Status Updates From Essential Classic X-Men, Vo...

The origin stories of Cyclops and Iceman are probably the best parts of this collection. The fear and anger directed at them make it clear they were created to represent marginalized groups. But Marvel was a relatively open minded company when the X-Men were created. Multiple writers were Jewish and they had created the Black Panther. So why have an all-WASP, predominantly male team, with one attractive woman?

Everyone seems to have an established role on the team, except Jean Grey. She seems to be alternately the weakest member of the team, the most underestimated member of the team, the sexy girl and the sweetheart homemaker.
There is something to be said for her being the only character with more than one dimension, but heroes and villains insist on calling her "female". And she just made the whole team new costumes.

Comic 37 was the first where the art didn't look like a moderately talented high school student drew it. For 13 issues, everyone has been a different villain, with no Magneto appearances.
There is a lot of discussion about how villains should hold a mirror up to the heroes. None of these villains have done that so far. They are kind of stock "I want to rule the world" types. I wonder if that's why X-Men was canceled.

One thing that comes across in these early issues is just how young the X-Men are supposed to be. They really do come across as high school students. That being said, why does Professor X keep putting them in situations where they can be killed? I get the whole "learn by doing" and "heroes sacrifice" and so on. But, these are teenagers at school. No responsible, moral teacher puts children in danger.

The most notable aspect of this compilation is how much Claremont changes the X-Men when he diversifies the group. It would make sense for mutants to be distributed across the globe, unless something was causing the mutations.
Plenty of the early writing makes absolutely no sense. Mimic is a mutant. Then he isn't a mutant. Professor X can create tentacles that keep him from falling, but not a motorized wheelchair.

The old newspaper print trade paperbacks are lame. They make you realize how much color changes stories that are supposed to be as active as superhero comics.
I enjoy the X-Men, though I'm not entirely sure what attracted me to them. I know they are a stand-in for the civil rights movement of the 1960s, so maybe their otherness was relatable. But Spider-Man was always an outcast and I never liked him as much.