Marvel Masterworks: The X-Men, Vol. 2

Marvel Masterworks: The X-Men #2

by Stan Lee, Alex Toth (Illustrator), Werner Roth (Illustrator)

The origin of Professor X! The birth of the Juggernaut! The end of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants! The coming of the Sentinels! And the mystery of the Mimic!

Collects The X-Men #11-21

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

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.

With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.

Reviews

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed these adventures and how different the first stories were. They made me excited for each next one.
It was only in the last quarter of this volume that I became kind of disappointed at the stories. Some of them were still interesting but things happened that was just too convenient or it was a recycled story that left me feeling a bit bored.
Although, I did enjoy the first appearance of a couple of awesome villains and the reintroduction of another!
Plus, we learn the origins of Beast and Professor Xavier! Overall, a worthwhile volume to read the original X-Men team, full force and as witty as ever!

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very entertaining and action packed second volume of original X-men comics collecting issues 11-21. This volume features the team facing off against such foes as The Juggernaut, The Sentinels, Magneto, Mimic, and Lucifer. We get The Beasts origin in issue 15 and how Professor X lost the use of his legs in issue 20.
Roy Thomas takes over scripting duties from Lee with issue 20 and Werner Roth fully takes over pencils with issue 18.
My favorite issue was probably 21, the second part of the Lucifer/Dominus saga. Great art by Roth and a whole lot of team action and interraction.

[Tawfek]

3 stars

[Dang Ole' Dan Can Dangle · Rating 3 out of 5]

In many ways this collection is even better than the previous one. There's heaps of backstory in here--from the origin of Professor X and Beast to the debut of plenty of memorable baddies. These 11 issues are really pretty stellar. First we see the downfall of Magneto thanks to The Stranger (who is sort of like X-Men's version of F.F.'s The Watcher), then we have the fantastic introduction to The Juggernaut, the epic Sentinel trilogy, the impressive return of Magneto, the debut of Mimic, and the return of Lucifer, The Blob, and Unus. There's really never a dull moment.

This collection also has more continuous arcs compared to the earlier issues. There's 3 two-part stories and a three-part story as well. The Juggernaut issue is possibly the best I've read of these early X-Men issues and the Sentinel three-parter is the first sense of a true X-Men story arc, and Magneto is badder than ever. A fine collection indeed. Plus the X-Men serving as a reflection (or metaphor, if you'd like) of social issues (namely civil rights) is developed much further here.

Favorite issues: The Origin of Professor X (#12), ...And None Shall Survive (#17)
Best Cover Art: ...And None Shall Survive (#17)
Rating: 3.50 out of 5

My other X-Men reviews:
The X-Men, Vol. 1
The X-Men, Vol. 2
The Uncanny X-Men, Vol. 1
X-Men: Proteus
The Uncanny X-Men, Vol. 2
X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga
X-Men: Days of Future Past
X-Men: From the Ashes

[Cassie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm new to the X-Men comics, so I figured I'd start at the beginning, and perhaps not really knowing a whole lot about old school comics, I probably didn't appreciate this the way others would. Comics have certainly come a long way since then, and it's nice to get some perspective on a veteran series like this one, but the scripting leaves something to be desired.

Also, Beast is insufferable. I eventually just started skipping his lines altogether.

[Trevor · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume is quite a bit better than the previous one. It introduces long-lasting X-Men villains such as Juggernaut and the sentinels. It also has the first genuinely really good issue with "The Origin of Professor X," the first Juggernaut issue. Unfortunately it weakens towards the end as Stan Lee leaves and Roy Thomas takes over.

[Evan Leach · Rating 3 out of 5]

This contains issues 11-21 of the original run. I really enjoyed these as a kid, and decided to revisit them. The original X-Men consisted of Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman, and Marvel Girl (Jean Grey). As ever, the team is lead by Professor Charles Xavier and his superhuman brain. These issues introduce the Juggernaut and the Sentinels. Magneto, the Blob, Unus and Lucifer also make return appearances.

These issues were published between 1965-66, and can feel pretty dated at times. The dialogue is awfully cheesy, and the stories are often predictable. However, I prefer these issues to 1-10. The stories are more serialized: of the 11 issues in this collection, only 2 are stand alone "villain of the month" fare. The Juggernaut is a memorable opponent, and the three issue Sentinel storyline (which introduces the human vs. mutant conflict that the X-Men would later become famous for) is very entertaining.

All in all it's good nostalgic fun, and the ads are priceless. If you like the X-Men, you'll find plenty to enjoy here. 3.0 stars.

[Adam Stone · Rating 2 out of 5]

Stan Lee really begins to lean into longer form storytelling, as, instead of a bunch of one or two part stories that reference each other but require little or no knowledge of X-Men lore (thanks to his frequent editorial notices suggesting what other issues you should read to fully appreciate each storyline), we get one long story involving an evolving and revolving cast of villains.

Mainly, a nebulous space character with a variety of powers gets entangled with Magneto, removes him from Earth, allowing the X-Men to deal with Juggernaut and then The Sentinels before Magneto returns with a much smaller scale scheme than usual.

It's the usual hokey Stan Lee yarns, though this volume sees Alex Toth and Warner Roth (as Jay Gavin) step in to pencil a few issues, and we also see the first couple of issues written by Roy Thomas, under Stan Lee's editorship.

I don't care about any of the villains in this book. The original concept of The Sentinels: Robots designed by man to protect them from mutants end up rebelling is such an early to mid-twentieth century trope that it requires defter hands than Stan Lee's to make it interesting to anyone over the age of nine. (Which, I understand, is around the target age of comics at the time.) Magneto continues to be a mustache twirling buffoon instead of the complex and conflicted villain/anti-hero he became later. Juggernaut is a great introduction here but The Stranger and the return of the incredibly dull pseudo-Magneto, Lucifer, had me barely resisting the urge to start flipping pages and skimming the stories rather than digesting them.

If you love silver-age stuff, this is still probably going to be a blast for you, but if you're not someone who adores 1960s comics, this isn't going to be the collection that changes your mind.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collects the original run of the X-Men from issues 11 through 21. Number 11 was the last Stan Lee/Jack Kirby collaboration, introducing yet another new character (as they did in most of the first ten issues), the Stranger, and ending the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants storyline that had lurked in the background of the book for a long time.
Number 12, with Toth illustrating over Kirby lay-outs, is among the best comic books of its time, a tense tale of danger from another classic new villain, the Juggernaut, who gets polished off in number 13 (drawn by Roth over Kirby layouts) with a guest appearance by the Human Torch. 14-16 introduce the Sentinels, a deadly metaphor of mindless prejudice that wouldn't get built further for many years - the story isn't actually as good as I remembered it, though there are some great moments in that first part.
Number 17 tries to recreate the tension of number 12, but doesn't quite get there, even though it neatly sets up the return of Magneto whose ridiculous scheme is too easily defeated in number 18. 19 introduces the Mimic, and the limitations of Roth as an artist, no longer powered by Kirby layouts, become obvious - he's good at civilian clothes scenes, but kinda static in action. 20 & 21 are a two-parter by new writer Roy Thomas, who uses a lot more words and possibly less logic to a battle with Lucifer - the pages wherein the individual X-Men are on different levels of the mega-computer used by the villain do look pretty cool, though.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume consists of issues 11-21 of the original X-Men comics.

This volume was more enjoyable than volume 1 if only because you can clearly see where come classic and still common X-Men tropes first took root.

These issues have also allowed for character development and themes to occur that any X-Men fan can identify if they're familiar with these characters at all. It makes the stories here feel more like X-Men stories and less like cartoony, basic superhero stories that was the case for the first volume. It is really starting to be THE X-Men, but there's still a ways to go before these characters feel truly familiar. I'm looking forward to seeing that journey though and getting closer to characters they are in the Uncanny X-Men era and beyond.

[Chris W · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading this volume, it's very clear that X-men didn't get good until Chris Claremont took over. In this volume, Magneto is a walking villain cliche having no depth or true personality. The Sentinels are embarrassingly weak and somehow vulnerable to mind control? The lineup also isn't really that great: beast is nowhere near as interesting as he later becomes (under future writers) , Angel is mediocre, Iceman is sometimes useless and it just seems hollow. Even for 1960s comics, (which I do have a soft spot for) this is fairly awful. I truly appreciate Claremont's contributions to X-men way more after reading this.

[Jeff Bleyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

These early tales of the X-Men are not too sophisticated--they were some ten years away from Len Wein's revitalizing reboot. The possible allegorical presentation of mutant oppression written during the Civil Rights era is appreciated, but these stories primarily cycle through the rise and defeat of supervillains. Magneto is the most interesting of this bunch, but he is a long way from the nuanced portrayal that would come later. Jack Kirby's contributions are less in this volume as he transitioned on to other projects. Decent, but not essential, volume for this reader's survey of the early years of the Marvel Comic Universe.

[Michael Dunn · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting series of books that cover a fair bit of ground. This run of issues is probably most notable for introducing long time enemies Juggernaut and The Sentinels, along with establishing an origin for Professor Xavier.

There are some early 60s short comings in the writing (The X-Men just can’t seem to talk about Jean Grey as an actual person and just see her as a pretty girl) and Magneto feels less like one of Marvel’s more complex villains and more like a more typical baddie. Can still be fun, but certain aspects would be improved up for future creative teams

[Troy · Rating 2 out of 5]

As an x-men fan, I have been reading the Stan Lee original to get a feel for the creation of the original team. These issues are very tough to get through. Everyone is so one dimensional with the exception of the relationship that is developing between iceman and beast. Each issue has a villain that can do everything, x-men are defeated, prof x saves day. Maybe I would have been naïve enough to like this in the 60s, but I doubt it. Again, Stan has some creativity with characters, but his writing is stale.

[Logan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m becoming a comic book person. I started collecting vintage comic books a few months ago, and read X-Men Vol. 1 (issues 1-10). Lately, I’ve bought a few newer comics (1980s/90s) with the intention of reading them (and also collecting them). And I picked up X-Men Vol. 2 to continue those adventures. The next ten issues were much like the first. It’s no wonder. The creative team—including Stan Lee—was still there, pumping out issues every two months (and then every month). I’m looking forward to seeing where my new interest takes me!

7/10

[Chris Turnbaugh · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's ok, but the origin stories are thin, the love story is lame, the plots are formulaic, and the dialogue is super cheesy. I think I like it more because I know what they become than for what they actually are. Roy Thomas took over the script for the 20th and 21st issues and the stories were definitely better.

[Max Driffill · Rating 5 out of 5]

These early works by Lee, Kirby, Gavin and Thomas may have a bit of dated 60s sensibilities, they hold up remarkably well. Character development is strong throughout. It’s worth visiting this foundational material as it is here that the groundwork that all other X-Men writers will use.

[Jamie Lovett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Silver Age X-Men is Lee and Kirby's weakest work by a large margin. Read issues #12-17 (the original Juggernaut and Sentinel stories), but otherwise, you're better off with more recent modernizations of the era, like X-MEN: SEASON ONE or X-MEN: FIRST CLASS.

[Rick Zinn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 66 issues. Before cancellation are legendary. As we move from Stan Lee/Jack Kirby era to Roy Thomas scripting, it becomes less wordy and more 2 or 3 part storylines. Scott and Jean romance in its infancy and subtly written.

[Mark Noizumi · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8 stars. The early stories are a little painful to read at times, but these are definitely improving from the first volume. Really they are perfect to read with a four-year old who doesn't need sophistication in his comics.

[Elliot · Rating 3 out of 5]

A weaker volume this, with more lows than highs. The highest high is Xavier's backstory and the introduction of the Juggernaut, which is simply brilliant.

[Nick Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun

[Robert Hultman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good set of issues

These 10 kept me as interested, if not not more so, than the first 10. Maybe too much Magneto without it getting much of anywhere, but also: Sentinels!

[Hector · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring, really really boring. There's a reason why it got cancelled: over exposition, bland stories and plot holes all over the place.

[Joe B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

How it all started.

[Bat Man · Rating 1 out of 5]

Truly a snoozefest. A lot of it seems perfectly avoidable in retrospect, but nobody was putting in any attentive work on this title in the sixties.

[Ren ☽°̥࿐ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es una buena recopilación, no tan interesante como su antecesora, pero definitivamente entretenida (...a veces)

[JW David · Rating 4 out of 5]

X-Men #11-21

[John Noll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some really great early X-Men adventures that establish well-known and well loved lore for the characters. Thank you, Jack, Stan and the team at Marvel.

[Sakari · Rating 2 out of 5]

(2.5) this is such a slog to get through