Reddit reviews X-Factor by Peter David: The Complete Collection Volume 1
We found 8 Reddit comments about X-Factor by Peter David: The Complete Collection Volume 1. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
We found 8 Reddit comments about X-Factor by Peter David: The Complete Collection Volume 1. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
It's huge spoilers for a very dramatic moment that had a lengthy build up. So before I type it out, I really encourage people to read it in the actual story instead. You can start the series here. I can spell it out for you, but it's a genuine "oh shit!" moment that just won't be the same if you have it ruined here.
So for those that really want to spoil it for themselves: In the series Jamie (the Multiple Man) spends a night with multiple women on the X-Factor team. Turns out some of his duplicates got busy. It caused a lot of drama when they all found out, and more of course when the women found out which woman the "real" Jamie had chosen. Everyone now hates Jamie. A little while later... And it turns out Siryn (alcoholic and deeply troubled daughter of the X-Man Banshee) is pregnant. She doesn't react to the news well and neither does Jamie. Over time they end up coming to terms with it, and end up as a proper couple. The even end up making one another better people. They're finally finding happiness, and putting their personal demons aside.
Then the baby comes. Jamie picks it up... and pop! He automatically absorbs it like one of his duplicates. I can't oversell how dramatic this moment is when you're reading it for the first time in the context on the story. It's fucking shocking. There's serious fall-out, Siryn leaves the team, unable to get over the loss of her child, and goes back to alcoholism. The team is crushed.
> I'm weary of being almost required to have a HUGE background in Marvel to get going
A "HUGE background" is not necessary. Consider that reasons for being "weary" are partly YOUR self-limitation. You don't NEED to start at the beginning of every story. It's OK to jump into the middle. It's OK to NOT know a character's backstory IMMEDIATELY (e.g. Darth Vader). Have you ever watched a good movie with a non-linear narrative (e.g. Pulp Fiction)?
> before I'll be forced to pick up some random trades or something to continue the narrative because of a tie-in event or whatnot
Again, "forced" implies that YOU feel compelled to do it. You can just wiki relevant information IF YOU WANT TO. You can't expect to dive into the "wider X-Men universe" AND not encounter events. Further, it'd be difficult to read shared-universe superhero comics and not encounter events/crossovers.
> How possible is it to slowly dip my feet into X-Men stories
You answered your own question earlier: pick up a few self-contained/essential/recommended series like New X-Men and just start reading. The larger shared universe stuff will come with time (like slowly fitting random pieces of large, convoluted Jigsaw puzzle)—think of it as a side-bonus rather than the primary goal.
Here's a condensed X-related reading list (bolded are what you've already mentioned, events are labeled):
There are a few different places you can start:
If you HAVE to start from the beginning just read the first 24 issues, you can then skip over to Claremont's era
My recommendation would be to either start with Chris Claremont's 1st era (aka 70's) & 2nd era (aka 80's) on Uncanny X-Men or from 2001-ish (aka modern X-Men) time period onwards onwards. Either way just skip the 90s for now, you can alway go back to that later.
If you want to start with Modern X-Men...
From there you can get caught up pretty easily if you follow this list in order:
From there I would move on to the current All-New X-Men and Uncanny X-Men titles:
Great, now you're all caught up!
PS, the great thing about X-Men is there is a ton of content to explore aside from the main storyline!
...and much more!
Happy reading! :)
Have you tried Amazon?
DC
Marvel
In February, they'll be starting the Ultimate Collections from the beginning of PAD's modern run, so I'd recommend that.
If you don't want to commit right away, there was a soft status quo reset that came with a renumbering. (Basically, the whole series went Madrox #1-5, X-Factor #1-50, X-Factor #200-262.)
Thank you very much, this really helped my understanding.
Based on the information you gave, if I’m looking to read the early run that everybody seems to love, I can get it collected in these two Epic Collections: 1 | 2
Also, for the Vol. 3/Vol. 1 run from the 2000’s it seems there’s two bigger trades (1 | 2) that encompass it.
I will add some detail to ScoutX's post. Since you mentioned Dr Manhattan, I'm guessing you might read some graphic novels. If that's true, you really have to read the Peter David run of X-Factor.
Even if you don't like or care or know anything about the regular X-Men stuff, his work with Madrox and his copies is exactly what you're looking for.
To find out if it's your cup of tea, skip all the old stuff and the really new stuff and go straight for the best section in the middle. These two books will give you a great start for a decent price.
https://smile.amazon.com/X-Factor-Peter-David-Complete-Collection/dp/0785154388/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1498077732&sr=8-2&keywords=peter+david+x-factor
https://smile.amazon.com/X-Factor-Peter-David-Complete-Collection/dp/0785154396/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498077732&sr=8-1&keywords=peter+david+x-factor
Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions or anything. Thanks
X-Factor by Peter David is getting a full run re-release.
Is it worth getting?
Is it consistently good throughout?
Does it have a good conclusive ending?