Retro Geek Throwback Thursday – X-Men #1 (1991)

Most of my generation can recall when Marvel rebooted the title X-Men by putting together the team of Chris Claremont and Jim Lee. This series and creative team lasted for quite some time but it was the premiere issue that centered most of the focus. In 1991, X-Men #1 stood at a staggering pre-order of 8.1 million copies generating nearly $7 million in revenue. this alone stands as the Guinness Book of World Records for best selling comic book of all time. It was released with 6 different covers and when put together, made a giant collage of the X-Men fighting Magneto.

Despite the immense popularity of the book, ordering such a large demand of copies (much like the Death of Superman) caused the book to not retain much value. Today you can pick up any of the covers at a price range of $5 – $10 or more depending on the retailer. You can also pick it up directly from Marvel‘s digital vault for $1.99.

The books story features a starting point for a revamp of the X-Men. At that time, the group was split into two books; Uncanny X-Men and X-Men. In the story line, they were split into Blue and Gold groups to identify each team. In X-Men #1, we see the team going through a series of tasks to train before being confronted by Magneto towards the end of the issue and setting up for a great story arc to begin. The series would eventually bounce back and forth between to the two titles and house some of the best storylines and artwork the X-Men have ever seen to date.

If you’ve read the issue, you most likely have gone through it a few times. Each and every page and panel has still to this day been used for various advertising campaigns from Marvel. It wasn’t uncommon to find an image pulled directly from this book to make an advertisement or print on a shirt. The characters spawn some of the most iconic costumes the X-Men have ever worn and there was a instant flood on the market for everything X-Men. The creative team would eventually part their ways and the X-Men books wouldn’t feel the spotlight of being the most popular book again until Joss Whedon did his Astonishing X-Men run in 2004. Even the cartoon series in the 90’s was modeled in image by the way the characters were portrayed in this comic series.

If its been a while since you’ve dug this book out of your collection and gave it a read, one thing I can guarantee is that it will rejuvenate your love for the X team. This series is easy to get your hands on and so is each and every cover of the first issues if you never collected them all the first time. It’s a must have issue for the comic collector everywhere.

[blockquote]”An exciting era for Marvel’s mutants begin! With a larger team roster than ever before, the X-Men face familiar foes like Magneto, new opponents like Omega Red, and monumental threats including Onslaught and Operation: Zero Tolerance in their 90’s exploits!” – Marvel[/blockquote]

This series wrapped up in 2001, but we all know of the many reboots and off-shoot titles the X-Men have dominated the Marvel industry with. Give the book a try, fill in the gaps you missed in the series, and enjoy a major part of 90’s comic history again or for the first time.