FIRST STORY: "What is the Power?" (15 pages)  The Pharaoh's men rescue him.  He captures Alex and seals him in a sarcophagus, triggering his own transformation into the Living Monolith.  But Alex blasts his way out, destroying the temple and turning the Monolith back to normal.

What you need to know:
Well, it's the first time the Living Pharaoh transforms into the Living Monolith.  The pseudo-science of this doesn't really make much sense, but the idea is that Alex and the Pharaoh both rely on the same power source.  Alex apparently soaks it up so effectively that the Pharaoh is badly underpowered.  So when Alex is cut off from the power source, the Pharaoh absorbs it all and become the Monolith, who's much more powerful.  For some reason, it doesn't work the other way around.

Alex is terrified by the fact that he can't control his powers.  This sets the tone for his next few issues.

There's a flashback next issue which elaborates on how Alex escapes.

This story was reprinted in the X-Men Visionaries: Neal Adams trade paperback, of which more below.  It's out of print now too, but it's still a lot easier to get hold of than the original.

Eagle-eyed readers will note that this is the first Silver Age entry to credit the colourist.  In fact, none of the Silver Age stories carried a colourist credit.  However, inker Tom Palmer is credited as the original colourist in the Visionaries trade paperback, and presumably they know what they're talking about.

A more innocent time:
The Pharaoh's men use "concussi-missiles" against the Angel.  Not only is this a wonderfully sixties name, it's also the most fabulously pointless weapon ever invented - a concussion missile designed to humanely stun flying men, who will then plummet to their deaths.

Comments:
A highly significant issue, not because of anything which actually happens in it, but because it's the start of the Thomas/Adams issues. 

Their run covered the last year of the X-Men's original run.  Obviously, it didn't save the book, but it was the late-sixties equivalent of a critically acclaimed cult hit.  Highly influential, it's widely regarded as the first time that the X-Men comic really clicked - at least since the very early days.  Admittedly, that applies more to the run as a whole, and in particular the Sentinel storyline which finally did something with the whole idea of mutant persecution for the first time in years.  This issue is still dealing with the Living Pharaoh storyline set in train by Arnold Drake before his departure, and so far as the writing is concerned, it's really a conventional superhero book.

But it's easy to see why this run would have looked so striking to readers at the time.  Neal Adams is one of those artists who's so influential that much of his signature style has become assimilated into the mainstream.  When you compare his run to the issues around it, it looks much more modern than the late sixties house style.  Everything's more detailed, more solid, more realistic.  Panel layouts are more imaginative.  Jean's telepathy is suddenly being rendered in psychedelic imagery.  Even on the cover, the characters are interacting with the logo.  Of all the artists who've worked on the book up till now, only Jim Steranko was doing anything similar.

The thing is, though, Adams isn't just an artist who happens to be a bit ahead of his time.  He's one of the key artists who influenced everyone to go in that direction.  This is trendsetting stuff.

The whole Thomas/Adams run was collected in X-Men Visionaries: Neal Adams about a decade ago.  The book is a little controversial because the whole thing was re-coloured.  Now, there are many excellent reasons for re-colouring stories from this period.  Even where the original colour guides are still available, they were designed from completely different printing technology and completely different paper stock.  But the Visionaries trade paperback features the work of three different colourists.  It's a bit inconsistent, and frankly, it's a bit lurid.  Nothing that should put you off buying the book if you can find a copy, but the purists were not impressed.  Reportedly the later printings were slightly better.

FEATURE CHARACTERS
Cyclops, the Angel, the Beast, Iceman and Marvel Girl I

SUPPORTING CHARACTER
Alex Summers (appears in flashback in issue #57 between pages)

VILLAINS
The Living Monolith (formerly the Living Pharaoh) and his cultists

SECOND STORY: "The Flying A-Bomb" (5 pages)  The Avenging Angel fights the X-Men until the effects of his gas wear off.  Then Professor X helps him dispose of the stolen chemical safely, and he joins the X-Men as the Angel

What you need to know:
Warren joins the X-Men, and that's about it.

This story has never been reprinted.

Comments:
The end of the "Origins of the X-Men" stories, although there's a featurette about Marvel Girl still to go.  Really, this sums up the problem with the whole enterprise - there's nothing wrong with it, as a superhero story, but what purpose does it serve as an origin story?

FEATURE CHARACTERS
Professor X (next in flashback in issue #15)
The Avenging Angel (joins the X-Men and becomes the Angel), Cyclops and Iceman (all next in the "Origins of the X-Men" story in issue #51)

OTHER CHARACTERS
Alma and Fred (her husband; no further appearances for either)

Written: 5 May 2005

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