What do you think?
Rate this book
X-Men: Mutant Massacre Prelude Omnibus Romita Jr. Cover
Collects Uncanny X-Men (1981) #194-209; X-Men Annual (1970) #9-10; New Mutants Special Edition #1; New Mutants Annual #2; Nightcrawler (1985) #1-4; Longshot #1-6; Avengers (1963) #263; Fantastic Four (1961) #286; X-Factor (1986) #1-8 And Annual #1; Iron Man Annual #8; Amazing Spider-Man (1963) #282; And Material From Marvel Fanfare (1982) #33, And Classic X-Men #8 And #43.
Rachel Summers claims the power of Phoenix, Jean Grey returns from a watery grave and the original X-Men reunite as X-Factor! It's an era of upheaval that puts Marvel's mutants on the path to some of their darkest days! Both Cyclops and Professor X leave the X-Men, but a new teammate waits in the Magneto?! As Storm steps up and Wolverine faces the new Phoenix, the relentless Nimrod targets the team for annihilation! Meanwhile, the newly minted X-Factor grapples with Jean's miraculous resurrection and shares a fateful first encounter with Apocalypse! The X-Men and New Mutants enlist in the Asgardian Wars, Nightcrawler goes solo and Longshot debuts!
Rachel Summers claims the power of Phoenix, Jean Grey returns from a watery grave and the original X-Men reunite as X-Factor! It's an era of upheaval that puts Marvel's mutants on the path to some of their darkest days! Both Cyclops and Professor X leave the X-Men, but a new teammate waits in the Magneto?! As Storm steps up and Wolverine faces the new Phoenix, the relentless Nimrod targets the team for annihilation! Meanwhile, the newly minted X-Factor grapples with Jean's miraculous resurrection and shares a fateful first encounter with Apocalypse! The X-Men and New Mutants enlist in the Asgardian Wars, Nightcrawler goes solo and Longshot debuts!
1496 pages, Hardcover
Published September 10, 2024
10 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
Chris Claremont
3,281 books889 followersChris 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.
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.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 24, 2024
This material is my first time reading it, so im getting to experience it with a fresh set of eyes. This omnibus sets up the X-men event known as the mutant massacre. As with most omnibi, this is a long read coming in at a little over 1300 pages (approx 50 issues) excluding the bonus material. Many twists and turns, surprises, and genuinely fun and riveting stories with thrilling plot lines make this a must read for newcomers and longtime X-men fans alike.
A lot of talent is on board throughout this book. The bulk of it (but not limited to) coming from Chris Claremont and John Romita Jr. Other legends in the industry are also included in here such as Roger stern, Barry Windsor- Smith, Ann Nocenti, and Dave Cockrum just to name a few. The stories and art are what you would expect from the late 80's era which I think is fantastic. If you're into this era of comics or X-Men you'll really enjoy this, and if you're not, I still recommend giving it a shot.
The stories collected in here range from good to amazing, with nothing I can think of that was a flat out dud. You have the first 8 issues of the X-factor collected which reuinites the original X-Men team that I throughly enjoyed. Also included are the trial of Magneto along with many other great miniseries, annuals, and one shots. Some standouts to me were the Nightcrawler mini series, which was a blast to read all the way through, and my personal favorite Wounded Wolf. This is a one shot that involves a very injured Wolverine and Katie from the Power Pack kids. It's a very heartwarming story that will put a smile on your face by the end of it. Closing out the book it ends in a six issue miniseries called LongShot which introduces a new hero and a very interesting world and concept that has you trying to figure things out along with the stories protagonist.
If you're into extras and bonus material, you'll be pleased with what is added in here. The highly enjoyable letter pages are included, as they are in a lot of Marvel omnibi in the older eras. These are letters that fans would write in before the days of the internet to Marvel to eithier praise, complain, nitpick, and give input into what they liked and didn't like. Other bonuses include original cover art, sketches, press posters, interviews, articles, and some neat insight into Ann Nocenti's Longshot "bible." Which was a layout of how the world and lore worked to be given to others working on the project.
Overall, I really enjoyed this omnibus. It contained everything I could want from X-Men stories and then some. Everything ranging from the serious to the not no serious. High octane action to heartwarming stories. Fun, adventure, excitement, surprises, beautiful art, and everything else in between, as well as a massive amount of bonus content. I couldn't give it anything less than a 5/5 and I hope future readers enjoy it as much as I did.
A lot of talent is on board throughout this book. The bulk of it (but not limited to) coming from Chris Claremont and John Romita Jr. Other legends in the industry are also included in here such as Roger stern, Barry Windsor- Smith, Ann Nocenti, and Dave Cockrum just to name a few. The stories and art are what you would expect from the late 80's era which I think is fantastic. If you're into this era of comics or X-Men you'll really enjoy this, and if you're not, I still recommend giving it a shot.
The stories collected in here range from good to amazing, with nothing I can think of that was a flat out dud. You have the first 8 issues of the X-factor collected which reuinites the original X-Men team that I throughly enjoyed. Also included are the trial of Magneto along with many other great miniseries, annuals, and one shots. Some standouts to me were the Nightcrawler mini series, which was a blast to read all the way through, and my personal favorite Wounded Wolf. This is a one shot that involves a very injured Wolverine and Katie from the Power Pack kids. It's a very heartwarming story that will put a smile on your face by the end of it. Closing out the book it ends in a six issue miniseries called LongShot which introduces a new hero and a very interesting world and concept that has you trying to figure things out along with the stories protagonist.
If you're into extras and bonus material, you'll be pleased with what is added in here. The highly enjoyable letter pages are included, as they are in a lot of Marvel omnibi in the older eras. These are letters that fans would write in before the days of the internet to Marvel to eithier praise, complain, nitpick, and give input into what they liked and didn't like. Other bonuses include original cover art, sketches, press posters, interviews, articles, and some neat insight into Ann Nocenti's Longshot "bible." Which was a layout of how the world and lore worked to be given to others working on the project.
Overall, I really enjoyed this omnibus. It contained everything I could want from X-Men stories and then some. Everything ranging from the serious to the not no serious. High octane action to heartwarming stories. Fun, adventure, excitement, surprises, beautiful art, and everything else in between, as well as a massive amount of bonus content. I couldn't give it anything less than a 5/5 and I hope future readers enjoy it as much as I did.
April 10, 2025
Holy crap is this a huge book and a long run from beginning to end for content. The main buildup to the actual event coming in the next omnibus is pretty good, with some fantastic stories happening. I'd like to give a special shoutout to Uncanny X-Men #205 for it's great one-shot crossover with Wolverine and Power Pack's Energizer (Katie Power). It's such a dark story, and yet it's loaded with tender moments and just won my heart over yet again for Power Pack as a team worth caring about.
The two mini-series collected here are a bit more of a mixed bag. The Nightcrawler miniseries was a lot of fun, if a bit out there and not really relevant to anything. The Longshot miniseries started off rather weird but got better as it went along, and in retrospect it was a good way to introduce him to readers.
I could probably also complain about the introduction and first few issues of X-Factor. The idea is strange, and the execution a bit clunky as well. It really just feels like a series that is being made to give some backstory to the next couple events right now. Maybe that will change as things continue on though. I dunno.
Other than that though, a pretty great read for the most part. Certainly an important run to understand the buildup to Mutant Massacre from everything I can tell. I can definitely say I'm still hyped to keep going through this insane "read through as much of the X-Men and related back catalog as possible" idea I've got myself into.
The two mini-series collected here are a bit more of a mixed bag. The Nightcrawler miniseries was a lot of fun, if a bit out there and not really relevant to anything. The Longshot miniseries started off rather weird but got better as it went along, and in retrospect it was a good way to introduce him to readers.
I could probably also complain about the introduction and first few issues of X-Factor. The idea is strange, and the execution a bit clunky as well. It really just feels like a series that is being made to give some backstory to the next couple events right now. Maybe that will change as things continue on though. I dunno.
Other than that though, a pretty great read for the most part. Certainly an important run to understand the buildup to Mutant Massacre from everything I can tell. I can definitely say I'm still hyped to keep going through this insane "read through as much of the X-Men and related back catalog as possible" idea I've got myself into.
April 24, 2025
I picked up X-Men: Mutant Massacre Prelude Omnibus after finishing the X-Men: Mutant Massacre Omnibus. I wanted to see how the road to that major event was paved. I read this one in pieces over the course of five or six weeks. It’s a dense exposé of the X-universe right before things unravel. While it comes packed with extras—letters pages, original art, interviews, and even Ann Nocenti’s Longshot notes—I stuck to the stories. Still, if you're someone who likes to peek behind the curtain, there’s plenty to dig into.
The book packs in a lot: Rachel Summers takes up the Phoenix mantle, Jean Grey comes back from the dead (in true comic book style), and the original X-Men reunite as X-Factor. The early X-Factor issues are a bit rough—Cyclops is written out of character, there are some head-scratching continuity choices, and the series hasn’t hit its stride yet. Still, these issues lay down essential groundwork, showing how and why the team comes together, and why Jean Grey’s return matters.
On the X-Men side, the stories may not be Claremont’s all-time best, but there are standout moments. The Nimrod fights are tense, Wolverine and Rachel Summers’ confrontation is a highlight, and seeing Professor X step down as Magneto joins the team still has impact. Detours like the Asgardian Wars and Nightcrawler’s solo mini add some fun side quests, and “Wounded Wolf” remains one of Wolverine’s most unexpectedly heartfelt stories.
The art’s a real mix, but in a good way—every artist puts their own stamp on the X-universe. John Romita Jr. holds down much of the main X-Men run, but you also get memorable pages from Arthur Adams, Alan Davis, Barry Windsor-Smith, Rick Leonardi, June Brigman, and others. Even the crossover issues with the Avengers and Fantastic Four benefit from John Byrne’s clean storytelling. The result is a book that feels varied, energetic, and reflective of the creative churn of Marvel’s mutant line at the time.
This book double-dips with other collected editions, so if you collect everything X-Men, Phoenix-related, or just go all-in on omnibi, you’ll get some déjà vu flipping through pages you've likely seen before. Still, as a setup, it’s packed with key turning points and shifts that make the main event hit harder.
The book packs in a lot: Rachel Summers takes up the Phoenix mantle, Jean Grey comes back from the dead (in true comic book style), and the original X-Men reunite as X-Factor. The early X-Factor issues are a bit rough—Cyclops is written out of character, there are some head-scratching continuity choices, and the series hasn’t hit its stride yet. Still, these issues lay down essential groundwork, showing how and why the team comes together, and why Jean Grey’s return matters.
On the X-Men side, the stories may not be Claremont’s all-time best, but there are standout moments. The Nimrod fights are tense, Wolverine and Rachel Summers’ confrontation is a highlight, and seeing Professor X step down as Magneto joins the team still has impact. Detours like the Asgardian Wars and Nightcrawler’s solo mini add some fun side quests, and “Wounded Wolf” remains one of Wolverine’s most unexpectedly heartfelt stories.
The art’s a real mix, but in a good way—every artist puts their own stamp on the X-universe. John Romita Jr. holds down much of the main X-Men run, but you also get memorable pages from Arthur Adams, Alan Davis, Barry Windsor-Smith, Rick Leonardi, June Brigman, and others. Even the crossover issues with the Avengers and Fantastic Four benefit from John Byrne’s clean storytelling. The result is a book that feels varied, energetic, and reflective of the creative churn of Marvel’s mutant line at the time.
This book double-dips with other collected editions, so if you collect everything X-Men, Phoenix-related, or just go all-in on omnibi, you’ll get some déjà vu flipping through pages you've likely seen before. Still, as a setup, it’s packed with key turning points and shifts that make the main event hit harder.
June 11, 2025
This massive tome is anchored by the delightful "Ghosts" X-Men run with John Romita Jr. featuring Cyclops' and Rachel's exits from the team. This is Chris Claremont's opportunity to do Phoenix again but without a squeaky clean protagonist and without the sexual overtones and it's a fun ride. Magneto's trial has taken on a larger importance over the years, but it's just another 2-parter in a story that hits a lot of beats quite fast. Storm is depowered and turns down two offers from villains to get her powers back in one year, which is the kind of repetition you only notice in these comprehensive omnibus volumes. The other jewel of the volume is Asgardian Wars, the very best X-Men / New Mutants story where they go to someone else's comic. It is deservedly famous for how it shows the opportunity of escape from the Xavier School, and the perfidy of Loki on par with anything Simonson was writing.
Unfortunately, the rest of the Omni doesn't reach those heights. X-Factor starts with some issues so dire that John Byrne didn't want his name in the credits. It's a dreadful passion project from Bob Layton whose love for the Silver Age X-Men extends to deep cuts like the coffee shop and Beast's 70s solo mini at the expense of having anything interesting going on and making Scott a deadbeat dad. It's unintentionally funny, with Jean giving speeches about how hard it is to fit in as a mutant even though she'd find it totally effortless. The Longshot and Nightcrawler minis are silly fun artist showcases that are honestly pretty skippable, unless you really love Ann Nocenti. The book closes with another set of linked annuals that make the insane decision to introduce a new major villain (Mojo) and 2 cast members (Betsy and Longshot) outside the pages of Uncanny, just like Rachel was introduced in New Mutants. Mojo is legitimately scary in these issues, a predator who operates on cartoon logic thanks to his Doctor Doom style magic and tech and dimensional warp combination. Betsy making moves on high schooler Doug Ramsey despite acting like she's 30 otherwise is scary in a different way, and I'm glad Claremont dropped that idea like a hot potato.
Unfortunately, the rest of the Omni doesn't reach those heights. X-Factor starts with some issues so dire that John Byrne didn't want his name in the credits. It's a dreadful passion project from Bob Layton whose love for the Silver Age X-Men extends to deep cuts like the coffee shop and Beast's 70s solo mini at the expense of having anything interesting going on and making Scott a deadbeat dad. It's unintentionally funny, with Jean giving speeches about how hard it is to fit in as a mutant even though she'd find it totally effortless. The Longshot and Nightcrawler minis are silly fun artist showcases that are honestly pretty skippable, unless you really love Ann Nocenti. The book closes with another set of linked annuals that make the insane decision to introduce a new major villain (Mojo) and 2 cast members (Betsy and Longshot) outside the pages of Uncanny, just like Rachel was introduced in New Mutants. Mojo is legitimately scary in these issues, a predator who operates on cartoon logic thanks to his Doctor Doom style magic and tech and dimensional warp combination. Betsy making moves on high schooler Doug Ramsey despite acting like she's 30 otherwise is scary in a different way, and I'm glad Claremont dropped that idea like a hot potato.
July 19, 2025
An interesting book to review.
Firstly the good. The core x-men issues are fantastic, as usual in this era. Claremont is top of his game and book is worth a read for these issues alone.
Then we have x-factor and it’s much maligned first 8 or so issues. We also have the lead up issues from ff and avengers which takes us into x-factor number 1. I thought overall these 10 issues were ok - real peaks and troughs - but I personally didn’t dislike them anywhere near the bad press they get. Great to see the original team back and all the angst/drama that goes with them !
The problem I have with the volume and in fairness it’s a general omnibus issue is the “other” material contained. There are 2 mini-series in the book.
- nightcrawler 4 issue series. Simply awful. I cannot stand the nightcrawler “swashbuckler” persona. Add to that an extremely abstract / strange plot which I felt was mainly nonsense and you have 4 extremely painful issues to plough through.
- longshot 6 issues series. Introduces the longshot character and is interesting up to a point. My problem is I HATE Mojo - my most disliked x-men villain of them all. It’s just over the top rubbish with social commentary etc but just far, far too ridiculous.
Next we come to one of the weaknesses in the omnibus format - annuals ! Generally these are poor across the board irrespective of character etc, yearly marvel cash grab. To be fair the annuals are reasonable here with the exception again of the mojo focus in 2 of them.
I have uncanny x-men
Firstly the good. The core x-men issues are fantastic, as usual in this era. Claremont is top of his game and book is worth a read for these issues alone.
Then we have x-factor and it’s much maligned first 8 or so issues. We also have the lead up issues from ff and avengers which takes us into x-factor number 1. I thought overall these 10 issues were ok - real peaks and troughs - but I personally didn’t dislike them anywhere near the bad press they get. Great to see the original team back and all the angst/drama that goes with them !
The problem I have with the volume and in fairness it’s a general omnibus issue is the “other” material contained. There are 2 mini-series in the book.
- nightcrawler 4 issue series. Simply awful. I cannot stand the nightcrawler “swashbuckler” persona. Add to that an extremely abstract / strange plot which I felt was mainly nonsense and you have 4 extremely painful issues to plough through.
- longshot 6 issues series. Introduces the longshot character and is interesting up to a point. My problem is I HATE Mojo - my most disliked x-men villain of them all. It’s just over the top rubbish with social commentary etc but just far, far too ridiculous.
Next we come to one of the weaknesses in the omnibus format - annuals ! Generally these are poor across the board irrespective of character etc, yearly marvel cash grab. To be fair the annuals are reasonable here with the exception again of the mojo focus in 2 of them.
I have uncanny x-men
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews