The New Mutants Classic, Vol. 5

The New Mutants Classic

by Chris Claremont, Arthur Adams, Mary Wilshire (Illustrator)

Mutantkind's best class takes a road trip via the Rainbow Bridge to Asgard and medieval magical madness, with evil god Loki to guide them to all the wrong places! Then, it's back to class under a new schoolmaster: the master of magnetism, Magneto! The ex-terrorist has turned teacher to atone for his crimes, but even if the New Mutants and the guest-starring X-Men trust him, the Avengers will be much tougher to convince! Featuring the Beyonder, Emma Frost, and the Hellions! Collects New Mutants Special Edition, Uncanny X-Men Annual #9, and New Mutants (1983) #35-40.

Genres: Comics, X Men, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Science Fiction, Superheroes

264 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Chris Claremont is a writer of American comic books, best known for his 16-year (1975-1991) stint on Uncanny X-Men, during which the series became one of the comic book industry's most successful properties.

Claremont has written many stories for other publishers including the Star Trek Debt of Honor graphic novel, his creator-owned Sovereign Seven for DC Comics and Aliens vs Predator for Dark Horse Comics. He also wrote a few issues of the series WildC.A.T.s (volume 1, issues #10-13) at Image Comics, which introduced his creator-owned character, Huntsman.

Outside of comics, Claremont co-wrote the Chronicles of the Shadow War trilogy, Shadow Moon (1995), Shadow Dawn (1996), and Shadow Star (1999), with George Lucas. This trilogy continues the story of Elora Danan from the movie Willow. In the 1980s, he also wrote a science fiction trilogy about female starship pilot Nicole Shea, consisting of First Flight (1987), Grounded! (1991), and Sundowner (1994). Claremont was also a contributor to the Wild Cards anthology series.

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Karma's back, but the massive story arc is the impact of Secret Wars II and the Beyonder's shocking confrontation with the New Mutants and its aftermath. This time, we really have to ask, genuinely, is this the end of the New Mutants? A daring and dark classic! Sadly, as of 2010 this was the last in the series of classic New Mutant graphic novels :-( 8 out of 12, Four Star read.
Collecting New Mutants #35 to #40 + The Asgardian Wars.

2023 update: Just for the record further New Mutants classic graphic novels have now been released :). Also since I posted this review, there has been a New Mutants movie that was a bit of a damp squib :(

2017, 2014 and 2010 read

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the New Mutants but this volume drug a bit after the New Mutants special which was great. All the tie ins to secret wars 2 kinda drug things out but there were some great issues in there.

[Devero · Rating 4 out of 5]

L'Arcano che diventa folle è la scusa che Claremont usa per analizzare il diverso modo di rapportarsi con il pericolo dei suoi supergruppi. Altrove presenterà come gli X-Men affronteranno la minaccia, ma qui vediamo come la affrontano non degli adulti, bensì degli adolescenti. E finirà male, molto male. La paura è palpabile, la tragedia totale. Solo Sunspot, che se ne era andato, abbandonando la scuola ora che Magneto ne è il Preside, si salverà. Sono delle buone storie, come buone sono quelle successive alla fine di Secret Wars II. I Nuovi Mutanti sono stati riportati in vita, ma qualcosa manca loro. Sono atarassici, mancano di emozioni, e Magneto fà l'errore di affidarli ad Emma Frost. Per recuperarli dovrà scontrasi con i Vendicatori, in una gran bella sequenza d'azione.

Nel complesso, 4 stelle e mezza per queste storie.

Nota: tra questo volume ed il precedente si inserisce la storia delle Guerre Asgardiane, con i Nuovi Mutanti costretti a vedersela con calibri come l'Incantatrice e Loki, sparpagliati tra i 9 mondi.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here I go...more 1980's Marvel comics!

This one collects New Mutants Special Edition #1, Uncanny X-Men Annual#9, and The New Mutants #35-40.

Oh boy! This was fun and exciting! Lots of high impact story and major action. So, why only 4 stars?? Secret Wars II caused a major disruption that knocked a whole star off for me.

What is in the book? Transitions, changes, and growth.

First, the Mutants end up in Asgard due to Loki's meddling. This story arc causes deep personal changes to the characters and re-arranges their motivations and purposes.

After that, we enter the new era at the Xavier's School. Without Professor Xavier in charge, the school needs a headmaster. Charles picked Magneto to take over in his place. As a result, Sunspot decides to go back to his parents.

Then...Secret Wars II takes over in issues #36-37, literally destroying the New Mutants. When they are restored, they are broken and Magneto cannot help them. Enter the White Queen, Emma Frost to save them.

We finish the volume with a battle between Magneto and the Avengers.

So much packed in this book. Existential crises, dark and dangerous situations, death, pain, rebirth. This really changed everything for the future of this title. Now on to Volume 6!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

All new material to me. Never read this deep into the New Mutants back in the 80's. A bit too much of the Secret Wars 2 crossover for my taste. Especially as I've never read Secret Wars 2. Or if I did I've forgotten it.

Aside from the x-over material. It's a stronger collection than the one before it and I've already begun Vol. 6 which I'm enjoying more than this one! Filling in my X-Men knowledge holes and having a good time with it.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adventures in Asgard,Magneto as headmaster and The White Queen. Still as fun as I remember but just okay.

[Sam Poole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Claremont's run on New Mutants is consistently fantastic, even if it lacks the peaks of Uncanny or Excalibur. Having said that, this volume is surprisingly good considering how much the plots and writing were being dominated by editorially mandated storylines & Marvel line crossovers. The more problematic elements of Volume 4 are largely absent, and the art from Sienkiewicz is as powerful as ever. Even dealing with the truly garbage Secret Wars 2, Claremont is able to edge closer and closer to the thesis statement of New Mutants.

The two centerpieces of this volume are the New Mutants adventures in Asgard in the fight to free Storm from Loki's captivity and the students' run-in with the murderous Beyonder. The first of these stories is deservedly acclaimed. Any time Claremont is able to transport any x-characters to another Marvel setting the reader should be overjoyed. Watching the teens traverse the ins and outs of the Norse homeworld as they struggle to meet up with one another is exciting and, in classic X-style, a great opportunity to showcase each of the kids personalities. Shan gets lost in a desert and loses weight (easily the worst part of the volume), Roberto becomes a barroom brawler, Doug becomes a barmaid, Amara becomes an elf, Rahne falls in love with a wolf boy (sure), Sam becomes a refugee, Ilyana goes evil (shocker!) and Dani becomes.... a valkyrie! Honestly incredible work from the team on the individual storylines. Dani Moonstar as a valkyrie fits perfectly, and seeing her and Sam reunite and take the lead on pulling Ilyana back from the clutches of the Enchantress is done perfectly. The Asgardian Wars is Marvel Comics at its best and is Claremont at his best.

Following the conclusion of the Asgard saga, we are thrown into an unfortunately timed Beyonder saga. I hate, hate, HATE Secret Wars & its sequel, which we are unfortunately subjected to here. Claremont really makes lemonade out of spoiled rotten lemons here, creating a stunning story about PTSD, teen rivalries & emotional manipulation against the backdrop of the students losing their mortal battle against the Beyonder. The follow-up is an exploration of Magneto-as-hero, as he overcomes the emotion manipulating Empath and some psychological warfare from Emma Frost to understand the trauma his students went through. Nobody can make a convoluted and poorly conceived crossover feel as organic as Claremont can.

Above all else, the Claremont-Sienkiewicz issues work best as a showcase of their unique collaboration and the strengths they brought out in each other. This is no more evident than in the writing and drawing of Warlock, possibly Sienkiewicz's best X-character work. The shift from "normal" Warlock to Sienkiewicz Warlock is jarring- the emotion, confusion & compassion of the character serve as a perfect metaphor for the strife the teens on the squad feel. Being a kid is hard! Imagine being a mutant kid, going through your teenage years in a boarding school with six other classmates! Warlock is the physical embodiment of all the angst and ennui our protagonists experience, and it's evident here that Claremont has hit his stride with the team.

[Matt Aukamp · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, I'll start by saying that the New Mutants in Asgard is maybe the best New Mutants story I've ever read. Fully explored the psyches and powers of each character before bringing them together - slowly, to explore many of their interpersonal relationships - for a big climactic showdown. It was everything I've been wanting from New Mutants for the past 4 volumes.

Next, Secret Wars II was a travesty.

Claremont's take on it was -intentional or not- a pretty great metaphor for the editorial mandate itself. The Beyonder waltzes into the New Mutants' story, interrupting whatever else was going on, and KILLS THEM. Then resurrects them and drops them back into their lives like nothing happened. The issue where they all die showcases some incredible character moments -specifically for Dani- and then Claremont returns to the book the next issue with the characters traumatized into blank slates. They have no motivation or energy and show no interest in their lives as they had been. Compare this with Jim Shooter walking into the offices of every Marvel writer and saying "I don't care what you have going on, you're going to write 2-3 issues of the Beyonder now!" He kills the momentum and spirit of every book under his purview and then drops them back in like nothing happened. The Mutants find it difficult to pick up where they left off. They're disaffected zombies in their own story, and even wiping their minds (pretending the event didn't happen) doesn't cure them.
This must have been how Claremont felt - he had a direction he was going in that was utterly killed and then told "Ok, you can resume." and he felt it impossible. He felt his enthusiasm for the story deflated, and he couldn't just *pretend it never happened.* So we follow him along this journey through the characters he's writing and find ourselves frustrated and resentful of Jim Shooter --oops, I mean The Beyonder.
SO glad this was the end of meaningless, sales-driven company-wide cross-overs that completely derail an ongoing story and kill it's momentum, alienating readers and creators!! :-/

[Adam Stone · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a very messy collection of stories. After adventures with the X-Men in Asgard, Charles Xavier leaves the planet, putting Magneto in charge of the team. As soon as he gains their trust, The Beyonder shows up and erases them from history. And, yet, in the next issue, it seems like a normal adventure that ends with the New Mutants transferring to Massachusetts Academy to join up with The Hellions.

Yes, there are shenanigans that are explained as the story moves on, but I don't recall there being an explanation for how The Beyonder erased them from history in all of the books except their own. There's a "Is This All A Dream" intro in the issue following their erasure but it's unclear if any of this is a dream or whether it's an alternate timeline, or whether The Beyonder's...spell?..power..?attack? has been undone. It's very sloppy writing. Then The Avengers show up for a typical Everybody Fights Rather Than Communicate Hero Vs Hero Battle, and then everything is maybe? maybe? maybe returned to status quo?

I really don't recommend this to anyone but New Mutants completists. While hardly the worst X-book in their history, I don't think there are any fun moments, and the other superhero cameos aren't worth the read. Skip it.

[Lulu (the library leopard)]

Okay, that was MUCH better than the last volume. The trip to Asgard was generally pretty fun and I *really* like Headmaster Magneto and the post-Beyonder stuff dealing with the New Mutants' trauma. I haven't actually…uh…read Secret Wars so I don't totally know what the deal was there, but the story that resulted out of it had what I thought was a good exploration of character & PTSD. Heroic Magneto was fun, both when he has to chaperone a school dance as "Michael Xavier" and the part where he fights the Avengers.

On the downside, this features the tail end of the terrible, fatphobic Shadow King plotline for Karma and the…general existence of Tom and Sharon. Also, like, there aren't words for how much I hate Empath and I'm genuinely surprised that the stuff he did to Tom and Sharon was allowed in a kids comics???

[Kris Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chris Claremont, in his prime, was a writing force to be reckoned with. Character development? Ongoing subplots? Thought-provoking metaphor? Like Ragu, it's in there. These are such well-written comic books and are sadly overlooked by today's comic book fans. I didn't 'get' this series back when these issues were originally released. It was too far beyond my scope of what I wanted in a comic book at the time. Arthur Adams, the artist on the UXM Annual and the NMSE, is not my cup of tea. I didn't like his artwork back then, and I don't like his old artwork now. His current output is worlds better than this stuff.

This trade paperback also shows how much current X-Men offshoots blow. Read this and then pick any X-title published today... you'll mourn for this once-great franchise the way that I do.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty good volume if you like classic New Mutants. Starts out strong with the Art Adams drawn Asgard issues. Then it becomes listless and mediocre when Sienkiewicz finishes his run in a couple of almost incoherent issues, but he finishes strong with that final Beyonder issue. Turns out killing the entire team made the stories interesting again. And the last few issues have really good guest artists, these issues, while different in tone from the issues preceding them are all very good.

[Trevor · Rating 3 out of 5]

After nearly dying, Charles Xavier has left the X-Men and gone to space, choosing Magneto as headmaster in his place.

The parts of this volume about Magneto as headmaster are really good. Unfortunately, this volume also contains a handful of crossovers with Secret Wars II. Claremont did his best to make these crossovers interesting but they're still not the best.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm surprised I've never come across fan art of Magneto as the "brooding, sexy older guy" archetype that a certain segment of Tumblr weirdos like because he totally fits the bill. Those weirdos are missing out! Anyway, I'm a big fan of "former villain joins the good guys" as a trope so there was plenty to like here.

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the crossover issues for Secret War II and some clunky and dated writing from Claremont this was a decent volume. It dealt with the trauma that the team went through while dealing with the Beyonder and the doubts of them and Magneto with his new role.

[Jefferson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume holds together really well as a coherent story. Even the "Secret Wars II" tie-in contributes to the development of the characters, rather than feeling tacked on or intrusive (as tie-ins often do).

[Lance Grabmiller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Continuing on my journey to reread some of the comics of my youth. This collects New Mutants Special Edition (December 1985), Uncanny X-men Annual #9 (December 1985) and New Mutants #35-40 (January 1986-June 1986).

Bill Seinkiewicz's artwork is still sorely missed but the lack is made up for by some better than average New Mutants stories. The Asgardian lore from the Thor comics makes the first two long books a bit confusing, as does some later Secret Wars 2 crossover stuff, but overall a decent book. The issue were The Beyonder kills off all of the New Mutants is truly heart wrenching and it's too bad their resurrection was not included as it seems rather clumsy without those stories from Secret Wars 2. Otherwise, Magneto's redemption, which had been brewing for several years now, is completed as he finally takes over Charles Xavier's school in the wake of events handled in the main X-men story line. All well handled by Claremont's writing.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gems include the Asgardian War 2parter, Magneto taking over the team, & a 3parter of the New Mutants joining the Hellions, but the less said about the 2part Secret Wars II tie-in, the better

[Martin Maenza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Art can make a difference, and the changes have helped me to enjoy the issues in this collection.

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Secret Wars II has done this series and Uncanny X-Men no favors.

[LunaSanguine]

Did only read around 20 pages because there's still way too much fatphobia in it.
The first 3 collections were great but then came the downfall.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume sees the New Mutants in transition--they're whisked up to Asgard, resisting Magneto as their new headmaster and dealing with the trauma of being killed and resurrected by the godlike Beyonder. Throughout it all writer Chris Claremont does a good job of maintaining the group's diverse personalities, and that's what gives the collection its interest. Sunspot has a different perspective than Cannonball, Rahne from Dani Moonstar, and their varied reactions to all this craziness give the story its flavor.

The plot struggles to make much progress, though. Part of the issue is that the book is caught up in Secret Wars II, which derails the ongoing plot and brings in all the deus ex machina–storytelling problems the Beyonder represents. I was intrigued by the exploration of post-traumatic stress disorder among the young mutants after their deaths and resurrection, but the plotting moves them here, moves them there and ends with them occupying the same space. Magneto's anguished path to redemption is an interesting notion also, but I'm not sure if it ever arrives at a suitable endgame.

Still, if you enjoy the characters, this volume will still likely work for you. I'm starting to get the sense, though, that Claremont is introducing ideas he'll never be able to resolve.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection has two very different "story arcs." The first, with artistic work by Arthur Adams, features the team and their adventures in legendary Asgard; while the second deals with Magneto taking over the school, at the behest of Charles Xavier, and the battle with the omnipotent Beyonder and the aftermath of the New Mutants defeat. Most of these issues represent author Chris Claremont at the height of his tenure on the X-Men books, and the art is wonderful, but the storyline dealing with the Beyonder is so badly chopped up that it becomes little more than incidental. The aftermath, when Claremont is able to examine themes of honor, loyalty, hopelessness, despair, depression, is much better and works far more effectively than the issues in which the Beyonder actually appears. I feel like I'm being generous giving this 4-stars, but the Asgardians issues opening this collection certainly deserve that at least.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

The two-part Asgard story is impressive for both its innovation and the effects that it still has on the characters (the New Mutants that is) decades later. In many ways, as game changing as the original New Mutants Graphic Novel [7+/10]. The arc that fills the rest of the volume is also quite good. We get a very interesting portrait of a changed Magneto, the shocking death of the New Mutants, then the graying of the White Queen, presaging her entry to the X-Men many years later. Much of this isn't as amazing now as when first read, but at the time you couldn't guess where things were going [8/10].

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two-thirds of this book is really good. It contains yet another reprint of the X-Men/New Mutants Asgard adventure, which is an excellent example of Chris Claremont's ability to tell a fun, wild story with a multitude of characters, yet still allow each one to have a moment or more. It also contains my favorite version of Magneto, the reformed villain trying to make amends by taking over for Prof. X. On the other hand, the biggest downside of the book is the tie-in's to Secret Wars II. Those stories, which unlike some crossovers, actually has consequences, are just less interesting and less compelling than the rest of the stories.

[Ed · Rating 3 out of 5]

This set of issues starts with the Asgardian War, which I reviewed in a different collection. The New Mutants issues are bookended by a pair of issues (35 & 40) about Magneto's leadership of the team. The middle ones are Secret Wars II tie-ins involving the Beyonder. The Magneto issues are great, especially issue 40 which an all time great Magneto story with one of the most well-written fight scenes I've read. The Beyonder issues are confusing and also a snore, especially issue 38. The art in this is largely good, but also a bit scattershot as several artists are drawing with Bill Sienkiewicz handling inks on several issues.

[Craig · Rating 2 out of 5]

With Sienkewicz gone and some of the worst, most depressing stories ever written (everyone's dead!), the book really dipped in quality as it struggled to refine its identity, sans its visual one. I considered dropping the book, but stuck with it due to habit. Not a good volume.

[Amélie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome. «If I should die» has become one of my favourite stories ever. My only problem is that we are missing some of the secret wars issues, which makes the story difficult to follow.

[Kerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

NM Special Edition #1 4 stars
Uncanny X-Men Annual #9 4 stars
#35 4 stars
#36-39 3 stars
#40 4 stars