Nightcrawler, Volume 1: Homecoming

Nightcrawler (2014) (Collected Editions)

by Chris Claremont (Writer), Todd Nauck (Artist), Rachelle Rosenberg (Colourist)

Nightcrawler is back! Newly returned from the afterlife, Kurt Wagner is determined not to waste his new lease on life. But when someone starts hunting down his loved ones, Kurt quickly learns his return may have set these events in motion! The fight soon comes to the Jean Grey School, but torn between two worlds - his family and the X-Men - who will Nightcrawler stand by? Then, struggling to adjust to life at the Jean Grey School, Nightcrawler heads out to locate a newly manifested mutant. But little does he know that the Crimson Pirates have their own nefarious designs on the mutant! Good thing Kurt loves fighting pirates!

Collecting: Nightcrawler 1-6

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

136 pages, Paperback

First published November 25, 2014

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

[Sean Gibson · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

Let’s be fair: the degree of difficulty in pulling off a successful solo series starring an X-Men character is somewhere between working the word “antidisestablishmentarianism” into casual conversation and getting me a prom date (did I spend the night of my senior prom in a lakeside condo eating pizza and watching Backdraft with an equally date-challenged man? Perhaps). Unlike the Avengers, which was borne out of the need for powerful individual characters to unite to take on even bigger threats, the X-Men were conceived, first and foremost, as a team, complementary pieces that added up to a greater sum than their proverbial individual parts.

Consequently, when they go it alone, it generally tends to be about as much fun as watching two sexually frustrated high schoolers watching Backdraft on prom night. With the exception of the Molson-swillin’, TimBit-eatin’, Y-Y-Zed groovin’ Wolverine—not originally an X-Man, it should be noted—I can’t think of a single X-character (and we’re not counting Cable here, people) who’s enjoyed sustained solo success. (Note that I say all of this as someone who got into comics because of the X-Men (X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga specifically—thanks, Bowman) and love them like I love Gavin’s creepy massages.)

It’s not hard to see why. Let’s just look at the five original X-Men and see what a typical solo adventure would be like for them outside of the confines of X-team shenanigans:

Cyclops: Wonder as the laser-eyed leader of the X-Men practices bouncing his eye beams off of inanimate objects while brooding, and then practices brooding while questioning himself!

Iceman: Behold as the youngest X-Man drizzles blueberry syrup onto his snowball hands and licks them for hours while making fart jokes!

Beast: Thrill as the blue-furred man of science quietly stares into a microscope and takes copious notes while uttering the occasional Shakespeare- or Kierkegaard-related bon mot!

Angel: Marvel as the debonair playboy whose only power is very bulky and conspicuous wings spends a lot of money to get bottle blondes with cup sizes twice as large as their IQs to ignore those nasty appendages and double up (and down) on him!

Marvel Girl: Gasp as the fiery-haired Jean Grey sits quietly while she mentally probes her housemates for gossip before growing bored and deciding to finally get around to reading The Joy Luck Club!

Ain’t exactly a murder’s row of exciting stories is it? (Notwithstanding the fact that I think I just overheard Lono on his phone, calling his local comic store to make sure they add the monthly adventures of the High-Flying Angel to his pull list. And, I’ll concede that the current Cyclops solo series isn’t exactly “Because You Demanded It—The End of Team America!” bad.)



And so, to Nightcrawler. Look, Claremont’s legacy is assured at this point, and I think we’re all in agreement that there’s not much he’s going to be able to do to burnish it…and this series certainly doesn’t.

I mean, it’s fine. Putting aside, for the moment, any thoughts or issues related to Mr. Wagner’s return from the dead, the swashbuckling, bamfing, brimstone-stinking elf is always a good time (though one does wonder, given his appearance and consistent stench, at the strange sexual proclivities of the super-powered women who have been goodly enough to allow him to bed them over the course of the years…where is the website for THOSE ladies??). There are some diverting moments here, fun sequences where Nightcrawler is tossing off one-liners while making clever use of his powers. And, the art is solid, if unspectacular.

That said, is it a necessary or compelling addition to the X-Men canon? Will it enjoy sustained success for hundreds of issues? Would I have read it if it hadn’t been on Marvel Unlimited? Nope (Chuck Testa).

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Nightcrawler. Like a lot. Like more than a lot. He's my most favorite X-character, ever. EVER. So you can imagine how excited I was to see that he was a) coming back to life and b) getting his own series. You can also imagine my disappointment when I read that series and found it to be just ok.

It's Claremont, you see. Don't get me wrong, his original run on the X-Men is fantastic, and I owe him big time for writing the first stories with Nightcrawler. And he still has a good sense of these characters, at least the ones he already had a good hand in. But Claremont's writing has never really evolved past the style he was using in those glory days. He still writes like it's the late 70s, early 80s. And while I can easily take, even enjoy, that sort of writing when it was written in the 70s and 80s, it's a little harder to swallow when I know it was written just last year.

It isn't just the writing style. The stories didn't exactly thrill me. I kind of got the impression that the longest storyline was designed specifically to write Amanda, Kurt's long-time girlfriend and also foster sister (so V.C. Andrews), offstage for the foreseeable future. Which I'm actually mostly ok with. I've always been kind of uncomfortable with that entire concept. No, Kurt and Amanda aren't blood relatives, but they were raised as siblings from birth. Incest is not the best, guys. But even though I can sympathize with what I think the impulse was, the execution was lacking. It didn't feel very well thought out to me.

I wanted so badly to love this, but it was not meant to be. At least there are some really cool Nightcrawler covers attached to the series.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nightcrawler's back from the dead! And Claremont is too! And his writing feels more like Excalibur then his uninteresting, muddy Neo-focused writing of X-Men: Revolution by Chris Claremont Omnibus. Yay! That's a great start!

Amanda's back! And we get the backstory about her and Kurt! Yay, that's great too!

And they grew up in a circus where everyone has mutant powers ... Oh, look, a pointless fight between these circus mutants and our heroes ... And that circus regularly performs in the town that drove Kurt out with pitchforks ... And they're OK with the mutant circus!? OK, that's weird ...

And I think there's a plot here, but it's pretty dull. Actually, the first arc (#1-4) has a pretty good finale involving Magda, but the three issues getting there were all over the place. And then ... it turns out the Neo are back for the last arc (#5-6) but it's just the Crimson Pirates, so we don't get all the baggage of everyone being Neos. But saving the new mutant from the Pirates just isn't the height of plot innovation.

And both arcs have a weird, unfinished feel to them.

I guess this is all OK, but it's really not crucial X-Men reading, which is a terrible thing to say about a book by Chris Claremont.

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Nightcrawler as a character, but these issues are disappointing and a real chore to get through.

[Becky Loader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting origin story. I have to talk this one over with my nephew!

[Joey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got myself a new Marvel favorite. A humble man of faith, dedicated selflessly to others; I LOVE IT!!! I know its not edgy, I know there isn't blood smeared across the pages and there is a (blissful to me) lack of the ever present superhero dark angst, but this to me is what good comics should be. Inspiring, full of hope and, dare I say it, without gore, sex and profanity to carry the load, reliant on plot and dialogue (who'd a thunk?)! Sure, Nightcrawler's innocence may prove to be commercially unproductive in the long run, but count me in for as long as it follows this vein....bamf...

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm glad to see Chris Claremont back on an X-Men book. The book totally feels like the days of his classic X-Men run. It's nice to see Nightcrawler back to his fun loving self and not the brooding mess he'd become.

[Lionel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read a few years ago that no X-Men should ever get a solo title (except Wolverine of course).... Well this is why. The two final issues are kind of good as a spin-off of Wolverine & the X-Men vol.1. But Kurt leading the show, it won't last.

[Joshua Q. · Rating 2 out of 5]

super disappointing. weak story, sketchy costumes, boring kurt representation and what was up with the scorpion lobster kid thing? real surprised with claremont.

[Kris Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

My kids love going to the library, and I enjoy taking them there. My local library system has an extensive graphic novel section, and I peek at it from time to time to see what they have. I was curious about how this series was when it came out, as I enjoy both Claremont and Nauck. Alas, there are so many books being pumped out at all times that it is impossible for me to keep on buying or reading them all. We live in an era where available content has outstripped both time and money for even the most lifeless loser. The library removes the barrier of money, so if I were willing to dedicate an evening or two I could finally answer the question about this book.

Chris Claremont is unjustly vilified by modern day comic fans as being overly wordy, having unnecessarily complex ongoing subplots, and too many stylistic ticks. While there is some merit to all of the above criticisms, make no bones about the fact that the man saved The X-Men from extinction as well as helped pave the way for the sophisticated adult fare that you find in comics today. Many of your favorite current writers would not be here if he didn't help expand the notion of how fully formed a comic book character could be. I will admit that my pet peeve with his writing is that he often overdevelops a character, but that is a discussion for another time. Right now I'm going to go into this book.

Claremont seems to have taken a razor blade to his writing, chopping off all manner of dialogue and captions to better suit modern day audiences. It works, and his writing is still meatier than many writers nowadays.

Nightcrawler is back from the dead. As someone who jumped off of The X-Men merry-go-round years ago, this doesn't surprise me. There have been so many deaths and resurrections during the history of the title that even the characters seem to yawn about it. This is a major problem. The death of Phoenix was a powerful story in its day because it showed the high stakes of being a superhero. In the decades since then it has become little more than a sales stunt, a gimmick with no real bearing on the story itself. No readers take comic book deaths seriously any more.

There are S P O I L E R S ahead. People's mileage may vary on the shelf life for the spoiler tag, but I use it regardless of age of the material.

Claremont does a good job at weaving several smaller stories into the prerequisite six issue arc. In the '80s there weren't “arcs” as they currently are, a story simply took as many or as a few issues as necessary. Nightcrawler (Kurt Wagner) is reunited with his longtime love interest, sorceress Amanda Sefton. He runs into a robot called Trimega, which can split into three different robots with powers of fire, water, and wind (the elements being a pet favorite of Claremont over the years). Claremont complicates things by bringing in Margali Szardos, who not so shockingly turns out to be the villain of the piece.

I don't know why the Beast has changed his appearance again, but I am thrilled to see the Grant Morrison era bastardization thrown out the window. Todd Nauck's artwork is decent enough. His action sequences and layout for story flow are excellent, but there are some panels where something seems off with the way people look. Art is subjective and your mileage may vary, this is just my two cents. This is a decent read, and I'm glad I finally found out what this series is about.

[Krzysztof Grabowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kurt Wagner zginął. Ożył, bo jak to zwykle bywa w świecie Marvela, bohaterowi nie odchodzą permanentnie (więc jestem spokojny o Wolverine’a, zresztą już wrócił niedawno). Powrót herosa nastąpił w serii Amazing X-men, a teraz włodarze z Marvela postanowili poświęcić niebieskoskórej postaci jej własną, osobną serię. Nie jest to pierwszy raz, aczkolwiek tym razem wyszło to naprawdę dobrze, choć nie obyło się bez zgrzytów. Tym bardziej, że za pióro do napisania historii o Nightcrawlerze zabrał się nie kto inny jak Pan Claremont. Legenda jeżeli chodzi o markę X-men. Oczekiwania urosły, choć nie do niebotycznych rozmiarów.

Początek jest klasyczny. Trening w programie symulacyjnym z Wolverine’m, gdyż Panowie bardzo się lubią i jest to relacja naprawdę świetna. Kurt musi sobie wiele spraw poukładać i znaleźć ponownie miejsce w całym tym rozgardiaszu. Odwiedza też niejaką Amandę, do której coś czuje i dziewczę nie pozostaje na to obojętne, bowiem mamy scenkę namiętnego pocałunku. Idylla nie trwa jednak zbyt długo, bo na miejsce schadzki trafia nowy przeciwnik o malowniczej ksywce „Trimega”. Zero charakteru, ale czego się spodziewać po narzędziu.

Motyw ataku nie jest znany, ale był on wymierzony zdecydowanie w Amandę, więc duet udaje się do domu dziewczyny, bowiem być może ma to związek z jej przeszłością. Przy czym jest to także dom Kurta, gdyż oboje dorastali w cyrku. Zresztą mamy tu stosowne retrospekcje. Haus, Gummi, Feuer czy wreszcie ich matka zastępcza, Margali. Są to postacie, które napisano nieźle, aczkolwiek są to tylko trzecioligowcy, więc nie ma fajerwerków i podejrzewa, że długo ich po tym występie nie zobaczymy. Intryga tu zarysowana jest dosyć prosta i w miarę postępu fabuły wychodzi na jaw, kto stoi za zamieszaniem. Troszeczkę szkoda, bo dostałem w sumie to czego oczekiwałem. Niemniej sposób działania złoczyńcy jest świetny. Zwłaszcza to jak wyeliminowano tutaj Storm i Beasta. Pomysł palce lizać. To tylko cztery z sześciu przypadających na ten album zeszytów. I nieco szkoda, że tak nie zostało.

Dalej mamy Kurta w roli mentora niejakiego Rico aka Scorpion Boy’a. Nazwa adekwatna do tego jak chłopak wygląda, aczkolwiek nowy uczeń ma w sobie jakiś przewidywalny, aczkolwiek potencjał. Razem ruszają ratować pewną dziewczynę, niejaką Ziggy, z łap członków grupy o malowniczej nazwie Crimson Pirates. Jest tu sporo walk, kilka fajnych pomysłów, ale sama historia jest o klasę gorsza od tego co dostaliśmy w pierwszej części tego tytułu. Brak tu tego polotu, świeżości co wcześniej.

Kreska Nauck'a jest dobra. Cieszy dbałość o szczegóły artysty. Całość to bardzo klasyczny Claremont, tylko że w nowoczesnych szatkach. Kto lubi przygody dawnych Uncanny X-men, ten znajdzie się tutaj jak w domu. No i bamfy rządzą. To są słodkie, małe nicponie. Niestety nie przesłania mi to faktu, iż ta druga historia jest znacznie słabsza od przygód z cyrkową trupą. Niemniej nadal widzę tkwiący w tym tytule potencjał.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reprints Nightcrawler (2) #1-6 (June 2014-November 2014). Nightcrawler is back from the dead and learning that what he considers home has gone through some changes. When he and Amanda Sefton are attacked by a robot creature called Trimega, Kurt and Amanda journey back into their past and the trip could cost them dearly. Plus, Nightcrawler finds himself a new teacher at Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, but all his years as an X-Man might not have prepared him for facing students.

Written by Chris Claremont, Nightcrawler Volume 1: Homecoming is an X-Men spin-off Marvel Comics title. The collection features art by Todd Nauck.

Nightcrawler was my favorite X-Man of the “new X-Men”, and Chris Claremont was my favorite writer of the character. When Nightcrawler went to Excalibur, I followed him to Excalibur…having the “furry blue elf” back after the character was killed off and having it written by Claremont was a gift…but also feels odd.

Claremont’s X-Men were serious, but they also were fun. The characters were real family and much of the comics were infighting and relationships just as much as battling villains. Over the years, the X-Men have morphed (sometimes at Claremont’s hands), but since Claremont left the X-Men, it feels really alien to his characters.

Nightcrawler feels like Claremont’s writing dropped in this alternate world. It does help that the character feels a bit like an alien among people he used to know, but it doesn’t fit tonally with the other X-Men series from the period. The X-Men and the X-Men series are dark, but this comic feels light. I like that aspect, but it doesn’t feel really connected to the Marvel Universe in that sense.

The first half of the story involves a visit to Nightcrawler’s “mother” Margali Szardos and kind of wraps up aspects of Nightcrawler’s death (with another quasi-death). It is so-so and dominated by a really dull and generic villain named Trimega which is like an even less interesting Sentinel. The second half is more in the Nightcrawler vein in that Nightcrawler is trying to navigate his new position, befriending another mutant whose power disfigures him (Rico), and facing very Chris Claremont and Excalibur style “space pirates” to save a young mutant…it is more where the series should go.

The X-Men in this period were all over the place and frankly not very likeable. It was when I quit reading, but I did dip back for Nightcrawler which did have a classic feel with Nauck’s art even mimicking Davis and Byrne. Like with all comics nowadays, you have to read them with a bittersweet approach because they always end up cancelled and this allows you never to truly to attach to them…and solo titles are the worst in this situation. Nightcrawler 1: Homecoming was followed by Nightcrawler 2: Reborn.

[Victor Catano · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite X-Man is back!

I've always loved Nightcrawler, and he was always my favorite from the Claremont run back in the 80's. And now he's got his own series! Hooray!

However, like every other X-Man older than 12 issues, Kurt Wagner has a backstory that is now twisted and retconned beyond belief. You'll need to keep the X-Men wiki open while you read this. There's a line in here about how death doesn't seem to ever be the end for the X-Men, which is funny because it's true. (Apparently in the years since I stopped reading X-Men, Nightcrawler died, went to heaven, and then fought his way out for... reasons.)

The art is beautiful, the action scenes are dynamic, but the stakes feel kind of low. SO MUCH backstory knowledge is required to even start to make sense of the plot. There are betrayals that should feel weighty but because I only met the character 5 pages ago, they don't mean anything to me. The story gets more involving toward the end, when Kurt becomes a teacher at the Jean Grey School (Wait, what happened to Professor X? Oh well, back to the wiki.) and starts to teach a group of young mutants how to find their place in the world.

This should really be 3.5 stars, but because I love the character so much I'm rounding up instead of down.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title: Homecoming
Author: Chris Claremont
Series: Nightcrawler, 1
Format: ebook
Length: 136 pages
Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis: Nightcrawler is back! Newly returned from the afterlife, Kurt Wagner is determined not to waste his new lease on life. But when someone starts hunting down his loved ones, Kurt quickly learns his return may have set these events in motion! The fight soon comes to the Jean Grey School, but torn between two worlds -- his family and the X-Men -- who will Nightcrawler stand by? Then, struggling to adjust to life at the Jean Grey School, Nightcrawler heads out to locate a newly manifested mutant. But little does he know that the Crimson Pirates have their own nefarious designs on the mutant! Good thing Kurt loves fighting pirates!

Favourite character: NIGHTCRAWLER, MR. KURT WAGNER
Least favourite character: EVERYONE WHO TRIED TO HURT MY BABY (but really Amanda)

Mini-review: So Nightcrawler is my favourite superhero. Like, ever. And I enjoyed this, I loved him BAMFs and his relationships with Storm and Rachel. I wasn't a fan of his relationship with Amanda, or their foster mother, even if it was interesting to see baby Kurt growing up.

[Villain E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chris Claremont returns to the X-Men with this Nightcrawler solo book. It has all of the positives and negatives that usually come along with Claremont's writing. I appreciate that he always embraces the changes which have happened with the charcters while still keeping with the history he knows.

Nightcrawler has returned from the dead. So he goes to visit his on-again-off-again girlfriend Amanda Sefton, which leads him to his old circus and his adoptive mother, Margali Szardos. There's some over-the-top superhero-y stuff resulting in an open-ended ending. Then Nightcrawler goes on a discovery-of-a-new-mutant mission, taking the time to bond with a young student with atypical morphology.

It's Clatemont so it's strong in character and theme, wordy and corny in dialogue.

[C · Rating 2 out of 5]

Continuing the great X-read of 2017/18...

2.5 stars. This is Claremont at his worst and (almost) at his best. It really is pure Claremont and I wanted so badly to love it for his past work (and it is not nearly as bad as some of his return to the X-Men work) but I just couldn't. The Amanda Sefton story was just full of cliché's and unfortunate tropes and while it has its moments, I just wanted it to end. That said, I did feel like the story picked up a good bit once Nightcrawler started at Wolvie's school, so I have hopes that the series will get better (though I think it only lasted for one more volume after this?)

[Stephanie Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a Nightcrawler fan, of course I had to get this the moment it came out. And I've now re-read it because, again, I adore Nightcrawler. Although it feels very much like a standard series introduction (here's all the characters and plot points you need to know, all info dumped), the story is fun and I did not regret the re-read. I think the most important part for me is the gorgeous artwork. Personally, I find that the art can make or break the story, no matter how good the writing is - if it's not to my liking, it's a distraction. There are pages in this graphic novel that I would happily display on my office wall beside my other pictures of Nightcrawler.

[Gayle · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Dee’s laughter seeps into my gums like salt water. . . “ What does this even mean?

Creative writing 101: Assignment—describe something using all five senses. What does laughter feel like? If you could taste Dee’s laughter, how might it taste?

Publisher: Assignment—increase the word count of the manuscript. Add words such as phrases or adjectives that provide no value to the story or understanding of the story but increase pointlessly the number of pages.

Author: Assignment—try and sound pompous and self important.

[Tim B · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great follow on to the Amazing X-Men run. Claremont is back and writing with a touch of the zaniness we saw in Excalibur (Rachel and Kurt even talk about Excalibur in the book). There is so much to enjoy here: old friendships, old flames, new world, new students, and learning to live soulless. Wonderful read, even though Trimega was a blasé bad guy....

[Fatima · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Chris Claremont and he's great when he's writing his favorite characters. Claremont's Nightcrawler showcases the different aspects of the elf's personality and I really appreciate the depth of the character.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nightcrawler is learning to cope with being alive again, and all the changes that have happened since he died. He catches up with his love Amanda, whose life is in danger.

This is a lovely character piece of Nightcrawler, and the pain of his choice of leaving heaven. A very good read.

[Jaime · Rating 5 out of 5]

The portrayal of Kurt and Wolverine's friendship in this made me cry. Also I much prefer this version of his origin story to the one in X-Men origins!

[Mikey The Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This ones all about that art! Amazing! The story is light hearted and it’s absolutely just s chill experience. The art might make any comic book fan even read through it a second time!

[Paxton Holley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nightcrawler is back from the dead and in his own title! Pretty good title. Fun and adventuresome. Reminded me a bit of his old 1986 mini-series which was also written by Claremont.

[Neal · Rating 1 out of 5]

I grew up on Claremont and Nightcrawler was always one of my favorites but this was just a little too cornball. The art didn’t suit the story, which felt very 70s.

[Dannie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again, an absolute delight. I've always wanted to see more of Nightcrawler in the classroom and I got my wish. Have I mentioned how much I love the BAMF's?

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this compilation was hurt by the fact that it was all about one character and didn’t really start with the origin story. Still fun, but not my fave

[Elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75/5. Was fine. Liked the second half more than the first. Art was cool.

[Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the art style

[Lindsey.parks · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nah.