic. (I certainly hope the werewolf with a nose ring is supposed to be a joke, though.) Imagine what any reader who was curious about the title must’ve thought if he picked up this issue in order to complete the crossover. Not only do you learn essentially nothing about the book, but the main story that’s supposed to be concluding in this chapter isn’t anywhere close to being resolved. At least the Challengers of the Unknown chapter told a story that was engaging on its own merits, even if the issue did little to spell out what the Challengers are supposed to be. This is essentially an issue long fight scene, starring a group of characters the creators just assume you already care about.

X-FORCE #96 - November 1999

Family Secrets

Credits: John Francis Moore (writer), Anthony Williams (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Marie Javins (colors), Chris Eliopoulos (letters)

Summary: Cannonball breaks his uncle Lucas Guthrie out of prison in order to learn the truth behind the images he saw in Genosha. Lucas reveals that he was duped into stealing a Celestial Golem from a warehouse. When Lucas realized he was in trouble, he asked Cannonball’s father for help, which lead to the eleven-year-old Cannonball sneaking into the back of his truck. They delivered the Golem to a Deviant facility, shortly before Sledge suddenly appeared and destroyed the Golem. The Deviants killed during the melee were buried by the Guthrie brothers, and Cannonball’s memory was erased by one of Sledge’s devices. With Domino’s help, Cannonball returns Lucas to jail. Meanwhile, Meltdown is being stalked by Triune Understanding followers, Selene reveals to Sunspot that a SHIELD agent is actually a plant for the Damocles Foundation, Moonstar sees an image of the Demon Bear, and the remains of Reignfire are delivered to Indigo.

I Love the '90s: Jesse Bedlam tells Meltdown that her powers are literally “da bomb.”

Creative Differences:  Kurt Busiek revealed on Usenet that John Francis Moore's portrayal of the Triune Understanding openly breaking the law did not match the instructions he gave to Marvel editors at the time.

Miscellaneous Note: The Statement of Ownership lists average sales for the year as 76,034, with the most recent issue selling 61,372 copies. It’s not hard to guess why Marvel began considering a relaunch around this time.

Review: Yes, more Deviants. Moore does handle Cannonball’s relationship with his criminal uncle fairly well, and there are a few nice moments that center on Cannonball’s embarrassment when Lucas takes him to a strip club, but…will this ever end? If Moore wanted to do a story with the Deviants in X-Force, fine, but I don’t think he needed two to three years to set the idea up. I also don’t understand why it’s necessary to drag Cannonball’s past into the story, going so far as to reveal that he had a secret adventure with the Deviants that was erased by Sledge, of all people. Isn’t Cannonball’s past much more effective if he simply had a normal life in Kentucky before discovering he had mutant powers? What are the odds that he would’ve run into the creations of the Celestials, the cosmic beings responsible for human mutation in the first place? And that his life would be saved by Sledge, a mystery character his future teammate Proudstar will one day encounter following an X-Force adventure? There’s no obvious point to this; it needlessly complicates Cannonball’s past and doesn’t offer any significant advancement of the Deviant storyline. To Moore’s credit, he’s still keeping numerous subplots alive, but it’s not a good sign when the main story is much less appealing than all of the subplots.

GAMBIT #9 - October 1999

To Thine Own Self Be True

Credits: Fabian Nicieza (writer), Mat Broome (layouts), Anthony Williams (pencils), Parsons/Lanning/P. Palmiotti (inkers), Vasquez/Going (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Summary: Sabretooth agrees to take Gambit and Courier to Sinister’s headquarters, hoping that Sinister can heal him of his wounds. After entering Sinister’s lab, the trio is attacked by more Marauder clones. When the fighting stops, Sinister enters and agrees to revive Sabretooth’s healing factor and give Gambit a psi-scanner that will expose any imposters amongst the X-Men. In exchange, Gambit has Courier give Sinister one of his fingers. Later, after Courier’s re-grown his finger, Gambit has Courier kill the detached finger’s cells before Sinister can analyze them. Meanwhile, Fontanelle visits the Tithe Collector’s dreams, which are set in 1800’s London.

Continuity Notes:

· Sabretooth is near-death following the removal of his bones’ adamantium lacing. Sinister hints that the culprit is a threat to both him and the X-Men (it’s Apocalypse, of course).

· Gambit is ready to exchange the vial Sinister gave him in Uncanny X-Men #350 for his help. Sinister refuses, saying that the vial was “as much for the protection of humanity…as it was for yours.”

· Gambit theorizes that Sinister can’t create Sabretooth clones because of the damage the X-Men inflicted on his genetic laboratory in X-Men #34.

Review: The two-part divergence into the Shattering/Twelve crossovers concludes, and to Nicieza’s credit, he does manage to tie all of this into a tidy bow. We learn that Gambit stole Xavier’s files last issue to discover the source of his odd behavior, and in the process, learned that Xavier suspects an imposter has infiltrated the team. Gambit isn’t sure if Xavier is right, or if this paranoia is an indication that Xavier is dealing with serious issues…like the resurgence of Onslaught, for instance. As a “Shattering” tie-in, this works quite well, and it serves as yet another example of Nicieza using assorted X-continuity to his advantage.

Nicieza also has Gambit debate abandoning his mission and just destroying Sinister’s entire genetic laboratory while he has a chance, which Gambit feels is the only way his old friend Scalphunter will ever be able to rest in peace. It’s a brief scene that Nicieza doesn’t dwell on; he just throws the idea out there and uses it as yet another example of the ethical dilemmas Gambit always finds himself facing. To quote this issue’s narrative captions: “Remy is the poster-child for intrapersonal conflict. He’s tired of it.”

Even if Nicieza is able to get something out of the crossover material, this is still clearly a rush job. There are a lot of artists in this issue (and even two colorists), and the only pages that look halfway decent are the ones that actually look like Anthony Williams’ work. And even those pages resemble something Gary Frank might’ve rushed out in the late ‘90s. The book regains its unique style next issue when Steve Skroce returns, and we’re back to densely plotted one-issue stories with odd guest stars.

X-FORCE #93 - August 1999

Temple of the Dying Sun

Credits: John Francis Moore (writer), Anthony Williams & Chris Renaud (pencilers), Hector Collazo & Scott Koblish (inker), Kevin Tinsley (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters)

Summary: Astarte and Electryon of the Eternals dupe X-Force into traveling to an island overrun with quantum disruptions. As Moonstar uses her powers to combat the hostile landscape, Astarte and Electryon secretly siphon off her quantum energy. When Moonstar is trapped underground, she meets the alien Ry’lor. He explains that his spacecraft’s quantum drive is responsible for the island’s problems, and shows Moonstar how to make contact with the entirety of the quantum force. Moonstar uses her powers to free her teammates and defeat Astarte and Electryon. Ry’lor repairs his craft and returns to space. Meanwhile, Domino returns home as Sunspot packs his bags.

Continuity Notes:

· Astarte and Electryon are working for Odysseus Indigo, who wants to study the quantum energy wielded by Moonstar.

· Ry’lor claims to be an alien who arrived on Earth thousands of years ago. After being worshipped by primitive man, his followers turned on him when he shared his technology with them. He massacred his disciples in response and has lived in seclusion ever since.

· A mysterious package addressed to Cannonball arrives from Genosha while the team’s away.

I Love the '90s: Jesse Bedlam (perhaps the first time he uses that surname) brags that he can easily shut down the alien technology and be back home in time for Win Ben Stein’s Money.

Review: Unless you really wanted to see a showcase of Comicraft’s variety of fonts (I’d guess around five appear this issue), there isn’t much here. Reader sentiment had solidly turned against the Eternals/Deviants storyline by this point, and I can’t blame them. John Francis Moore is making some effort to connect this story to the actual cast, but the alleged deep conversation between Moonstar and alien sun god Ry’lor is lifeless. Apparently, they’ve both learned a great lesson about the importance of moving on, but the issue is packed so densely the scenes have no impact. The visuals might’ve saved the issue, since the artists are given an entire issue of crazy Kirby-esque images to draw, but this was clearly done as a rush job. Anthony Williams & Chris Renaud are odd choices if the creators were really going for a Kirby vibe, anyway. Was it really impossible to find one of the many artists who specialize in Kirby pastiche to fill in? I would love to see what Mike Manley could’ve done with this material.

THE RISE OF APOCALYPSE #1-#4, October 1996 - January 1997

Hammer & Chisel

Credits: Terry Kavanagh (writer), Adam Pollina (penciler), Mark Morales & Henry Candelario (inkers), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Chris Lichtner & Malibu (colors)

If you were wondering why X-Force had a run of terrible-looking fill-ins in late 1996, this is why. Taking one of the regular artists off his book and placing him on a miniseries was an unusual move, especially when you consider just how ugly Marvel was willing to allow these minis to look. I guess an origin of Apocalypse mini was considered important enough to justify a bigger-name artist like Pollina, although it seems like this still got lost in the sea of X-product Marvel unleashed in 1996.

The story opens five thousand years ago in Akkaba, a settlement near Egypt. The villagers have left a blue-skinned baby to die in the elements, but he’s rescued by Baal of the Sandstormers. Seventeen years later, the baby undergoes manhood rituals as En Sabah Nur. Nearby, a scholar named Logos informs Pharaoh Rama-Tut that Baal is mentoring the “child of destiny.” He sends Ozymandias to find the child, although Ozymandias just wants to kill him. The story ends with Baal taking En Sabah Nur to an underground lair, where a portion of Rama-Tut’s future technology is stored.

Linking Apocalypse to the old Fantastic Four foe Rama-Tut might seem forced, but if we’re supposed to buy Apocalypse as a world-class villain, I think he probably needs some connection to the “core” Marvel Universe. I’m not sure how consistent this is with Rama-Tut’s previous appearances, though, since Kavanagh doesn’t seem too concerned with keeping the details straight. Ozymandias was supposed to be a king in ancient Egypt, not an aide to Rama-Tut, and I could’ve sworn Louise Simonson established that Apocalypse spent his youth as a slave. I could be wrong, but I think previous flashbacks didn’t even show him with blue skin as a youth. Just judging this issue by its own merits, it’s a dull start to the story. Kavanagh does introduce enough action scenes to give Pollina something to do, but the stiff dialogue is often a challenge to endure.

Blood of the Father

Credits: Terry Kavanagh & James Felder (writers), Adam Pollina (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Chris Lichtner and Jennifer Schellinger & Co. (colors)

Ozymandias’ quest to find En Sabah Nur leads to a massive battle with the Sandstormers, which only Ozymandias survives. The battle creates a cave-in underneath their base, which is where Baal and En Sabah Nur were examining Rama-Tut’s technology. Both are nearly killed in the cave-in, but Baal stays true to his “survivor of the fittest” philosophy and offers his stronger son food to survive. Before Baal dies, he reveals that he was one of the villagers who discovered Rama-Tut after he arrived in this timeline (in fact, he named him Rama-Tut). Baal has held on to Tut’s “Eye of the Ages,” which predicted En Sabah Nur’s birth. En Sabah Nur is discovered by Rama-Tut’s vizier Logos, who has grown suspicious of Tut. Logos offers En Sabah Nur a chance to kill Ozymandias if he stops the wedding of Ozymandias’ sister, Nephri, to Rama-Tut.

The dialogue is still too uptight, but the story is more engaging. There is a novelty to seeing Apocalypse as a teenager, mourning the loss of the only person who ever showed him kindness. He’s also smitten with Nephri when he sees her for the first time, introducing an unexpected romantic element. Revealing that one of the peasants who discovered Rama-Tut (I assume a background character from one of his early appearances) went on to become Apocalypse’s foster-father is slightly absurd, but I like it. I do think revealing that Baal endowed Apocalypse with the “survivor of the fittest” philosophy is too much, though. It seems like Apocalypse should’ve developed this without anyone else’s influence, since it’s supposed to be his core motivation.

The Face of the Gods

Credits: Terry Kavanagh & James Felder (writers), Adam Pollina (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Christian Lichtner and Graphic Colorworks (colors)

And now we get to the slave era, as Logos sends En Sabah Nur to work undercover as a slave. Since Apocalypse is essentially an adult at this point, and this period doesn’t seem to last for more than a day, I question how well it fits into continuity, but at least some effort was made for consistency. When Ozymandias whips En Sabah Nur too hard, he falls from a great height. He sees a vision of the goddess Isis, which may or not be a hallucination. En Sabah Nur suddenly explodes with light and grows more powerful. The commotion draws the attention of Nephri, who decides to join En Sabah Nur’s cause.

I was surprised to see the Fantastic Four appear, placing this story at the exact time as Fantastic Four #19. Kavanagh/Felder tie the original Rama Tut story in with the wedding subplot, as Tut declares that Sue Storm will be his bride instead of Nephri. Logos is also placed into custody, as Tut has grown suspicious of him. Tut presents his captives Logos and Nephri to En Sabah Nur, and removes the mask that covers Nur’s face. Nephri recoils in disgust at that distinctive Apocalypse lip design, and because the story needs more of a justification to push Apocalypse over the edge, Tut kills Logos. En Sabah Nur tries to avenge the murder, but is quickly shot down by Tut’s future technology.

Rama Tut actually does seem like a logical choice to play the villain, as his future weapons can present a legitimate threat to Apocalypse. The duo of Tut and Ozymandias (who doesn’t seem to care that his sister is being crucified by Tut) make for a nasty combination, and the story has managed so far to present a believable interpretation of Apocalypse as a young man. He’s not at all villainous at this stage, but he’s driven by revenge and isn’t shy about using his powers, so it isn’t hard to see the direction he’s headed in.

The First Culling

Credits: Terry Kavanagh & James Felder (writers), Adam Pollina & Anthony Williams (pencilers), Mark Morales & Al Milgrom (inkers), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Christian Lichtner and Graphic Colorworks (colors)

As the story opens, Ozymandias leaves Nephri for dead in a snake pit. She’s rescued by En Sabah Nur, who’s seemingly risen from the dead. Nephri is still frightened of Nur, and when he tries to take her away with him, Ozymandias returns to reclaim his sister. She stands by her brother’s side (which is just ridiculous, since he left her for dead a few pages ago). En Sabah Nur is overcome with rage, declaring his new name Apocalypse. He grows larger for the first time, using his strength to defeat the army. Ozymandias escapes, but Apocalypse soon finds him deep in Rama Tut’s lair. Ozymandias tries to steal Tut’s future technology for his own power grab, but is thwarted by Apocalypse. After Apocalypse violently throws him into Tut’s “Memory Lock,” Ozymandias is overwhelmed with knowledge of the future. Apocalypse declares that Ozymandias will now serve him.

And what of Rama Tut and the Fantastic Four? Their story has played out off-panel. We only see Tut fleeing to the future as the Fantastic Four escape imprisonment. A giant explosion within the Sphinx, which the Fantastic Four assumed to be a booby trap, is actually Ozymandias crashing into the Memory Lock. Now that’s a retcon. I’m willing to defend the addition of Rama Tut to Apocalypse’s origin story, but I wish more was done with the idea. There’s no real reason for the story to be set at the very end of Rama Tut’s reign. While this enables a Fantastic Four cameo, it doesn’t add anything to the story, and in fact shortens the time Tut can participate in the events. I do like the origin of Ozymandias, though, since it explains how exactly he knows the future, and gets around the question of how Apocalypse could’ve endowed another character with powers this early on. The story concludes with Apocalypse visiting Nephri at the end of her life, fifty years later. She still rejects him, while he’s proud not to be a frail human. It’s a successful ending, providing closure and confirming the heartlessness of Apocalypse.

Anthony Williams, a routine X-office fill-in artist, finishes off a large portion of the issue. His style isn’t too dissimilar from Adam Pollina’s, yet this isn’t a perfect match. Pollina’s art has been more exaggerated than usual for much of the miniseries, as Rama Tut and Ozymandias were usually portrayed as barely human caricatures. Williams grounds the art closer to reality, and while this would’ve been helpful in telling Ozymandias and Rama Tut apart in the previous issues, it doesn’t match the established look. I’m not sure what role James Felder played in shaping the story, but thankfully the dialogue became less stilted and overblown after his arrival. Overall, it’s hard not to view this as yet another miniseries, but it does at least tell the story it set out to tell and has some fun along the way.