X-Men: Shattershot

X-Men (1991-2001) #17-24, Annual #1-2

by Fabian Nicieza, Scott Lobdell, Greg Capullo (Illustrator)

When Arize of Mojoworld sets out to free his dimension, the resulting mayhem draws in the X-Men, X-Factor - and the X-Force of the future! But what does it all have to do with Longshot and Shatterstar? Then, the X-Men travel to Russia to visit Colossus' parents - and his sister Illyana! But will the villainous Soul Skinner bring tragedy to Colossus' doorstep? Meanwhile, Betsy Braddock returns! But if Betsy's back, then who is Psylocke? The X-Men head to Japan for answers! And while Cyclops learns of a deadly new disease threatening mutants, Gambit and Rogue face a challenge of the heart. Plus, learn the X-Mansion's secrets in a fact-packed guidebook! COLLECTING: X-MEN (1991) 17-24, X-MEN ANNUAL (1992) 1-2, UNCANNY X-MEN ANNUAL (1992) 16, X-MEN: SURVIVAL GUIDE TO THE MANSION; MATERIAL FROM X-FACTOR ANNUAL 7, X-FORCE ANNUAL (1992) 1

Genres: Comics, Marvel, X Men, Superheroes

542 pages, Hardcover

Published December 24, 2019

About the author

Fabian 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.

Reviews

[Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

The crossover Shattershot was actually one of the first Marvel comics I remember reading as a kid. I must have been about eleven, and it was in one of those bundles you used to get at Wal-Mart. It wasn’t like I went to the comic book store to learn the backstory, nor could one Google the various wiki fan pages back then. It was totally confusing, which is why it intrigued me so.

I had little idea what was going on, and really enjoyed the thrilling art by Jae Lee and future editor-in-chief Joe Quesada. Shattershot consisted of four special annual issues, not directly connected with the regular series, introducing two X-Men teams, X-Factor, and also X-Force though that chapter took place in the future. Written by the dependable Fabian Nicieza, it had something to do with the interdimensional TV-related satirical villain Mojo, revealing the origin of Shatterstar whose background connected to the obscure X-Man Longshot. Also, time travel?

The high-concept scifi weirdness makes more sense upon rereading, but somehow even then it was a decent primer to the X-Men mythos. This left young me wanting to know more, inspiring the imagination with the sense that this universe had so much to offer. Honestly it was just a mid-tier example of 90s comics, but what can I say, it still has a nostalgic place in my heart.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

First up, the mapping of this volume is a mess. But that really originated with the Fatal Attractions omnibus, which didn't correctly mix the XM and UXM volumes in an attempt to tell a full storyline and it was exasperated by Marvel not knowing what to do with the crossover annuals. So we get a volume that mixes the 1992 mutant annuals, a half-year run of just the X-Men comic from a half-year later, and the 1993 X-Men annual. (And two text books you're going to skip.) Notably missing are the Uncanny X-Men issues from this era, some of which crossover with the last few issues of X-Men collected herein.

So, that sucks, which is too bad because a lot of the Marvel X-Men mapping is pretty good.

So is it any good?

Shattershot Annuals (1992). These have the great benefit of reflecting the Longshot miniseries better than anything else. That especially means that we get lost characters, like the Longshot ram-guy and Ricochet Rita (kinda). Unfortunately, X-M and UXM annuals pretty much tell the same story (bounty hunters from Mojoworld attack the X-Men to try and recapture Arise) and the overall crossover is all over the place (including an issue set a decade or more in the future!), which was a good theory but not a particularly good execution.

X-Men. There are basically three acts here. The first is the story of Russia and the Soul Skinner, which I've found murky and hard to follow every time I read it. Then we get the story of Kwannon and Psylocke, which had great potential until Nicieza decided to make one of them a victim of the Legacy Virus and their story got muddier and muddier over time. The third is a Legacy Virus story (in the second Annual) which is forgettable.

So, bad mapping, OK stories. Nothing to write home about, but worth reading as part of a collection. I wouldn't be surprised if Marvel releases new volumes remapping this and Fatal Attractions at some point (because Fatal Attractions is a serious mess).

[Jameson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The eponymous crossover is ugly and lame and one of the worst Mojo stories, but it’s not horrifically bad. Then the X-Men go to Russia for a fun, non-tragic visit with Colossus’s family! (Is this the first tease of the return of (teen) Magik?) Then writer Fabian Nicieza lets the readers know he hasn’t done his homework and retcons another origin for Ninja Psylocke—but I actually like the messiness of the story—it doesn’t get more 90s X-Men than the Betsy-Revanche kerfuffle. Buried in these issues is some good stuff with Cyclops actually dealing with his problems (and beating up some bad guys) as well as the origin of the Third Summers Brother mystery. Then we have a pretty good downtime/romance issue. Finally, not including a ton of backmatter, we get the second X-Men v2 annual and it’s surprisingly good. I missed this annual back in the day so it still feels fresh even though I’ve read it a few times. Say what you want about the Legacy Virus, at least this issue is using the idea and trying to move the story along. Good stuff.

[Eye-ra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually enjoyed these orphaned issues (for the most part) but what really got me hooked after the initial issues was all of the great extras including the X-Men survival guide to the mansion.

[Colton Skaleski · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very underwhelming story. This was hyped up so much by a lot of people, but it just fell flat for me. Who in the world are the X-men to help this unknown clown, Ariza, to help his people. It is just so dumb and meaningless. The story is just so convoluted and confusing, I just couldn't get into it.