Back when I first started reading single issues, my first issue of an ongoing series was Fantastic Four #551. The first part of 'The Beginning of the End' this three issue story was the final entry of the Dwayne McDuffie run as he had cleaned up the mess the First Family was in after Civil War and as he made way for Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch to take the reins with their own stories.
Looking back, I don't think it was really the smartest choice to pick up a series, with the issue number itself (551) probably giving a lot of indication that there is a significant backstory and the fact that it begins the final story of that particular creative team meaning that if I did enjoy the issue then I wouldn't be long to enjoy that specific style (although that probably wasn't high on my mind at the time). That said, it did turn out to be a rather fantastic (pardon the pun) decision as with about 200 of the full 667 issues now in my collection as well as the Fantastic Four being my all-time favourite characters (and McDuffie and Pelletier being amongst my favourite creators), it's fair to say that this random issue was as good a jumping on point as any.
However, while that was a comic book from nearly 13 years ago, can the same be said for the comics released in today's climate? In a universe (or multiple universes) of constant new first issues and complex storylines, can a reader (whether old or new) really jump onto a comic series at any random point or is it now simply a case of waiting for those (seemingly) ever more frequent run conclusions?
Luckily, fortune favoured me the opportunity to find out when, several weeks ago, an error occurred in my comics pull list. Towards the beginning of the UK COVID-19 lockdown, my local comic shop started to post out customers pull lists. As my list was (and still is) a little on the short side and so if was a rather simple task to get them to me (or so I thought). However, due to my inability to look at the provided photo of my stack properly, I accidentally ended up purchasing a copy of X-Men #9, which I had (wrongly) assumed it was the final issue of X-Men/Fantastic Four.
However, rather than dwell over this costly (and, when on a budget, I think $4 is costly) mistake, I decided to use this to my advantage and see if this random comic purchase could convince me to jump on board the series proper at this precise moment in the story.
 |
| X-Men #9, the cover by Leinil Franis Yu |
Now, I've read Jonathan Hickman titles for as far back as I can remember. The Nightly News, Fantastic Four, Secret Warriors to name a few. So to say I wasn't sure what I was expecting as I went in is an understatement to say the least. Also, it's been a long time since I've read an X-Men comic (I'm not sure if Uncanny X-Force counts), with the last being the Utopia/X-Men/Dark Avengers event. Therefore it is fair to say that, while I like the X-Men, the series has never been one of my top favourites.
However, despite being unsure what I was going to get, or even what has happened up to this point in this current series, I have to say that I found myself very much engrossed. From the beginning, where we were treated to a prologue which showed us the origins of the macguffin-like King Egg, I found the tale to be very unlike how I've come to expect Hickman to write, with the story quite straightforward in its depiction. Of course, there were a lot of unanswered questions, like ...
How did the X-Men acquire the King Egg?
Who is this Broo character?
How are those Whales Brood and not looking like regular Brood as per the beginning?
Who is Sam's (Cannonball) wife?
What's the deal with Da Costa (Sunfire)?
... but none of these impeded my enjoyment of what I read nor did it reduce how much i got into it and enjoyed it's intrigue and it's pace.
... but none of these impeded my enjoyment of what I read nor did it reduce how much i got into it and enjoyed it's intrigue and it's pace.
As for Lienil Yu's art, I've always enjoyed his style but initially never found much special ir noteworthy about it. However, that all changed in the third act of this issue as I saw what Yu's style brought to the table with some very horror-esque scenes which I thought really sold the Brood as a credible threat.
So, by the end, I think that it was safe to say that picking up and reading this relatively random issue was a worthwhile read. This is because, despite the number of questions the issue gave me as to what is going on at the beginning, I felt I was still able to pick up the general vibe the this installment gave to the point I am genuinely intrigue about not just what cam before but what comes next (like is there a second King egg like the backmatter suggests?)
Unfortunately, the ever troublesome lack of funds makes buying future issues difficult, although there is always future Comixology sales. However, regardless, reading this issue does kind of prove the point that maybe reading a random issue can hook you to a series.
... well ... maybe not.
Unfortunately, while it might be easy to leave it there with my point made, it might just be a little more complicated than that. This is because while it might happen with one issue of one series, who is to say that would always be the case. On this series alone, reading one issue ahead or behind might have been a whole different ball game.
Also, who's to say that the same would have if Hickman and Yu weren't on the book, or even just one of them? And then you could argue that the characters involved could have affected it or even the rate at which a new issue comes out (for instance, small press are known to have a long wait time between issues).
I guess the point I'm making is that, jumping onto a series isn't always the easiest way when it is a random issue, because it is all about enjoyment.
... However, I think I've proved that, while it is still difficult for 99% of comic series, it is something that can be done as long as it is the right comic series for you.
And there are an awful lot of comics out there for you to choose from.
No comments:
Post a Comment