"I Have a Dream...But It's No Longer Alive"
by Rick

I remember back in '88 when I first picked up an issue of Uncanny Xmen. It was during the INFERNO crossover. I had been reading X-Factor since it had began, and in order to get the entire INFERNO story, I simply HAD to get the Uncanny Xmen issues, even though I had no clue who they were. I remember the cover--the Goblin Queen, Sinister, the XMen on the run--it was great, and I was hooked from the first page.

Eleven years of reading the misadventures of everyone's favorite group of mutants-- I have "migrated" form X-factor to the core XMen books, since the former was cancelled. In those eleven years, I've learned almost everything there is to know about these people. Ive bought hundreds of back issues, and even snatched up the ESSENTIAL XMEN collections.

Reminiscing over the years, I can remember several plots and storylines that have implanted themselves in my mind:

* the battle to the death between Jean and Maddie

* the XMen's "deaths" and adventures in Australia

* The Siege Perilous crystal story

* the rebirth of the team circa '91

All of these events were great, and are vivid parts of my teen years.

The question I have is this: "What has happened to the books I once loved?"

Within a two year period, the XMen have gone from a must-have comic book, to a book that I can go for a few weeks from release date without rushing out to get it. What caused this? Not only to me....but hundreds of others that used to love the muties of the clan of X.

My first, and most probable cause is the over commercialization of the titles. Early in '91, the XMEN animated series premeired on FOX. Since then, the once barely-known characters have been smeared on everything from fruit snacks to dress ties. They appear in several titles....BESIDES their own 9+ titles. Then there were the card games, the action figures, the posters, the Pizza Hut Kids Meals.....and now the motion picture?!?!?!?!! Where will it end? The movie is SURE to cause hundreds of loyal fans to want to upchuck their lunch when they see the portrayal of their favorite mutants on the silver screen.

It's like this--remember the New Kids on the Block? Remember how every girl had EVERYTHING that was New Kids? THEN...remember how it died down within a year, and then they were all unheard of? I believe this is what has happened to the Children of the Atom. Albeit that they were very popular for nearly 30 years before their popularity exploded, they DID become popular.....and now it has burned out. It is my theory that once the film is released, the XMen will totally die out in the public, leaving the ashes of what the team once was reamining for the fans who have 'stuck it out' over the years.

It is very sad that once masterfully chronicled adventures have become 30 pages of crap. The stories are second rate, and the art is even worse than that. The plots are handled slopily, and several past plots are simply no longer mentioned, in hopes that we will forget about them, so they will not have to be included in the future "kiddyfied" stories.

It is sad.

Very sad.

Is there hope? Probably not. The current X-books will gain a new generation of fans, who have been exposed to this X-hype all of their teen lives (the past 9 years), so they will be used to what the books have become. For the past fans....it looks like we have no choice but to watch our cherished characters wither away to the endless stupidity that is their titles today.

There is nothing special about Logan and Storm's relationship anymore. Kurt is no longer a religious person. Kitty is only Jewish because of her Star of David necklace. Piotr has become a co-starring character who barely has more than 2 lines per issue. The Professor has (once again) become a brooding, one-dimensional bald guy.

It is sad.

Very sad.

It appears that the characters' worst fears have come true. It appears the "dream" (or at least this incarnation of it) is dead.

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