X-Men: Mutant Massacre

Uncanny X-Men (1963) #210-213

by Chris Claremont, Walter Simonson, Louise Simonson

The vicious Marauders have been employed to wipe out the underground mutant community known as the Morlocks, whose only hope of salvation rests in the hands of the X-Men. Collects Uncanny X-Men #210-213, X-Factor #9-11, New Mutants #46, Thor #373-374, and Power Pack #27.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, X Men, Marvel, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

256 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1996

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

[Nicolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mutant Massacre was the first of crossover events that occurred in the X-Men line of titles annually. It started as a sales initiative to push sales of its books during traditionally sluggish months.

The storyline has several key moments, like the X-Men & Marauders slugfest, scores of mutant death, Psylocke’s debut with the X-Men and the first Wolverine and Sabretooth all out brawl. It has a great artistic line-up, featuring contributions from John Romita, Jr., Walter Simonson, Alan Davis and Sal Buscema. It had a lot going for it, but it was two issues of a mainstream Marvel book that was folded into the event that I remember fondly.

Appreciating these two issues of Thor require reading it in context with the other titles of the crossover since it sets up the situation Thor finds himself involved. The first issue starts with Thor taking time off from Asgard to re-establish a human identity as a construction worker. The story takes on a domestic tone with Thor spending the night with his foreman’s family and just doing household tasks like cleaning dishes and telling a nighttime story to his host’s children. This is a Thor that is down to earth it is almost ungodly.

He gets involved in Mutant Massacre when his frog friends from an earlier adventure alert him to a pitched battle down in the sewers of New York. He sets off to see what he can do to help.
This is just one of many stories that spring out from this storyline and this is the one that has impressed on me the most. I admit I am a big fan of Simonson’s Thor and perhaps that shaped my preference and fondness for these chapters of the crossover. But Simonson has really done a good job and giving the Thunder God a human heart.

Simonson has done much to move the character beyond its initial need to learn humility within the frail shell of Donald Blake. He has already proven he learned his lesson when the enchantment was removed by Odin. But still he saw the need to be with the people he protects in Midgard by assuming a civilian identity. It was really moving when he gave a Viking funeral to the fallen Morlocks, assuring them of a better afterlife than the downtrodden ones they had in life. Thor has learned empathize with the people of MIdgard.

These two chapters really make this collected edition a meaningful read for me.

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

First mutant crossover ever and still one of the best ones, a "death & despair" storyline changing the squad rooster (almost untouched since Wein's deadly origin of the new international X-Men) into the badass "X-Girls" one, the fall of Angel, the arrive of Psylocke and Dazzler, Wolvie vs Sabretooth first clawfest fights and much more.
Sadly the Power Pack/X-Factor issues aged not much well at all.

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

By the mid-1980s, X-Men had become significantly darker. This doesn’t always necessarily mean more mature, but one can tell that head writer Chris Claremont intended for his book of mutants to be for adults. By the time of the Mutant Massacre crossover this couldn’t have been clearer. It’s violent with so much outright murder, full of complex moral choices in which beloved superheroes are forced to kill, and probably upended the status quo more than any other event had before.

It’s technically the first X-Men crossover, though it was more indirect than modern crossovers with their “to be continued in ___” (the X-Men and the spinoff team X-Factor didn’t actually meet). The year before, there had been crossovers with Secret Wars II, and there was Secret Wars before that, but this felt different. Not as cosmic, but actually it felt more important.

When rereading it today, it can feel all over the place. There are a lot of different artists, and John Romita Jr. had a good start but the climactic first fight between Wolverine and Sabretooth was illustrated by Rick Leonardi. The X-Factor chapters by Walter Simonson—starting his legendary run—are absolutely beautiful. There are a lot of other Marvel titles thrown in as well, there was Thor which was written by Mr. Simonson, and Power Pack which had the same writer as X-Factor: Louise Simonson. Daredevil as well, for some reason. And a single New Mutants issue.

When just reading the Uncanny X-Men, for example, or only X-Factor, it could still feel like a full enough story. That was probably the intention at the time, before comic readers became such completists. Speaking from just the X-Men point-of-view, it’s remarkable how much the stakes felt higher in those days because the X-Men could get defeated by the likes of the Marauders, who were hardly a world-ending threat. In fact, the X-Men unequivocally lose. The Marauders, working for Mr. Sinister but we didn’t know that yet, pretty much completely succeed in killing off the majority of the poor homeless Morlocks living underground. And even those Marauders who die end up cloned, yet that’s later. In the end, there’s no catharsis with the good guys triumphantly saving the day. Instead, a realistic tragedy as they save merely a handful of lives.

The biggest legacy of the Mutant Massacre was the change of the lineup of the X-Men team. Before that, the changes were slow over the course of years, such as Banshee retiring and the addition of Kitty Pryde and Rogue. After this, Nightcrawler and Kitty were out of commission (leading to the creation of the Excalibur team soon after), and Colossus too. Psylocke then joins the team. And Longshot, although he doesn’t even show up here which seems to be a bit of a continuity error. Lastly, Dazzler. Suffice to say, it was a very different team afterwards. Over in X-Factor, by the way, Angel’s injuries led him to becoming Archangel in the excellent forthcoming Apocalypse storyline.

In the following year, they’d do the Fall of the Mutants event which wasn’t really a crossover. Not until Inferno was there a multi-part chaptered crossover in the way we’d recognize it today. It’s certainly become an overblown annual tradition, and much has been written already about event fatigue with 21st century superhero comics. The Mutant Massacre was before all that, and stands on its own merits as an important highlight of the 1980s-era X-Men.

[Himanshu Karmacharya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although Chris Claremont's writing can seem verbose, I had always enjoyed it (In Days of the Future Past, God Loves Man Kills), but Mutant Massacre is where I couldn't stand it at all. Neither could I stand the writing style of the other writers. Mutant Massacre, overall, feels like an overwritten comic book event that ties on to way too many comic books and characters than it really should.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0 stars. I remember reading these when they first came out in the 80's so it has been a while. Good solid story about a group of evil mutants (including Wolverine's nemesis Sabretooth) hired to kill a group of underground mutants called the Morlocks. Whole plot orchestrated by one of my favorite villains growing up, Mr. Sinister.

[Magnus · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is VERY uneven. The best are the X-Men parts, all the others are either too simplistic (Power Pack) or too convoluted (X-Force). I'm disappointed tbh

[Shane Stanis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chrises on Infinite Earths: THIS. IS. BLOOMINGDALES. and Whatever Apocalypse Wants, Apocalypse Gets

This crossover exists amidst other story lines in all the comics it touches. This both plays into the nostalgia of 80s pick-up-random-comics-at-the-grocery-store style jump in & catch up fast storytelling, and leaves the story to feel a bit unfinished.

Read for a lot of dead mutants and an x-crossover that passes through Simonson’s Thor

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apparently the below wasn’t enough, I had to write several more words. The comparison between the two reviews paint at an interesting evolution.

https://aedontor.blogspot.com/2020/08...

Older review:

I was pretty interested in reading this again. I had heard many people cite it as an important event for them in their comic readings since I had read it the first time. When I read it, I was... underwhelmed isn't the right word... It just seemed to need some polish. But my experience is far removed from when it released. The people who spoke of its impact were probably far more connected with it happening in the moment.

This story created something of a monster for either good or bad. The big X-Men crossover events would become a staple of the X-Titles after this. Some people would say this led to the eventual downfall of the line. Others would say these are some of the best ways to push the epic. I personally think the events are often good for the short term, potentially bad for the long term. When you have a collision of titles it can hijack the momentum of an individual series. Also forcing someone who isn't reading a line to suddenly pick up and buy another book can be devastating either financially or it can pull someone entirely out of the story.

As this was the first big go at a crossover event it really suffered from inexperience. And the choices of titles to include were a bit odd. Not perhaps when you saw the writers names, but when you saw the character list. Most notably was the inclusion of Thor in these events. You could pull him out and replace his participation with just about any other character and it wouldn't make much difference. And he is far from an intuitive pick. However, the writer is a fellow by the name of Walt Simonson. X-Factor is written by Louise Simonson. And Power Pack is written by Louise Simonson. Claremont, the creator of the event, was the only person on the writing staff that didn't share the same bed.

Now, if this book works right, it kicks you in the gut. My initial read of this, I don't remember any gut-kicking. It occurred a little bit more so on this read through. The thing that was necessary which the writer's bypassed was for more important Morlocks to die. That sounds heartless, but it is much harder to grasp the consequences when you don't know the slain. They also were tempered on the violence and mayhem, probably by the Comic Code thingie. I am not saying I desire that this book be showing blood and guts. But they are showing the characters reacting to blood and guts of their friends and family and are hoping the reader can understand it without seeing it. That is a hard road to walk.

If you don't know who Power Pack is, it is a group of children super heroes. Like say ages 5-10... maybe. Now can you think of a better group to include in a story about the senseless murders of a hundred or so people than a group of children? I don't know what the audience was for that book. I have actually heard good things about it, and will shyly admit that the small amounts I have witnessed them, they've been more interesting and dynamic than I'd expect. But they would have been one of my last picks to throw into the sewers of Manhattan while a troop of psychopaths marched through them and killed everyone they could. However the Power Pack was a reason that the book is able to execute a bit of a kick. Their innocence is exactly what the reader needs to see the massacre through. They also have preconstructed connections to the Morlocks. Leech and Artie also served a similar role for sympathy, being the eyes and the helplessness of the reader. Then again Leech and Artie make everything better.

It would be interesting to hear if Claremont felt Watchmen at all affected this story. This is not to say they share similar themes. But it is definitely a turning in the X-Men books. All I could find via the all-knowing wikipedia was Claremont had grown tired of the Morlock underground society idea so he wanted to kill 'em off. Which is odd, because the survivors just return right back to the sewers, another reason the crossover doesn't feel it has a lasting effect. (It is also a funny stepping point for a conversation on a writer's moral obligations to their creations but that's probably just my mad mind, heh.)

All in all it is a worthwhile story, if not stupendous in its execution. It is an interesting study in trying to draw sympathy and emotional connection out of a reader. And the dos and don'ts of a crossover event.

[Richard Schaefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A satisfyingly grim X-Men crossover, the repercussions of which directly or indirectly influenced storylines in the X titles for years to come. The Morlocks are slaughtered en masse by the Marauders, and the X-Men, X-Factor, New Mutants, Thor, and (ugh) Power Pack are all involved. The story is dark and has real stakes, and though the Marauders aren’t necessarily the most interesting characters in their own right (aside from their most recognizable member, Sabertooth), their vile nature and mission is never in doubt. JRJR’s art in X-Men continues to grow on me, and Louise Simonson’s writing on X-Factor and (ugh) Power Pack has hit its stride, or maybe I’ve hit my stride in reading it. She’s not as good as Claremont here, but maybe part of that is because X-Factor aren’t the most interesting characters to me. I prefer the X-Men themselves. This sets the template for future X-Men crossover events, but is better than some of them because, once again, the sense of danger feels real. I like my X titles grim and angsty, and this volume delivers.

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

An important collection as it is the first major X-men crossover event, but not a very enjoyable event.

Many, MANY, mutants die, as implied by the title, and the tensions between mutant factions builds to a crescendo, testing individual allegiances. The political landscape of the X-men universe is broadened, but only just slightly.

The best parts are the all-out battle scenes, including, what I think is, the first Wolverine vs. Sabertooth confrontation. However, the artwork is not very clean or creative with very typical, 80's style panels and transitions, so even though the battles could have been epic, they are held back and contained too much by the artwork.

The dialogue isn't too bad, but at times it feels forced; there is a lot of reiteration and repetition as the writers are trying to tell a story simultaneously across several titles and so they stick strictly to an episodic formula.... Which is too bad because all that page space that is used to establish plot points again and again could have been used for character development. Character development is what is most lacking in this volume.

Overall, I'm surprised how this crossover has stood up to the test of time, it doesn't feel too dated, other than the costumes and a few slang terms. It's a very slow-moving collection with very little suspenseful action, and so I found it slightly boring, but still worth picking up and slugging through it.

3.5/5

[Adam Stone · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first megacrossover of the X-books delivers a ton of death, radical shifts in storylines, and action. If you haven't been reading the X-Men, New Mutants, X-Factor, and Power Pack, this is Not the place to start. If you're only reading one or two of the titles, then at least a third of this book is going to be very confusing as ever issue is pretty much in media res from a previous storyline. The action is dizzying and feels, sometimes, like it's being told slightly out of order across issues. There are also way too many characters to keep track of if you weren't already keeping track of them in their various titles, plus the Thor book.

It is rewarding if you have been keeping track of everything, though. There are character debuts, and newish characters finally getting fleshed out. The tone switches weirdly from time to time, as one of the titles in this collection is Power Pack, a group of elementary school aged powered kids who've dealt with The Morlocks before. Having them show up and battling a group of villains who've brutally murdered thousands of Morlocks before they arrive, and who've also taken down some of the X-Men, seems a bit odd. There's no way The Power Pack is strong enough to take on this level of villains, and yet...it happens right before an X-Men issue where the characters who get outbattled by first graders then nearly kill Wolverine. It's very odd.

I recommend this highly to X-fans who've read much of the material that leads into this, but I do Not recommend this to those who aren't already invested in 80s X-Men. This is an absolutely terrible jumping on point.

[Nick LeBlanc · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's easy to see why these Claremont runs blew people's socks off in the early 80s. It's also undeniable how influential they were over the next two decades. I really love the 80s color palettes and the penciling style, it reminds me of the short newspaper soap opera comics--which I think it works particularly well for the X-Men. BUT...too many characters.

Yes, I know it's a crossover event--which I admittedly typically avoid. But, this one is especially overstuffed. Granted, it picks some great characters to throw together--and in ways we haven't seen since. But, Daredevil, Thor, all of the X-Men/Factor arrangements and everyone else just work a bit better when left to their own devices and not shoehorned into a repeating series of tunnels. Also, this story features some of the most over-stuffed writing of Claremont's X-Men work, a quality that I think works generally more frequently than it doesn't. But here it just isn't the best, especially combined with the Thor issues.

The grand scale story is appropriately horrifying and violent and worthy of a crossover-type story. But maybe these type of runs just aren't my thing. I never like crossovers, no matter how hard I try. Not even the "good" ones.

[Clint Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the sharpest writing ever seen in Marvel comics. The writers, most notably Chris Claremont, juggle dozens of characters across several storylines in telling a story of mutants under siege by humans and other mutants bent on wiping them out. It's tough to keep up with all of it but the presentation of this collection is fantastic and the art is top shelf. Many of these panels are downright gorgeous.

The biggest bummer is that the story doesn't have anything resembling an ending. If you're expecting a dramatic climax, you'll be disappointed, as I was. When you read a massive comic event series you expect a few things: most notably important character deaths and a bit of closure but neither of those is found here.

Great adventure though with some of Marvel's best characters, including Thor, whose two stories I thought were the highlight of the entire collection!

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chris Claremont continues to shine here. However, the underlying story, the massacre of the outcast Morlocks, is a horrifying event that feels like gratuitous violence without enough exploration of both why something like this could happen and what it means. At its heart, this is the story of a genocide of people that live on the fringes of society. Genocide is too often used in the real world as a means of scapegoating an outside group to consolidate power into the hands of a corrupt ruling class. However, there is only vague hints at who might be responsible for this and why, leaving the reader disgusted by the violence while confused at the purpose which ultimately feels like a cheap manipulation .

[Kristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oof, was this a slog. Claremont gets a bit of criticism over his verbose style(Sometimes rightly, sometimes not) but he ain't got nothing on Louise Simonson. Simonson tries for serious drama but never rises above tortured soap opera dialogue. Especially bad is Scott'and Warren's pathetic pining over Jean Grey when one's got a wife and kid and they've both been lying to Jean about it.

The Massacre itself lacks emotional weight and that's because its 200 pages of separate super teams going in and out of tunnels and always juuust missing each other--like a Scooby Doo chase scene.

[Lukasz Dygon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this before starting with The Excalibur. It was recommended as a primer for understanding the events preceding the formation of the Excalibur.

I have to say, while interesting enough to keep me reading, it has a habit of skipping around to the point the story is a bit incoherent. The same characters fight other characters in a battle to death, surviving, rinse and repeat. It seems to me that the storyline is rather weak. The suspense is gripping. Fun but the medley of detail is forgettable. There are comic series from this era that do this better.

[Myrmidon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Credo di essere una delle mosche bianche a cui questa storyline non ha fatto impazzire.
Non è che sia brutta, probabilmente mi aspettavo solo qualcosa di diverso.
Va certamente riconosciuto che "Massacro Mutante" è stato il primo crossover sviluppatosi attraverso tutte le testate a tema "X-Men/Mutanti" (e non solo, in questo caso), una tradizione che poi sarebbe continuata a lungo.
Insomma, la trama non è malaccio, ma non l'annovero tra le mie preferite.

[Budd · Rating 4 out of 5]

the first crossover, it was pretty good. My favorite panel is Colossus breaking the marauders neck. seems overly brutal, but really shows the weightiness of the situation and the book. most of the massacre takes place off panel, probably a product of the times, but you get a feeling for it through the characters.

[Michael Keskeys · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first X-Men crossover event is one of the best. A little disjointed at times due to no communication between the writers of the different books in the series but nonetheless a dark tale that examines the need for violence and how far do you go in retaliation when violence and tragedy is met upon you?

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

The actual story contained within the Uncanny X-Men portion is truly fantastic, unfortunately it gets bogged down with typical comic book event issues featuring some very boring Thor issues and a weird as hell Power Pack interlude.

Had the fat been trimmed and it been more focused it would have been one of the best.

[Diamond Feit · Rating 4 out of 5]

only thing wrong here is the book ends without closure: we never get into why the massacre took place or the fallout from it. also the Power Pack/Thor stuff feels way out of left field for what should be a mutant-led story.

[Rav Sav · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic.

[Pawan Rai · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series has some great moments in it, but a lot of the issues feel like filler where characters are catching up with what happened in the last issue.

[Bruce Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bem mediano

[Lightwhisper · Rating 5 out of 5]

An ode to the friends I wished I had back in the 90's, when I saw them on tv and they only thought of helping, without hurting anyone. Good times. Great story.

[Lee Gannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read as part of Hachette's The Official Marvel Graphic Novel Collection volumes 211-212 X-Men: Mutant Massacre Part One and Two

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series truly pulled me into comics. A perfect read for a high school freshman -- which is when I first read it.

[Henry Manan · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s good issues in this, I just don’t like how dragged out or repetitive these older storylines get. Also didn’t end very definitively for me.

[Kevruzz · Rating 4 out of 5]

X-MEN: MUTANT MASSACRE is the first major crossover event after X-Men branched out into multiple spin-off titles (New Mutants & X-Factor). Also along for the ride is Thor and the underage upstarts of Power Pack. It's a surprise then that this story doesn't have more going on.

The 11-issue trade has no shortage of action, and all of it is well-staged by the various artists involved. The writers also have fun showing the same events from different perspectives in each title. The new mercenary mutants the Marauders are the most effectively intimidating bad guys that the series has seen in awhile, the growing number of characters remains consistent, as there are plenty of moments for our heroes to ruminate on the devastation before them while continuing to deal with their own demons (sometimes literally).

What the story lacks, however, is a coherent beginning, middle, and end, as well as a degree of forward momentum. This is probably to be expected, as the "Mutant Massacre" title seems to have come in after the fact, as well as the exact issues that comprise the story and the ideal reading order.

Most of the crucial action is in the first half, while the rest feels strangely repetitive; various X-teams and related heroes venture into the ravaged Morlock tunnels, engage the Marauders once or twice, round up whatever survivors they can, and return to their home bases to regroup and lick their wounds, rinse, lather, repeat.

Almost every title enters the fray with several plates already spinning, with a number of scenes and tertiary characters that set up for later (most notably Apocalypse, who pops in randomly to recruit his Horsemen). The various factions of mutants still remain largely segregated, which surprised the hell out of me, as I would've expected this story to be the perfect time for the current X-Men roster to finally run into the newly reformed original team now comprising X-Factor.

All in all, MUTANT MASSACRE is still a fun ride, and essential for X-completists, as the events within lead to some long-term repercussions as well as a number of characters stepping into new roles in the larger story.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

X-Men - Mutant Massacre is a Marvel comics crossover published in 1986 featuring the X-Men, X-Factor, Power Pack, Daredevil and Thor. The (11) part story arc focuses on the actions and fallout of the Marauders’ attack on the Morlocks, a group of ostracized mutants living in the tunnels under New York City. Writers Chris Claremont, along with Louise and Walter Simonson, weave a loosely connected plotline between the various titles. The primary focus are the X-Books, specifically Uncanny X-men and X-Factor. These characters suffer the most consequences, and the series sets up future crossovers (e.g. Fall of the Mutants) and roster changes to both teams.

The event itself is decidedly non-linear; Marvel published a flow chart to guide readers through the series. The trade paperback follows the unofficial reading order and does an admirable job of keeping things moving. The problem is there isn’t enough narrative substance to support a story of this size. Similar to other Marvel crossovers of the time (e.g. Secret Wars), Massacre throws popular characters together under mysterious circumstances and has them do battle without pausing to ask why. The Marauders attack without provocation, and their motivations remain ambiguous throughout the story. Our heroes spend most of the series reacting to the chaos. There are a number of battles, most notably between fan favorites Sabretooth and Wolverine. Sabretooth also does battle with the New Mutants, Power Pack and Thor, the latter of which serves as deus ex machina for the proceedings.

The strongest entries are Claremont’s X-Men and Simonson’s Thor. Both writers were at the top of the game and could weather the storm. The artwork of Sal Buscema and John Romita Jr. also deserve special mention. That said, the series remains a product of the times and should be read with measured expectations. It’s fast, frenetic and likely to leave you confused (and unsatisfied).