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Down But Not Out

by Drew Clements westofmiskatonic@gmail.com

The X-Men--what can I say? I've been a reader for as long as I've been picking up super hero comics. A lot of people are in the same situation as I am: emotionally attached. I've been through the good times and the bad times, never really wanting to let go of the characters I'm most comfortable with; the characters I know the best. Even at the book's lowest point, it was still miles above the worst pits other comics could reach. Perhaps it's because, since Len Wein and Dave Cockrum's Giant Size X-Men #1, the book has been popular enough to attract and hold a group of the greatest creators to ever sit behind a typewriter. I've always had my favorite type of X-Men issue: the downtime story. Frequently, after a major multi-book event, the mutants would have a single issue to just hang out, reminisce, and have fun before the next big event would start up. It was a glimpse into the life of the heroes when they weren't fighting for their lives; it was the perfect opportunity for the reader to really relate to the characters and for the writers to build on the personalities and relationships of the X-Men. To this day, I still love this type of story, even outside of the X-Men books. Back in 1994, after the major Fatal Attractions story, there were quite a few of these fill-in issues, which were used to deal with the fallout of that event. During this time, another major event occurred in the form of a downtime issue: the wedding of Scott Summers and Jean Grey... X-Men #30 - "The Ties That Bind" Original Release Date: March 1994 Writer: Fabian Nicieza Penciler: Andy Kubert Inker: Matt Ryan Letterer: Bill Oakley Colorist: Joe Rosas Editor: Bob Harras Editor-In-Chief: Tom DeFalco During the climax of the Fatal Attractions story, the most popular X-Man, Wolverine, had the unbreakable metal his bones (and claws) are laced with, adamantium, ripped from his body by Magneto. After witnessing this savage attack on one of his X-Men, Professor Xavier shut the mind down of Magneto, rendering him little more than a human shell. Once back at home base and partially recovered, Wolverine decides to leave the X-Men to go off and lick his physical and emotional wounds. His decision to leave the team came at a crucial time in the world of X-Men relationships; Scott Summers, the leader of the X-Men also known as Cyclops, and Jean Grey, formerly the world-eating entity known as the Phoenix, were to be married very soon. X-Men #30 picks up after my very short summary of events at the wedding. On the first page of the book we see a letter in the hands of Jean Grey; a letter written by Logan, the Wolverine. In it, he admits his best work has never been writing, but that it was important for him to at least give it a shot; to put down his feelings about the wedding, which are nothing but positive. He urges Jean and Scott to be happy in taking that next step in their life together; they were, after all, meant to be together. The scene shifts from Jean's perspective to the whole room. In it we see Jean in full wedding dress with her mother, alternate timeline daughter, Rachel Grey (long story), and fellow X-Woman, Ororo Munroe, also known as Storm. The letter, which Jean refuses to take her eyes off of, is the center of her thoughts at the moment. After some urging from Ororo and nagging from her mother, Jean puts the letter away and takes in the presence of the few people around her. After some sweet exchanges between Jean, her mother, and Storm, Jean places her attention on Rachel. Recently the two have been struggling to get used to the other's presence, but Jean assures Rachel that she is happy to have her future daughter at her wedding. Rachel, obviously relieved, hugs her mother. The location switches to a more lighthearted, yet equally emotional scene on the grounds of Xavier's school. Bobby Drake, Iceman, is standing at the window of a small room, commenting on the spectacular weather Storm has arranged for the day; it's spring-like in the middle of a New York January! Hank McCoy, the Beast, and Warren Worthington III, Archangel, are busy having trouble with a villain that Hank admits to be worse than Magneto and Mr. Sinister combined: a bow tie. Scott, the man of the hour, is sitting in a chair, next to the two struggling heroes, while his brother Alex, the X-Man known as Havok, attempts to ease Scott's nervous worries. Entering the room, Professor X grabs the tie away from the two bumbling former students and proceeds to tie it perfectly all the while commenting on the fact that the wedding is forcing him to look at all of them in a new light: as adults that no longer need his help. Scott, taking the tie from the Professor, assures his mentor that yes, they all do still need him and not just to dress them. Scott admits, "...without you by my side, I'd feel safer walking into the Danger Room alone and naked right now--rather than face what's coming next." The Professor, touched by his words, tells his former student that he has already faced and conquered all the difficult hurdles life has thrown his way and that it's time for all of them to move forward, "To meet the next challenges in our lives, whatever they may be, with as much promise and hope for success as we have faced previous ones." With that, Professor suggests the group leave the room and take that next step together. Text boxes display the thoughts of the wizened Professor as the group makes their way down the halls of his mansion; he wonders how his words can do so much to ease the nerves of his X-Men, yet does so little for himself; is this how all parents react when seeing their children married? Stopping to switch from his futuristic hovering chair to a traditional wheelchair, a letter drops from the Professor's suit jacket. As he struggles to reach it from his wheelchair, a hand enters and scoops it up; it's Rachel Grey. She notices and comments on the letter, seeing it is from Wolverine. Charles has been meaning to read it, but the day's events have been heavy on his mind. A two-page spread shows the wedding guests, all of which are former and current members of the X-Men and its related teams of X-Force, X-Factor, and Excalibur. We also see Scott at the altar with his best man and brother, Alex, along with the priest. We enter the Professor's thoughts once again as he sits amongst the crowd. Using his telepathic abilities, Charles lets the thoughts of the others enter his mind, but he focuses on the groom and the pure joy in his mind. The band begins and the wedding march ensues, first with the maid of honor, Ororo. She joins the other two on the stage at the front of the crowd and smiles at Scott's words, "...if you say one word, I think I'll explode." She responds, "We cannot have that happen, now, can we? But in one moment, you will be so far off on another world... anything I say will fall on rather deaf ears, anyway." Puzzled by Storm's words, he turns to see his bride making her way, along with her father, down the aisle. We once again pick up Professor's thoughts as he notices the skip in Scott's heartbeat and the one and only thing in the groom's mind at the moment: "She is the most beautiful woman in the world." The bride reaches the stage and the two shakily and proudly take each other's hands. The priest begins and soon pronounces the two husband and wife. The crowd goes wild and Professor notes that the shouting began with Jubilee, but the applause? It was started by him. Scott and Jean Grey-Summers, in front of the happy crowd, begin dancing at the reception. Soon, Jean leaves Scott's arm to enter her father's. Charles admits to being envious of them being able to dance on such a momentous occasion. The scene shifts a bit over the crowd to gain their responses and instances of mingling. Soon it is time for Jean to throw the bouquet and the ladies line up behind her. With a swift throw, the packet of flowers is in the air, but is quickly brought down by the high-flying (and cheating) Rogue. Next, Scott removes the garter and throws it into the crowd of waiting men, but like the bouquet, the event is sabotaged. This time by Rogue's partner, Remy Lebeau, Gambit, who is simply assuring the link between garter and bouquet, is obvious. The day turns to evening and it comes time for the last dance, as requested by the bride herself. Jean approaches the wheelchair-bound Charles Xavier and asks him to dance. Charles is a bit taken aback and sad at the question because he knows that he simply can't. At least--that's what he thought. Jean smiles, "My mother taught me to save the last dance for the man who brought you to the ball." With that, the Professor is suddenly in the air! Jean has used her power to lift her mentor into a standing position. It's a truly touching scene that, when read in the context of the rest of the story, WILL NOT leave your eyes dry. Later, after the crowd has left, Professor Xavier sits in his office going through multiple documents when Scott enters. A nice exchange, on par with the rest, occurs between the two where Scott thanks Charles for bringing the X-Men together. If that hadn't occurred, the married couple would have never met, but that's not the only thing Scott is thankful for, "You saved me--you gave my life meaning--gave me hope--gave me the chance to become something more--better--than I would have ever been. For all that, I thank you--and I wanted to say... I love you, Charles Xavier." Scott leaves for the honeymoon and Xavier sits and thinks. Finally, he gets around to Wolverine's letter... "Dear Chuck, Lighten up. Yer ol' pal, Logan." And the story ends here, with the Professor laughing for the first time in a long time. I honestly can't explain just how much this story means to me. This, along with Uncanny X-Men #308, where Scott asks Jean to marry him, is the ultimate in downtime books; they're the ultimate in character development. You just can't ask for more in those departments. Fabian Nicieza forever imprinted this story in my mind. To me, this is how the X-Men should always be written: like a family that cares for each other. I remember picking up #308 and cryin' like a little baby at the end when Charles gives a speech before Thanksgiving dinner. But that's nothing compared to the tears of joy that THIS particular issue brought about. It's a rare thing for me to cry, but I'll freely admit to doing it here. If there's one negative that comes with this book, it's the fact that it makes me want to spit on the abomination that is the Scott Summers/Emma Frost relationship Grant Morrison dreamed up in New X-Men. To read this issue and then read anything having to do with Emma and Scott's new relationship is like night and day; it's not the same X-Men. I'm fully aware that characters grow and change, but Scott and Jean not being together is like Superman not being with Lois Lane. It just doesn't work for me. With that aside, let's get to the art; it's by a Kubert, so there's really nothing but praise for it. This particular Kubert, Andy, did some truly excellent work during his stint on X-Men as well as his work on the Age of Apocalypse stuff that came a little later. Andy, Adam, and their father, the legendary Joe Kubert, are icons of the business. All three have been Marvel mainstays over the years (except for this year when Adam and Andy signed exclusive contacts with DC!) and all three have produced some of the best work from Marvel. If you're an older X-Men fan, then you've probably already picked this up. If you're new to the book, then you owe it to yourself to BUY. THIS. ISSUE. That's really all there is to it. MileHighComics.com has this issue listed at Near Mint for $10, Very Fine for $8, and Fine for $5.50. But, as of this writing, the Near Mint is on sale for $3. Those are kind of the prices you should expect if you happen to come across this. And when you do come across it... BUY IT!