(Zero spoiler review) 4.25/5
If you're someone who loves Claremont's X-men run and laments the fact that there is precious little in comics to rival it, than you need to get your hands on this run. No, the high's and quite as high, and the low's, (not that there are any, really) are a little more apparent at times during Nicieza's run. But as far as group super hero comics go, this is without a doubt, the closest thing I've yet come across to rivalling Claremont at his peak. And this is coming from someone who is extremely dubious at best when it comes to the multiplied antics of a cast of caped characters across a lengthy run.
Robertson's art is little short of phenomenal here. Thankfully, with a few exceptions for tie in's, its pretty much him doing it all, and it's bloody fantastic. Whilst changing Firestar's costume was a noticeable low point, everything else he did here was of a standard to make other stalwarts of the industry look pretty average by comparison.
But despite this, Nicieza has to get the lions share of the credit here. Quite how he filled this book with so much heart, so much growth, and much to my enjoyment, how much he steered away from the 'villain of the week' tropey nonsense, to give us a unique, well thought out and executed run for the ages. Volume one may have been a slow start which stumbled on occasion, but this was him firing on (almost) all cylinders here, almost all of the time. I could nitpick about time jumps and how he didn't always wrap things up as conclusively as he could have, but these are minor quibbles. This is a bloody good run, that looks bloody good at the same time.
If the super hero genre had runs of this quality as a benchmark, then this medium would be so healthy, funeral directors would be going out of business. Sadly, run's like this are a sad and poignant reminder of the better times we once enjoyed, and the talented people who once relished the chance to shine and show their talents. Just 'internet search' The New New Warriors if you want a signpost for how far we have fallen. God damn it. 4.25/5
OmniBen.