X-Men: The Fall of the Mutants Omnibus

X-Men: Fall of the Mutants

by Chris Claremont

The body count rises higher than ever as the X-Men and their allies face war on every front! X-Factor comes up against their deadliest challenge in Apocalypse. The New Mutants lose one of their own! And after the Marauders slaughter the Morlocks, they take on the X-Men! Collecting: New Mutants (1983) #55-61, Uncanny X-Men #220-227, X-Factor (1986) #19-26, Captain America (1968) #339, Daredevil (1964) #252, Fantastic Four (1961) #312, Incredible Hulk (1968) #340, Power Pack (1984) #35

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

824 pages, Hardcover

Published May 1, 2022

About the author

Chris Claremont is a writer of American comic books, best known for his 16-year (1975-1991) stint on Uncanny X-Men, during which the series became one of the comic book industry's most successful properties.

Claremont has written many stories for other publishers including the Star Trek Debt of Honor graphic novel, his creator-owned Sovereign Seven for DC Comics and Aliens vs Predator for Dark Horse Comics. He also wrote a few issues of the series WildC.A.T.s (volume 1, issues #10-13) at Image Comics, which introduced his creator-owned character, Huntsman.

Outside of comics, Claremont co-wrote the Chronicles of the Shadow War trilogy, Shadow Moon (1995), Shadow Dawn (1996), and Shadow Star (1999), with George Lucas. This trilogy continues the story of Elora Danan from the movie Willow. In the 1980s, he also wrote a science fiction trilogy about female starship pilot Nicole Shea, consisting of First Flight (1987), Grounded! (1991), and Sundowner (1994). Claremont was also a contributor to the Wild Cards anthology series.

Reviews

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't think I ever really understood just how epic the storylines of the X-titles were back in the 80's until now. This is the second big crossover event, and honestly, reading through these as I have been for a while now, the way the stories just kinda flow along over the years is rather impressive. X-Men in the 70's gets off to a bit of a rocky start, but then we have the Phoenix and Dark Phoenix stories where things start to really pick up, and it's a decent roller coaster ride from there.

This is where I feel we finally hit a sort of conclusion, or at least a resting point. Years of hints and story threads finally meet here and we have a sort of ending. I won't spoil it, but suffice to say, except for the New Mutants, where we do get a tease of the next story, all the titles feel done.

I'd say this is essential reading if you're going through the whole franchise like I am, but I can also say that, if you're looking for a place to take a break for a bit like I am, this is also probably the place to do it. From here on things only get more varied as more related titles join the mix and the crossovers become a yearly habit for a while.

[Richard Schaefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really three long stories running contemporaneously in three comics (X-Factor, Uncanny X-Men, and New Mutants) with a few tie in issues of titles like Daredevil, Hulk, and Captain America, the Fall of the Mutants is more of a conceptual crossover than one where the three teams actually get together. X-Factor are dealing with anti-mutant group The Right and mutant manipulator Apocalypse; the X-Men are dealing with… well, they’re kind of scattered all over the place, building to a climactic situation in Dallas that involves Storm and Forge and some trickster god playing with reality; the New Mutants adopt a Dr. Moreau reject named Bird Brain and chaos ensues. The titular Fall is maybe a fall from mankind’s good graces, but I’m not sure that theme fits the New Mutants’ story, which is only tied in by a last minute appearance from The Right. Regardless, this omnibus is alright. It’s not the high point for X-Men or New Mutants; I’d say the X-Factor arc was the best overall (and that’s saying something since it’s my least favorite of the three titles). So it’s not the most satisfying crossover, but it was fun to read all three titles in this format.

[Vincent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult omnibus to review, because there’s basically three separate stories that vary wildly in quality. Uncanny X-men is the cream of the crop and this era is one of the highlights of Claremont’s run for me. The continued character development of Storm and the absolute climax it ends with is just superb.

X-factor is a bit more hit or miss, but generally very entertaining and the art of Walt Simonson definitely does some heavy lifting. Some highlights are Cameron Hodge and Apocalypse stepping into the spotlights as villains and the dissolution of X-factor as we know it.

Least of the bunch is New Mutants, which loses a lot of its shine now that Louise Simonson has taken over. The characters seem a lot more juvenile and irrational, but not in the teenage angsty kind of way that they were before. Also: fuck Bird Brain. The big change in the status quo of the team at the end IS interesting though and makes me somewhat hopeful for what comes next.

Special mention to the Daredevil tie-in by Ann Nocenti with John Romita Jr. on art, because that issue truly is a masterpiece. It creates a tense atmosphere and juggles multiple storylines and characters that immediately make you feel invested, even if you’ve never read anything else from the run. Which I now DO want to read.

[Eamonn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The X-men and X-Factor storylines work well; New Mutants is a bit of a mess.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fall of the Mutants is more of a thematic event where all the teams experience low points and attempt to recover. This is where X-Factor hits its stride, and the other teams are uneven, but mostly fine.

X-Factor #18 ⧫ 4 Stars "The Enemy Within!"
This is where the original X-Men section of X-Factor really gets good. The team discovers Hodge’s plan, and the Jean-Scott issues boil over. Scott is a dick. Also, the shocking reveal of Death, Apocalypse’s Fourth Horseman!

X-Factor #19 ⧫ 4 Stars "All Together Now!"
X-Factor vs. Three of the Horsemen, and it’s a draw. The Simonson run is finally firing on all cylinders!

X-Factor #20 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Children's Crusade"
This is a fun interlude for the younger members. It is a little weird how often Rictor refers to Mexico, he’s from there, you know? However, this is a nice interlude in the action.

Incredible Hulk #336-337 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "X-Tremes!" "Crossroads"
A solid Peter David issue with some early Todd McFarlane art. It’s fairly self contained, and while some things feel a little off, the adventure is good old-fashioned comics!

X-Factor #21 ⧫ 4 Stars "For Every Action..."
Hodge goes all out, and the true extent of his plans is revealed.

X-Factor #22 ⧫ 4 Stars "If I Should Die..."
The kids get captured, and it’s up to Boom Boom! This continues the strong run of X-Factor by giving some of the side characters room to show their stuff! PS: The boxes mention the Fallen Angels miniseries a bunch, and I’d say skip that bunch of wandering around. Also, Death is ready!

X-Factor #23 ⧫ 4 Stars "You Say You Want Some Evolution?"
The X-Factor take on the Right, and it’s cathartic. Can I say how awesome it is that they just called them The Right? How do right wingers not get this?

X-Factor #24 ⧫ 5 Stars "Masks"
The reveal, followed by more betrayal.

X-Factor #25 ⧫ 5 Stars "Judgement Day!"
The big fight is against Death, and though the victory itself is somewhat simple, it ends up being very messy.

Power Pack #35 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “Life or Death!”
Power Pack cleans up after Apocalypse. The stakes are pretty high for the series, but it stays light.

Daredevil #252 ⧫ 3 Stars "Ground Zero"
It is cool to see some street level effects of Apocalypse’s attack, but most of the emotional punch is from a character who I assume is in previous issues. As such, it’s too pedestrian.

Captain America #339 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "America the Scorched"
This issue is much tighter, weaving the X-event into Captain America’s quest for identity. It’s probably more resonant read in context, but it’s a solid vignette on its own.

X-Factor #26 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Casualties"
This is a fitting end to this part of the Apocalypse arc and X-Factor’s portion of the event. Seeing the team doing basic super hero saving people is actually a nice change of pace.

Fantastic Four #312 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "The Turning Point!"
Another one that ties the event into something meaningful for a hero. This one involves Beast connecting with the then-current Ms. Marvel who had been transformed into the She-Thing.

Uncanny X-Men #220 ⧫ 4.5 Stars "Unfinished Business"
Solo Storm outings are always a favorite, and this one brings “Lifedeath” back to the forefront!

Uncanny X-Men #221 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Death by Drowning!"
This would have been a 4, given the focus on Rogue and Dazzler along with the buildup of the Storm solo plotline. Unfortunately, this is the first appearance of Mr. Sinister whose nonsense plan will put a damper on my enjoyment of the series.

Uncanny X-Men #222 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Heartbreak!"
This is a good battle issue, anchored by the Havok/Malice interaction.

Uncanny X-Men #223 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Omens & Portents"
I forgot how long the solo Storm buildup is, and it’s beginning to feel drawn out. Also, I like the Maddie/Havok relationship in principle, but I get somewhat weary knowing where it leads.

Uncanny X-Men #224 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "The Dark Before the Dawn"
Cool end as the series builds into the Fall of Mutants event proper.

Incredible Hulk #340 ⧫ 4.5 Stars "Vicious Circle"
I knew this one primarily by the cover, one that is noted for sending comics into the dive they would take in the early 90s. Interestingly, this episode is excellent, and it makes me really want to do, if not a full Hulk read, a Peter David Hulk read.

Uncanny X-Men #225 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "False Dawn"
The Colossus section is great, and the battle is alright.

Uncanny X-Men #226 ⧫ 4 Stars "Go Tell the Spartans"
This is an insane issue, but its heart is in the right place, focusing on the rival teams cooperating and the Storm/Forge relationship.

Uncanny X-Men #227 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "The Belly of the Beast"
An okay ending, if somewhat underwhelming. Next up is the very weird Australia Arc.

New Mutants #55 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Flying Wild!"
This is a fun issue, but this is the second party these teens have been to in two issues, so it might be a little bit of a crutch at this point, possibly why the collections break this and the previous issues up.

New Mutants #56 ⧫ 3 Stars "Scavenger Hunt!"
Simonson’s New Mutants are a little too caricature at this point. I like the competition, but all the characters feel off.

New Mutants #57 ⧫ 2.5 Stars "Birds of a Feather"
Magneto thinking of kicking out a mutant seems way off, and it seems like the kids are all acting a little too immature.

New Mutants #58 ⧫ 3 Stars "A Bird in the Hand"
The Bird Brain show is okay.

New Mutants #59 ⧫ 2.5 Stars "Fang and Claw!"
The Ani-Mator sucks.

New Mutants #60 ⧫ 2 Stars "Suspended Animation!"
I completely forgot that death happened here, and it’s not great.

New Mutants #61 ⧫ 3.5 Stars "Our Way!"
I’m always a sucker for a good scream fight and making up afterwards. The team even ends with better costumes!

Other Comics Reviews
X-Men Omnibus #1
X-Men Omnibus #2
Epic Collection Volume 4: It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn
Champions Classic Complete Collection
Uncanny X-Men Omnibus #1
Uncanny X-Men Omnibus #2
X-Men Classic Omnibus
Uncanny X-Men Omnibus #3
New Mutants Omnibus #1
Uncanny X-Men Omnibus #4
Defenders Epic Collection Vol. 8: The New Defenders
Defenders Epic Collection Vol. 9: The End of All Songs
Alpha Flight Omnibus #1
Dazzler Omnibus
Captain Britain Omnibus
Power Pack Omnibus #1
Uncanny X-Men Omnibus #5
X-Factor: The Original X-Men Omnibus #1
New Mutants Omnibus #2
X-Men: Mutant Massacre Omnibus

[Adam Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Continuing my way through the mid-late eighties, Fall of the Mutants is a mixed bag. 😅 I really liked the Uncanny X-Men story, and the X-Factor story is a little uneven, but it IS dramatic at least. New Mutants on the other hand is an absolute mess. I hope to never see Bird Brain again. What a travesty.

[Jorge Schumacher · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 estrelas

[Paul Cocker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading the X-Men: Mutant Massacre Omnibus got me wanting to revisit the big X-Men events, so X-Men: Fall of the Mutants Omnibus was next. I chipped away at this one over about three weeks, reading issue by issue. It’s not a traditional crossover -- each mutant title tells its own story -- but together, they mark a big turning point across the X-universe.

In Uncanny X-Men, Claremont leans into mysticism and sacrifice. The team takes on the Adversary in Dallas, and the story ends with what feels like their final stand. Marc Silvestri really comes into his own here -- his linework is sharp, expressive, and dynamic, helping sell both the grounded character moments and the big cosmic threats. Out of the founding fathers of Image Comics, he was clearly my favourite artist at the time.

X-Factor might be the real showstopper. Louise and Walt Simonson take the original X-Men through the wringer as they face Apocalypse and the debut of Archangel. The arc doesn’t just raise the stakes -- it redefines the team. Apocalypse shifts from mad scientist to full-blown threat, and Warren’s transformation gives the book real emotional weight.

The New Mutants arc is the bleakest. The team ends up on a nightmarish island and loses one of their own. Bret Blevins handles the art, and while his expressive style works in spots, it sometimes clashes with the darker tone. The impact is there, though -- it’s a gut punch of a story.

The tie-ins are hit or miss. Incredible Hulk #336–337 stands out -- not essential, but it shows how far-reaching the fallout is. Peter David’s writing and Todd McFarlane’s early art give the story some real edge and momentum, adding just enough tension to make it memorable. Other appearances feel like background noise compared to the heavy lifting the core books do.

Overall, Fall of the Mutants doesn’t deliver a single unified event, but it delivers change. It feels like the X-books growing up, stepping into darker territory, and redefining what it means to be a mutant in the Marvel Universe.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second X-Men crossover was thematic rather than narrative.

But this Omni contains all of the build up to the primary three X-titles of ‘87 which adds some rating to this book.


Curiously the arrangement of the book has the three stories in descending quality.

X-Factor really shines as Apocalypse’s machinations come to bear in a fight for New York that finally resurrect the X-Factor book fully into its new status quo.

X-Men is stretching a bit to get to the event, expanding a story that doesn’t need the pages it gets. The pre-story is still battling the Marauders, but the secondary story is finally resolving some Cheyenne magicky stuff that can offput people who want different conflicts in their X-Book. Likewise, Claremont starts including some Captain Britain stuff that the American audiences would have been clueless of (prepping for Excalibur).

New Mutants, while my favorite team, is certainly the weakest story. The conflict better fits a shorter and less important story, however the big tragedy of this book has significant emotional fallout for our mutants.

[OmniBen · Rating 2 out of 5]

(Zero spoiler review)
A completely unnecessary and greedy cash grab from Marvel, but then again, what else is new. They never tire of finding ways to rinse their customers. An event that isn't really an event. Take half a dozen X issues, throw some X family stuff around it and get the plebs to purchase it. This shouldn't be taken as any great criticism of the material contained within. The X Factor issues are of little interest, and Claremont is definitely on a downward trajectory (not to mention over writing as if he is being paid by the letter). that, and something else I didn't expect to be saying about Marc Silvestri's art, but it was damn weak. Shockingly so. Not sure how much the inker was to blame, but for the flagship X book during the peak of it's popularity, it really should look better.
The material contained within is certainly good enough, but that doesn't stop this being a book that just doesn't need to be on your shelf. At least I got it cheap. 2/5


OmniBen

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little shaky of an omnibus but that's partly cause there's three different runs going on. The Uncanny X-Men stuff was of course great and had a great rhythm. X-Factor was okay, the plot was cool but for some reason I had a hard time getting into it. New Mutants was definitely my least favorite but I did appreciate 61 and how they reacted to a pretty big event. Bird-brain was just a dumb plot bit and I didn't like how the New Mutants somehow became a lot less mature. The Daredevil one-shot was phenomenal but that's standard for Daredevil.

[Gus Casals · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a little bit of a debate as of this writing (Oct 2022) regarding single title collections v "event" collections that include all relevant titles to such. Although the second approach is sensible, specially when it comes to the late 80's-early 90's crossover-heavy X-Titles, this collection shows how it's flawed.
The X-Men issues included here are high quality/high stakes issues, with Claremont and Silvestri firing on all cylinders. Then there are the X-Factor and the New Mutants issues, and let's just say, and with all the love I have for Louise Simonson, that they are not at the same level.
Adding to that, you could argue that the ancillary titles share a common thread regarding enemies involved, but it does seem forced, while the main story, the one we are paying top money for, barely relates to those. These are three separate story arcs, with two of those having some semblance of coherence (because they are written by the same person), and a third which is the really interesting one. They are even collected as three discrete parts, in silent admission that yes, these have only a tenuous connection.
Again, when continuity requires reading an issue of this, then an issue of this second title, then a third and then all over again, I can justify the event book. Here? It was a marketing ploy in 86, it remains such.

[Randy Lander · Rating 2 out of 5]

1/3 of this book is pretty good, as Chris Claremont pairs with early (inked by Dan Green) Marc Silvestri for a rematch with the Marauders, the return of Madelyn Pryor, Colossus, and Storm’s powers, and the passing of the X-men into the hard to find and out of print Outback era.

The rest of the book? Pretty awful character ruination on X-Factor and New Mutants, a halfway decent X-Factor/Incredible Hulk crossover, and a couple random Fall of the Mutants tie-ins that were… ok at best.

I read all of this back in the day, but my memories were much brighter than my experiences reading it again. X-Factor straight up wrecked the original five X-Men, New Mutants undid a lot of the great foundational work Claremont and Sienkiewicz did, and Apocalypse and his four horsemen were a lot goofier and less threatening than I remembered.

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Main story: Great! (Some content doesn't age well and other parts plod along)
Tie-in issues: Hot garbage fire... (the only reason to read/include them is for a 'completionist award'

Bonus: Early Mr Sinister is much more menacing than his current incarnation
Bonus Bonus: They sure did whine a LOT in the early 90's/late 80's. Characterizations seem...weird.

Bonus BONUS BONUS: early appearance of Apocalypse and his Horsemen which are...forced. Lots of villain-splaining their plan to blow things up and take control.

[Shoumik Hassin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a bizarre collection.

The main X-Men and X-Factor stories are decent, if a little too heavy on the ol' Claremont tropes. Simonson deserves some flowers for turning X-Factor around so fast. But her New Mutants run is off to an... inauspicious start. The Blevins art is very cartoonish in a way that doesn't quite work for me.

Anyway, the best stuff in the book is the out-of-nowhere Nocenti/Romita Jr issue of Daredevil. That one really cooks.

[Timothy Shea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this era of x-men so much

[Sean Gibson · Rating 3 out of 5]

No matter how many issues of New Mutants I read...it is not good.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

The X-Factor storyline was the strongest of the three stories.

[Jacob Hess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-reading the beginnings of one of my favorite x-men: Archangel, was worth it