The relationship between comics and nationalism is well-researched, and in Classic X-Men #29, Claremont defies the established comics treatment of The Cold War by revisiting and recontextualiing Colossus’s relationship to his motherland. #xmen 1/7
CXM 29 debuts in Jan 1989, very much during The Cold War between the US and USSR, a war that was largely fought through the media at a time when sympathetic portrayals of Soviet citizens with a genuine love for their country was still quite abnormal. 2/7
In his 1975 debut, Colossus was portrayed by Wein as brash/aggressive. Claremont would progressively push the character toward a more sympathetic portrayal, emphasizing both his vulnerability and his internal conflict with the excesses of American capitalism. 3/7
This was an important development for UXM, the series that is credited by scholar Richard Sabin as being the first Marvel comic to break the international market. Portraying foreign characters whose nationalistic perspectives and values remain intact abroad is abnormal. 4/7
Claremont opens “Motherland” with a stunning revelation: Colossus is openly contemplating quitting the X-Men in order to stay with his people. His love for his community, his family, and his titular motherland are all made readily apparent throughout the story. 5/7
Unfortunately for Colossus, the community takes issue with his initial departure, brandishing him a traitor for lending his superpowered resources to a foreign power rather than placing them within the service of his country and community. 6/7
The story doesn’t end with Colossus espousing the value of his international mission. He doesn’t even decide to return to the X-Men; he is forced to leave, tragically. 7/7
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According to former Marvel EIC Jim Shooter, where most Marel writers took a hands-off approach to recruiting artistic talent to work with them, Claremont instead actively participated in scouting artistic talent for UXM. #xmen 1/5
Shooter observes that “Chris was very good at finding artists. I mean, other writers, they just let the editor find an artist. Chris is out bird-dogging artists all the time.” 2/5
“He was actively looking for artists. I know one time in Chicago, Chicago Con, this guy comes over asked me if I’d look at his samples and I did. They were really great. I said, ‘This is really good.’ I said, ‘Listen, give me your information, I’m going to see what we can do’”3/5
In his chapter on “Marvel, X-Men, and the Negotiated Process of Expansion” from the book “Convergence Media History,” scholar Derek Johnson describes how the aggressive expansion of the X-line was necessitated by the emergence of the direct market in comics. #xmen 1/7
“Comic distribution in the 1980s had shifted away from mass-market drug stores and newsstands towards the ‘direct’ market, where specialty retailers gauged audience demand and ordered products directly from the publisher on a no-returns basis.” 2/7
“With retailers eating the cost of unsold titles, the market for content contracted, with only those titles which retailers felt confident they could sell reaching the shelves.” This meant that name recognition and intellectual property suddenly became much more important. 3/7
In Classic X-Men #6, simply titled “A Love Story,” Claremont uses a near-wordless sequence to create an intimate portrayal of Jean Grey’s world as she plans and anticipates her date with Scott, unaware of the cruel fate that awaits her. 1/7 #xmen
Importantly, the story reveals that Jean had been planning on seducing Cyclops. A note from roommate Misty Knight, and the (maybe) subtle action of hiding a photo of her parents from her nightstand make this abundantly clear. 2/7
Canonically, Jean only consummated the relationship in the Dark Phoenix Saga, which places her sexual agency in the hands of the cosmic entity, not her own, especially after the resurrection retcon that the Phoenix was entirely foreign – not Jean at all. 3/7
In keeping with Claremont's subversive representation of queer characters for young readers, the article looks at the importance of LGBTQ+ positive characters in contemporary comics, shining a spotlight on @Gingerhazing and @JamesTheFourth, among others.
The original draft actually specifically mentioned Claremont (through an interview with Tynion IV that you can find linked in the article), and which we did a thread on last month that you can find here:
Wolverine’s first solo series launches with a 6-page intro story about a bear that immediately establishes who Logan is, the duality that defines him, and his capacity to symbolize and disrupt perceptual boundaries between animal and person. #xmen#wolverine 1/9
The miniseries is built around the conflict between the primal and the civilized, with particular emphasis on destabilizing the distinction between the two of them by portraying the violence of civility as well as the nobility of the primal. 2/9
The grizzly encounter demonstrates this principle perfectly. The bear is terrifying and deadly, but only because of the interference of man. A good comparison might be to Grendel, with Logan thereby cast in the Beowulf role. 3/9
“Once Upon a Time – and only once – I got the chance to work with George Pérez.” In a 2004 essay introducing Uncanny X-Men Annual #3, Claremont describes his enduring joy at getting to collaborate with the late great comics legend. #xmen 1/5
John Byrne was “slammed” and “we needed a penciller of his caliber who could handle team choreography, action galore, physical and emotional characterization, spectacular visuals, special effects, the works!” 2/5
“So an invitation was sent to one of the House SuperStars; to our delight/amazement/surprise, George accepted.” 3/5