Shots From The Studio #16

Welcome to Shots from the Studio. In my last installment I talked about the comic series that actually made me start reading DC after being a Marvel head my whole life. This week I’m going to talk about a two issue story arc that changed the way I thought about storytelling, comic art and really cemented my love for The X-Men, The New Mutants and Marvel Comics. 

   It was X-Men Annual #9 and New Mutants Special Edition #1, later they would become collectively known as The Asgardian Wars. Both were written by Chris Claremont and penciled by Arthur Adams. The plot revolves around both teams being transported to Asgard as part of Loki’s diabolical plot to abduct Storm to make her the new Goddess of Thunder. Both teams are scattered across Asgard and struggle with the denizens of the Far Realm as they try reunite with each other and thwart Loki’s plans.

   Claremont’s story is fun, adventurous and at times tragic. Each character is dealing with the relocation in their own way. Some are enjoying the adventure, some have found that they fit right into this mythological world, some are tormented to the brink of insanity while others may just find the love of their life.

   Now as great as Claremont’s writing is the artwork by Arthur Adams was a life altering experience for me in 1985. Hyper detailed but clean and readable, expressive eyes and faces and his panels of conversations were just as intriguing as his fight scenes. On top of that, my two favorite super hero teams were trapped in a fantasy realm fighting trolls, drinking with dwarves and studying magic. Adams was the first comic artist I began following and remains one of my favorites today because of these two books.

   This story is available as a trade paperback and includes X-Men and Alpha Flight 1 & 2 which chronicles an earlier interaction with the God of Mischief. I highly recommend it.