REVIEW: Excalibur #1 is very much its own thing, for better or worse

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By Zack Quaintance — This week’s Excalibur #1 brings us right to the edge of the halfway point of Dawn of X, which is the new wave of six X-Men titles springing out of the recently-concluded House of X / Powers of X reconceptualization of Marvel’s X-Men franchise. Next week, a double-punch of New Mutants and X-Force will hurdle us over that halfway point, but for now, here we are. So, about this comic...Excalibur #1 is the first title of the new X-Men era that I, quite frankly, don’t really know what to make of.

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REVIEW: X-Men #1 has some fun in the House of X that Hickman built

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By Zack Quaintance — Since Jonathan Hickman launched a new era of X-Men comics back in late July with House of X #1, there have been quite a few surprises in store for fans of Marvel’s mutants. Chief among these surprises is the entire concept of the new era, wherein guided by the lessons learned through Moira McTaggert’s reincarnations (she too is a mutant), Professor X, Magneto, Apocalypse and everyone else (pretty much) have unified, creating a separate mutant state on the living island of Krakoa, where they have also figured out how to revive any mutants that are killed….there is some tension between the newly-empowered mutants and humanity, however, and it is played out through the ongoing development of AI and robots. Phew.

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Why are HOUSE OF X and POWERS OF X two series?

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By Garrett Rooney — House of X and Powers of X, the recently-concluded series that launched a new era of X-Men comics, are a complicated pair of interconnected stories. While they are clearly telling one larger story, Jonathan Hickman has chosen to tell us that story by breaking it into two separate six-issue mini-series that are mostly released on alternating weeks. This is somewhat unusual, because you really can’t appreciate either of these series alone. In fact, in the back of each issue of HoXPoX (for brevity I will be referring to the overall work as HoXPoX going forward, and the individual books as HoX or PoX), you’ll find a reading order that makes it very clear that you are intended to read the issues in a particular intertwined order, “two series that are one” as it says.

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Thirsty Thursdays September 2019: STILL mutants only

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By Allison Senecal — Welcome back to Thirsty Thursdays. Now, you may be wondering...is this still a MUTANTS ONLY affair? Let me just stop you right there — the answer is yes, but now it also involves a sex and resurrection cult. Now that everyone’s property excited, let’s get to this month’s thirstiest panels. 

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The Road to HoX/PoX: A Story of Unity and Trust

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By Jamie Grayson — In the recent 'two-series-that-are-one' combo of House of X and Powers of X, writer Jonathan Hickman and artists Pepe Larraz and R.B. Silva tackle many complicated subjects, including alternate futures and pasts, reincarnation through parallel timelines, and the fate of a newformed utopia. But behind all that high-concept, flashy blockbuster business lies one key concept — unity, built upon mutual trust.

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Top Comics to Buy for July 31, 2019: Powers of X, Paper Girls, and more!

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By Zack Quaintance — It’s kind of odd how a single comic can really make a week feel so much better in terms of new comics. For me this week, that comic is Powers of X #1. I absolutely loved House of X #1, a grandiose and confident comic that seemed for the first time in nearly 20 years to announce that the X-Men were starting something that will feel both new and important. As a child of the ‘90s, this feeling is one that I have greatly missed. And I get to have it again this week…

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