Mighty Marvel Masterworks - The X-Men Volume 3

 

In this volume we get the marvelous mutants scripted by Roy Thomas with artwork by Werner Roth, not my fave artist by any means, but competent, with good layouts, even if the details are not as worked out as some of the other greats at the time (compare Roth's machines to, say, Kirby's, for an extreme example). But, Thomas has always been a great storyteller, even though there continues to be the misogyny of the time and Marvel Girl's powers are very minor at this point, compared to what they would become. But, the Beast's loquacious soliloquies certainly improved my vocabulary well beyond those of my peers (along with Thor and the Silver Surfer).

In this comp we encounter Lucifer (not the demon), an alien who, in a previous meeting, caused Professor X to lose the use of his legs. Of course, the aliens want to take over the world and use earthlings as slaves (to what end, is not actually discussed, just a random image of menial labor - you would think an advanced race, who had advanced robots, wouldn't need that, but who am I to judge?) and for some reason, only the X-Men, and no other heroes, stand in their way. Of course, they win against all odds, only to then fight Count Nefaria and his gaggle of super-powered villains who attempt to frame them, and from there, a mad scientist appears as the somewhat silly Locust, there's a slightly un-PC villain in the Mayan El Tigre and his compatriots, the Puppet Master, Banshee (as a villain, albeit against his will), the Mimic, the Super Adaptoid and more!

Although there are always some cringe-worthy moments of misogyny and unintentional racism in these early 60's tales, I still revel in re-reading them. These were fantastic stories that were, generally, well ahead of their time. Always dig this stuff!