Uncanny X-Men by Kieron Gillen: The Complete Collection, Vol. 1

Uncanny X-Men by Kieron Gillen: The Complete Collection

by Kieron Gillen, Daniel Acuña (Illustrator), Ron Garney (Illustrator)

Kieron Gillen steers the X-Men through "Fear Itself", "Schism" and "Regenesis"! Beast and Abigail Brand must save the alien-monitoring S.W.O.R.D. agency when Henry Peter Gyrich stages a coup! And down on Earth, how will the X-Men explain themselves when the public learns that Magneto has joined the team? Making matters worse, a Breakworld warship arrives on a vengeance-filled mission - and when the Juggernaut is empowered by Asgardian black magic, he becomes more unstoppable than ever! Then, after the X-Men are torn in two, Cyclops leads a new "Extinction Team" of powerhouse heavyhitters -including Storm, Emma Frost, Namor, Colossus, Magik and Magneto! And it's not moment too soon, as world-ending threats are mounting quickly - including Mister Sinister harnessing the power of a Dreaming Celestial! S.W.O.R.D. 1-5; UNCANNY X-MEN (1981) 534.1, 535-544; REGENESIS 1; UNCANNY X-MEN (2011) 1-3

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

504 pages, Paperback

Published February 19, 2019

About the author

Kieron Gillen is a comic book writer and former media journalist.

Reviews

[Artemy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is probably more for Kieron Gillen fans than X-Men fans, but I really enjoyed this collection. The opening SWORD mini is his first proper Marvel series and is absolutely delightful, focusing on Agent Brand, her romantic relationship with Hank McCoy and various alien-related space station shenanigans. The writing is a bit stiff here, but the character work and the dialogues are all unmistakably Gillen-y and tons of fun. The first proper arc of Uncanny (Breaking Point) is really good too, it follows up on the Breakworld stuff Whedon did in his final arc of Astonishing X-Men. Then it gets a bit more complicated when the series consecutively ties in with Fear Itself, Schism and Regenesis, and while Fear Itself arc is still more or less accessible for those who haven't read the rest of the event, the Regenesis stuff can really confuse those who haven't read Schism prior to this. Marvel does the best they can by providing short summaries every time some major events happen elsewhere, so I'd advise to just read those and go with it, pretty much like with any other superhero comic. The final three issues are from the renumbered relaunch and are about the team's fight with Mister Sinister, which is arguably the weakest arc in the collection but still quite fun. Overall, this might not be Kieron Gillen's strongest Marvel material (not surprising considering it's also some of his earliest), but to those who appreciate his writing style and character work there is still a lot to enjoy in this hefty collection.

[RG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread this and actually enjoyed it much more the second time

[Jason O'Hagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Edward Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was nice re-reading these, and I think the SWORD story was the first time for me.

[Mariano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gillen never disappoints. What a fun read! The Sword miniseries is so amazing that now I need a Sword series with that tone. Even the Fear Itself tie-ins are readable! And we have some Pacheco goodness ♥️

[Ronan The Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sword Vol. 1 - 3.75

This was fun! It felt like a good animated series, with some unexpected lines and a decent plot. Abigail Brand is front and center trying to juggle her SWORD duties despite subterfuge, and I was happy to see Beast get so much page time, and them together is cute. I like the character voices, they’re written with real personality and some really whacky stuff goes down. Its lighthearted and fun tone was appreciated. The art is clean, colorful, and I rather enjoyed it. This is an animated show I would watch.

Fear Itself Tie-in - 3.5

I almost skipped these because Fear Itself was utterly forgettable and Greg Land does the art, but I decided to read it anyway and was pleasantly surprised! It’s actually not bad, has real repercussion for the X-Men, and while I detest Land’s art, I can admit, here it was tolerable. The scenes with Colossus and Juggernaut were actually cool at times.

Uncanny X-Men issues - 4+

As soon as Gillen takes over, it is immediately better than Fraction’s run (sorry Matt! I like a lot of your other work!). It’s written with much more creative flair and not as expository, and just didn’t feel as boring. The art is much improved (not as sorry Greg), and the story is much more engaging. There’s a continuation off of Whedon’s Astonishing X-Men that I enjoyed, a Sinister arc that was great too. Colossus has some character development, and the team itself is an interesting grouping. This was a lot of fun too read, and while I really need a level of complexity or emotional tug for a 5-star rating, as far as “conventional” superhero comics, it doesn’t get much better than this.

I thoroughly enjoyed every issue, and would highly recommend this collection to any fan of the X-Men. On to Vol. 2!

[Nate]

As with all these complete collections, there’s a lot happening here. And I would say that reading this book requires you to read a few outside books to fully appreciate it. Matt Fraction’s Uncanny run, for one, as well as Fear Itself and Schism. Fraction’s run informs most of Gillen’s, while issues 540-543 tie in to Fear and the issues after that directly follow Schism. Such is superhero comics I suppose, but even with all the complicated continuity I really enjoyed this collection.

It opens with the S.W.O.R.D. miniseries which I legitimately loved. A fun and funny romp starring Abigail Brand and her beau, Beast, taking down a threat from inside the organization. Gillen’s dialogue is snappy and snarky, setting he tone for his proper X-Men run. Like I said, the rest of the book is not the most cohesive, but Cyclops becoming more extreme in his leadership is the through-line. His development since Morrison’s run has been fascinating to see. Other characters that stand out are Kitty Pryde (finally back to normal!), Namor (wonderfully prideful and dickish), and Dr. Nemesis (need I say more). I also like what Gillen does with Hope here. She has actual purpose following Messiah Complex and Second Coming, fitting nicely on the team. And Gillen’s Sinister is amazingly campy here. I hope he pops up again because he steals every scene he’s in (though he only appears in the final four issues).

Despite being interrupted by events, these comics are smartly written, engaging, and creative, with tangible character growth for much of the cast. This is pretty great era for X comics.

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains:

The S.W.O.R.D. mini-series, which is good, but isn't particularly an X-Men book.

Breaking Point, which is a follow-up to Whedon's Breakworld story. I actually quite liked this one.

The Fear Itself tie-in, which is about as ok as any of those tie-ins are. Particularly weird panel work and Land's bizarre art choices.

The ReGenesis issue, where everyone picks teams in some truly bizarre, out-of-character ways.

The first post-schism Uncanny storyline, with Sinister and tons of plot holes.

It's an ok collection.

[Matthew Ledrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uncanny X-Men (2012) (Single Issues) (#1): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (2012) (Single Issues) (#2): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (2012) (Single Issues) (#3): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#534.1): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#535): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#536): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#537): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#538): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#539): 3 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#540): 4 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#541): 4 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#542): 4 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#543): 4 stars
Uncanny X-Men (1963) (#544): 4 stars

[Adam Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like Fraction's run before it, Gillen's is solid enough. The S.W.O.R.D. miniseries included here and his inclusion of Abigail Brand in cameos in Uncanny are fun. The Regenesis one-shot and the Sinister arc of Uncanny afterward are both solid too, and some of the stuff in Fear Itself actually isn't bad (and is apparently sticking a few storylines longer than I expected it would). All in all a decent continuation of the X-Men in Utopia era.

[Jase]

X-Men Sword 1-5 is just a setup for the upcoming Uncanny issues.

X-Men: We finally get the return of Kitty Pryde heading towards SF and saved by Magneto. Unable to become solid, Kitty dawns a new suit. Breakworld refugees join Utopia with a surprise attack. The city of SF is being threatened by a leveled up Juggernaut via the Fear Itself crossover. Ending the whole series we have Sinister spawning a new body and story for the new Uncanny X-Men Vol 2.

[Lean Deleon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I HAVEN'T READ A COMIC FOR SO LONG. AS A KID I WAS A DC FAN. UNCANNY X-MEN IS WRITTEN BY @KIERONGILLEN, A WHITE BISEXUAL WRITER WHOSE KNOWN TO USHER IN MORE QUEER REPRESENTATION IN COMICS @PRIDE. IT'S REFRESHING TO READ LOVED X-MEN CHARACTERS IN DIFFERENT CAPACITIES IE THE BEAST AS A LOVER, WOLVERINE COMMITTED TO EDUCATING & TRAINING YOUNG MUTANTS, ETC. AND STILL HAVE FAMILIARITY IE MAGNETO, MILITANT AF.

[Vince · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like Kieron's writing, and this was really fun... until you hit the Fear Itself stuff. Classic Big 2 comic: killer writing, a real fun read, and then an event comes out that just smashes that all to bits.

[Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

the SWORD art i really dislike. the story is fine, I like Brand and Beast as a couple. hes probably a little too over the top, but it fits with the cartoony nature.

breakworld refugees come to utopia but deceit is in the air. dodsons do fantastic work here. sad news for Colossus and kitty.

I really liked the sinister arc that starts off after avx and the final arc before avx was good too.

[EP · Rating 2 out of 5]

These issues should not have been down as a graphic novel. Not the greatest period for the X-Men.