NEW MUTANTS versus HELLFIRE CLUB

King of the Hill! (Marvel)
Where: New Mutants #75 When: May 1989
Why: Louise Simonson How: John Byrne

The Story So Far...
When an attack on the X-Men's home turf led to the inevitable defeat of The Marauders -- an explosive device planted in the X-Mansion allowed Mister Sinister to strike the ultimate revenge against his enemies!

Unaware of the events that transpired; the New Mutants return from battling an alien called Gosamyr to make the shocking discovery that their school is in ruins!

A brief skirmish with an injured Sabretooth gives them a taste of what transpired, but there's no time to dwell on the past. A new threat arises when former Headmaster Magneto returns with The Hellfire Club at his side!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Sebastian Shaw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Magneto 5 (Professor)
Speed: Cannonball 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Sebastian Shaw 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Warlock 6 (Malleable)
Fighting: Mirage 4 (Trained)
Energy: Selene 6 (Mass Destruction)
Total: Magneto 28 (Metahuman)

The New Mutants are: Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane, Mirage, Warlock, and Illyana Rasputin.

This is a young team, facing the challenge of a once trusted mentor, but that doesn't mean we should count them out. They'll all go on to great things, and already show signs of their future promise -- even at this early stage. On their way here they dealt with a short-lived challenge from a weakened Sabretooth.

The Hellfire Club are: "White King" Magneto, "Black King" Sebastian Shaw, "White Queen" Emma Frost, and "Black Queen" Selene.

The Inner Circle clearly have experience on their side - none more so than Magneto. His admission as White King comes with his intimate knowledge of the New Mutants, having served very recently as their Headmaster.

We've seen Magneto withstand the coordinated powers of the adult X-Men in X-Men #113. He's clearly a major threat all on his own, and even the telepathic assault that took him out in X-Men #25 is covered by his Hellfire Club support.

Emma Frost hasn't developed her diamond form yet, coming to the fight strictly as a powerful telepath. Sebastian Shaw offers super-human muscle, able to absorb any impact against him and convert it into strength. Selene rounds out the group with mastery over inanimate objects and life-draining.This one really comes down to team dynamics and execution of strategy. For the New Mutants to have a real chance they'd need to clearly identify the strengths and weakness of themselves and their opponents.

This is long before Emma Frost will develop an invulnerable diamond form, so taking her telepathic powers out of the battle early with a frontal assault could be a good use of Cannonball or Wolfsbane. Removing Sebastian Shaw without powering him up could be a job for Warlock, who could eject him similarly to Nimrod in Uncanny X-Men #209. Wolfsbane could claw Selene, while Mirage's empathic image casting is free to attack Magneto at his core.

The New Mutants could also try to turn Magneto against his new teammates. Will the perfect scenario play out for them? Let's see how it went...

The Tape: New Mutants Ranking: Cannonball (#115)

What Went Down...
Hovering above the ruins of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters: Magneto and The Hellfire Club survey the damage. Angered by their former headmaster's return, Sunspot grabs a massive hunk of damaged machinery and hurls it!

The steel equipment is effortlessly deflected by The Master of Magnetism, who also holds his clubmen afloat. He allows Black King, Sebastian Shaw, to descend and match Sunspot on the ground. He attacks with a devastating left hook!

Cannonball leaps to his teammate's defense for the second time this day, but finds his path to Shaw suddenly cut off by a rising wall of wreckage. A defensive measure courtesy of Selene, she who commands all that is inanimate!

Cannonball smashes into the wall and falls to his hands and knees!

He's too stunned to resist The Black Queen, who lingers over the fallen firebrand with sinister intent. She traces her hand over the back of Cannonball's neck, preparing to drain his life-force -- when she suddenly becomes a decrepit hag!

The transformation is a mere illusion plucked from Selene's own psyche by the empathic powers of Mirage! The young mutant makes her inner most fear a tangible reality, but she's soon undone by a psychic assault from Emma Frost!

The White Queen mentally forces Mirage to release Selene from her influence, inciting Warlock to bare massive fangs in defense of his teammate!

The techno-organic creature notes his imperviousness to Emma Frosts' telepathic bolts, but fails to consider his absolute vulnerability to the Master of Magnetism! His cartoonishly distorting body is swept toward the rest of the new Mutants, who find themselves collectively surrounded by twisting metal!

Tired of their rebellious opposition, Magneto holds his former students encased in a ball of metal to end the battle.

The Hammer...
With the New Mutants at his mercy: Magneto quizzes them about the young mystery girl in their company and their missing member. He's surprised to learn his once promising student, Illyana Rasputin, has chosen to become a child to avoid succumbing to her own darker impulses.

Despite their defeat, the New Mutants defiantly refuse to return to their former headmaster's tutelage. The team has simply seen the former villain make too many compromises to ever accept him as their teacher again.

This effectively concludes Magneto's four years as New Mutants Headmaster, and a member of the X-Men. He'll return to villainy shortly thereafter, rebuilding Asteroid M, and joining the cabal of conspiring villains in Acts of Vengeance. We saw how that led him to battle Spider-Man in Amazing Spider-Man #327.

The split from the New Mutants has immediate consequences within the pages of New Mutants #75, where Sebastian Shaw seizes the opportunity to challenge Magneto's position as White King. In the end it always comes down to in-fighting and power struggles with these people.

Shaw claims Magneto was elected into the Inner Circle as a leader of both the X-Men and New Mutants -- but now controls nothing. Magneto takes that about as well as you'd expect, and the two throw down for the main event battle hinted at on the cover of the issue [see; top]. You can be certain we'll return to take a closer look at that fight some time in the future!

Today was supposed to mark the long-awaited wide release of New Mutants in theatres, but FOX's final X-related film was once again delayed, by the closure of cinemas, and unprecedented measures to curb global spread of COVID-19.

These are strange days, but I figure Secret Wars on Infinite Earths can do its small part by continuing to feature some of the characters who would've been in theatres around this time. It's been a good time to do some extra reading while we're all self-isolating, and hopefully it provides a fun distraction.

As I've mentioned before, even as a young reader, I was never one to buy-in to kid heroes. That meant the New Mutants weren't really on my radar until a year later, when they got a major overhaul from the style guide of Rob Liefeld.

The revamp did a good job of shaking off the impression these were the geeks of the X-Men universe. I appreciate the effort to present them as authentically youthful and in training, but I've never been a big fan of this iteration of their matching black & gold uniforms. The update was well timed.

I appreciate that today's featured fight showed the New Mutants coming into their powers, but ultimately outclassed by their opponents. It moved necessary storylines forward, and avoided the dubious trope of kid-heroes overcoming unfathomable odds. This time the bad guys won and that feels credible.

Star pupil Cannonball did manage to violently kayo Sabretooth on the way to this fight, after Sunspot withstood a full rake of his claws. That was another well weighted way to give the team a win before they took a loss. It also set up a future rematch that we can officially add to the To Do list.

You can discover relevant past, present, and future fights by following links throughout this article, or by diving into the Secret Archive. That's where you'll find every battle indexed by publisher, series, and issue number! Or subscribe to Twitter and Facebook for daily links to battles inspired by the day's topics!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 600 battles and counting! If you like superhero smackdown and want to see the service continue you can contribute via Patreon. Patrons gain insider access to the schedule, and can get involved with special feature articles and polls. Not to mention fostering my eternal gratitude and continued survival!

If today's battle has whetted your appetite, you can get the full story collected in Epic Collection New Mutants: Curse of the Valkyrie. Shop using the Amazon purchase link provided and you'll find yourself a good deal at a safe distance -- while Amazon supports the site at no extra cost! Nice!

Winners: Magneto & Hellfire Club
#81 (+60) Magneto
#182 (+288) Emma Frost
#390 (+508) Sebastian Shaw
#391 (+506) Selene
#128 (-13) Cannonball
#341 (-187) Sunspot
#353 (-156) Magik (Illyana Rasputin)
#357 (-128) Warlock (Phalanx)
#589 (-44) Mirage
#907 (new) Wolfsbane

COLOSSUS versus ORD
(Marvel)
Where: Astonishing X-Men #5 When: November 2004
Why: Joss Whedon How: John Cassaday

The Story so far...
The mutants are once again confronted with question of their existance when an biological process is announced that claims to be able to reverse human mutations. While the X-Men grapple with the implications of weaponization of the so-called "cure", and the immoral means by which it's devised, another menace lurks in the background.

Coming from across the stars, an allien warrior called Ord has a mission to prevented the foretold destruction of his planet, the Breakworld, at the hands of a human mutant. Ord's machinations are soon revealed to be far deeper, tying him to the sacrificial death of an X-Man, Colossus, and the creation of the cure, an ultimate tool of genocide.

While the X-Men attempt to infiltrate the company making the cure, Benetech; Kitty Pryde goes deeper into the company compound where she makes a shocking discovery -- her former lover Peter Rasputin, aka; Colossus, is alive...

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Colossus 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Ord 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Draw 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Ord 6 (Generator)
Agility: Draw 2 (Average)
Fighting Ability: Ord 4 (Trained Fighter)
Energy Powers: Draw 1 (None)


- A humble farmer growing up in his native Russia, Piotr Rasputin harbored a powerful secret deep within his adolescent body. When an out of control tractor threatened the life of his little sister Illyana, Piotr transforms from loving brother, to steely mutant capable of crushing the machine in it's wake.

Recruited by Professor Charles Xavier, Rasputin travels to America, where he becomes part of a new collective of International recruits into the secretive paramilitants, the X-Men. His mutant ability to transform himself into a powerful being of organic steel grants him super human strength and durability.

When Beast discovered a cure for the deadly Legacy Virus, Colossus voluntarily sacrificed himself to enable the airborne dispersal of the antigen. Motivated by the prior death of his sister, Colossus' ashes were taken to his native Russia to be strewn per his request before his heroic sacrifice. The cremated body would soon be revealed to be a duplicate placed by the villain, Ord.

- Ord is a warrior from an alien race hailing from a planet called the Breakworld, where advanced technologies have conquered death and fate. He travels to Earth when the people of the Breakworld discover their future will come to an end by the hand of a human mutant, possibly a member of the X-Men.

Ord confronts the X-Men head-on, utilizing superior strength, speed, durability, senses, and an advanced healing ability. Combined with these natural talents are weapons and armor made of impossibly strong alien materials, and extensive training in combat, including the use of a razor-edged disc weapon.

Ord is also able to subversively utilize human science to influence the development of a mutant cure, based on the genetics of select mutants themselves. The volunteer and weaponization prospects of the cure are presumably part of Ord's agenda to engineer the self-destruction of the mutant species.

The Math: Ord Ranking: Colossus (#217)

What Went Down...
Confronting human Benetech scientist, Dr. Kavita Rao, the X-Men suddenly find themselves under siege from the alien powerhouse, and architect of their turmoil; Ord. The warrior challenges Wolverine, Beast, and Emma Frost, drawing a circular blade he warns is capable of cutting through even Frost's diamond form.

An unlikely ally presents behind the threatening Breakworlder, as Kitty Pryde struggles to phase Colossus, who has just been freed from years of imprisonment, from the lower depths of the Benetech facility. Unawares; Ord doesn't see his retribution coming for his involvement in Colossus' resurrection...

Colossus is reenergized as he vengefully drives his steel fist into the spine of the alien, Ord. The Breakworld warrior retaliates, swinging around with a backhanded swat that Colossus blocks with a spray of sparks.

Metal meets metal once more, again spraying sparks as the gauntleted fist of the alien attacked clashes with Colossus' metallic face. The blow comes with taunting insults, which serves only to provoke, as Colossus punctuates his attacks.

He begins by snatching Ord in a wrist lock, which gives him leverage to swing the alien invader around like a ragdoll, first into the floor, and then the facility wall. Then, with one final exclamation, Colossus drives his fists into Ord's defeated body...

KNOCKOUT!!!
The Hammer...
Alive and made of rage, your winner, Colossus!

If you thought you heard an echo just now, it might be the sound of knock-out blows being struck around the entire comics blogosphere!
Each Friday while we continue to bring you the best and worst of comics canonical clashes, Bahlactus unites the blogosphere in cosmic war as per the power meme, Friday Night Fights! Get a taste of the Infinite Wars, and then head over to the big-B for more prize-fights!

You might be intrigued and delighted by our decision to dive into the Eisner-Award undermining series, Astonishing X-Men. I've got to be honest, the first of our weekly Cover to Cover features [Endangered Species Round 1] was facetious about the status of Marvel's merry mutants, but my contempt for Astonishing might be a little more on the genuine side. Pause for gasps.

Here's the perfect thing about the Astonishing X-Men audience: the newbies are getting in on a reasonably safe jump-on point. It's not what I would recommend, but even I would have to admit that as far as transitioning from the movie theatre to the comic shop, Astonishing makes for decent training wheels.

Then you've got the two pre-existing fanbases flocking to the title. For the Whedon fans, it's more of Whedon's vaguely characteristic writing, complete with cutesy exchanges and self-aware exchanges of the meaningless. Likewise, for the X-Fans, it's a rote exercise in repetition as Whedon regurgitates a highlight reel of character exchanges, plot point, and conflicts from X-Men stories passed.
Needless to say, I find neither fandom terribly admirable.

For me, the first six issues were an unfortunate blip on a very big Christmas of comics. I was otherwise quite happy swimming in issues of JSA, Hawkman, Detective Comics, and Daredevil. It was a very good time for comics, a great time to be assimilating into the DC universe, and particularly, a good time for Batman [a topic for another time]. Astonishing X-Men was an interest in testing the water that was unfortunately extended by over zealous giftors to the monetary waste of four extra issues. Bummer.

I'm reluctant to refer to myself as an X-Fan, because I honestly believe there's very likely a group of folks googling "X-Fan" for the sole purpose of accosting anyone claiming the title. There's no chance I'm going to lock horns with an avid X-Fan, for reasons both of a knowledge and hygene based nature. [Cheap!]

That said, I have a passing knowledge of the garbled X-history, and a passing interest in those characters. Like a good many; the intertwining devolution of crossover stories starring dull peripheral characters led to my distance, at least until the blessing of Grant Morrison's stellar run [New X-Men #124, #150].

Morrison's take on the X-Men features, what I believe, was the logical succession of the X-Men legacy. Stories featured the moving foward of human-mutant relations to feature more diversity in opinionated factions, the beginning of acceptance of mutants, and a variety of other stories that managed to move the franchise forward in ways not really seen since the 1970's.
Merging design conecpts from the feature films, and the comics, the series arguably presented a happy medium between both, and I know of examples where that enabled very happy introductions to the comics version of the characters.

A sticking point for me is death and the X-Men.
Despite having the ring of a European arc of X-stentialism, I'm one of those guys that grows increasingly despondent and dissatisfied by the use of death as a device in modern comics.

I'm not jaded enough to throw my hands in the air in an act of dismissal, but it's undoubtedly one of the lasting undermining qualities of children's fiction.

Obviously companies place great weight in the use of franchise characters, and are unlikely to properly service those that aren't existant within the central canon of the shared universe, but then, that's my point. As much as I have always been a big fan of Colossus as a character, the severity of death outweighs my regret for the decision to kill him.

Thus, if I wasn't already pre-destined to bare a grudge against the content of Whedon's work, the resurrection of Colossus was sure to seal the deal. Honestly, part of me still holds out a hope that the Skrull invasion will reveal this Colossus to be part of the infestation [of the mutant community]. That seems unlikely.

Top 25 Mutants
#1 Wolverine
#2 Sub-Mariner
#3 Beast
#4 Storm
#5 Kitty Pryde
#6 Rogue
#7 Jean Grey
#8 Angel
#9 Ice Man
#10 Cable
#11 Cyclops
#12 Gambit
#13 Tabitha Stevens
#14 Gorgon
#15 Cannonball
#16 Forge
#17 Sunspot
#18 Banshee
#19 Franklin Richards
#20 Jubilee
#21 Unus
#22 Professor X
#23 Scarlet Witch
#24 Colossus
#25 Rachel SummersAt the risk of going through this entire diatribe without justifying my distain for this incarnation of Astonishing; it's worth diving into our two years worth of cumulative stats to measure the top twenty-five mutants. We did this in October [Power Man & Iron Fist #90], and if you're inclined to compare lists, you'll note that not much has changed.

Messiah Complex has been a multi-title crossover that's stirred the interests of many lost X-fans not already convinced by creative shifts in the core X-Men titles [such as Brubaker].

I can't say I've been likewise inclined, but consider this entry a little bit of Infinite Wars housekeeping. We've had the opportunity to make a very diverse start to the year, and a current lull in major events gives us a chance to play catch-up on properties not acknowledged through late 2007.

This issue has actually been on the request list since the beginning, too. When I first started seriously floating the concept of a site like this [2004], Ord battles were among the most recommended contemporary examples. So, I guess this is not only an attempt to represent zeitgeist, but also fullfil a shred of the design of the fanbase.

If I really had to crack down and observe the content, I couldn't say I hate these issues. I like them enough to slot them neatly behind the rest of the X-Men comics I've owned over the years, and there's a chance that; as the X-titles dig themselves into a new hole with boring characters, dodgy crossovers, and various other typical mistakes; I might come to like these issues. Although, like Skrull-Colossus, that seems unlikely.

I admit to being slightly reactionary to the insanely dedicated and fawning audience that follows Whedon from cutesy niche project, to cutesy niche project. I've never been terribly interested in the reference heavy fast talking of his characters, nor the genre influenced antics of his TV projects like Buffy and Firefly. Much of that disinterest carries through to the comics, but that base familiarity with the X-Men inspires venom at the sight of issues I could only describe at the time as irrelevant and/or twenty-years redundant.

Reprints of back issues should probably be stealing from this top ten title, but it isn't. Given the critical acclaim, (including several years of increasingly dubious success at the Eisner Awards), I know this won't be a popular opinion.
I suppose that's just another issue for which the title becomes a posterboy; referring, of course, to the sheep herding that has become the modern comics fanbase, typified by X-Fans. I've got to be honest, too. Cassaday just doesn't impress me like some. Not on this, at least.

Then again, maybe I'm wrong.
For certain, I am tired, and I'm going to have to cut the discussion here. If you're one of those vocal X-Fans, head down to the comments and lodge your own opinions! It won't be anything I haven't heard before, but go for it, guys!

The Fight: 4 The Issue: 3.5

Want to spite me by voting with your dollar? Like what you've seen and want to investigate further? You can play catch-up by heading over to Amazon and picking up the trade! I might not like it, but lord knows I'm not above selling it to you! By using the provided Amazon links you help sponsor future entries in the Infinite Wars. The story's called Gifted, so, y'know, maybe you could even buy it as a gift! Although, to avoid my situation, maybe check with the recipient before they use it as fodder to bitch on the internet about.

THE X-MEN versus XORN
Planet X: Conclusion (Marvel comics)
Where: New X-Men #150 When: February 2004
Why: Grant Morrison How: Phil Jimenez

The story so far...
As a safe haven for gifted youngsters and adults alike, the X-Men welcome those in need with open arms, but sometimes this generosity comes with hazardous risk.

Having infiltrated the X-Men under the assumed identity of Xorn, Magneto reveals himself not as a beloved teacher, but rather as a drug-addicted man desperate to make his nightmarish vision a reality.

Under the influence of the power enhancing drug Kick, Magneto takes his old friend Charles Xavier prisoner along with several other misguided young X-Students, and proceeds to tear New York City asunder.
Has drug abuse pushed Magneto over the edge, or does the helmet that birthed his deception hide more secrets regarding the true identity of "Xorn"?

Previous Form:
Wolverine (#4): Wolverine joined the X-Men in the defeats of Nimrod and Magneto.
Professor X (#61): Professor X was instrumental in the defeat of Magneto.
Cyclops (#112): As team leader suffered defeat to Namor.
The X-Men: As a team the X-Men defeated a Hydra controlled Wolverine, Nimrod and Magneto.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Beast 5 (Super Strength)
Intelligence: Beast 6 (Genius)
Speed: Beast 4 (Olympic Sprinter)
Stamina: Wolverine 6 (Generator)
Agility: Toad 5 (Cat-like)
Fighting Ability: Wolverine 6 (Warrior)
Energy Powers: Xorn 7 (Solar Power)

A fairly interesting crew of X-Men here, and an ill-defined threat in the form of Xorn. More on the controversy of the Xorn character in The Hammer section of the article, so for the time being, bare with the analysis as it is described here.

Xorn certainly possesses abilities here comparable of Magneto's own, which places him in a noteworthy class as a threat to the X-Men.
Playing the role of passificist, assessing the destructive or offensive capabilities of Xorn would be difficult prior to this occasion. For the most part his powers were used to manipulate characters in subversive ways, even using nanosentinel technology already in the X-Men's bloodstream to cast the illusion of healing on Charles Xavier's spine.

The necessity of the Kick drug and the characterization seen as Magneto suggest Xorn is perhaps not as limitless in his energy as the true Magneto has been seen to be. Other contemporary appearances, such as X-Men #25, have highlighted Magneto's abilities to draw upon the magnetic forces of the planet, possessing a rich well of mutant power.

Against forces like Professor X, Cyclops, Wolverine, Emma Frost, Phoenix and Fantomex, even Magneto has to stand up and notice.
With Xorn showing an unhinged personality, he starts to look like a bit of a chump. Particularly when considering this is Jean Grey heading straight back to cosmic town with the Phoenix force flowing through her veins.

There's certainly debate for this one to go several ways, and with the Kick drug allowing Xorn monumental capabilities (such as twisting bridges), the right shot could be the difference. That said, the level headed forces of the X-Men seem far too strong for such a renegade presence.

Unfortunatley Toad is not an equaliser.

Average: The X-Men 22 (+3)
Overall: The X-Men 176 (+119)
The Pick: The X-Men

What went down...
So, MagnaXorn is in his evil skyscraper lair in New York, which he has renamed New Genosha because he's a little bit crazy on drugs.
Humanity is not without hope, however, as a long X-Man has arrived. An animalistic X-Man. An X-Man of keen instinct. Sometimes described as a loner.
An X-Man named... Beak.

Wielding a metal bat... Not a great idea.
Much like Wolverine's metallic claw attack, the metal baseball bat is quickly turned to MagnaXorn's advantage as he tears it from Beak's dweeby little talon-claws.

Looming at the window, however, is salvation.
Atop the hovering EVA, Fantomex prepares to spring into action, breaking through the skyscraping icey glass of MagnaXorn's sinister tower -- and fires off round sof bullets that may or may not have some sort of obscure properties to them, allowing them to hit the target. Being shot at upsets him, and he demands Fantomex be destroyed. [Looking at you, Sean McKeever... Shyeah... - Mistaken Mike]

Esme, otherwise aiding MagnaXorn, objects to the prospect of being shot, so it's up to Toad to leap into the fray and put himself on the line. Which isn't such a good idea, because Fantomex makes no bones about shooting his knees off...

Of course, like all good things, Fantomex' rampage comes to an end.
MagnaXorn deflects his bullets, and wraps Weapon Thirteen up in bits of metal and trimmings from around his highrise citadellium. What he doesn't notice is that Fantomex' bullets pierce the glass tube that contains the helpless and tubed-up Professor X, beginning the draining of the freak brain neutralizing fluids inside.

While Fantomex gets wrapped up like a douche, another roamer in the night is picked out by Esme just before he uses his mega optic blast to explode through the floor. MagnaXorn is flung into the air by the crimson might of Cyclops.

Xorn falls back to Earth and Cyclops gives him a bitch slapping with all manner of emotionally charged punches.

Then, as if an ass whooping at the fists of Cyclops isn't bad enough, he decides to just pour optic salt into the wound by firing off a round at point blank range -- straight into the face of MagnaXorn!

The Magneto helmet is shattered, and Xorn is left a smoldering, burnt-up, facially disfigured and partially bald mess.

Furious and only briefly blinded, he uses the Xorn helmet as an unseen weapon, bringing it up behind Cyclops before driving it into the back of his skull, thus knocking the X-Men team leader out cold.

Becoming more and more unhinged, and dribbling confused ramblings that actually lend credence to the eventual decision that this was merely an impostor Magneto, MagnaXorn unleashes desperation.
As Esme threatens to psychically attack his exposed brains with "Alzheimer's in fast forward", MagnaXorn lashes out, ripping the earrings from the young girl's ears. Mangled and disfigured ears -- the kinda pain that renders a teenage girl unconscious.

Xorn again dons the... Xorn helmet... protecting himself once more from psychic attack, just as Emma Frost appears on the scene in diamond form.
She consoles Esme [as she dies], and reunites with the distant Cyclops who is preparing to begin a romance with her.

Using his amped up Kick powers, MagnaXorn begins seriously messing with time and space and gravity, which seriously messes with the enjoyment of humanity in the world. Thus, the X-Men run stalling maneuvers to give time for Phoenix to take care of business.

Then Beast comes flying out of nowhere, and generally starts punking the crap out of Magneto. He pounds down on him, delivering an neutralizing solution for the Kick, whilst expressing his disappointment, "I can't believe you'd do this, Xorn! You of all people, Xorn!"

Xorn whips the needles out and stabs Beast with them, which gives him an opportunity to call Wolverine into the fight.
Wolvie brandishes his claws all up in Xorn's grill, but that matters for naught as a Phoenixified Jean Grey enters the battle proper as more than a transport vehicle for people who've been lost at sea, or thrown into the sun.

Taunting manages to get the unhinged false-Magneto to remove his helmet in an attempt to prove his identity as the master of magnetisim, but this exposes him to mental attack from the recovered Professor Xavier.

Phoenix lingers over Magneto's seizing body, and he reaches a frail and weak hand to hers, and something happens to make Jean scream.
Having broken the concentration of his attackers, MagnaXorn reveals his treachery.

MagnaXorn dons his helmet once more... Only to be decapitated.

Xorn dies, Jean dies.
They'll both be back.

The hammer...
As you may have noticed, the winner of this match with the assist from various X-Men - Wolverine. Which almost made up for having his adamantium stripped in a previous entry.

I say almost, because as was mentioned in the Tape, we have a bit of a situation concerning the identity of Xorn. Most comic fans from the last couple of years will be well in-the-know, but for those who came in late, it lays out pretty simply like this:

Magneto gets killed in Genosha for the umpteenth time when Sentinels flatten the place. In Grant Morrison's New X-Men Magneto becomes firmly established as a Che Guevera style t-shirt icon, and an inspiration to disillusioned semi-retarded teen mutants worldwide.

In an incredible twist of fate the new mutant named Xorn turns out to be an elaborate ruse by Magneto to infiltrate Xavier's school, and generally cause problems and lead children astray whilst taking drugs.

The drgs increase his powers and we arrive at the issue reviewed here, where Wolverine unceremoniously cuts his freaking head off. Four more issues to go and then Morrison leaves the book, and returns to DC where he has clearly been better nurtured and embraced by his own standards.

Marvel clearly had some issues with Morrison's ground breaking X-Men, which reinvigorated the franchise. Obviously as a franchise, the viability of killing off Magneto seemed unlikely, and likewise they enjoyed Xorn as a character... So the solution was to immediatel reorder the house of X by revealing Magneto was actualy hiding out on Genosha recovering (a redeemable Holocaust survivor once more) -- and drugged up, headless Magneto was an impostor.

I'm going to come clean, there were some serious lapses of concentration here, and that's largely due to the fact that what started out like a good idea for an entry, kinda drove me a little batty.

It gets messy beyond this issue, and after some vague attempts from Chris Claremont and Chuck Austen, and some unfortunately vivid delivery from Brian "I should stick to street solo characters" Bendis -- Xorn becomes his own character.
Well, his own character and a brother...

Beyond the farce and well on the safe side of a paying job, Morrison has said his intentions were for the character were exactly what he delivered: Magneto's last hurrah, fucking up New York City.
But we here at Secret Earths are bound by canon as tightly as possible.
So as cathartic as it may have been, sorry Wolvie. Wrong head.

A lot of people seem to talk about their 'period away from comics,' and usually it comes across as super-poseable bullshit, and an excuse to talk about how Blankets or something else flavoursome 'brought you back to comics.'

I'm not going to say I ever left comics. I've read them my entire life, but for a while there I wasn't buying much more than Mutant X... So while I was never gone to be brought back, New X-Men certainly renewed my interest in the X-franchise en masse, and was the gateway into which I began making much larger and expansive purchases.

Purchases like the graphic novels Blankets and Maus... [Kidding!]

New X-Men was a hot ticket item and tough to get from the comic store rack, but the issues I do have were a real delight. I can honestly say it's the first time X-Men has ever been a regular priority.

I've been wanting to feature an issue somewhere along here, but the curious thing is that as much action and violence as there was, there really weren't a lot of simple, break it down fights. I went with this one, and I stand by my choice, but the true brilliance to this run was the overall presentation.
Even the leather jacket uniforms, which were a happy compromise between the filmick black leather, and the classic primary yellow, were a brilliant step forward for the X-team.

Despite a distinct Marvel bias over the past few months, I've actually been sitting on the DC side of the fence for the last few years. Having grown up a Marvel youngster, I really feel post-Jemas the company went though a period of very disappointing creative direction.
While I feel they are now recovering, there's still a ways to go before I can ever expect to read and X-Men comic with the same vim as New X-Men.

The Fight: 4.5 The Issue: 5.5
Additional Stats: Victory also to Beast and Cyclops, with assists to the rest of the team.
Xorn fatal injury inflicted on Esme.