Earth X / Universe X / Paradise X

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DigiMark007
This is a discussion thread for this insanely epic series, since I don't remember one being made before.

My thoughts:

- I enjoyed it overall, but it was far from perfect

Postives:
- Epic as all hell. Every character ever from Marvel, and many you probably never heard of.
- Incredibly complex storyline and detailed characterizations
- Occasionally interesting philisophical musings about humanity
- Loki is a good guy in the end. smile
- Cap's "death" (death is very relative in this series) was one of the more inspiring moments I've read in comics in a long time.
- Artwork is astounding (mostly by Ross, but a few others contribute as well)

Negatives:
- Way too complex. If anyone thought the original DC Crisis was confusing, you haven't seen anything yet. Trying to juggle dozens of storylines, and having more twists and turns than Plastic Man in a blender isn't always a good thing.
- They try to be too epic. It led to a conclusion that was inevitably anti-climactic. Not that I didn't enjoy it, but trying to conclude something that attempts to cover an absurd amount of material is impossible even for the best writers.
- Very long = expensive...I wish I could own it, but it's not really in the cards any time soon. I really can't find the entire series for less than, say, $90 (USD)....and even that might be generous.

...

I'd recommend it to anyone, but know that you're getting into a messily broad story arc. It isn't canon, but might as well be because every character covered is given respectful treatment in a logical manner based on their character traits.

I'd describe it as Marvel's equivalent of "Kingdom Come", except it's more epic but less focused. KC was very well done, but didn't attempt quite as much as the "X" series. Thus, "X" isn't quite as polished as KC, but they felt similar to me.

Other thoughts? Likes? Dislikes?

King_Mungi
I enjoyed it and yes it got a little complex, such as Wolverine is what humanity would have been without the Celestials tinkering with our genetics.

Validus
I've been wanting to read this for a long time but it's pretty daunting. I'll get around to it eventually.

Ethereal
I got the entire thing scanned.

bigbran
I remember Wizard talking abotu it a couple years ago. I thought it would be interesting, but for some reason I still haven't read it.

The Fake Macoy
I've read them, but personally I think that Earth X > Universe X > Paradise X. I really liked Earth X, but I didn't like the others very much.

Mr Master
I read all three, thought it was a journey through the Marvel Universe and beyond. The manner the stories were written was original, and for the most part kept it in what seemed like continuity to me.

In fact, nearly every main character in Marvel was covered in-depth pretty much, and new characters and others that we know of but never paid to much mind too, were celebrated intimately aswell.

For me, my dissapointment was Mephisto being thrown in as the ultimate bad guy, on some ol' great evil beast (DC) type thing, or the actual Devil from Christianity, they didn't say that exactly but it was implied, I won't spoil it more than I have.

In any case, aside from the Mephisto nonsense, hrmm .. (they should of kept it Cosmic), it was a fantastic read and enriching source of colorful info about the Marvel Universe, they did try to outdo themselves a bit in Paradise, and I'll leave it at that.

Universe X is the best imo.

manjaro
the only thing i couldnt get my head around was why couldnt black bolt have the smarts like his son to wear a vibranium mouth piece? anyhoo, i thought it was awesome...no need for me to get all flowery like you guys.big grin the main reason is when i jumped into it , it was after the whole thing was completed and i didnt know which one came first, so i just started on the first one my hand touched and it still all made sense to me yeah i know i could have checked the issue #'s in the inset of page 3, but hey, when i saw all that majestic art, i was eager to takes its panties offerm

V for Valentine
Earth X was definetly the high point of the event, it was definetly better than the other two IMO because it wasnt AS confusing. I liked it overall, I preffered it over KC because well I prefer Marvel and it had alot of explanations for things (philosophically), whereas KC was kinda Biblical confused Both are pretty good.. And Yeah Loki being the one to realise.. well dont really wanna give it away but smile Well Loki being Loki was good.

DigiMark007
Yeah, it made sense that Loki would figure it out. I loved that particular storyline.

And yes, Earth X was probably the best, then it went slowly downhill. Still, with that massive an undertaking pretty much no one would do it perfectly.

The Fake Macoy
I just found things got more and more ridiculous. Such as Mephisto's whole role in it, the whole story behind Thanos, and the solution to living in a world without Death. Also, the Belasco and Sinister stuff was pretty out there. Also, after what I thought was a gutsy move in making Wolverine a fat, worthless has-been, they brought in the Wolverine from Days of a Future past? That was, in my opinion, stupid. Really, I just felt that the things that happened in Universe and Paradise X tarnished what happened in Earth X.

DigiMark007
The Wolverine thing didn't bother me a ton, but it was a bit strange.

My only big gripe with the characters is that they made Spider-Man a mopey has-been for the early half, then he was pretty much a non-factor in the latter half of the series. Hell, they made May Parker (his daughter) seem much more mature than him....kinda ticked me off. You'd think that for a series of that scope, they'd give a little more cred to the person pulling in more cash for Marvel than any other single character or franchise.

Most of the other characters were superb though. And Loki's storyline was like a wet dream for me....he's completely right, while everyone in all of Asgard is wrong.

bigbran
Originally posted by DigiMark007
The Wolverine thing didn't bother me a ton, but it was a bit strange.

My only big gripe with the characters is that they made Spider-Man a mopey has-been for the early half, then he was pretty much a non-factor in the latter half of the series. Hell, they made May Parker (his daughter) seem much more mature than him....kinda ticked me off. You'd think that for a series of that scope, they'd give a little more cred to the person pulling in more cash for Marvel than any other single character or franchise.

Most of the other characters were superb though. And Loki's storyline was like a wet dream for me....he's completely right, while everyone in all of Asgard is wrong. I haven't read it, but I got the hints from Wizard a couple years ago, that Odin wasn't who he said he was or something like that. Ya I should read these things.

manjaro
you'll have to put aside a good four day weekend......for me it was longer cuz i was to cheap to uy it so i would go to barnes and noble like every day from 5 til closing at 11 for like a week

bigbran
Originally posted by manjaro
you'll have to put aside a good four day weekend......for me it was longer cuz i was to cheap to uy it so i would go to barnes and noble like every day from 5 til closing at 11 for like a week You read it all in stores? laughing

How much would it be, besides Ebay, if you found it in a store?
Sounds like great comics though.

Validus
Originally posted by manjaro
you'll have to put aside a good four day weekend......for me it was longer cuz i was to cheap to uy it so i would go to barnes and noble like every day from 5 til closing at 11 for like a week
laughing out loud

manjaro
Originally posted by bigbran
You read it all in stores? laughing

How much would it be, besides Ebay, if you found it in a store?
Sounds like great comics though.

yep 89% of all the comics i read, i do in barnes and noble...fortunately for there are two B&N in my area, and another books-a-million in reasonable driving distance 9% i buy, and thumb thru at the comic shop, and the remaining 2% i get here on KMC...so there is always new trades,,, and they get new single issues every other wednesday....sometimes i pull a b'itch move, and killer trades i know is slated to come out i order over the phone under an assumed name, and the policy is if 10 days pass and you dont come pick it up, they have to put it on the shelf, so i wait and just hurry ther after or b4 work laughing yeah im a cheap bastard, and thats all there is to it

bigbran
Originally posted by manjaro
yep 89% of all the comics i read, i do in barnes and noble...fortunately for there are two B&N in my area, and another books-a-million in reasonable driving distance 9% i buy, and thumb thru at the comic shop, and the remaining 2% i get here on KMC...so there is always new trades,,, and they get new single issues every other wednesday....sometimes i pull a b'itch move, and killer trades i know is slated to come out i order over the phone under an assumed name, and the policy is if 10 days pass and you dont come pick it up, they have to put it on the shelf, so i wait and just hurry ther after or b4 work laughing yeah im a cheap bastard, and thats all there is to it You do know you can download whole comics, series and what not, don't you?
Not that I would ever do such a thing... shifty

manjaro
yeah but im ttoally clueless when it comes to torrent and the like

Psyquis52
I read them.

bigbran
Originally posted by manjaro
yeah but im ttoally clueless when it comes to torrent and the like You type in the comic. You click the one you want, then you click "Download Now", on the Paradise X/Universe X/Earth X one with the 577 MB's of memory....
shifty

DigiMark007
I'm kinda with majaro. A lot of my reading is in B&N bookstore. My library also carries assorted stuff (that's where I found Paradise X).

It's free. And legal. Downloading comics really hurts the comic industry. I understand it happens a lot, and that you guys can't afford everything you want, but you should really try to buy as much as you can.

But I try to buy most of the series I really enjoy. I plan to buy this series eventually too.

roughrider
How much art did Alex Ross do?
I thought he plotted out the series, and just did the covers.

bigbran
Originally posted by DigiMark007
I'm kinda with majaro. A lot of my reading is in B&N bookstore. My library also carries assorted stuff (that's where I found Paradise X).

It's free. And legal. Downloading comics really hurts the comic industry. I understand it happens a lot, and that you guys can't afford everything you want, but you should really try to buy as much as you can.

But I try to buy most of the series I really enjoy. I plan to buy this series eventually too. laughing laughing laughing rolling on floor laughing Your sig, is genius!!! laughing laughing Happy Dance

DigiMark007
Originally posted by roughrider
How much art did Alex Ross do?
I thought he plotted out the series, and just did the covers.

Not a clue. But the art was great, whoever it was.

Originally posted by bigbran
laughing laughing laughing rolling on floor laughing Your sig, is genius!!! laughing laughing Happy Dance

big grin

...most of the pics actually represent various members of the sig-making community, but basically I was just d*cking around with some random gifs and such, and this idea struck. It's not totally original (TOH started the trend with a "KMC Room" years ago) but I like it.

guy222
Isn't this the comics where Franklin Richards becomes Galactus and father Reed becomes Eternity? How ridiculous!

tjcoady
Originally posted by guy222
Isn't this the comics where Franklin Richards becomes Galactus and father Reed becomes Eternity? How ridiculous!

it wasn't ridiculous in the slightest... it was brilliant, worked completely perfectly within the plot, and the part of Earth X where Franklin becomes Galactus was incredibly moving.

actually, the speech Cap makes at the very end of Earth X was just PERFECT writing

The whole series was excellent. Almost every character was beautifully crafted in the storyline (with the exception of Peter Parker). I loved the sub-plot between Dr. Strange and Clea, and between Loki and Asgard.

Namor and Iron Man at the end of Earth X represented everything that is best about both of their characters. One of my favorite characterizations of Tony, in general.

guy222
In response to tjcoady, I am glad u liked it. smile

DigiMark007
Hey, cool bump!

...everyone should read this series. It's like Kingdom Come, but way more complex (and slightly better overall, imo).

yes

Galan007
Is there an Earth X version of Absorbing Man and Galactus?

If so, what issues are they in?

DigiMark007
Originally posted by Galan007
Is there an Earth X version of Absorbing Man and Galactus?

If so, what issues are they in?

Dunno. Big G (Franklin) appears in all 3 arcs at some point.

I think AM was just from Earth X (not the other 2) but I don't really know the issues....there were 12 in each series I think.

Galan007
Originally posted by DigiMark007
Dunno. Big G (Franklin) appears in all 3 arcs at some point.

I think AM was just from Earth X (not the other 2) but I don't really know the issues....there were 12 in each series I think. Thats cool, thx for the info!

Looks like I know what I'm buying myself for christmas.. laughing out loud

tjcoady
Originally posted by Galan007
Is there an Earth X version of Absorbing Man and Galactus?

If so, what issues are they in?

Absorbing Man appears in Universe X... probably the coolest appearance of him, ever, too.

Galan007
Originally posted by tjcoady
Absorbing Man appears in Universe X... probably the coolest appearance of him, ever, too. can you tell me the issue # and title?

DigiMark007
...prepare yourself. It's a long read (but worth it) and as complex a any comic story you'll ever read. And anyone not familiar with a large majority of Marvel characters will be completely lost.

Howard_Jones
I've read Earth X, but nothing beyond that. Loved the covers, hated the interior art. Good story though.

Psyquis52
No reason to be bogged down by the interior art. The story more than makes up for it. Of course I liked the interior art but that's just me.

Howard_Jones
Oh I love the storyline. It's possibly one of the greatest I've ever read. I even like it more than Kingdom Come.

tjcoady
Originally posted by Galan007
can you tell me the issue # and title?

I'd like to be able to, but I don't really remember issue numbers... read it sitting in Barnes and Nobles. I know it's the last two issues of Universe X that feature Absorbing Man

jalek moye
i just started reading this online and its freaking amazing so far.

guy222
It was really good

Bentley
Despite the whole Paradise X being the let down, I quite liked the conclusion of the "heralds" arc. It was an intelligent resolution, and Uatu and X-51 totally steal the show during the books.

Cartesian Doubt
This sounds awesome, can believe I have never heard of it ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_X

Black Bolt releasing the terrigen mists into the atmosphere, just sets the tone for how cool this sounds.

Sin I AM
another great aspect of the story was how absorbing man defeated the avengers, it was just a great depiction of how uber he truly is. and the most moving part was captain americas death, I was so pleased with the writing I nearly cried

Digi
Originally posted by Sin I AM
another great aspect of the story was how absorbing man defeated the avengers, it was just a great depiction of how uber he truly is. and the most moving part was captain americas death, I was so pleased with the writing I nearly cried

To be fair, he did a couple things that 616 AM has never shown himself to be capable of. So I'd say it's not how he "truly" is, but how he could have been envisioned.

And yeah, Steve's "death" was superb.

Sin I AM
the only difference is that he absorbed ultron, thereby gaining intelligence

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