Take a trip with me back to the Fall of 2019. After Jonathan Hickman changed everything we thought we knew about X-Men comics with his mind-blowing House of X/Powers of X series, excitement was understandably high. We were all anxiously waiting to see how Hickman would follow up on such an amazing opener in his adjective-less X-Men ongoing series. And he didn’t disappoint. Re-reading those first nine issues, plus the first two Giant-Size X-Men issues – collected anew in X-Men: Reign of X by Jonathan Hickman Vol. 1 – well, they still fill me with excitement.
First off, the art is fantastic. Six of the eleven issues are drawn by Leinil Francis Yu, working at the top of his game. But the fill-ins are also top talents; R.B. Silva, Mahmud Asrar and Matteo Buffagni each draw outstanding issues. Russell Dauterman’s coveted art is highlighted in the almost completely silent Giant-Size X-Men: Jean Grey and Emma Frost. And when the weakest art is produced by Alan Davis – in Giant-Size X-Men: Nightcrawler – well, the standard must be incredibly high.
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Conceptually, Hickman was working on another level, chugging out one creative idea after another. Some were completely new to the X-Men mythos – for example the new villains Hordeculture in issue #3. Other concepts built upon or slightly retconned older X-Men continuity – like what Hickman did with the origin of the Brood in issues #8 and #9. Every issue opened up new storytelling possibilities beyond our wildest imagination.
Now, I know Hickman’s storytelling style can be a bit of an acquired taste. It might not be for everyone, but I really enjoy it. He writes for the long term, skewing more traditional comic book story arcs. For example, the plot thread introduced in issue #1 involving the Children of the Vault doesn’t return until issue #5 and won’t be resolved in this collection at all. Furthermore, in these 11 issues, there is only one two-issue arc (issues #8 and #9) and even that is a continuation of the story Hickman started in the New Mutants series.
Accordingly, X-Men reads more like an anthology series setting up everything Hickman wants to explore. In fact, his initial idea for the series – as he revealed in X-Men Monday #123 – was for X-Men to be a springboard book, introducing things that would be picked up in the other X-books. Now, I’m glad that idea didn’t completely come to fruition, but you can see how it morphed into the series we got.
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In the midst of this shifting sea of concepts and stories, Hickman wisely anchors the series on Cyclops – the first and perennial X-Man – and his extended Summer’s family. By following Cyclops, the continually changing narratives are given a stability that would otherwise be lost.
In any case, it’s hard to complain about the lack of traditional story arcs when the one-issue stories we get are so strong on their own. Out of the 11 issues, five are outstanding, another four are great, two really good and there is only one weak issue in the bunch.
The five highlights come right in the middle of this collection, starting with issue #4, in which Hickman wonderfully utilizes the nine-panel-grid to control the tension and pacing of a political power struggle. Next comes a wild and highly imaginative sci-fi scenario involving the Children of the Vault in issue #5. Issue #6 reveals more about the main villains, Orchis, while also setting up Mystique and Destiny’s role in future inner-Krakoan conflict.
And many consider the oversized issue #7 – the introduction of Crucible – as Hickman’s best issue during this run. I wrote about it extensively in my very first article published on AIPT. Rounding out the five highlights of this collection, Giant-Size X-Men: Jean Grey and Emma Frost pays homage to Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly’s classic silent issue – New X-Men #121 – while showcasing the much-loved art of Russell Dauterman.
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Yes, new plots are introduced and left open in almost every issue. But, despite everything going on, it all feels like the separate parts of a singular vision: Hickman’s vision. And at the time the issues were originally published, we trusted that Hickman was building everything according to a well-thought-out, long-term plan.
That’s probably the only thing about this collection that conjures disappointment. As we all know now, Hickman left his position as Head of X after only two-and-a-half turbulent years – long before he could finish most of the amazing plots he created. Some of the open plot threads were picked up and resolved in satisfying ways (mostly in the work of Al Ewing and Kieron Gillen). Others ended up going nowhere interesting (like Hordeculture) or ended up letting us down after such an amazing start (like the Brood). Overall, Hickman’s early exit left so many of us wondering, “What if?”
One last thing: many fans of Hickman’s X-Men run may be wondering why this collection is called Reign of X. But, don’t worry, the issues included are very much from the Dawn of X Era. Marvel probably just chose that title for the whole of Hickman’s X-Men run. Volume 2 – collecting the second half – is set to release sometime in January of 2025.
In conclusion, if you don’t already own Hickman’s adjective-less X-Men run, then you should pick up X-Men: Reign of X by Jonathan Hickman Vol. 1. This collection encapsulates all the excitement, creativity and possibilities of Hickman’s work on X-Men. At $40 for 336 pages, it’s not a bad price for what’s basically two to two-and-a-half trades – 11 issues, four of which are oversized. It’s especially worth it considering there’s only one weak issue in the whole collection. Everything else is fantastic.
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