X of Swords (Summer X-Over)

[ExodusCloak]

They're a proper nation now.

[baxer]

Proper nation depends of the point of view.

[Shinfuma]

Well, the three issues this week were a very good finish to an overall nice event. Larraz and Asrar have done a terrific job on these; it's good to know Asrar will keep on drawing issues of the main X-Men series, and hopefully Larraz will soon be back on Krakoa.
Now that we have seen the whole event, it really feels like it was strongly centered on Apocalypse. In my opinion Hickman and Howard have worked well together : the story of Apocalypse's family was certainly planned by Hickman as the Horsemen were already seen in HoX/PoX, and everything about Otherworld and the return of the Captain Britain Corps seems to have been planned by Howard; yet Apocalypse was a central character in Excalibur since the first issue, and it seems everything that happened with him in Excalibur was to reach X of Swords. That's why I think Hickman and Howard did well, reaching that goal while linking their story threads.

Still, I think the event was initially announced as a 15-chapters story, and IMO it would have been better to not extend it, to keep momentum.
For me (and I do not say the following issues were bad, I enjoyed most of them) :
- chapters 3 and 4 should have been one book (make it a 4.99$ book with more pages, like chapter 5, if need be). All the other swordbearers got their sword in one issue, after all. And in the end, Solem did not do much during X of Swords, so those 2 chapters feel even more than others like setup for future stories.
- I don't really see what the two Hellions chapters brought to the X of Swords narrative. They felt more like tie-ins (good ones, but not essential for the event) and again to prepare future stories around Sinister's plans.
- X-Men 14 and its repeated pages... Asrar's new pages could have been added at the end of Stasis (again, make it 1$ more expensive for more pages), with two or three more new pages where Genesis explains what really happened after she defeated Annihilation (the lies of Summoner in X-Men 12 really begin at this point only).
- The whole dinner in chapters 13 and 14 could have been one issue.
So, yeah, I think less padding, more straight to the point plots would have improved the story. But in the end, I think the good things outweigh the bad in this event.

As for the conclusion and the future :
- Who will replace Jean and Apocalypse on the council ?
- It is a bit sad, but the White Sword stayed on Amenth. He was interesting
- The data pages seem to imply the Five will resurrect Gorgon... Will the new one be on the side of angels or demons ?
- Will Redroot ever escape the Crooked Market ?
- How is Death still alive ? Or is he ?
- Finally, based on the krakoan text on the preview page, is it now the "Reign of X", after "Dawn of X" ?
(Edit : just saw the news, it IS "Reign of X")

[LordUltimus]

They're a proper nation now.

They're certainly corrupt enough to be one.

[jwatson]

Yep, comes out end of January. I preordered it about 2 months ago

Looks like the hardcover was pushed to feb 2 with digital out end of jan. i bought the hadcover. going to look so pretty next to my dawn of x trades and my powers of x hardcovers. i love the way they collect the books, i've never been a collector but i love reading them all together how they are.

[Grunty]

How's THAT going to work?

Well looking at the track record of the Morlocks, Genosha, the Savage Land mutants, i would guess used a bit, then forgotten or sidelined to the point of being forgotten by most readers and if they are unlucky, they get nuked or otherwise wiped out to make the X-men feel sad.

[Godlike13]

It got silly, but it finished strong. Overall I enjoyed this era’s first crossover event quite a bit.

[PrezValentine]

Considering the more comedic part of the tournament was relegated to three issues, looking at the whole picture it certainly didn't affect the overall story. I just think that for the next big crossover they need a better grasp on how to split things. Half of the event was Hickman/Howard and the other was Percy/Duggan with the others filling in at some places. I look forward to Hickman and Ewing to join their writing next time.

[Jwyatt]

I can't, off the top of my head, think of anything quite like it, so not really sure that holds true. Young Avengers, kind of?

Don't think it's going to be about or particularly feature those guys you mention.

To me, based only on the cover, it looks like the original Teen Titans (kid versions of big guns).

[Jwyatt]

At this point, are we the readers supposed to understand what the Captain Britain Corps had to do with Arrako trying to get to Krakoa? Why did Saturnyne do whatever she did now? We don't know if these Captains were created as corps members, resurrected, or transformed from normal people/frogs in other realities, right?

[nandes]

At this point, are we the readers supposed to understand what the Captain Britain Corps had to do with Arrako trying to get to Krakoa? Why did Saturnyne do whatever she did now? We don't know if these Captains were created as corps members, resurrected, or transformed from normal people/frogs in other realities, right?

The battlefield of the two mutant nations was in Otherworld, so Saturnyne had to get involved somehow and saw an opportunity there, as the Capitol had been left without its champions since the lead up to Secret Wars. The Captain Britain corps were destroyed there during the incursions, leaving the Brian Braddock of our reality as the sole survivor and killing almost every other Brian - from that, you can assume that in each reality somebody took up the mantle after him, with multiple alternate Betsy Braddock(s) being the most likely candidates

[Toonstrack]

"TO ME, MY X-MEN"

Was Endgame quality

[charliehustle415]

The battlefield of the two mutant nations was in Otherworld, so Saturnyne had to get involved somehow and saw an opportunity there, as the Capitol had been left without its champions since the lead up to Secret Wars. The Captain Britain corps were destroyed there during the incursions, leaving the Brian Braddock of our reality as the sole survivor and killing almost every other Brian - from that, you can assume that in each reality somebody took up the mantle after him, with multiple alternate Betsy Braddock(s) being the most likely candidates

Yeah it was explained in Creation I believe, there was a infographic that showed Krakoa is opposite of Arrako and in between is Otherworld; so undoubtedly Saturnyne got roped into this battle and she used it to her advantage in trying to kill Betsy and bone Brian

[sunofdarkchild]

So what was the best love story to come out of X of Swords? Apocalypse and Genesis, Doug and Bei, Storm and Death, or Gorgon and Boulder?

[Frobisher]

So what was the best love story to come out of X of Swords? Apocalypse and Genesis, Doug and Bei, Storm and Death, or Gorgon and Boulder?

Haha, it makes sense now that he turned all those poor hydra interns into statues. It's just what he's into.