Did you read My Life In Comicbooks? You did? Okay, let’s get to it then!

The recent X-Men: Schism miniseries tore a rift in the very heart of the X-Men, and resulted in an ideological split between Cyclops and Wolverine. The reason? As always, to sell more comics. But, cynicism aside, splitting the mutants into two different camps does make a lot of sense; in theory, it should allow each title to focus on character-driven stories, something that has been lacking at times in recent years.

As the title tasked with establishing the new direction, X-Men: Regenesis #1 is best viewed as a necessity, one that puts the relevant pieces into place for what comes next. Outside of that remit, it does little to dazzle. In particular, the decision to use a tribal gathering as a metaphor for the split between Cyclops and Wolverine is massively misjudged; it adds nothing to the story, and thematically it is a tenuous fit at best, coming across as a cheap attempt to add some action to an issue that is otherwise entirely devoted to talking heads. Still, the conversation scenes are well-written, and carry the kind of weight you would hope for, given they are supposed to sell the important nature of the decisions being made. Some strong character scenes lift this into above average territory.

Rather than doing anything dramatically different, Wolverine and the X-Men #1 follows a rather tried and true approach (calling to mind, for example, Grant Morrison’s Riot at Xavier’s arc), and yet still manages to feel like a breath of fresh air. That’s largely down to the injection of a sense of humour; X-Men comics are typically handwringing affairs, what with the constant deaths and victories that look more like defeats. Jason Aaron undoubtedly has a handle on the characters, with his version of Beast (as a super-genius far too occupied with his intellect to pay attention to anyone or anything else) feeling as true to the character as any in recent years. Chris Bachalo’s art tends to be an acquired taste, but I’ve always been a big fan of his brand of hyper-expressiveness, and the bright colour palettes inkers tend to use for his work. The clarity of the splash page that ends the issue could be questioned; the villain is ambiguous in a way I’m not convinced is intentional. But that’s a minor quibble. and other than that this is an excellent first issue.

The senses-shattering introduction to Onward, Manchester’s coverage of the X-Men relaunch.

When you’re still in single digit ages, your life pretty much revolves around cartoons. Or at least mine did. Nothing, however, grabbed me quite the way X-Men: The Animated Series did. Complex characters with inner turmoils; it seemed like a massive step up from my usual fare. I was quickly hooked.

From those humble origins my love of comicbooks did blossom. Arcadia Comics opened up in Ashton-under-Lyne in 1994, at exactly the right time to foster my interest and capture the majority of my pocket money. Eschewing the rest of the Marvel line (with the exception of the odd Spider-man comic here and there) and ignoring DC Comics altogether, my focus was very much on the X-Men, and its labyrinthine continuity.

As I progressed through high school, I stopped visiting, for fear of being associated with a medium that might be viewed as “uncool.” By the time college rolled around, however, my love of the written word had become all-encompassing, and eventually led me towards a couple of critically acclaimed graphic novels, Blankets by Craig Thompson and Maus by Art Spiegelman (both of which fall into “must read before you die” territory). I sought out everything I could, discovering Scott Pilgrim before there was a bandwagon to jump upon, delighting in the work of the Hernandez Brothers, and digging Daniel Clowes’ worldview.

Eventually, this path led me back to superhero comicbooks, and even back to Arcadia, and its rows upon rows of back issues from the era I cared about the most. Being employed, I could afford to be more extravagant (splashing upwards of £30 on Uncanny X-Men #266, the first appearance of Gambit, for example), and used to depart the store with epic hauls. During a Jeffrey Brown book signing I discovered that OK Comics in Leeds was also well-stocked in that department, so I made a pilgrimage or two when I could find the time.

By 2006, eBay had replaced the need for me to travel out of the city centre for back issues. The proprietor of Arcadia (which had closed down one year previously) was arrested and charged for an unsolved murder, for which an innocent man had served 16 years in jail for. My interest has waxed and waned over the last decade, usually in sync with my bank balance, but something always brings me back. I almost caved when DC relaunched its entire line in September; the X-Men relaunch proved impossible to resist.

So here I am. Back on the hook. So very glad you chose to join me.

Coming soon: reviews of X-Men: Regenesis, Wolverine and the X-Men #1, and plenty more besides!