The Uncanny X-Men #154
Published and © by Marvel, February 1982
Title: “Reunion”
Synopsis: Corsair returns to Earth with news of political upheaval in the Shi’ar empire – and with Sidrian hunters in hot pursuit!
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciler: Dave Cockrum
Inker: Bob Wiacek and Joe Rubinstein
Review: No fan of Chris Claremont’s X-Men should ever make fun of soap operas. While melodrama had long been central to Marvel’s appeal, the popular X-writer took things to a whole different level during the Bronze Age. This issue is a great example of the formula: family drama, relationship tension, political intrigue, exciting locales, over-the-top action. And subplots. Lots of subplots. Following a run of done-in-one issues and short arcs, this outing sets the X-Men off on their next extended adventure. With Dave Cockrum and company providing solid art support, Claremont continues to deliver a consistently engaging ride.
Grade: B+
Second opinion: “While not a remarkable tale on his own terms, there is a haunting bit of synchronicity here in that (Corsair’s) wife is killed by the Shi’ar emperor and then, in X-Men #137, his son’s love dies, again largely because of (a) Shi’ar emperor.” – Jason Powell, “The Best There Is at What He Does: Examining Chris Claremont’s X-Men,” 2016 … “Pretty good.” – Michael E. Krupp, Comic Effect #24, Fall 1999 … “There’s lots of talk in this soap-operatic episode.” – John Jackson Miller, The Comics Buyer’s Guide to the X-Men (Comics Buyer’s Guide Presents), 2003 … “From issues 154 to 166, the X-Men go space opera, and it doesn’t suit them.” – Robert Fleming, Fantasy Advertiser #92, August-September 1985
Cool factor: That’s a striking Dave Cockrum cover.
Notable: First appearance of the Sidri.
Collector’s note: According to MyComicShop.com, there is a Mark Jewelers variant of this issue.
Character quotable: “So often, it seems we must choose – not between good and bad, but between the lesser of two evils.” – Storm, internal philosopher
A word from the editor: “Chris Claremont opens this round of X-Men adventures with a Starjammers epic – the kind of swashbuckling story that series artist Dave Cockrum loved to draw.” – Louise Simonson (né Jones), in “Epic,” a 2010 essay collected in “Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 3,” 2015
Editor’s note: This review was written June 13, 2023.
