Brother Fighting Brother

X-Men #97

Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: Dave Cockrum
Colorist: Don Warfield
Inker: Sam Grainger
Letterer: Annette Kaye
Published by Marvel Comics, 1975.

My Brother, My Enemy!

Of all the X-Men I’ve read from the 70s (ok, there have only been 5), this has to be my favorite.

A new villain named Eric the Red has kidnapped Scott Summer’s brother, Alex, and Lorna Dane and is controlling them in an attempt to kill Professor X.

We’re not really provided with the motivation but we certainly see the determination Eric has to attack Charles and the X-Men. His abilities also seem pretty formidable since he’s able to overcome the willpower of Lorna and Alex to force them to attack the X-Men with their full power.

There are some really good fight scenes and things are kinda touch-and-go since Havoc and Polaris are really trying to kill our heroes. These two used to be X-Men so they know the strengths and weaknesses of the team and while they have no qualms about dealing a killing blow, the X-Men hold back since these were their friends just days earlier.

Great fights between Cyclops and his brother Havoc, Storm and Polaris, and Colossus, Nightcrawler and Eric are well drawn and the Kennedy Airport seems to take the most damage from all three battles. Planes explode, Jean Grey is almost killed, and Storm gets really pissed…so much so, she nearly kills Polaris with a huge blast.

In the end, Eric the Red flies off carrying Havoc and Polaris as Wolverine and Banshee show up to tip the scales in favor of the X-Men.

This is a fun issue with lotsa great fight scenes and a whole slew of ties into future issues. We get the first glimpses of the Shi’ar, Moira MacTaggert and Banshee are hinted at being an item, Steven Lang makes an appearance, and we begin to see some of the conflict between Cyclops and Wolverine towards the end of the issue.

Verdict

This was an incredible issue. The story was great, the art was top notch, and the interpersonal conflicts are setting the stage for many fun issues in the future. I easily rate this a Must Read.

This comic can be found on Comixology, on Marvel Unlimited, or at your local comic book shop.

Comic Corner | Reading Recommendation of X-Men #97