The Age of Apocalypse ran from 27 December 1994’s X-Men Alpha through to X-Men Omega released on 25 April 1995. The whole thing ran for 4 months, but in that time 40 comics were produced. For it’s time it was a bold idea, cancelling, or at least pausing, 8 or 9 of your higher selling titles and doing a quick relaunch for a series that many of your readers could just skip. It was a gamble, even for the salad days of mid 90’s marvel. But they did it, they took their shot and the question remains, did it hit? Not in question of sales, I remember it doing well at my LCS, but as a story, as an event, did it work?
Well lets be honest, it was the most 90s of 90s events. From the exaggeration of the art, to the character designs (FACE TATTOOS!!) it was very much a product of it’s time and enjoyed the excesses of the era in bright technicolour. So it’s easy to put it in the same category as other events of the time (looking at you Phalanx Covenant and the Crossing), but just a little under the surface is an interesting idea or three.
The What If? Nature of the stories allowed you to put characters where their traditional versions couldn’t or wouldn’t go. Logan ends up with Jean Grey, because it would be interesting if they took it in that direction. What would Magneto be like if he tried to be a father from day one? Then more obscure ideas, like Sabretooth seeking redemption, Havok raised alongside the brother he’s always felt second place to and The Beast, devoid of any concept of morals and ethics. One of the more interesting ones for me, was the lead character in my favourite of the minis, Cyclops.
In the 616 universe, Cyclops was bounced around until he ended up at Xavier’s and followed his dream and ideas, to the exclusion of anything else in life. When his marriage collapsed in the 616, it was never Jean that was the ‘other woman’ it was Xavier’s dream and the X-Men. Here we get to see what happened without it. Raised by Sinister alongside his jealous brother, Cyclops was raised in a mutant supremacist state, that was the law of the land, the dream of Apocalypse and so that was the system Cyclops was exposed to. Just like with Xavier, he dived in and committed his life to it, he kept order, obeyed the law of the land, until he was exposed to another idea and then he had doubts. It’s the nature/nurture thing, raised a certain way up to a point, did that instil a sense of decency and morals in him? Did meeting Jean after she was captured reawaken it? Did he ever think he was the bad guy till then? Then when he did try to free her, to do the right thing, he lost an eye for his trouble. Most would go right back to what they do, but Cyclops started freeing people. It’s the idea that if this is who you are, you’ll always find your way to it. I like that idea.
Ultimately it was a story about a better world, either finding it, imagining it, or fighting to create it. Knowing that somethings are worth fighting for, even if you know that you won’t win, or won’t survive. That bigotry and oppression are wrong, no matter who it is against and no matter how powerful you are, it can all change. This was a world with a noble and heroic Magneto, a militant Cyclops and amoral Beast. Some ideas survived and came about into the main comics later on.
I enjoyed the hell out of this re-read, not everything was a winner, but it reminded me that I grew up in an era with great music, great tv, great movies and some pretty great comics. If you have never read any of this (it’s weird if you are here and haven’t honestly, but hey welcome) then try it, it’s fun. You remember fun right? If you have read it, but not for a long time, re-read it, it has dated, but it’s big budget fun with some interesting stuff behind it and some days that is all you want. I enjoyed my look back at the Age of Apocalypse and think I’ll look at another bit of 90s fun.
Till then, take care internet people.
My Marvel Life 