Excalibur #101-102Issue(s): Excalibur #101, Excalibur #102 Review/plot: I laughed about how last issue's Onslaught tie-in had the X-Men guest starring in the book and doing Onslaught stuff while the actual cast of this book did completely unrelated things. These two issues are in a sense closer to real tie-ins, but they are (as the title says) quiet issues with the cast reacting to events from afar. Issue #101 actually takes place concurrently with the end stages of the crossover, and #102 takes place not long afterwards. It begins with Excalibur returning home from their Hellfire Club mission and finding out that Xavier has gone mad and is rampaging around as Onslaught. Unfortunately Onslaught's EMP blast (as well as damage to Excalibur's "Moonlight Flit" plane) prevents them from joining the battle. And Moira has a pre-recorded message from Xavier telling her that she is "the last outpost of the dream", so she discourages Excalibur from finding more creative ways to join the crossover, saying that they're needed to carry on the legacy if things go wrong for the X-Men. One development is that, with Black Air discredited, Alistaire Stuart is put in charge of a new umbrella organization that includes Black Air, WHO, and "all related paranormal organizations". Stuart invites Rory Campbell to join him (which seems to put the guy destined to become Ahab further down that path since he'll now be in an organization to track mutants, albeit supposedly for the purpose of "offering aid"). Another development is that Douglock is now said to have a new personality, distinct from Doug Ramsey. After the results of Onslaught become known, it's a mixed bag for Excalibur. One the one hand, they recently saved London are considered heroes, with British politicians falling over themselves to praise them. On the other hand, they are mutants and the events of Onslaught are going to make life difficult for mutants, even in the UK. Colossus, Wolfsbane, and Amanda Sefton go to Amanda's mother Margali Szardos' house to find out what happened to her after last issue. They don't find her, but they do hear creepy laughter. Meanwhile, Pete and Kitty are attacked at the local pub by goons... ...who turn out to be American government agents ("from interests inside the White House") who want Excalibur to know that they are not welcome in America, and that they are working to convince the British government to "not love you too". Kitty and Pete determine that the goons aren't operating on official capacity, and they manage to play some shenanigans on one of them. Due to the re-organization around Alistaire Stuart's group, the mutants that Moira has been keeping prisoner on Muir Island are being transferred away (we've only been seeing Spore, and he is transferred, but it seems like there's a whole list of others). Kitty and Pete smuggle the American agent into the group of mutants to be transferred. Moira goes along, saying that the agent is the deadly "Crimson Goatgourger". The main point is that despite the potential for angst post-Onslaught, we should still be having fun. It may be a sign that i've gotten too old, but i may have enjoyed these two downtime issues more than Onslaught! Ok, it's not as monumental and it's not even the best downtime story. I was just in the mood for something quiet and lighthearted. In any event, they're much better than the previous couple of issues. Quality Rating: B Chronological Placement Considerations: Issue one takes place basically concurrently with the end of Onslaught (due to the EMP and general confusion, it's not clear exactly when), and then issue #102 begins with news reports describing the end battle. References:
Crossover: N/A Continuity Insert? N My Reprint: N/A
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