The New Mutants: The Demon Bear Saga

New Mutants (1983-1991) #18–21

by Chris Claremont

Claremont, Chris

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, X Men, Superheroes, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

Chris Claremont is a writer of American comic books, best known for his 16-year (1975-1991) stint on Uncanny X-Men, during which the series became one of the comic book industry's most successful properties.

Claremont has written many stories for other publishers including the Star Trek Debt of Honor graphic novel, his creator-owned Sovereign Seven for DC Comics and Aliens vs Predator for Dark Horse Comics. He also wrote a few issues of the series WildC.A.T.s (volume 1, issues #10-13) at Image Comics, which introduced his creator-owned character, Huntsman.

Outside of comics, Claremont co-wrote the Chronicles of the Shadow War trilogy, Shadow Moon (1995), Shadow Dawn (1996), and Shadow Star (1999), with George Lucas. This trilogy continues the story of Elora Danan from the movie Willow. In the 1980s, he also wrote a science fiction trilogy about female starship pilot Nicole Shea, consisting of First Flight (1987), Grounded! (1991), and Sundowner (1994). Claremont was also a contributor to the Wild Cards anthology series.

Reviews

[L. McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mean, I picked up a book with “Demon Bear” in the title, not expecting a masterpiece.

What’s it about?
A group of young mutants have to fight a demonic bear that’s been haunting one of them. Yeah, this isn’t a real deep story.

Pros:
This book does have a lot of great action scenes throughout.
This book throughout is so ridiculous that it’s entertaining!
This book is a lot more suspenseful than I expected it to be.

Cons:
The story though ridiculous is kinda weak. It gets a bit repetitive.
The characters are not interesting. I really can’t remember most of their names.
The art is pretty horrible (except for in the final chapter).
This is a bit too wordy IMO.

Overall:
Is this an Eisner worthy masterpiece? No. Does anyone reasonable except that from a book with the title “Demon Bear”? No. It’s the sort of dumb but exciting thing you should expect from this sort of book.

3/5

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was the insane artwork of Bill Sienkiewicz that got me digging these comics out of a "5 for $1" bin in a now long gone but not forgotten second-hand store in Pike Place Market. Then I'd trundle down to my ferry and read these on the way home, slowly going through the artwork. The comics ended up stashed in boxes or old suitcases -- never collector quality, don't fret about the lack of archival bags and backing -- and every move I'd think about tossing them out but start reading and looking at the artwork again. Finally I found a copy of the graphic novel at a library sale ($1!) that is also a very beat up but the paper isn't as fragile. So that gets re-read about once a summer or, as in this winter of snow, as I'm slowly rearranging shelves. The comics remain in their box, waiting for me to come up with a clever idea for them. Perhaps I will mount them in the dollar store frames and hang on the wall. Now off to find the Jonny Quest comic with the Sienkiewicz cover also lurking in my collection.

[Joseph Domingo · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first story is 5/5, the second is 3/5, and the third is 4/5. The first story is a classic; the art is incredible and the writing is just so interesting. The second story I found myself thinking was just okay; I think it fits with everything going on with those characters, but it felt a bit cheap. The last story shocked me, bc I expected to hate it, but I actually really liked it. It was a demon bear story very loosely, rather than relying on the already rehashed Dani Moonstar story of the last one.

[Malum · Rating 3 out of 5]

A slasher/kaiju story that is hampered by the fact that there are no real stakes since the X-Men swoop in at the end to fix everything.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a classic piece of X-Men lore that I am surprised that it has such a low rating here. It's probably because this collection just gives you the story itself, with very little context or character development. The "Demon Bear Saga" is just one part of a larger story that had been building up for a while in issues prior.

I'd recommend reading the "New Mutants: Epic Collection" (9781302903657) prior to reading this, because reading the "Demon Bear," as it's collected here, is like watching a new TV show, but only the season finale of the second season.

[Gloria Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Claremont's scripts get a little wordy for my taste, but Sienkiewicz's art adds a new, more horror-centered flavor to the X-titles that I really like.

[Ángel · Rating 3 out of 5]

artwork is crazy, the rest 😑😕

[Scott A. Love · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was pretty cool seeing Magik armor up for the first time.

[Fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

No fue la gran cosa🦙

[João · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's hard to fully appreciate this comic for what it is, because, even today, the creators seem worlds apart. First you have Chris Claremont's baroque dialogues, which are a sort of stream of consciousness that is transported from character to character, cluttering the panels and exhausting the reader, who has no room for interpreting any nuances (in this way, his writing is downright flat). Secondly, there's Bill Sinkiewicz's art, which I believe is in a transition between Moon Knight's post-Neal Adams photographic realism, and the Elektra Assassin style, which still seems to be influenced by photography, but this time it's advertising photography, the abstract sort; maybe even fashion photography. I say this not because I have any particular clue on Sienkiewicz's aesthetic evolution, but because sometimes his panels can be admired as if they were ads. Cannonball's action sequences, when juxtaposed with Claremont's text, become blurred spaces with lines of flight and intimate copy.

New Mutants was a spin-off title from the period when Uncanny X-Men achieved mainstream success and the franchise expanded to accomodate the increase in readership. While X-Factor brought back the original team under a new name, the New Mutants also returned the X-Men to its roots, pairing Professor Xavier with an ensemble cast of mutant debutantes. However, for the duration of this story, the Professor is away with the main team, and the kids are off on their own. Rather than keep an awkward intimacy with Xavier as a leader, these kids are weirder and introverted, though they're not the rebel kind either, and most of their inner musings have to do with duty and responsibility. As usual during the Claremont era, all of these mutants are 'non-radical others', which is to say stereotypes of some non-WASP culture (who always hang onto their idiomatic expressions). As long as they're mutants, they always understand each other.

The Demon Bear Saga is about a mystic bear that's chasing the native american Dani Moonstar, and the New Mutants' effort to protect her. Magic is used here as a middle-of-the-road compromise: you hear of 'lifeforces', 'psylinks', and 'ward spells', but it's all quite vanilla. There's nothing particularly virtuous these heroes do, besides holding their own in battle. Young witch Illyana Rasputin is a little sage, but for dramatic purposes, the team doesn't trust her at all. However, once the Saga is over, the team is ready to embrace the parasitic Warlock as one of their own. Claremont writes all these emotions as volatile, as if you were right in the girls' locker room, gossiping, making frenemies, forgetting it the next day. A weird slumber party tries to pull off the image of these mutants as normal teenagers, though the setting couldn't be more awkward (including the wolfish Rahne in doll make-up). Rather than building up on this teengirl fantasy set, Sienkiwicz finds ways to use abstraction and empty space against the obscene detail of the script, and something else happens, which you can see in Warlock's character: subtly, a cubist composition has been placed next to dragon pets.

[Michael Church · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like most, I picked this up to read the original issues before the movie comes out (hopefully later this year). For those who don’t know, this volume includes some lead up to the Demon Bear trilogy, as well as two follow up stories from later X-Force series.

The original books are really solid. They’re definitely from a different era. The climactic fight with the Demon Bear itself is mostly told through narration. Chris Claremont certainly has a way with purple prose. Honestly, the narration worked pretty effectively for the most part. It was engrossing, compared to some older books that gave too much detail in the words and not enough in the art.

Bill Sienkiewicz is masterful here. I’ve not seen much of his work in context, aside from a guest spot here and there. He paints a perfectly surreal and creepy atmosphere. The characters are all unique. There’s a clear difference in how he draws Ilyana and Amara. Most artists can barely tell characters apart with hairstyles and costumes. These all had unique body types and faces and heights. The types of things that you don’t realize are missing from standard comic book art until someone actually gives them to you.

If the book ended there, I probably would’ve given it 4 stars. Unfortunately, they felt the need to add two more stories that make no sense out of context. One involves Dani again, but after about 20 years of comics and several evolutions of the character, with a whole new cast, who are not introduced, and even new powers for the characters we did know. The Demon Bear is barely explained in this context, and then disappears with just as little explanation.

The final story doesn’t even include Dani. I don’t get why Warpath encounters a Demon Bear. I don’t get why Ghost Rider was there. I don’t know any of the context from this version of X-Force. I also don’t understand why they wouldn’t have included the Demon Bear story from a later incarnation of Uncanny X-Force. Though maybe that one was just too long to add into an already overstuffed book (and probably too recent as well).

Again, without the two unnecessary stories, this would’ve been great, but they dragged it down.

[Alex Sarll]

The original New Mutants are another team of which I have fond but vague memories from when I was first encountering Marvel, and Billy the Sink's art still holds up, its tortured depths even serving to make the tics of Claremont's writing feel appropriate when so often they can come across as silly. But let's be honest, mainly I read this because I occasionally use that cover as a purported picture of myself, and some of the psychodrama is lost when you keep showing panels of the allegedly terrifying monster to your spouse and both cooing over what a fine big fluffy boy he is, or how the bit where he's on fire is clearly me in hot weather.

[Tiamatty · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Demon Bear Saga is the peak of New Mutants. Prior to this story, New Mutants had been fun, but not outstanding. The addition of Bill Sienkewicz's pencils elevated it to something truly outstanding. Sienkewicz made the Demon Bear itself a terrifying creature, highlighting its supernatural nature in a way no other artist could have. Meanwhile, Claremont's excellent characterization makes the reader care about the characters, and really fear for them. New Mutants remained an excellent series after this story, but this was its best moment.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great pencils and beautiful covers by Bill Sienkewicz make this worth a read but the story itself is rather disappointing — a shame because Chris Claremont had a chance to really take this story arc to an interesting place with a fuller exploration of Native American mythology.

[J.M. Giovine · Rating 4 out of 5]

When it comes to the X-men titles, no one nails the quality and uniqueness out of the mutants as Chris Claremont did. Being the first collaboration between him and the iconic artist, Bill Sienkiewicz, The Demon Bear Saga takes a particular horror-mystery element to it, revolving around the character of Dani Moonstar, the mutant known as "Mirage", who's been tormented by a haunting beast-like figure that, presumably, also had something to do with her parent's disappearance. Now, sheltered at the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters, she'll count with the help of her teammates: Sunspot, Cannonball, Wolfsbane, Magma, and Magik, to fight against this being. Definitely a different take other than the ones we've had seen with Claremont while approaching the mutants; these are a group of teenagers, and they barely have figured how to control (or even use) their powers. Characters like Illyana-Colossus's sister-who are not only mutants, but also, wielders of magic, are generally approached from an ambiguous point of view, but that's the way Claremont chooses to develop these elements, and it works rightfully for further issues and arcs, since all of them has enough development and background to actually care for them, and since the focus is Dani, expect plenty of it on her. What really steals the show in this, is Sienkiewicz's art. Pretty much like Dave McKean with DC and VERTIGO, Sienkiewicz utilizes a certain composition of hyper-realistic landmarks and visuals, combined with thin but shadowy pencils to create atmosphere and suspense along the abstract imagery within each frame, which is an excellent technique due to the tone and dynamism of this story. By far, Sienkiewicz has been one of Marvel Comics most original and distinguishable artist, and its a shame realizing how poorly received his contribution was with this arc in the series. Each frame is attractive and mesmerizing, and it feeds upon the sense of mystery. With the whole "Demon Bear" take, there's an actual logical conclusion when it comes to its resolution, being directly linked to Dani, but I was glad to see there was more to it than just "a consequence of her powers", apparently this is an actual interdimensional creature, so expect your typical comic-book mumbo jumbo about cosmic and alternative realities traits. Thankfully, the collection didn't stop at issue #20 (the last of Sienkiewicz in this arc), but also included others in which the Demon Bear is brought back, being X-Force #99, and a few pages from the previous issues of that, as well as some material from X-Force #7-10, the 2008 series, which are the ones where the team members are the mainstream ones, like Wolverine, Cable, and Warpath, who's the one who actually fights against the Demon, with the help of Ghost Rider. It was interesting but, needless to say, wasn't necessarily the one we were introduced with Dani. The Demon Bear arc from the New Mutants isn't necessarily their best, but surely enough is one that feels completely derivative from the initial issues, working also as a transition between early and mid-80s thanks to Sienkiewicz art, as well as Claremont's now way stylized writing, that only demonstrates how good he is handling the mutants, whichever team or affiliation they are in, is just his subject, and arguably he could be considered the best X-men writer, or well, the one that actually delivered the most iconic and essential titles of the mutants. In the case of this arc, there's a certain effort to give it a different approach, and while not necessarily well received at first, this one is an arc that has grown appreciated and respected by fans in general. Yeah, there are better storylines within this title, specially subsequently with the introduction of Legion, but this is the starting point for the series to improve in both, visual and narrative fashion. If I had a little complain about this, would be the shortness of the run; only three issues aren't always enough to tale a story with these elements, or well, maybe a fourth one could've helped dig into the entire Demon Bear's concept, and specially because, well, I want more Claremont-Sienkiewicz combo! Although, I guess craving more is always going to be an actual "good" complain. Other than that, this is a really good reading, and a huge recommendation for any fans of the mutant world of Marvel.

[Rob Marney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just the great parts. This thin little trade hits like a pop single from the first page and never lets up. Bill Sienkewicz wants to cut loose into abstract art and wild concepts from nightmare beasts to alien shapeshifter robots to dystopian futures, but he's constrained by Chris Claremont's desire to have 100 words of dialogue per page, resulting in the perfect mix of high concept and legible art. Meanwhile, the story tugs at your heartstrings and makes wild swings for the fences. The last chapter, Slumber Party, really ties together the themes of the book, so it's a great include even though it's not officially a demon bear issue.

Is it completely ridiculous that Rachel and the Starjammers and the Morlocks make cameo appearances in New Mutants just because Claremont was assuming you also read X-Men? Yes. Do I mind? Not at all. In fact, Bill gives an aura of menace and intensity these characters often miss.

[Sotofunkdamental · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una de las sagas más emblemáticas de Los Nuevos Mutantes, mezcla de superhéroes con género slasher/terror. El arte casi onírico de Bill Sienkiewicz te sumerge perfectamente en la atmósfera creada por Chris Claremont.

[Jonas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originalberättelsen är toppen, backupmaterialet/utfyllnaden not so much

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gems include the eponymous saga & "Slumber Party!"

[B. Rule · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mind-blowingly awesome, trippy art. The story is fine but the visuals are what sets this apart.

[lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art was beautiful however I just didn't love the execution of the story

[Eugene · Rating 4 out of 5]

The New Mutants stuff was good; I didn't need the X-Force stuff.

[Dony Grayman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Archivos X-Men dedicado a los Nuevos Mutantes. Edición un poco avejentada.

[Ángel Javier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Afrontémoslo: «Los nuevos mutantes» eran una mierda hasta que llegó Bill Sienkiewicz. Claremont ya no tenía ni puñetera idea de qué hacer con los personajes, y McLeod, por el motivo que fuera, no sabía dibujar adolescentes creíbles. Bala de Cañón, por ejemplo, parecía una especie de horrible espantapájaros orejudo, mientras que Dani Moonstone semejaba (y actuaba como) una joven adulta. Las aventuras carecían de rumbo, y era evidente que el propio papi Claremont consideraba la colección como de tercera fila, sobre todo comparada con la rutilante Patrulla-X de Paul Smith y John Romita Jr. Estaba claro que lo hacía por la pasta, y aquello era un desastre sin pies ni cabeza. Y entonces llegó Sienki.

Con Sienkiewicz, la creatividad apareció como por arte de magia en la colección, y no solo por el alucinante apartado gráfico, sino porque de pronto... ¡Claremont empezó a concebir buenas historias con los personajes! Y esta «Saga del oso místico» es, a mi entender, el punto cumbre de este cómic, una obra casi de autor, a la altura del Daredevil de Miller (bueno, salvo «Born Again») o del Dreadstar de Starlin. Una puta maravilla.

Una vez terminada la etapa de Sienki, como era de prever, el cómic volvió a la más gris mediocridad... hasta acabar cayendo en las zarpas del inútil más grande que jamás denigrara las páginas de cómic alguno con su presencia: el inefable Rob Liefeld, que hundió la serie en una sima creativa desconocida hasta entonces en los anales de la historieta, pero que gozaría asimismo de una popularidad inaudita porque potato. Con Liefeld, la era Marvel de la auténtica basura en vena daría comienzo, y es una era que amenaza con durar forever and ever. Nuff' said!!

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow.

Now that is some great art. Bill Sienkiewicz is amazing when he is free to roam. Someone gave him free reign at a time when, as I understand it, Marvel was pretty tight on the look of their books. His couple bouts in Uncanny still had a spot of flare, but it was very tempered. Since New Mutants wasn't as big as Uncanny, Sienkiewicz was given more leash. And I am sure glad for that.

When I saw some small digital images of the covers for New Mutants done by Sienkiewicz I kinda thought they looked a bit dated. But when you see a live copy it is far more impressive. Still dated, but very impressive. And then the innards are likewise impressive but not dated. If you are more for realism in your art, this likely won't be your cup of tea. My preference is stylized and this sure falls into that camp.

What's more, despite how silly the name of the story sounds, I really ended up enjoying it. There was some kinda cheap and silly moments. But also some good emotional connection to the characters and the fear and the blood. And then it all gets wrapped up with Warlock coming to earth in a very entertaining issue. This looks like it could be where the series gets its legs under it. All the major characters are now in place, excluding Doug Ramsey still not technically being a member, and things seem ready to roll.

I am starting to sound like I read more for the art than the stories based on my reviews. This actually isn't true, but in the case of this book the art just kinda blew me away. And Claremont was able to set it off to great effect with his words.

That was quite fun. Can't wait for more.

Collects The New Mutants #18-21

[Christopher Rush · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again I read this trade in its separate issue format, but figured it should count as part of my reading goal anyway. With the arrival of artist Bill Sienkiewicz, Chris Claremont's darker-fringed teenage series gets the unique visual look it needed from its onset. The story here is about a key moment in the team's progression: their first member has been missing for a long time, they had met their villainous counterparts in the Hellions (though not aware they were really villains), members were arriving, frictions were rising among the members with new members and internally - and suddenly their leader is nearly destroyed by a demonic monolith of a bear. Claremont's storytelling hits an interesting range, despite the spatial limitations of the story (an odd thing to say for such a multi-dimensional plane component among the combatants), though some might find the resolution somewhat simple. What's not simple is Claremont's willingness to make drastic changes, especially in the lives of bystanders (and, fortunately, Rahne's progression to a much better character, aiding immensely by Sienkiewicz's treatment). The epilogue story "Slumber Party!" continues this idea: suddenly Warlock is there, Doug Ramsey has to be drastically and suddenly brought in - things change instantly. Enemies, enemies now friends, former friends - it's all about trust, climaxing in the final panel of the story. There is still lingering doubt among everyone, about themselves and their teammates and their places in the universe - but we know the creative team is starting to hit its stride. The story is good and metaphysical and challenging - check it out.

[Pok Manero · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reimprime los ya clásicos números 18 a 20 del título The New Mutants, donde el grupo titular, todavía relativamente nuevo (aunque ya llevaban año y medio de publicaciones) enfrenta una amenaza sobrenatural/espiritual que tiene orígenes en la cosmogonía de los nativos americanos gracias a Dani Moonstar, que es Cheyenne (si no me equivoco). Lo mejor es el arte de Bill Sienkiewicz, completamente atípico para un comic de superhéroes pero más que apropiado para el tono de la historia. Cualquier otro dibujante habría dado resultados risibles (tal vez Dave McKean estaría a la altura, pero no lo imagino dibujando para Marvel). La trama en sí es buena, pero no destaca.

Como tres números son demasiado poco (y hay que justificar el precio del trade paperback), incluye dos “apariciones posteriores” del Demon Bear en distintas iteraciones del título X-Force. Como tal, no son historias en sí, plenamente desarrolladas. Más bien son capítulos sueltos que forman parte de otras historias más largas donde aparece algo parecido al Demon Bear. Se sienten como inclusiones con la intención de que quieras continuar leyendo la historia, comprando otros trade paperbacks, claro está. Sobran por completo y, en lugar de enriquecer a la “saga” original, la demeritan bastante. En verdad convendría vender un trade más breve, aunque tenga que ser más barato.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the first 17 issues (and a graphic novel) this series was a good, solid and reliable read every month. There certainly was nothing wrong with the series, but there also wasn't anything that made it stand out. And then came Bill Sienkiewicz and things were never tha same. I first discovered this guy while he was working on Moon Knight with Doug Moench, which just kept getting better and better with every issue. I hadn't been particularly fond of the Moench/Sienkiewicz run n the Fantastic Four, but that had more to do with the stories and characterizations than the art by itself. But the New Mutants by Claremont/Sienkiewicz absolutely blew me away with the very first issue, included in this collection. Coupling Claremont's soap opera storytelling style with Sienkiewicz's surreal, avant garde art was a stroke on genius. Claremont grounded Sienkiewicz and Sienkiewicz pushed Claremont out of his shell of complacency that the success of the X-Men under his pen had stuck him in. The Demon Bear arc inaugurates what would become the very best of the New Mutants.

[Loren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a fan of both Claremont and Sienkewicz, and their work, while it shows its age, still shows the reason why this saga is as well regarded and influential as it was. The narrative style is wordy, but the worldbuilding and the intricacy of the character relations hold it together, while the art really pushes the boundaries of what was being done in the 1980s. It's a bit like going back and playing an old Nintendo video game - the artists are limited by the technological possibilities of the time, but those limitations force them to find more subtle ways to add that extra layer of interest and wonder that the printing process won't support.

I don't think I'll be revisiting the later (partial) issues much in any re-readings. I'm sure that they were more satisfying in their original context (just as the original storyline left ripples that played out for longer) but these vignettes aren't substantial enough to really have any narrative weight or emotional consequence to them, so they end up feeling like a timeline of comic evolution more than an extension of the storyline.

[Tyler Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this, I really did. I want to love the New Mutants, and do, but looking at this without the jaded eyes of nostalgia reveals that it really is just ok. The titular New Mutants are forced to defend their teammate Danny Moonstar from a monster of her own creation. If you have never read a New Mutants book before, don't start here. It requires previous connection to characters to enjoy, as it's only a three issue storyline in the greater arc of the New Mutants. The art is great though, and worth the price of admission.