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X-Force by Fabian Nicieza #5
X-Force: Child's Play
The mighty mutants known as X-Force team up with one of the most popular teams of heroes to come out of the nineties - the New Warriors! When the villainous Upstarts target former members of the New Mutants and Hellions for their latest hunt, the two teams find themselves in the crosshairs! COLLECTING: X-FORCE (1991) 32-37, ANNUAL 3; NEW WARRIORS (1990) 45-46
245 pages, Hardcover
First published August 15, 2012
About the author
Fabian Nicieza
2,048 books435 followersFabian Nicieza is a writer and editor who is best known as the co-creator of DEADPOOL and for his work on Marvel titles such as X-Men, X-Force, New Warriors, and Robin.
His first novel, the Edgar Award-nominated SUBURBAN DICKS, a sarcastic murder mystery, is on sale now from Putnam Books.
The Dicks will return in THE SELF-MADE WIDOW, coming June 21st.
His first novel, the Edgar Award-nominated SUBURBAN DICKS, a sarcastic murder mystery, is on sale now from Putnam Books.
The Dicks will return in THE SELF-MADE WIDOW, coming June 21st.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 1, 2019
Child's Play (XF #32-33, NW #45-46). The story of the Upstarts and their Gamesmaster was one of the weirder and wackier plot lines from the '90s X-Men. This arc offers a great new look at it, with the Upstarts now going after the surviving members of the New Mutants and the Hellions. Unfortunately, it feels like it anticlimaxes a bit, with the Upstarts going down off-camera (or nearly so) while the Gamesmaster suddenly subverts the game. Still, it's good to see an end to this, and Nicieza does a relatively good job of closing up the plot threads, something that was badly needed in those uneven post-Claremont days [3+/5].
Guns & Poses (XF #34). A nice character story, particularly for its focus on the mysterious Moonstar and on Rictor and his family. The disappointing thing is that we got several old characters back (in the form of Moonstar, Amara, and Julian), but they don't join the team! [3+/5].
Nimrod (XF #35-36). A nice bit of continuity, tracking back Claremont's old Nimrod story, but then turning it into a Terminator-esque plot about trying to stop the technology from coming into existence. With that said, we have another sort of anticlimatic ending, based on the old logic-puzzle canard. [3+/5]
The Young and the Restless (XF #37). The Externals were one of the weirdest concepts of the X-Men in the '90s, clearly inspired by the Highlander movie. Nicieza makes the best use of them here, interweaving their story with Apocalypse and the Legacy Virus, but also really considering Sam as a member of the group and what that means for him and them. This is the sort of story that makes me regret how later comics have ignored this plotline (and particularly Sam's place in it) [5/5].
"In Deep" (XF A#3). A nice alternate view, giving the MLF the spotlight. It's especially great because it reveals Dani's place with them and hints at the mysteries of Reignfire. On the downside, the big plotline of machinations with Chinese heroes and government gets a little dull [4/5].
"Siryn Song" (XF A#3). A silly bit of nothing, not bad, but really just a little ghost story [3/5].
Guns & Poses (XF #34). A nice character story, particularly for its focus on the mysterious Moonstar and on Rictor and his family. The disappointing thing is that we got several old characters back (in the form of Moonstar, Amara, and Julian), but they don't join the team! [3+/5].
Nimrod (XF #35-36). A nice bit of continuity, tracking back Claremont's old Nimrod story, but then turning it into a Terminator-esque plot about trying to stop the technology from coming into existence. With that said, we have another sort of anticlimatic ending, based on the old logic-puzzle canard. [3+/5]
The Young and the Restless (XF #37). The Externals were one of the weirdest concepts of the X-Men in the '90s, clearly inspired by the Highlander movie. Nicieza makes the best use of them here, interweaving their story with Apocalypse and the Legacy Virus, but also really considering Sam as a member of the group and what that means for him and them. This is the sort of story that makes me regret how later comics have ignored this plotline (and particularly Sam's place in it) [5/5].
"In Deep" (XF A#3). A nice alternate view, giving the MLF the spotlight. It's especially great because it reveals Dani's place with them and hints at the mysteries of Reignfire. On the downside, the big plotline of machinations with Chinese heroes and government gets a little dull [4/5].
"Siryn Song" (XF A#3). A silly bit of nothing, not bad, but really just a little ghost story [3/5].
September 5, 2024
Fabien Nicieza's plots are usually inconsistent and tenuous. The first half of this collection is a focused storyline. Unfortunately for me, as a reader, it also heavily features another of Nicieza's teams, The New Warriors, who I'm not very familiar with, and who aren't very interesting in this volume.
The overall plot of the first half, that The Gamesmaster and The Upstarts have set a contest to kill all the original members of The New Mutants and The Hellions is interesting. Unfortunately, like most Nicieza stories, it doesn't really end so much as fizzle out. There's no satisfying comeuppance but also no cliffhangers for any future storylines, it just sort of ends, mostly off-panel.
The rest of the book is short stories about Nimrod, the Mutant Liberation Front, and the Externals. None of them are terrible but none of them are conclusive, either. Once again, Nicieza introduces some intriguing ideas and then gets distracted and the stories just end so we can move on to the next idea.
I think you have to be a die-hard fan to enjoy the main Child's Play Story and/or the annual issue, which focuses on the Mutant Liberation Front. The rest of the stories in this volume are forgettable no matter how much you love X-Force continuity. There just isn't enough in this volume to care about ever reading it again.
The overall plot of the first half, that The Gamesmaster and The Upstarts have set a contest to kill all the original members of The New Mutants and The Hellions is interesting. Unfortunately, like most Nicieza stories, it doesn't really end so much as fizzle out. There's no satisfying comeuppance but also no cliffhangers for any future storylines, it just sort of ends, mostly off-panel.
The rest of the book is short stories about Nimrod, the Mutant Liberation Front, and the Externals. None of them are terrible but none of them are conclusive, either. Once again, Nicieza introduces some intriguing ideas and then gets distracted and the stories just end so we can move on to the next idea.
I think you have to be a die-hard fan to enjoy the main Child's Play Story and/or the annual issue, which focuses on the Mutant Liberation Front. The rest of the stories in this volume are forgettable no matter how much you love X-Force continuity. There just isn't enough in this volume to care about ever reading it again.
June 5, 2020
Collects X-Force #32-37 (March - August 1994), X-Force Annual #3 (October 1994) and The New Warriors #45-46 (March - April 1994).
The New Mutants was already a bit weak in the line-up of X-Men titles. As it moved into the X-Force years, a heavy dose of testosterone was injected into an already angsty mix of storytelling. That awful mix is really wearing on the title now and I am glad I am almost done with these books. The storytelling has just become so awful, that even when they aren't telling musclebound adventures of everyone looking like they are yelling all the time, the simpering tone of feeling just feels dumb. Case in point are the stories included in the annual or in #37. These are terrible storytellers and they just shouldn't try for "the emotional" because it comes off as even more awful then their usual dregs.
The New Mutants was already a bit weak in the line-up of X-Men titles. As it moved into the X-Force years, a heavy dose of testosterone was injected into an already angsty mix of storytelling. That awful mix is really wearing on the title now and I am glad I am almost done with these books. The storytelling has just become so awful, that even when they aren't telling musclebound adventures of everyone looking like they are yelling all the time, the simpering tone of feeling just feels dumb. Case in point are the stories included in the annual or in #37. These are terrible storytellers and they just shouldn't try for "the emotional" because it comes off as even more awful then their usual dregs.
June 29, 2018
This was a lot of fun. I didn't know that I needed a Domino vs Nimrod fight, but after seeing Tony Daniel's art, I'm happy it exists. This mostly just pushed some characters forward, and let the team breathe a little, as much as their missions allow for, that is.
March 17, 2021
Gems include the eponymous crossover & the 2part 'return' of Nimrod
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews