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X-Men Epic Collection
X-Men Epic Collection, Vol. 21: The X-Cutioner's Song
Mutantkind marked for X-cution! Life is as volatile as ever for the X-Men as Storm and Forge’s romance reaches a dramatic turning point, and the fates of the Morlocks and Mikhail Rasputin collide! Meanwhile, Mojo pits mutant against mutant, and secrets from Professor X’s past are revealed! But when Cyclops and Phoenix are kidnapped — and Cable seemingly assassinates Xavier — the X-Men, X-Factor and X-Force go to war…with each other! Witness epic battles around the globe and on the moon as Mr. Sinister’s subtle plan of vengeance on Apocalypse unfolds, and major revelations are made about the true identities of Cable and his twisted doppelganger Stryfe! Featuring blood, angst, sacrifice and great big guns as Marvel’s mutant families dance to the villains’ twisted tune!
COLLECTING: Vol. 21: Uncanny X-Men (1981) 289-296, X-Men (1991) 10-16, X-Factor (1986) 84-86, X-Force (1991) 16-18
COLLECTING: Vol. 21: Uncanny X-Men (1981) 289-296, X-Men (1991) 10-16, X-Factor (1986) 84-86, X-Force (1991) 16-18
520 pages, Paperback
First published December 6, 2022
17 people are currently reading
108 people want to read
About the author
Scott Lobdell
1,625 books230 followersScott Lobdell (born 1960) is an American comic book writer.
He is mostly known for his work throughout the 1990s on Marvel Comics' X-Men-related titles specifically Uncanny X-Men, the main title itself, and the spin-off series that he conceived with artist Chris Bachalo, Generation X. Generation X focused on a number of young mutant students who attempted to become superheroes in their own right at a separate school with the guidance of veteran X-related characters Banshee and Emma Frost. He also had writing stints on Marvel's Fantastic Four, Alpha Flight, and The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix mini-series with artist Gene Ha. He wrote the script to Stan Lee's Mosaic and an upcoming film from POW Entertainment featuring Ringo Starr. He also participated in the Marvel Comics and Image Comics (from Jim Lee's WildStorm) crossover mini-series WildC.A.T.s/X-Men.
He is mostly known for his work throughout the 1990s on Marvel Comics' X-Men-related titles specifically Uncanny X-Men, the main title itself, and the spin-off series that he conceived with artist Chris Bachalo, Generation X. Generation X focused on a number of young mutant students who attempted to become superheroes in their own right at a separate school with the guidance of veteran X-related characters Banshee and Emma Frost. He also had writing stints on Marvel's Fantastic Four, Alpha Flight, and The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix mini-series with artist Gene Ha. He wrote the script to Stan Lee's Mosaic and an upcoming film from POW Entertainment featuring Ringo Starr. He also participated in the Marvel Comics and Image Comics (from Jim Lee's WildStorm) crossover mini-series WildC.A.T.s/X-Men.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 28, 2023
The central story and Cable and Stryfe’s relationship is a great hook, and there are some genuinely great character interactions and reunions, but the plot is convoluted for no reason with the unnecessary inclusion of Apocalypse and Mutant Liberation Front, and the art is extremely 90s which certainly isn’t great. While the central narrative regarding the Summers-Grey family is emotionally compelling (despite Stryfe’s comically villainous antics and dialogue), and this story does have some lasting huge consequences, the crossover is unnecessarily drawn out and didn’t need to include all the X-teams only to barely use them.
October 10, 2024
Reading this crossover in my youth, I imagine I chalked up X-Cutioner's Song's spotty storytelling and inconsistent characterization to the issues I missed. (It was hard to collect them all when you relied on the spinner rack.)
But even the Epic Collection is a disorganized beast. The plotting is disjointed but repetitive at the same time. It feels like the X-office agreed on the big twist but didn't nail down the particulars, and so we get scenes and motivations wobbling between issues.
It doesn't help that we're approaching the peak X-bubble--Adam X, the X-Treme would debut later this year. The relative subtlety of Claremont-era characterization is thrown out for big, loud and stupid. Cable, Bishop and Maverick compete for bigger guns and more gratuitous violence with the kind of hyper-evolution we'd later see in the World.
It's not terrible--there are some fun character moments, and I enjoyed the "lean and mean" vibe of Fabian Nicieza's X-Force comics of this era. But Styfe's grandstanding and tortured soliloquies don't pay off: the ultimate effect evokes a kid lining up his action figures to smack them together. Even from a nostalgic perspective, it's a tedious read.
But even the Epic Collection is a disorganized beast. The plotting is disjointed but repetitive at the same time. It feels like the X-office agreed on the big twist but didn't nail down the particulars, and so we get scenes and motivations wobbling between issues.
It doesn't help that we're approaching the peak X-bubble--Adam X, the X-Treme would debut later this year. The relative subtlety of Claremont-era characterization is thrown out for big, loud and stupid. Cable, Bishop and Maverick compete for bigger guns and more gratuitous violence with the kind of hyper-evolution we'd later see in the World.
It's not terrible--there are some fun character moments, and I enjoyed the "lean and mean" vibe of Fabian Nicieza's X-Force comics of this era. But Styfe's grandstanding and tortured soliloquies don't pay off: the ultimate effect evokes a kid lining up his action figures to smack them together. Even from a nostalgic perspective, it's a tedious read.
October 23, 2025
"The X-Cutioner's Song" is the event that really gels the post-Claremont creators on the main books -- I've read in interviews that they really tried to go all-out, with huge stakes, huge villains, and huge revelations.
And for the most part it works, in a shaggy, all bass and power cords kinda way, and the energy and kineticism from this story helps powers the books for years after.
Unfortunately, this collection starts with some of those aforementioned comics where the creative teams were still finding their voices... and those are some hard, hard reads. Get past them, and you'll find... well, not gold, but some of the brightest and best-handled comics of thr 90s.
And for the most part it works, in a shaggy, all bass and power cords kinda way, and the energy and kineticism from this story helps powers the books for years after.
Unfortunately, this collection starts with some of those aforementioned comics where the creative teams were still finding their voices... and those are some hard, hard reads. Get past them, and you'll find... well, not gold, but some of the brightest and best-handled comics of thr 90s.
March 13, 2023
While the opening stories in this collection may feel superfluous, the main narrative of X-Cutioner's Song is a story of deception involving Cable's archnemesis Stryfe that places the X-Men into conflict with X-Factor and X-Force. I do not necessarily think this book is essential reading, but given that CMON has decided to adapt this story into a campaign for Marvel United, this story's influence is clearly present amongst X-Men fans in the 21st century.
July 7, 2024
Just one big ol’ long action sequence. Guess it’s meant for prepubescent/teenage boys. Some of these were the first comics I ever owned back when these were coming out monthly. The opening issue with Forge and Storm is incredible. Jae Lee’s pencils are great.
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December 2, 2023Only the X-Men issues
July 3, 2024
Much better then I remember and one of the great nostalgia X-Men reads
January 12, 2026
Crossover could have been told in half as many issues. The content before is barely ok - mojo, morlocks, some of my least favorite villains. A big meh
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews