Reign of X, Vol. 12

X-Men: Krakoan Era (Anthology Trades)

by Gerry Duggan, Matteo Lolli (Illustrator), Marvel Various (Writer)

Party time in the Reign of X! The Hellfire Gala is the biggest mutant event of the season, and Emma Frost is your host for a night of dinner, drinks and deceit. Everyone will be there, dressed to the nines - your favorite mutants, their closest allies…even their worst enemies! X-Force will be on hand to deal with any troublemakers and gatecrashers - but can the Hellions somehow get an invitation, or will they be turned away at the door? Meanwhile, for Captain Britain and Excalibur, the Gala may result in a diplomatic incident! Either way, raise your glasses for the first big moment of the night - the eagerly awaited announcement of Krakoa's inaugural elected team of X-Men! Collecting MARAUDERS (2019) #21, X-FORCE (2019) #20, HELLIONS #12, EXCALIBUR (2019) #21 and X-MEN (2019) #21.

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

152 pages, Paperback

Published July 12, 2022

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

instead of actually reviewing this volume i am going to review EVERYONE's outfits (this includes the ones appearing in the next two volumes at the rest of the gala)

emma, outfit 1: the worst. just goofy. the x-shaped boob window in the fur coat killed me. it's campy but not cute (2/10)
emma, outfit 2: STUNNING BEAUTIFUL GORGEOUS I DIED ON THE SPOT. she trusts that shirt so much. good lord (10/10)
emma, outfit 3: literally did not think she could outdo herself after the previous one but ms frost always delivers (1000/10)

charles: i did not think he could get any more goofy and yet.... it's silly and campy and that fucking ball on his head is somehow even bigger and more silly. it's impressive. the extra effort to make a custom cerebro for the night plus the matching-outfits of it all with erik.... yeah that's a win for the lgbtq community (11/1o)
magneto: see above. why are you. as a man. wearing a matching outfit with your "bestie"? anyway i think it's even better than charles'. it's so extra and i can definitely see jumbo having to FORCE erik to go all out like this but the golden half-cape + cane combo is EVERYTHING to me. dont even get me STARTED on the top hat (11/10)
mystique: absolutely stunning i literally have no notes she's perfect in every way if only her wife could see her GLARING AT CHARLES AND ERIK (100/10)

kitty: PERFECT. i think this rly sets the standard for a "good" hellfire outfit. related to the characters' vibes but also a little beyond just their usual superhero get up. the sort-of compass in her hair is such a nice touch (10/10)
pyro: tits out TITS OUT!!!!! the frills are cool but it's nothing special outside of that. it's got a "fire" vibe but sunfire has the same thing and like. much better. it's okay enough (6/10)
sebastian flop: who got tasked with dressing this guy. who pulled the short straw. anyway he looks pretty good. it's a nice suit and the eyepatch looks cool. always love me a fur coat but he definitely personally killed the animal it was made out of cuz he's that kind of guy (6/10)
bishop: why is everyone on the marauders such a SLUT. anyway he looks great. barely any clothes on him. the tinted glasses are so so iconic. it's nothing crazy but it's stylish which i think fits his personality well. i don't think he'd have agreed to anything any more extravagant (6/10)
bobby: CUNTTTT CUNTTT CUNTTT THATS MY DIVA RIGHT THERE. ATE AND LEFT NO CRUMBS. I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM (100/10)
STORM: OH MY FUCKING GODDDDD OH MY GOD OH MY FUCKING GODDDDD HODwd HJW9JAUIWFGAWBIUFWABNBGFAK WIFNOAJFWAD WFI NOT TO BE A SAPPHIC BUT OH MY GOD. oh my god! oh my god. oh my god. favorite outfit of the night by a mile. the cloud-like hair. the stormclouds as a cape. oh my fucking GOD. OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (10000000000000000000000000/10)

wolverine: just a suit. not even it's a suit-looking bodysuit. it's not bad but it's just boring, but also makes sense since x-force had to be practical here not stylish (1/10)
sage: improvement over logan and again i wouldn't expect much from her since she's staying locked away for most of the party but she still put in EFFORT. the dress is cute but still feels low-key practical. i like it (3/10)
domino: just a lightly more femme version of what logan wore, nothing crazy. bonus point cuz pretty lady (2/10)
beast: fascist loser (-10/10)
quentin: same as logan (1/10)

havok: AMAZING!!! i absolutely adore it. THIS is how you keep a guy in a suit but make it interesting. the intricate circle designs are rly rly pretty and i love it so much (10/10)
psylocke: HAD ME GASPING FOR BREATH JESUS CHRIST HAVE MERCY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SHE'S SO BEAUTIFUL AND THIS DRESS IS EVERYTHING TO ME. ME AND GREYCROW SHAKING HANDS WITH HIS FIRST REACTION TO SEEING HER GOOD LORDDDDD (1000000/10)
mr sinister: he's so cunty he's such a diva god i love him. it's nothing super crazy but it fits him well (8/10)
exodus: he wants to be mister sinister so bad. SILENCE, FLOP (1/10)

betsy: IM SORRYYYY ITS SO GOOFY like its campy but not in a fun way she just looks EXTREMELY silly. not to mention how she's being just OUTDONE by psylocke (0/10)
rogue: BEAUTIFUL!!! i love how the swoop of the coat is in line with the swoop of her hair. the glasses are iconic and she looks badass (10/10)
jubilee: it's a very pretty dress but it feels very basic? it doesn't rly have anything to do with jubes as a person. it's cute tho (6/10)
gambit: kinda same as above but bonus points for tits out. why are everyone's tits out (7/10)
gloriana: cute, but feels like something she would wear around avalon anyway. i wish it was a little more crazy!! (5/10)
rictor: i like it!!! very mysterious and fits how much he does NOT wanna be at this party, honestly. the branch patterns are very cute. it's nothing crazy but it's very pretty (8/10)
jamie: god he's so extra. how can u hate him. that's my king if anyone asks (i want him dead) (100/10)

jean: STUNNING,,,, but i feel like it's a little too close to her usual marvel girl get-up? it's a really fancy take on it but nothing NEW. the floating headpieces are a great addition (8/10)
scott: very much just a "cooler version of usual superhero fit" type deal. it's cute but same as jean, i wish it was MORE (7/10)
sunfire: VERY COOL!!! the fire designs are great, the mask is great, the contrast with the red and the black.... it's still not SUPER crazy like some of the outfits i REALLY like but it's still awesome. that's an x-man right there (9/10)
synch: GODDD THE JACKET IS AMAZING. but apart from that.... it's sort of basic??? it's a cool outfit but it doesn't scream fancy gala. it's nice tho! (6/10)
colossus: CRAZYYYYYY ABSOLUTELY CRAZY LIKE HE REALLY CAME TO SHOW EVERYONE HE'S THAT BITCH. I ADORE HIM SO SO MUCH (1000/10)
laura: BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL THAT'S MY DAUGHTER RIGHT THERE!!! god i adore this dress i could stare at it forever. scout deserved to show off her matching variant of it :((( (10/10)

cannonball: it's nice but super basic. i was expecting a LOTTT more from him. also i straight up forgot who he was and barely noticed him in the comic itself so ermmmm (3/10)
sunspot: it's cool but it doesn't scream roberto. i definitely think he would have gone a LOT more crazy. it's a GREAT outfit and i love it but this man should be breaking the scale not just topping it (9/10)
mirage: STUNNING!!!!!!!!!!!!! BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!! dani always delivers she always looks literally DIVINE and this outfit did NOT miss (100/10)
karma: i don't get why everyone reacted the way they did?? it's a VERY basic outfit. it's nice and it's unique but i'm just not feeling it. the big fat coat is NOT it (5/10)
magik: AMAZING!!!! so so weird and extravagant and exactly her vibe. the floating horns are rly cool and the dress is so confusing in a good way??? she slayed!!! (11/10)
warpath: i'm not crazy on him as a character but honestly i was pleasantly surprised. it's not crazy by any means but it's unique and i like it!! he's kinda giving sonic boss tho (7/10)
warlock: he's such a cutie patootie. i love him so much. he did his very best and i could ask for nothing more (10/10)

rachel: THIS IS SUCH AN INSANE OUTFIT??? JUST FUCKING CRAZY AND NONSENSICAL AND CAMPY AS HELL. i love it. this is the energy i need EVERYONE to bring. just be WEIRD you FREAKS (100/10)
polaris: I ADORE IT!!!!! the shape scratches my brain... the hair wouldn't work with any other outfit i don't think but it works great with this dress specifically. the house of m came to SERVE (11/10)
northstar: AMAZING!!!! he looks so cool, oh my god,,,, the cape is iconic. got a tasteful amount of cleavage. cool patterns. cool shoes. i don't even know how to put into words my thoughts on this outfit it's just GOOD (10/10)
aurora: a VERY pretty dress, but not the high-fashion that everyone else is running around with. i think it fits her more reserved personality though, so it's perfect for her. still, something a little more crazy would be nice. her brother is kinda eating her up (8/10)
daken: just a suit. what are you DOING bro. ur sister showed up in such a nice dress and then you do this. put your grippers away (1/10)
prodigy: setting aside the shitty storyline that got tied in with it, it's SUCH a beautiful outfit. he looks absolutely STUNNING i have no notes (100/10)
eye-boy: MY BABY BOY LOOKS SO GOOD I LOVE HIM SO MUCH. THIS IS EXACTLY THE TYPE OF FREAKY FASHION I'M LOOKING FOR ON KRAKOA PEOPLE!!!! (1000/10)
kyle: it's crazy how he's not even a mutant and still out-doing some of the mutants at the mutant party. amazing stunning gorgeous. you show them what a gay man with a fashion sense can do babygirl (10/10)
banshee: just feels like a suit version of his usual superhero get up which is kind of boring. i appreciate an unbuttoned shirt but why is this man coming to this gala at all when his daughter just repeatedly died very violently?? priorities pookie (3/10)

angel: tits OUT and i respect it. i think it would have been cool if he decorated his wings in some way but it's a cute look (7/10)
penance: cool!!! i like how it's got a bit of monet and a bit of penance at the same time. the pants are cute, i love the top, all around it's just a good outfit that's not mega crazy. it's got just the right balance !! (9/10)
madrox: the variant for his copies was sucky but the main outfit is pretty nice. the cape is cool but i'm not huge on the bottom half of it. like the rest of x-corp it's just kinda average (7/10)
mastermind: i don't love him as a character but i gotta admit the outfit was pretty good. nothing crazy but it fits his personality, so it gets a pass (6/10)
selene: just looks like a dominatrix down on her luck but not in a good way. the hair and the cape is cool. i wish there was MORE. but i'm excited for her character so. bonus points for a fun introduction (7/10)

dazzler: serving exactly what you'd expect her to be serving. she's a walking disco ball. you look at her and you go blind. positively. you might think you are straight up high off your ass. i love her so much that's a mutant icon right there (10/10)
pixie: it's nice, but a little basic! i feel like her hair is doing all the work. the dress itself is not super creative but i like how her whole vibe is based around her wings. it's nice, but it's not super wild (7/10)
nightcrawler: I LOVE IT!!!!!!! GO LITTLE PIRATE GUY GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! perfect outfit to get wasted and have a mental breakdown in (100/10)
mercury: pretty! it's nothing crazy but from what i know of her character it fits her well. a lot of effort went into it for a pretty background character so i appreciate it (9/10)
loa: same as above!! it's just good for what it's designed for but doesn't outright steal the show from everyone who's front and centre (10/10)

abigail brand: i don't get why her outfit never got a proper design-page treatment, cuz it was so cool!! the pirate look is perfect for her. if kitty kicks the bucket again let her run the marauders i say (she would hate being on earth) (10/10)
frenzy: STUNNING STUNNING STUNNING definitely one of my fave outfits of the night. absolutely no notes, just wish everyone at the gala got to actually SEE it (100/10)
manifold: a little basic but with some extra details that make it unique, i like it! it's got just right the balance!!! (11/10)
wiz-kid: i like it but honestly it's pretty basic? it's just a shiny suit and wiz-kid's daily outfits are a lot more extravagant. i'm not MAD about it but he deserved to go a little more crazy IMO (4/10)

carmen: she had SUCH a pretty dress, why didnt it get its own spread ?!??! i get the symbolism of having her in her gimmick outfit on the cover with the hellfire gala fits all around but stillllll,,, she had a great outfit and it fits her well considering what she's passionate about !! i rly fell in love with her as a character and this solo issue for her really made her stand out from her team. give me a whole spin off about her studying to be a designer under jumbo (10/10)

[Paulo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collection:
Marauders #21
X-Force #20
Hellions #12
Excalibur #21
X-Men #21

Marauders #21
Love the suits. There seems to be some dark businesses going on at the Gala between humans that not everyone is aware of, wonder how that's going to work out.

X-Force #20
Deadpool!! Also Beast really needs to get some lessons in trying-not-to-be-a-god, 'cause it seems to always backfire somehow. Gives me total "scientist that doesn't quite get the social context of his inventions" vibes.

Hellions #12
Loving this run ever since the ressurections. Their appearance in the party is nothing but tense, because you know something will go wrong from the start, you just never know with who and how.

Excalibur #21
Love gays! Rictor and Shatterstar 4ever. I still don't get why Pete Wisdom still follows Coven Akkaba around (f*cked around and found out, I guess). Hyped to the return of Morgan and what that might mean to the Otherworld.

X-Men #21
Amazing art. Scott always delivers great quotes (even though that visor did NOT deliver at all).

[Hanieh · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

Finally!!!!
Well every issue gave a different perspective on the party and i found that interesting. Marauders still sticks to the top for me.

What I think about volume 7-12 of RoX so far?
I liked the built up for the gala and i love how it's challenging the very utopian idea of the mutant island but i feel like we're having too many titles, too many x-books and many of them are just being dragged along at this point. HoX/PoX was legendary and DoX was really really good. Let's not even talk about what happened between that and this*cringe*.
Rox on the other hand had sooo many ups and downs. I hope it becomes more solid, more concentrated (every title i mean). Really hoping for better qualities than this quantity.

[Adam Stone · Rating 2 out of 5]

Much ado about nothing. The Hellfire Gala is a good idea that's executed just fine. A party for mutants that crosses over between all the titles, allowing you to see the party from several different angles before the announcement of the new X-Men team. Unfortunately, it's diminishing returns for me. The longer it went on, the less I cared at all about what was happening.

Maraduers #21 was fun. 4*. It set up stakes for the gala, introduced some subterfuge, and apart from Emma Frost's first gown (think Power Girl in a Yeti suit), it was fun to look at. It set such a fun tone, while still having a plot percolating beneath it.

Following it up with Classic X-Men #7 from the Claremont era was inspired. A great callback. I loved its inclusion in the book, as it's the o.g. hellfire gala from the 80s. 4*

X-Force # 20 was also fun. It moved the party in an interesting direction and set up a twist that, sadly, we didn't get t0 see in this collection, which knocks it down to 3*.

Hellions #12 was a 1* mess. It appears that it's supposed to be funny? Hahaha, the parent murderer wants to get drunk. Hohoho, the murderous nanny is drunk and wants to be mean. Bwhahahahaha, Mr. Sinister just can't get respect when he tries to socialize with The Avengers, who he pretends not to know. This is what is called...humorous? There were a couple of moments of continuity porn that were nearly interesting but then they were cast away either in the form of a joke, or because the story moved on to something less interesting. I can't wait for this series to be over.

I still can't get into Excalibur which, I always want to point out, isn't a bug, it's a feature. Tini Howard's Excalibur is really true to Claremont and Davis's run, I'm just not interested in the British portion of the Marvel Universe with its Camelot references and dull side dimensions. It did flesh out the British storyline from Marauders #21, so it at least had a narrative. 2*

The final issue doesn't pick up many of the threads from the beginning issues, which were the most interesting. Instead, it focused on announcing the new X-Men team. Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooring. I skipped some of the opening Namor scene, as Namor is an exhausting character when he's involved in the X-Men. Yea, yea, yea, he's grumpy and wants to rule the world. Give him an actual personality so I can care about him. There were also "cameos" where they inserted real life people into the books: Patton Oswalt, Kevin Feige, George RR Martin, and Meredith Salenger. I had to look them up, though, because the references were obtuse and unnecessary. This was a waste of paper issue, and a terrible wet fart for Jonathan Hickman to go out on. 1*

I'm now a little anxious about volume 13, and then the Trials Of X books. While the Dawn Of X books were inconsistent, they were buoyed by the stronger issues, and an overall sense of promise. The Reign Of X books have gone pretty steadily downhill (though even this volume was practically Astonishing X-Men, Volume 1: Gifted compared to the unreadable dreck that was X-Men: X of Swords). Fingers crossed that it picks up again soon. Preferably after they cancel Hellions.

[Blindzider · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is mostly a reread for me as I've already read: X-Men: Hellfire Gala. I think this book has one issue not in the Hellfire collection, but this volume also doesn't have Planet Sized X-Men (maybe in Vol. 13).

Overall I liked it, see more thoughts in my other review. Unfortunately it doesn't read as a continuous story. Each issue gives a different perspective of the same party, often repeating bits of dialogue and scenes as well as jumping an hour or so ahead to important parts of the event. This disjointed feel makes it a bit confusing and not as enjoyable or impactful.

Mainly I'm just trying to get through all volumes of Reign of X. Sadly, I'm losing interest in the X-Titles as stories drag on, too many titles, and the mutants are quickly DEvolving despite being in paradise. Maybe that's the whole point but it's disappointing to see the mutants finally in a position of power in the world and lose it all because of their inability to stop fighting among themselves as individuals try to assert their will over everything.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every issue in this collection is part of the Hellfire Gala event. If you read the big, Red Carpet version of the Hellfire Gala book, then you've read all of this. I read the regular, non-special edition, so I'd only read two of these issues before, the Marauders and X-Men issues. The X-Force issue was my least favorite, because it just felt like more of the same and didn't really add anything, other than the required, and boring, Deadpool cameo. Hellions verged on an outright comedy, which made it a lot of fun to read. And Excalibur served as a good state of the book, at a moment when there's some changes ahead. Overall, I'd say that Hellions was the best issue, but Excalibur was the one that has the most important developments.

[Charles Korb]

Finally reading these as whole volumes since the rest of reign of x is in chronological order (and most of it appears to be the one night of the Gala.

Emma's fur coat with X-cleavage is spectacular, insane comic costuming at its finest.

Beast continues to be terrible and I'm glad someone finally came to talk sense into X-Force.

The hellions comic mostly just felt like we had to give them something to do.

The voting on the new X-Men was a fun event, though I wish we could have seen more of it but the new team has promise.

It was an interesting choice to not show the fireworks in any of these plotlines. I guess we'll see them next volume

[Joselyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me gustó muchísimo. Muy disfrutable y sustancioso. Mi número favorito fue, sin duda, Hellions. Muy divertido e interesante, con subtramas atrapantes que profundizan en cada personaje de una forma casual y completa a la vez. Todos los números fueron muy buenos en si pero, además de Hellions, otro que se llevó mi completa atención fue X-Force. Me encantó la mezcla entre la seriedad siniestra habitual de esta serie y el factor más desinhibido que trae consigo la Hellfire Gala. Por último, lo que más disfruté fue ver a Charles y Erik con esos vestuarios a juego. Le hago un altar a quien sea que se le haya ocurrido esa EXCELENTE idea. Siempre eternamente agradecida contigo desconocido. 👏😭💞🛐

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buyer beware: If you already own the Hellfire Gala collection, you've already got everything in this book. That said, the Hellfire Gala is pretty fun, so if you haven't read them then this will be worth your time, but personally I'd spend the money on the complete Hellfire Gala collection rather than getting it piecemeal through the Reign of X books.

[Bekka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally, I made it to the Hellfire Gala! Loved reading all of this - though I do wish that the issues had been in a bit of a different order, as some issues referenced things that had happened, but weren't actually shown until two or so issues later.
Other than that, still a great time!
Also really loved the cameo from Kevin Feige himself!
TW for murder, blood, violence.

[Sarospice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I jumped over the last volume to read this volume when I saw it was the hellfire gala, and I enjoyed the party from different perspectives storyline. Tops were Hellions just being Hellions. Liked some of the character interactions: Namor, Deadpool, Shatterstar and Rictor. HATE HATE HATE the inclusion of real people like Kevin Feige and Patton Oswalt. Blergh. Let's see if this New XMen lasts....

[Afreen Aftab · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marauders #21 - 2/5 ( so much expectations and the art is like this! i took points for the terrible costumes alone)
X-Force #20 - 4/5
Hellions #12 - 4/5
Excalibur #21 - 3.5/5
X-Men #21 - 3/5 (Kevin feige!?)

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

more of the same. this content is all in the Hellfire Gala OHC

[Carl Printer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Issues of books covered in the Hellfire Gala collection.

[Jennifer Sigman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Someone needs to tell these artists there's more to high fashion than "extreme T&A" or "boring suit"

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't read the fine print, so this collates material also included in the deluxe Hellfire Gala compilation. It's still a solid book, but more of the action happens in the next volume.

[Nick Callebaut · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting to enjoy the Hellfire Gala, but I did. The conniving and conspiring was amply entertaining and the Hellions crashing the party was funnier than I'd thought.

[Chen-Wei Cheong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hellfire Gala Part 2.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

A grand gala with a lot of intrigue and diplomacy. So many ridiculous costumes and events. Lots of showing off. Compromise is hurting mutant-kind.