Time for another Xmen related review to keep the hype going for the new film! This one actually does deal with time travel, but I have to admit that I had not counted on that bonus. This collection brings 5 comics, 4 of which are the complete Magik series. Unfortunately, this was before Magik became the epic hero that she is today…(or was)

The first comic starts off in a pretty intense way as the X-Men are thrown into Limbo to save Magik. They had been having a pretty good day, but Magik seemed to go into a trance. Shadowcat quickly followed her, but they were both brought to Limbo. Once the other Xmen arrived, the battle for their lives began! The Xmen had to fight and keep on fighting Belasco and S’ym. Unfortunately, the two villains had homefield advantage and Belasco is basically immortal. Things do not go very well for the heroes and the ending is pretty tragic.

The final four comics of the collection are about Magik and the 7 years that were taken from her in during the ending of the first comic. She was brought back to Limbo and things went from bad to worse as she slowly started to turn to the dark side. The heroes were basically shattered and nobody would be coming to help. Magik would have to learn to channel her powerful abilities and defeat Belasco once and for all. An elderly Storm and a changed Shadowcat are her only allies in this cruel world.

Well, I have to say, you can hardly blame the Xmen for being so mad at their predicament. It really bites to be a mutant and the comics continue to prove it. If you’re not being destroyed for the 10th time or being hated by humanity, then you’re probably getting beaten up on by a villain. Unlike the Avengers and FF, most superheroes won’t be coming to your aid. For whatever reason, The Avengers, Spiderman, and Fantastic Four never seem to be in the area when the Xmen are in trouble. I’m sure that it’s just coincidence but it doesn’t make it any better for the mutants.

This collection will be pretty frustrating if you don’t like it when the villains get away with everything. As with Sword Art Online and any decent slasher film, it’s hard to really leave the collection on a happy note. Magik finds a way to get back to Earth and master her abilities, but it’s almost too late. She was forced to compromise her ideals and destroy both of her friends. Not a very bright outcome for her.

Things were pretty bad for the Xmen as well. All of them were either destroyed or corrupted to the dark side. The comic felt like the Mutant Massacre arc as the Xmen are completely overwhelmed and they know that they don’t stand a chance. Even Wolverine admits that he wouldn’t want to face off against S’ym again and he actually recommends that they retreat even if it means leaving the older Storm stranded and forced to face off with the villains on her own. It was a little uncharacteristic of him, but it shows how terrified Wolverine was. This was something that he had definitely not been expecting.

The comic also falls into one of the big holes. Animal violence! It’s been a while since I’ve had to deduct points for that, but this comic decided to go all the way. It’s always sad to see those innocent creatures go down for the count just because someone wants to prove a point. It was definitely not needed as we already understand that this is a very grim world. If only Cyclops had been around to help…alas, he is apparently having troubles of his own and he did not answer his communicator.

Magik is basically the main character of this series and she goes through a lot. You really feel bad for her since nobody is really there to help at times. She must learn how to make it in this world on her own and the odds are definitely not in her favor. The darkness does tempt her on several occasions, but temptation is something that everyone goes through. The important part is that she ultimately makes the right call and she doesn’t murder the villain when she gets the chance. That definitely wins her points in my book and she can be labeled as a true hero. She made mistakes as she lived through these adventures, but she is trying to correct them. I doubt that many other heroes would have been able to survive in her stead.

Wolverine is still one of the best Xmen in this collection. He may get intimidated at the end, but he definitely has a good reason. S’ym is completely out of his league and Wolverine knows that to fight would only be to die. I’m confident that he would have made the sacrifice needed if he could get the team out. That’s why I was conflicted about him deciding to go on without Storm, but she didn’t want to go with them and attempting to force her along would have only led them all to their doom. It’s rare to see Wolverine completely overpowered by an opponent, but it just showed how high the stakes were.

Colossus is also faced with defeat and even death as he faces S’ym. Due to the fact that they are traveling through time, there are two versions of each character that enter Limbo. The first team was eradicated for the most part and Colossus was personally destroyed by S’ym. The same thing nearly happens to the current version of him, but the timely intervention of Storm and Wolverine saves him. It’s pretty sad for Colossus because he was unable to help Magik, but he definitely gave it his all in the mission. At the end, he considers leaving the Xmen and nobody can really blame him.

Storm has it pretty rough and her adventure may have been as bad as Magik’s. She was unable to escape with the others and she was forced to become Belasco’s minion. She learned the dark magic powers, but they also allowed her to call back the Xmen and help Magik. Naturally, this also meant that we got two versions of Storm. The other version did her best as well, but she got a much smaller role.

Nightcrawler is also with the gang and he does pretty well as he takes on his other form. The other Nightcrawler was turned to the darkness and after their fight…only one would stand. The evil Nightcrawler is pretty fierce and he plays a pretty large role in this arc. In the end, Shadowcat and Magik have to team up against him.

Shadowcat is the third Xmen to have a very difficult time. The original Shadowcat managed to escape to Earth, but the other one wasn’t so lucky and she was changed into a cat creature. She is very adept as using a sword, but Belasco is basically limitless in his own domain and he has absolute control over the situation. Things don’t go well for Shadowcat and her ending is pretty tragic.

Belasco is the main villain of the collection and his powers are very impressive. This is the type of villain that you would expect to fight Dr Strange and not the Xmen. Dr Strange would likely crush Belasco, but the Xmen are not well equipped to deal with sorcery at the moment. Adding to this the fact that Belasco is on his hometurf and the Xmen are completely out of their league. Belasco basically toys with the heroes for the majority of the series and everyone is basically powerless to stop him. He’s the type of villain that you quickly dislike and you really wish that someone powerful would show up to take him down.

S’ym works for Belasco and his physical power is incredible. He proved to be vastly superior to Colossus in super strength and he was powerful enough to rip off Wolverine’s adamantium claw. He really makes things tough on the Xmen in the first comic and he continues to return and make everyone struggle. I definitely didn’t expect to see such a powerful enemy in this collection and it just goes to show why it’s tough to be an Xman.

The art is very good for the collection and it’ll definitely remind you of the good ole days for Marvel. It’s basically at the borderline before “old” art and the newer looks that we get. It really feels like the 90’s Xmen show in its appearance and that’s to be expected. Things get very grim during the second half of the comic, but the art is still pretty cheerful. You would think that this wouldn’t be a good thing, but it makes you really focus on the dialogue.

One other negative would be the fanservice. It’s not extreme and this isn’t a very recent comic so they are careful to keep it safe. That being said, there’s really no reason for it and Storm just likes to become one with nature for no real reason. It’s really just there to be there and that’s always going to shave off some enjoyment.

Overall, this is definitely not an Xmen comic that I would recommend. It is great to see Magik defy the darkness and it makes for a good moral, but the journey was just too much. The first comic was pretty dark as well, but the action helped to balance it out and they escaped with a relatively happy ending. It was scary for the heroes, but in more of a horror way. Unfortunately, whatever bits of the ending that could be called happy are basically destroyed by the miniseries at the end. Belasco essentially wins as he murdered quite a few of the heroes and broke several others. Magik will never be the same after her experience in Limbo and the heroes never really found out about what happened to her. It’s easy to see how she became so messed up in the recent comics. The comic is just pretty dark and depressing by the end and you really hope that Magik quits the Xmen and joins the Avengers. Aside from that, the animal violence and fanservice don’t really help matters. If you want an epic Xmen comic, check out the X-Sanction miniseries. That one was pretty epic!

Overall 4/10