House of M: Masters of Evil

House of M

by Christos Gage, Manuel García (Illustrator)

House of M returns! You've seen how the mutants and the heroes were changed in the world ruled by Magneto...but what about the villains? Their story stands revealed at last as The Hood assembles a gang of the deadliest Sapien super-criminals: Madame Masque, The Absorbing Man, Titania, The Wrecking Crew, Nitro, Constrictor, The Sandman, Crossbones, and more! At first, their goal is simple: get rich and get away with it. But their very first job may lead somewhere none of them expected...and incur the wrath of the House of M itself!

Collects: House of M: Masters of Evil #1-4.

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, X Men, Superheroes, Science Fiction, Fantasy

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Chris N. Gage is a writer for comic books and television.

Reviews

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty cool redemption story in a forced-alternate universe (thanks to Wanda) featuring the B-est B-villains of the Marvel Universe who go from trying to pull off a con together to starting a true underdog revolution that actually meant something.

I was quite surprised. It reminded me of the original Civil War run but with a bit more emotional weight. Not bad at all.

[Roman Zarichnyi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Другим прочитаним тайіном до події «Династія М» є «Династія М: Господарі зла» #1-4, яку писав Крістофер Ґейдж.

Ця лімітка розповідає про той же світ Династії М, але з боку негідників, де Капюшон збирає банду найзгубніших супер-злочинців: Мадам Маска, Поглинаючий Чоловік, Титанія, Нітро, Констриктор, Пісочник та багато інших. Спочатку їхня мета проста: розбагатіти і втекти із цим багатством. Але перша справа розвернулася так, чого ніхто з них не очікував. Тому вони вирішують, що потрібно щось змінити в цьому гнітючому світі на краще, принаймні спробувати.

Як на мене то комікс вийшов непоганим. Класно спостерігати за цими "бунтарями", які намагаються розпочати справжню революцію за права людей у мутантському світі чи те, як злочинці стають на таку собі "добру" сторону і турбуються про те, щоб показати себе із хорошої сторони. Як висновок, вийшло добротно, хоч місцями було читати нуднувато.

[Rajiv Ashrafi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best House of M story in my opinion. The recipe is a bit strange though: take a bunch of Z-list villains and a strong emotional core, and voila, you have a surprisingly good story full of redeeming characters.

I must say, Masters of Evil really stood out to me. You almost feel bad for the characters by the end, especially in the way they die at the hands of the regime. It's the way they're treated - mostly as believable humans - that really hits home.

Absolutely pleasantly surprised.

[C. Varn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gage's Masters of Evil is similar to his Civil War set in House of M in that inverts familiar tropes that still manage to emphasize a lot of the key themes of the X-men. Taking villains and turning them into not only anti-heroes but by the last issue, outright resistance heroes, is not an easy task. The art by Manuel García is enjoyable but his figures and faces aren't always consistent. It's an interesting take on House of M world that does justice to the premise.

[Mr. Stick · Rating 4 out of 5]

"IF YOU KNOW A SAPIEN WHO'S BEING TREATED UNFAIRLY, WHO'S BEING PERSECUTED BY THE POLICE, LET US KNOW AND WE'LL BE THERE. IF THE AUTHORITIES TRY TO UNJUSTLY PROSECUTE ONE OF US FOR A CRIME HE DIDN'T COMMIT, RAISE YOUR VOICE... AND A THOUSAND VOICES WILL BE RAISED WITH IT."
- Parker "The Hood" Robbins, founder of the Sapien Rights League.

I love this s@#$. Tales from the other side of the law. While the House of M are arguably the "bad guys," they also run the world with a fleet of helicarriers and sentinels to swiftly snuff out any resistance. I suppose this could be used as a cautionary tale of a repressed minority rising to dominance and then making the same mistakes as the formerly oppressive majority. The non-mutant minor villains who used to terrorize civilized society with petty thefts and grabs for power are now filling the role of Robin Hood in a world where mutants rule over ordinary humans.
Obviously, some members of the Sapien Rights League are composed of your typical unscrupulous turds who don't mind collateral damage so long as they get paid, but there are also a lot of principled scoundrels who refuse to hurt anyone unnecessarily.
The ending is predictable, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable. I believe I may have enjoyed this sidestory moreso than the main title series. Four stars.

[Myrmidon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Capisci che una storia è scritta bene quando riesce quasi a farti fare il tifo per dei cattivi. Anche senza il quasi.
Come nella continuity principale, anche nella realtà di House of M abbiamo ovviamente supercriminali, ma quelli mutanti, in quanto tali, sono legittimati all'interno di una società in cui sono la maggioranza (vedi ad esempio Mystica e Toad, agenti dello SHIELD), quelli umani invece, come tutti i "sapiens", non se la passano benissimo.
Ecco così che anche in questa realtà a Parker Robbins, meglio noto come Hood, viene l'idea di formare un sindacato in modo che i criminali umani possano operare in modo più organizzato, efficiente e, soprattutto, prestarsi mutuo soccorso laddove uno di loro venga pizzicato.
Il carismatico Hood tinge questa associazione di ideali quasi nobili: loro non sono solo criminali, ma oppressi che cercano di riscattarsi in un mondo in cui i mutanti non solo precludono loro ogni opportunità, ma anzi ipocritamente mettono in pratica ciò che condannano a loro; ma è chiaro che dietro la retorica della titanica resistenza contro l'oppressione si nasconda il ben più materiale desiderio di potere, ricchezza e rispetto. Ma se, con il passare del tempo, iniziassero a crederci davvero? O, quantomeno, a convincere l'opinione pubblica?
La risposta in questa miniserie che, devo dire, mi ha lasciato piacevolmente sorpreso.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

So in the House of M universe, The Hood assembles a group of human supervillains in order to commit crimes, but in the course of events, the group ends up leading a revolution.

This is a "flip the script" type story where since the mutants have taken over the world as the bad guys, the supervillains end up being the good guys when they rebel against them.

Not a bad addition to the House of M saga.

[Amanda Shepard (Between-the-Shelves) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy these stories that let you get to see a different side of the villain. Albeit a rocky start, this one got pretty serious by the end. It adds a lot to the House of M storyline, too, in my opinion.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. This is "The Hood is almost exactly the same, but then mutant soldiers stop them rather than the Avengers."

I wonder if anyone ever explained why Parker Robbins gained so much power so quickly. Seems like he should be a schmoe more often.

[Amory · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars?
Definitely the least interesting House of M comic so far, since it's following an entire team of characters that I don't care about. The overall plan the villains had here was still interesting enough to follow, but I don't think I'd read this again.

[Layth Salah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool story & characters

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book full of great art and a moving story. One of the outstanding House of M collections. Best of all it tells the story, from the villains point of view. Worth checking out.

[Nick Holt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps my favorite in the House of M. Engaging clear storyline, good character development, solid ending. Really glad I gave this one a read

[ana (taylor’s version) ☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved LOVED Whitney.

It was kinda meh at the beginning but sooo good towards the last issue, the build up was worth it and Hood’s development was cheff kiss 😮‍💨

[kpolacik · Rating 4 out of 5]

8-

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

did not give a fuck about the hood before this and now i want to cry

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

So this started off kind of cheesy, kind of men-in-tights superhero stuff and then got kind of heavy. Since it was an "alternate" reality it allowed the writers to be really brutal and kill off a bunch of characters who had been around for decades. I imagine that this kind of break from normal restrictions must be a lot of fun for the writers.

[J'aime · Rating 5 out of 5]

I admit it; I had very low expectations for this book. I got it mainly because I am a completest and already had all the other House of M tie-ins. So, it came as quite a shock that this story was actually damn good! I didn't expect much because to me, these are all C or B-level villains at best. Other than Sandman who appeared in the third Spider-man film, I doubt anyone who isn't seriously into comics has heard of any of these characters. Fortunately, the writers used that to their advantage with a clever storyline that showed just how bad it is for sapiens that even minor villains end up fighting for humanity.

The impetus for the story comes when The Hood decides to organize all these villains into a more effective team, à la the Mafia, to protect each other and make better, more profitable heists. And if they also stick it to the House of M, so much the better. None of them are mutants, though most do have some kind of power. This strategy evolves into something greater when Hood decides to use a Sapien Rights League as a cover for the hits, and Sapiens start revering them as heroes fighting against the establishment. But, Magneto is nothing if not ruthless and when he decides to crush this rebellion, these villains intend to go out in an exciting blaze of glory.

This book was a delightful surprise. These characters work perfectly for the plot, as history has shown that many freedom fighters arise from obscurity. The core group are developed enough even in this short book to help the reader connect, and the action is non-stop. Overall, this is an excellent supplement to the HoM event. Highly recommended.

[Alister Hooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly good. Even moved my cold heart to shed a little tear which comic books rarely do in my experience. Must have been in a certain mood! (Lol) Anyway... this book is best read with other books and in a certain order to get the most out of it. In particular, it is best to start with the main House of M (HoM) novel first, or else readers may find themselves without sufficient context and a good grasp of the world within which HoM Masters of Evil takes place. I would also recommend reading Gage's two other House of M books first as well (i.e., after reading the main HoM book) and in the following order: HoM Civil War and HoM Avengers. By the time you get to this book, after the other three equally good books, it will have much more impact. The dialogue and the character motivations in this book were excellent. Despite being villains, I ended up really rooting for these characters. The redemptive nature of the story and the struggles against oppression were well done, and ended up being genuinely moving. For an alternative reality story, of which you will find many in the Marvel Universe, this is one of the best I've read.

[Aarthika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a solid read with fantastic storytelling and great art to match. I liked how, The Hood was the main character in this book and we saw a whole different side to the beloved X-Men characters as well.

Wolverine was real messed up in this book, but I liked how they tackled issues like discrimination and oppression in a way that echoes our real life society.

I only wish there wasn't a whole of secondary characters who were kind of unknown villains in the marvel universe and instead a few fleshed out ones like, Madam Masque ??? And the Jeffries brothers were really creepy.

[Elinor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Très très bon !

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

Out of all the spin off stories, this was the only one which I truly loved. Ironically, I was tired of the House of M stuff and just read this one to finish them off. Instead, I found a great tragic story about a group of villains who start off with bad intentions and end up finding a purpose and trying to make positive change in the world, making up for their past mistakes. This was the best House of M book in my opinion by far.

[Hugo Venegas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love The Hood, so no brainer for me to pick this up. I love The Hood so much that I hyped down reading this but when I started reading it, I was glued, he is "The Don" for Marvel, what I love more is how much the rest of his crew are actually powerful they are just made to be pushover's in the other comics but not this one they all kick ass.

[Brent · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like Chris Gage's writing a lot, particularly in his Avengers Academy run in recent years. But this is awfully dependent on a ream of superhero and villain and Marvel make-believe alternate history. Sweet ending, though.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good, but I am a sucker for Byronic heroes.

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost enough to make me like some of these villains