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Excalibur (2019)
Excalibur, Vol. 3
In the explosive aftermath of the Otherworldly battles of X OF SWORDS, the team is left changed…and some things that have been lost cannot be replaced! Now, as the Council makes moves to protect the mutants in Otherworld, Excalibur must determine the fate of Betsy Braddock. Who is the woman on the shore?
COLLECTING: EXCALIBUR (2019) 16-21
COLLECTING: EXCALIBUR (2019) 16-21
160 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
January 28, 2023
The aftermath of X of Swords sits mostly with Team Excalibur, as they had casualties. The team focuses of seeking out Betsy Braddock, who's fate is unclear. The second half of the volume very much centres around the Hellfire Gala and Coven Akkaba's refusal to recognise Betsy as Captain Britain or indeed the Krakoa itself! Like other X-books, this series took a step up during the Pandemic with clearer characterisations and tighter plotting. 6 out of 12, Three Star read :)
2023 read
2023 read
May 24, 2022
Betsy has disappeared after the events of X of Swords. We get a meandering story of tracking her down and body swaps. And a bunch of mutant magic stuff that I couldn't be less interested in. Mutants already have powers. They don't all need to be sorcerers too. Ugh! All of the issues are by Marcus To so at least this boring comic looks good.
September 27, 2021
Ésta es una de las series que más me cuesta leer porque me aburre un poco. En esta ocasión Excalibur va en busca de Betsy Braddock quien fue muerta en el torneo organizado por Saturnyne en Otromundo. Ella vive en una realidad alternativa como reina de Inglaterra y gracias a Kwannon tratará de volver a casa cuando lo hace aparece muy cambiada y hay un retorno de Malice una mutante considerada en el grupo de las malas aunque es joven y rebelde. El último número es el de la Hellfire gala.
September 10, 2021
Betsy Braddock is dead - long live...Betsy Braddock? What's going on here? And can Excalibur sort out their Captain Britain identity crisis long enough to get ready for the Hellfire Gala?
Excalibur continues to be the most 'march to the beat of its own drum' X-book at the moment. X Of Swords was mostly a story that spun out of it, and the aftermath uses one particular plot point to really go whole-hog on Captain Britain's storyline. Again, it can get a little confusing, but it all makes sense once it all comes together at the end. I liked the inclusion of Psylocke from Hellions - sometimes Excalibur's uniqueness among the X-line can make it feel a bit isolated from the others, but it makes perfect sense for Kwannon to show up here.
The Hellfire Gala issue melds nicely with the rest of the line, giving us one half of a confrontation between Rictor and Shatterstar (the other half's in X-Factor, IIRC), and again uses little plot points from the other books like Britain's new stance on mutants to run into its own thing.
All six issues are drawn by Marcus To, so you know the book looks good. I'm glad Marvel have managed to pin him down onto a book - he went through a phase of doing fill-in bits or short runs, but he definitely deserves his own book like this.
Love it or hate it, Excalibur's still going strong with its own brand of crazy storytelling, and even X Of Swords hasn't managed to slow it down.
Excalibur continues to be the most 'march to the beat of its own drum' X-book at the moment. X Of Swords was mostly a story that spun out of it, and the aftermath uses one particular plot point to really go whole-hog on Captain Britain's storyline. Again, it can get a little confusing, but it all makes sense once it all comes together at the end. I liked the inclusion of Psylocke from Hellions - sometimes Excalibur's uniqueness among the X-line can make it feel a bit isolated from the others, but it makes perfect sense for Kwannon to show up here.
The Hellfire Gala issue melds nicely with the rest of the line, giving us one half of a confrontation between Rictor and Shatterstar (the other half's in X-Factor, IIRC), and again uses little plot points from the other books like Britain's new stance on mutants to run into its own thing.
All six issues are drawn by Marcus To, so you know the book looks good. I'm glad Marvel have managed to pin him down onto a book - he went through a phase of doing fill-in bits or short runs, but he definitely deserves his own book like this.
Love it or hate it, Excalibur's still going strong with its own brand of crazy storytelling, and even X Of Swords hasn't managed to slow it down.
May 9, 2022
Better than previous volumes in this series, but I still can't help but wonder what the point of it all is? I couldn't be less interested in Otherworld and mutant magic users...
May 24, 2022
I can't help but be dissapointed with this series. Dispite having my favorite X-man (Gambit) it it he does nothing. Psylock is my I my other favorite the reason I gave this three stars instead of two is the highlighted the difference between Psylock and Betsy Braddock.
The first four issues deal with the shattering fall out from the X of Swords. Though I was expecting more action, I can't get into and of the political stuff the X-men and this title especially are becoming.
In fairness this was the best book of the series so far for me, but that just says I did not think of this series too much. It will give the next volume a try see if things change.
The first four issues deal with the shattering fall out from the X of Swords. Though I was expecting more action, I can't get into and of the political stuff the X-men and this title especially are becoming.
In fairness this was the best book of the series so far for me, but that just says I did not think of this series too much. It will give the next volume a try see if things change.
December 15, 2021
4
This is another of the really interesting X-books. Each has their unique space to cover in the X-World. And not only has the whole X-Men status quo changed dramatically, they do not shy away from changing the status quo within each title. Well, done. I didn't think X-Men and magic would mix so well, but it totally does.
This is another of the really interesting X-books. Each has their unique space to cover in the X-World. And not only has the whole X-Men status quo changed dramatically, they do not shy away from changing the status quo within each title. Well, done. I didn't think X-Men and magic would mix so well, but it totally does.
June 14, 2022
Each Excalibur volume tends to be an exhausting read, but the powers that be at Marvel seem to have decided that this series is critical to the grand scheme of Hickman's X-Verse, so I power through. This volume takes place after the events in X of Swords, which of course I haven't read yet, so affairs are more confusing than ever!
Apparently, Betsy Braddock was kicked out of her body at the conclusion of X of Swords, so naturally this third Excalibur volume sees her teammates working to recombine her soul and body. It's a tedious task that involves quite a bit of running around, as well as the abrupt introduction of a new villain (Malice) and the just-as-abrupt dispatching of said villain. But some of the characters get more interesting arcs than others. For example, I'm intrigued by Rictor's dedication to the now-lost Apocalypse's interest in the overlap of mutant abilities and magic. What will this mean going forward? Who knows!
A final issue at the Hellfire Gala has an intriguing outcome (). I feel like the Hellfire Gala issues in many of the X-series have been their respective volumes' best issues. Maybe because it's a chance for the characters to calmly chat outside of whatever huge plot things they've got going on? The art's usually an upgrade too.
Apparently, Betsy Braddock was kicked out of her body at the conclusion of X of Swords, so naturally this third Excalibur volume sees her teammates working to recombine her soul and body. It's a tedious task that involves quite a bit of running around, as well as the abrupt introduction of a new villain (Malice) and the just-as-abrupt dispatching of said villain. But some of the characters get more interesting arcs than others. For example, I'm intrigued by Rictor's dedication to the now-lost Apocalypse's interest in the overlap of mutant abilities and magic. What will this mean going forward? Who knows!
A final issue at the Hellfire Gala has an intriguing outcome (). I feel like the Hellfire Gala issues in many of the X-series have been their respective volumes' best issues. Maybe because it's a chance for the characters to calmly chat outside of whatever huge plot things they've got going on? The art's usually an upgrade too.
October 9, 2024
Great colours, quality art, and story that manages to take interesting things and make them dull. I tried to like this. I did not succeed.
October 6, 2021
2.5 stars
This isn’t terrible, it just continues to be kind of boring. Early on, this arc spreads out to hint at a few different threads that involve other teams and even suggest Otherworld might be used in an interesting way, and then it just devolves back into the same drab melodrama as usual around who holds the title of Captain Britain. That also involves some Psylocke-Betsy Braddock interaction that might be interesting for someone who’s read a lot of the years-old comics about their body swap, but doesn’t pay off on anything this series itself has built up. A ton of that plot occurs around psychic happenings and they’re rarely depicted in a visually compelling way. The art is pretty nice overall, though, and all the multiverse variants of Captain Britain are fun to see when they show up.
This isn’t terrible, it just continues to be kind of boring. Early on, this arc spreads out to hint at a few different threads that involve other teams and even suggest Otherworld might be used in an interesting way, and then it just devolves back into the same drab melodrama as usual around who holds the title of Captain Britain. That also involves some Psylocke-Betsy Braddock interaction that might be interesting for someone who’s read a lot of the years-old comics about their body swap, but doesn’t pay off on anything this series itself has built up. A ton of that plot occurs around psychic happenings and they’re rarely depicted in a visually compelling way. The art is pretty nice overall, though, and all the multiverse variants of Captain Britain are fun to see when they show up.
March 24, 2022
This book picks up after the X of Swords event as Excalibur deals with the aftermath of losing Captain Britain (Betsy Braddock) during a duel in which Lady Saturnyne pulled some shenanigans, which resulted in the untimely "death" of our aforementioned heroine. Of course, death is rarely permanent in comic books, and never permanent with the mutants' new status quo.
Like the other Excalibur volumes by Tini Howard, this one flails around somewhat aimlessly and manages to be less interesting than the previous two volumes. The early part of the volume has Excalibur investigating the "death" of Betsy, since she didn't really visibly "die" so much as shatter into a billion crystal pieces, and in a realm of magic like Otherworld, this could mean anything. The myriad alternate dimensional versions of Captain Britain are soon put on the case, .
A version of Betsy ends up washing ashore outside the Excalibur lighthouse, but the team has their suspicions that this is not the real Betsy. So that whole story comes off feeling incredibly unsatisfying as well, and like most of the Excalibur arcs so far, it takes way too long to end up going an impressively short distance.
The final issue has the team attending the Hellfire Gala, and of all the issues I've read detailing that affair so far, this was the least interesting. Most of the other issues have the respective teams interacting with individuals they normally don't spend much time with these days, but this one mostly just continued some of the character threads weaving through the title that I'm already uninterested in--the potential romance budding between Betsy and Pete Wisdom, the friction between members of the Coven Akkaba who have been invited to the Gala and Excalibur, and so on. There were two nice moments with Nightcrawler and Rachel Summers interacting with their former teammates. But too much of the issue is spent away from the Gala altogether and on the uninteresting goings-on at Coven Akkaba's base, which I simply don't care about.
One nice thing I will say about this volume is that all of the art was done by Marcus To, whose pencils are easily the best thing about this book. Unfortunately, Excalibur started off as one of the new X-books I found the least interesting, and has only continued to move further and further from anything that captivates my attention.
Like the other Excalibur volumes by Tini Howard, this one flails around somewhat aimlessly and manages to be less interesting than the previous two volumes. The early part of the volume has Excalibur investigating the "death" of Betsy, since she didn't really visibly "die" so much as shatter into a billion crystal pieces, and in a realm of magic like Otherworld, this could mean anything. The myriad alternate dimensional versions of Captain Britain are soon put on the case, .
A version of Betsy ends up washing ashore outside the Excalibur lighthouse, but the team has their suspicions that this is not the real Betsy. So that whole story comes off feeling incredibly unsatisfying as well, and like most of the Excalibur arcs so far, it takes way too long to end up going an impressively short distance.
The final issue has the team attending the Hellfire Gala, and of all the issues I've read detailing that affair so far, this was the least interesting. Most of the other issues have the respective teams interacting with individuals they normally don't spend much time with these days, but this one mostly just continued some of the character threads weaving through the title that I'm already uninterested in--the potential romance budding between Betsy and Pete Wisdom, the friction between members of the Coven Akkaba who have been invited to the Gala and Excalibur, and so on. There were two nice moments with Nightcrawler and Rachel Summers interacting with their former teammates. But too much of the issue is spent away from the Gala altogether and on the uninteresting goings-on at Coven Akkaba's base, which I simply don't care about.
One nice thing I will say about this volume is that all of the art was done by Marcus To, whose pencils are easily the best thing about this book. Unfortunately, Excalibur started off as one of the new X-books I found the least interesting, and has only continued to move further and further from anything that captivates my attention.
August 19, 2023
The Malice storyline and the politics regarding Krakoa and England were interesting, but that was all I enjoyed in this one. For the most part, I just don’t care about this team or these characters.
September 15, 2021
Excalibur Vol. 3 is my favorite of the series so far. As the remains of the team deal with the fallout from X of Swords, it's a lot of fun to watch the multiversal goofiness hitting its stride with the reborn Captain Britain Corps. The pacing was more consistent here than in previous volumes. And I really enjoyed seeing Psylocke involved. I thought Tini Howard's approach to all the Betsy/Kwannon baggage, which could have been done so poorly, was pretty deft.
March 22, 2024
I like this, but I feel the repetition.
Your mileage may vary.
Your mileage may vary.
February 8, 2024
saturnyne number one hater of all time ILY!
Read
September 18, 2021Hey! I understood this one!
I faked it til I maked with the last two volumes of Excalibur having truly no idea who anyone was or what they were doing but I totally understood what was happening in this one! So.
But meanwhile everyone’s all going on about oh we gotta get Captain Britain back of Otherworld won’t talk to us and we’ll have to close the gate to Otherworld and I’m thinking hey sounds to me like you need to lose Captain Britain forever? Gang I hate Otherworld.
I faked it til I maked with the last two volumes of Excalibur having truly no idea who anyone was or what they were doing but I totally understood what was happening in this one! So.
But meanwhile everyone’s all going on about oh we gotta get Captain Britain back of Otherworld won’t talk to us and we’ll have to close the gate to Otherworld and I’m thinking hey sounds to me like you need to lose Captain Britain forever? Gang I hate Otherworld.
June 16, 2021
Definitivamente no es mi tipo de comic
February 28, 2022
My last Tini Howard ever. I'm not sure what happens but it's super hard to read.
November 2, 2021
Of all the teams that have the most to recover after the events of "X of Swords", Excalibur might have the hardest comeback to full strength (Yes, I know that all of the Hellions were killed, but they can be easily resurrected.). What unfolds here is yet another deep dive into the body/psyche/chaos that is Betsy Braddock/Captain Britain/Psylocke/Kwannon/etc. (If you have been an X-Men fan for a long time, you know this drama already LOL)
Highlights:
- Rogue, Gambit, Jubilee, and Rictor go off to Otherworld to try to get help from Avalon in finding where Betsy went after shattering into pieces in XoS. Meggan helps them summon the Captain Britain Corps to have them search the multiverse for one of their own.
- Betsy wakes in another universe (though it is never revealed as which one) and makes her way back to us in the 616, though she seems very emotionally shaken.
- Turns out that she hasn't completely come back. It takes a very spiritually in-tune Capt Britain from another universe to track down Betsy's spirit and trap it AND Kwannon (now as Psylocke) who is able to hold Betsy's essence within herself to use it to find the Starlight Sword. Only when body, spirit, and sword are reunited can 616 Captain Britain Betsy Braddock be fully and wholly reborn.
- Part of the issue with the body reunification was the presence of Malice, a young female mutant who was unwillingly separated from her body years ago, and took root in Betsy. With the team working together and some help from Xavier, Malice is given a reborn body and must figure out how to live her life.
- We see the Excalibur contribution to the Hellfire Gala. Shatterstar returns, wanting to get back with Rictor (I'll be talking about the gladiator more in my review of X-Factor V2); Britain, having lost their Captain for so long as well as being pissed it was a mutant loyal to Krakoa, decides to dissolve their treaty with the mutants, trying to get "Arthur" back in power; the British Coven Akkaba uses magic and faith (and the blood sacrifice of Pete Wisdom) to resurrect Morgan LeFay; AND Rictor accepts his role as Druid King, using the magic knowledge left behind by Apocalypse, and raises Braddock Isle near Britain.
All in all, despite being very lore heavy and focused on Betsy so much, Volume 3 really was like the XoS epilogue that I needed. I look forward to seeing what happens next for this team.
Recommend.
Highlights:
- Rogue, Gambit, Jubilee, and Rictor go off to Otherworld to try to get help from Avalon in finding where Betsy went after shattering into pieces in XoS. Meggan helps them summon the Captain Britain Corps to have them search the multiverse for one of their own.
- Betsy wakes in another universe (though it is never revealed as which one) and makes her way back to us in the 616, though she seems very emotionally shaken.
- Turns out that she hasn't completely come back. It takes a very spiritually in-tune Capt Britain from another universe to track down Betsy's spirit and trap it AND Kwannon (now as Psylocke) who is able to hold Betsy's essence within herself to use it to find the Starlight Sword. Only when body, spirit, and sword are reunited can 616 Captain Britain Betsy Braddock be fully and wholly reborn.
- Part of the issue with the body reunification was the presence of Malice, a young female mutant who was unwillingly separated from her body years ago, and took root in Betsy. With the team working together and some help from Xavier, Malice is given a reborn body and must figure out how to live her life.
- We see the Excalibur contribution to the Hellfire Gala. Shatterstar returns, wanting to get back with Rictor (I'll be talking about the gladiator more in my review of X-Factor V2); Britain, having lost their Captain for so long as well as being pissed it was a mutant loyal to Krakoa, decides to dissolve their treaty with the mutants, trying to get "Arthur" back in power; the British Coven Akkaba uses magic and faith (and the blood sacrifice of Pete Wisdom) to resurrect Morgan LeFay; AND Rictor accepts his role as Druid King, using the magic knowledge left behind by Apocalypse, and raises Braddock Isle near Britain.
All in all, despite being very lore heavy and focused on Betsy so much, Volume 3 really was like the XoS epilogue that I needed. I look forward to seeing what happens next for this team.
Recommend.
June 2, 2022
Ok, I finally get it! I don’t know exactly what changed, but with this volume I am finally truly LOVING this book. Maybe it was the way things reached a climax in X of Swords or just having a chance to focus on the rest of the team besides Betsy. Whatever the reason, I was having a blast. In particular, Betsy’s niece, Maggie, is a recipe for pure joy all on her own and must be protected at all costs. Not only am I wildly amused by her very grown up sounding lines coming from a toddler, but imagining her tiny British accent takes it up another few notches. And she just has some really well timed moments all on her own.
Beyond that, the cast really feels like they’ve come together or have their voices down really well. Rogue and Gambit are probably still my favorite team members, but Rictor and Jubilee are a real treat, too.
Once Betsy is back in the picture (spoiler for the 0.2% of readers who didn’t see that coming), she feels like she fits in better or serves a different purpose now, too. Maybe it’s how she is balanced with other characters in this volume. Bringing Kwannon in was fantastic, too. I’ve only recently become truly invested in their dynamic and the problematic nature of Betsy’s story arc from the 90s with the body swap, and it felt really meaningful to address it on panel and give Kwannon some space to say her peace on it.
The Malice story was really great, too. I loved that it grew organically out of the rest of the plot, and the way it resolved was really exemplary of the goal of Krakoa.
Marcus To’s art continues to be superlative. There is almost a fae aspect to Betsy at times, and I’m sure it’s intentional. The costume changes between Krakoa and Otherworld remain delightful (Rogue’s bomber jacket is just *chef’s kiss* every time).
I’m so glad I’m finally on board the hype train for this book because Knights of X honestly looks really interesting and good. Can’t wait to see what’s coming next.
Beyond that, the cast really feels like they’ve come together or have their voices down really well. Rogue and Gambit are probably still my favorite team members, but Rictor and Jubilee are a real treat, too.
Once Betsy is back in the picture (spoiler for the 0.2% of readers who didn’t see that coming), she feels like she fits in better or serves a different purpose now, too. Maybe it’s how she is balanced with other characters in this volume. Bringing Kwannon in was fantastic, too. I’ve only recently become truly invested in their dynamic and the problematic nature of Betsy’s story arc from the 90s with the body swap, and it felt really meaningful to address it on panel and give Kwannon some space to say her peace on it.
The Malice story was really great, too. I loved that it grew organically out of the rest of the plot, and the way it resolved was really exemplary of the goal of Krakoa.
Marcus To’s art continues to be superlative. There is almost a fae aspect to Betsy at times, and I’m sure it’s intentional. The costume changes between Krakoa and Otherworld remain delightful (Rogue’s bomber jacket is just *chef’s kiss* every time).
I’m so glad I’m finally on board the hype train for this book because Knights of X honestly looks really interesting and good. Can’t wait to see what’s coming next.
May 26, 2021
I still really love Excalibur, although it kind of inarguably hits a big rough patch here. Put simply, the resolution between Betsy and Kwannon just isn’t satisfying enough. I think I can pin this on the story forcing Kwannon to be the adult in the room when she should in reality be very angry. I’m a huge Betsy fan, but part of the reason I love her is because she’s so flawed - and while I don’t think this story really absolves her, it doesn’t quite dig deep enough into her faults. That said, most of the stories in this volume are really solid, and I do actually like the place where Betsy and Kwannon have landed in their relationship- even if I don’t like how they got there. The two of them burning their dresses on the beach is top-notch. I also dig the reinvention of Malice, a character I previously was bored to death by!
March 8, 2022
omg maggie is SO CUTE. there's a bit of same face syndrome going on here but the face is very adorable so i will allow it thank you
i don't actually understand what the title of captain britain means to the british people cos most marvel stuff i've read is just set in the US (or Krakoa). is it an official job title?? inherited from king arthur?? i mean all of otherworld is *upside down question mark* to me and i still don't get why opal luna saturnyn is basically magic emma frost. speaking of, i loved her suit in issue 18!
the idea of the captain britain corps and how they represent each world in the multiverse when talking to the ~~omniversal majestrix~~ is super fun though. i esp like the goose one wth. do betsy and kwannon both have the butterfly thing now or is that just kwannon? i liked when they could both hold the lil purple TK dagger!!
(why is rictor a druid)
i don't actually understand what the title of captain britain means to the british people cos most marvel stuff i've read is just set in the US (or Krakoa). is it an official job title?? inherited from king arthur?? i mean all of otherworld is *upside down question mark* to me and i still don't get why opal luna saturnyn is basically magic emma frost. speaking of, i loved her suit in issue 18!
the idea of the captain britain corps and how they represent each world in the multiverse when talking to the ~~omniversal majestrix~~ is super fun though. i esp like the goose one wth. do betsy and kwannon both have the butterfly thing now or is that just kwannon? i liked when they could both hold the lil purple TK dagger!!
(why is rictor a druid)
December 13, 2021
I really wasn't a fan of this comic through the first two volumes, but this one is terrific.
The attempt to find Betsy was a great initial arc with mystery and tension.
The revelations about Malice were amazing, turning a cardboard character into someone real.
There were terrific interactions between Betsy and Revanche.
Really, all the characters are being treated well.
There's still weirdness: the focus on magic and covens that seems out of place in the SF X-Men universe.
But this was a really enjoyable read. I'm hoping when I go back that I find that the muddy stories of the first two volumes actually had this amazing depth of character.
The attempt to find Betsy was a great initial arc with mystery and tension.
The revelations about Malice were amazing, turning a cardboard character into someone real.
There were terrific interactions between Betsy and Revanche.
Really, all the characters are being treated well.
There's still weirdness: the focus on magic and covens that seems out of place in the SF X-Men universe.
But this was a really enjoyable read. I'm hoping when I go back that I find that the muddy stories of the first two volumes actually had this amazing depth of character.
Read
February 1, 2022Well, I understood this volume more than previous ones, so that's good? On the other hand, I still didn't really enjoy it that much, oh well. A comic about magic mutants, celestial swords, and the multiverse that also riffs on D&D archetypes should be totally up my alley, but apparently not. I think my main thoughts are just 1) I did not love Kwannon having to be the emotionally mature one and save Betsy from herself when Kwannon has arguably had a WAY rougher time and should not have to deal with Betsy's shit and 2) I'm glad Shatterstar is no longer in twitch streamer gladiator hell and reunited with Rictor, at least!
April 10, 2022
After the events of X of Swords, Excalibur is down a member and they are searching and fighting for a way to bring her back.
Betsy Braddock/Captain Britain has not returned alongside the rest of the Captain Britain Corps. So they join in the hunt. Rogue is on her way to the X-Men, Gambit might be hanging around, Rictor is still investigating Apocalypse's writings and runs into Shatterstar and Jubilee, well, she does not have much to do. Throw in Kwannon helping to find Betsy and Malice ending up interfering in the search, Clan Akkaba and Pete Wisdom fighting for what they is best for Britain and you another fun and character driven Excalibur with some of my favourite characters.
Betsy Braddock/Captain Britain has not returned alongside the rest of the Captain Britain Corps. So they join in the hunt. Rogue is on her way to the X-Men, Gambit might be hanging around, Rictor is still investigating Apocalypse's writings and runs into Shatterstar and Jubilee, well, she does not have much to do. Throw in Kwannon helping to find Betsy and Malice ending up interfering in the search, Clan Akkaba and Pete Wisdom fighting for what they is best for Britain and you another fun and character driven Excalibur with some of my favourite characters.
April 23, 2023
Despite finishing this recently, I can't say I remember a ton of what went down. Possibly because it opens with someone trying to mourn my least favorite X-character (Apocalypse) and even with the characterization he was given, I still do not care about him. At all. Oh no, he's gone but got pretty much what he wanted. As usual. Woe.
Also MIA? Betsy. I did love the issues concentrating on her and her complicated backstory and how that affected her.
In general, though, something seemed to be missing. This group should work and yet nothing really seems to be done with them, which feels like a terrible waste. The art is still pretty fabulous.
Also MIA? Betsy. I did love the issues concentrating on her and her complicated backstory and how that affected her.
In general, though, something seemed to be missing. This group should work and yet nothing really seems to be done with them, which feels like a terrible waste. The art is still pretty fabulous.
November 8, 2021
Excalibur continues to impress in terms of big ideas, genuine character development, girl power, and evocative drawings of things that are really hard to draw like psychic emanations and alternate personalities. I don't know how Tini Howard got clearance to make changes like she's Chris Claremont, but I like it. However, this arc is about one issue too long. For example, there are recaps of the X of Swords crossover, which is already mandatory reading for the title and was basically 12 issues of Excalibur anyway.
October 22, 2021
Read as single issues.
This was confusing. I feel like I am not gelling with the Excalibur characters and overarching story, more than that they aren't being served by the writer and art team. The art is gorgeous. The voices sound right. But I am just not invested in the story... and then the finish during the Hellfire Gala! Okay now THAT woke me up and got my attention. But the rest was a snoozefest for me.
This was confusing. I feel like I am not gelling with the Excalibur characters and overarching story, more than that they aren't being served by the writer and art team. The art is gorgeous. The voices sound right. But I am just not invested in the story... and then the finish during the Hellfire Gala! Okay now THAT woke me up and got my attention. But the rest was a snoozefest for me.
February 24, 2022
I know other X-men offshoot series are handling all the crossovers better than Excalibur, but this volume continues the tradition of late of just being so boring. Killing Betsy in X of Swords was interesting and the reset here is boring. Most of the Excalibur team are boring too. Rictor has maybe the clearest sense of character throughout his mini-arc, but overall I just felt that the process of reading this was far more tedious than a high fantasy take on Captain Britain should ever sink to.
March 8, 2023
Another weak addition to the "Reign of X" period. This volumes continues Howard's boring Excalibur series by spending most of its time finding an acceptable way to recover Captain Britain following X of Swords, thus reversing one of the few stakes set out by the crossover series. We get some nice Kwannon/Betsy moments but otherwise this series continues to be one of the major drags to the whole series of current X-titles.
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