X-Men Elsewhen 6

X-Men Elsewhen 6

Nov 2019

Island in the Sky

by John Byrne

Magneto returns to Asteroid M. He destroys a manned space station that gets in his way before he arrives at his orbital base of operations. He has lost a lot of blood and is badly in need of rest and recuperation.

The Sentinels attack the Avengers Mansion. Captain America, Scarlet Witch, Vision, and Jarvis are the only ones home. The Sentinels are there for the Scarlet Witch. The heroes put up a fight but the Sentinels neutralize the Scarlet Witch and quickly depart with her.

Captain America calls Professor X to let him know what has happened and to compare notes. Professor X talks to Cyclops and the X-Men on Muir Island after he gets off the call with Captain America. They head home after they get off the call with the Professor.

The Sentinels strike the Baxter Building. They capture Franklin Richard’s despite the efforts of the Human Torch and the Thing to stop them.

Jean Grey gets a ride from a trucker. She says she’s heading to Salem Center but he takes her to a bar where he and his friends hang out.

Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine, and Colossus return from Muir Island and compare notes with Professor X. They don’t stay long. Their next destination is Asteroid M.

A’kaan, a Shi’ar leader, talks to Lilandra. He expresses some concern that she is spending a lot of time with the remnants of the Phoenix. Something unexplained strikes down the empress while they are talking.

The X-Men arrive on asteroid M and search for Magneto. Wolverine finds him. Magneto still has not fully recovered from his previous battle with the heroes. The issue ends with him using his power to disassemble the station aboard the asteroid.

Thoughts

Asteroid M first appeared in X-Men 5 (May 1964). It also appeared in X-Men 113 (Sep 1978) and 125 (Sep 1979) prior to the time period in which this story place.

The assassination attempt on US Senator Kelly is mentioned during the conversation between Professor X and Captain America. That event occurred during Days of Future Past story which means the events in this issue must take place after Uncanny X-Men 142 (Feb 1981).

The plot thickens. I wonder if all these different threads will be pulled together soon but I don’t think so. I think that there are at least two different stories brewing in this issue. The A story seems to be the one that involves Magneto and the Sentinels. The B story is the one that involves Jean Grey and the Phoenix. I assume that is the order in which they will be dealt with.

I’m enjoying the story. The pace and complexity of the writing and storytelling has definitely picked up in the last couple issues. I plan to read more but I am going to take a break for now.