Congratulations! You Survived Onslaught

Art by Andy Kubert

I read Onslaught as it came out in 1996 but had not revisited the entire event until recently for my issue-by-issue commentary on Twitter and this retrospective. While I did remember that the event was flawed--especially the ending--I have always viewed it through the rose colored glasses of nostalgia. That said, Onslaught is much maligned and has a horrible reputation as one of the worst examples of the substanceless events that Marvel became known for in the mid and late 1990s. Given all of that, I worried going in that not only would rereading Onslaught turn into an unfun slog, but also that I'd simply end up trashing issue after issue in a retrospective that no one would ever want to subject themselves to. I'm happy to say the experience actually wasn't that bad.

X-Men 56

Onslaught is definitely not top tier material. There's no way to overcome the flaws that completely undermine the character and the story in the final issues, and parts of the story leading up to that ending are incoherent. At its heart Onslaught suffers from two fatal flaws: the writers never seemed to know what Onslaught was or what he wanted, and the event wasn't created to be a story so much as a means to an end for a problem Marvel hadn't yet solved.

Its Flaws

I extensively talked about the way the final two issues of this event damaged Onslaught as a character in the Phase 2 entry. I also posted commentary on Twitter about both X-Men 56 and Onslaught Marvel Universe. In short, the Nate Grey plot hole, Onslaught's admitted lack of a plan to achieve his original goal, and his abrupt change to a goal completely detached from his original dark mirror version of Xavier's dream speak to a writing team that never understood the character they created (which isn't really surprising since they created him as a means to an end rather than a character in his own right). Onslaught's ending relies entirely on the main villain being admittedly stupid, and character stupidity is a terrible thing to have a plot rest on. But as bad as Onslaught's damaged character development is, it's a minor problem compared to the those created by the reason the event even exists.

Avengers 400

This event was engineered not to tell a story but to solve the problem of getting the Avengers, Fantastic Four, and a few ancillary characters out of the 616 universe and into the upcoming Heroes Reborn one (as described in the retrospective's Introduction and explained in detail at Continuity Nod). This necessary end goal is in Onslaught's DNA from the beginning when the Avengers and Fantastic Four are brought in.

Aside from Bloodties in 1993 (a follow up to Fatal Attractions that saw a bare minimum of X-Men and Avengers interact on Genosha and felt mainly like an Avengers story), X titles hadn't been involved in a larger Marvel event since 1989's Atlantis Attacks. While all of these characters do coexist in the 616 universe, there's often little interaction between the X-Men and everyone else. So when Nate Grey arrives to warn the Avengers in Avengers 401, a team he hadn't even heard about until the last couple pages of his most recent issue, the whole meeting feels out of place. The Fantastic Four's inclusion at least feels more organic thanks to Franklin's connection to both worlds.

Onslaught Marvel Universe

Once Onslaught bursts on to the scene, the three teams hardly work together--appearing all at once in only two issues outside the X books and the finale (the second month's Avengers and Fantastic Four books see no interaction with the X-Men at all). And the ancillary characters that get into the final fight and sacrifice themselves (Black Panther, Namor, and Crystal) have no interaction at all with the X-Men. Onslaught feels like two separate events most of the time--one that happens to the X-Men and one that happens to everyone else. Even at the end, there is an explanation that justifies how the mutants can't sacrifice themselves alongside the other heroes (except for Scarlet Witch and Namor doing exactly that for no other reason than that they were already selected to appear in Heroes Reborn).

Ultimately the entire event feels cheap--because it is. If we look beyond the primary plot, though, there if actually a lot to like here.

X-Men 56

Character is Everything

I've written repeatedly, both here and in individual issue tweets, about the Joseph character arc. A lot of the strength of it is that we see his journey through the eyes of other characters. First Rogue in X-Men Unlimited 11. Then he is spoken up for by Magneto's daughter, Scarlet Witch, who can see Joseph is not the same man Magneto was. Even Gambit chimes in. And finally Xavier is in the mix with him. All of these characters more or less absolve him because he's not the same person anymore. But Joseph refuses to let himself off the hook, motivated by a sense of responsibility for things done in a life he can't remember.

Joseph's choice to assume that responsibility connects nicely with a theme that's also present in X-Man, Wolverine, and X-Force issues in phase/impact 2: the ability and willingness to choose who you are. The theme even manages to carry over into Xavier agreeing to surrender himself after it's all over. Given the very loose way Onslaught is put together, I don't believe this thematic connection was intentional (though if it was I am very impressed).

X-Men 57

On the subject of Xavier, his attitude after being rescued from Onslaught is remarkably introspective in a way that pretty much disappears from him in the years to come. He acknowledges that his choices led to this situation, expresses grief and guilt, and not only gives himself up but suggests he will have to stand trial in the future. Xavier as Xavier doesn't get much attention during the event and he has almost no interaction with other characters in the epilogue issues, but what he does get forms a good through line of a character brought low and humbled.

One of the best issues when it comes to these character-centric storylines is actually one that is barely tied into Onslaught. Green Goblin 12 gets Phil Urich involved in the story by pitting him against one of the sentinels occupying New York. It turns out to be a pivotal fight for Phil that forces a lot of self examination and contributes directly to the end of his series in the following issue.

X-Men 19

It's Definitely Pretty

Something I have been remiss about in this retrospective is discussion of art. These books are gorgeous. The battle sequences include loads of characters but are never confusing or chaotic--Kubert and Rosas in both X-Men issues, Madureira in Uncanny X-Men 336 (though the inking and coloring by committee isn't ideal), and the team in Onslaught X-Men. The smaller fights have an even greater intensity most of the time, as if there's a bit more intimacy to them; this is very much the case in Cable 32 through 35 by Churchill, Hanna, and Thibert among others. There are some wonderful examples of artists conveying characters' moods in the quieter moments. This is something that should probably be a given, but not every artist that is ideal for heavy action is exceptional when it comes to telling readers what a character is like in those non-action moments. Skroce, LaRosa, and Thomas in X-Man somehow making Sinister look not just evil but also like a basic asshole; the teams that keep McCoy and Beast distinctive at all times in X-Men Unlimited

Generation X 19

 10 and that show us how much fun the X-Men are having in X-Men '96; and even in the dishonest Generation X 18 and 19 where Bachalo, Buckingham, and Buccellato emphasize the relative youth of the students. And to make sure these books jump off the shelf, the covers--especially the X book covers--are mostly dynamic and bright with coloring that often isn't subtle but will get readers' attention.

What Might Have Been

After reading through every Onslaught related issue (and a few that only pretend to be related) from beginning to end, the thing that stands out to me most is the missed opportunity. Continuity Nod's look back at the gestation of Onslaught describes a truly dark transformation of Xavier--his "Dark Phoenix." This got watered down to include a Magneto influence to keep Xavier from being too hard to redeem. And if we're to believe Wolverine 104 (a pretty big "if" since its story doesn't mesh with the rest of Onslaught), Xavier is actually controlled in part by some kind of outside entity that hopped from Magneto to Xavier.

X-Men 56

The prologue issues hint at Onslaught as a separate entity within Xavier, built up by all of Xavier's dark impulses, in possession of all of Xavier's knowledge, and ultimately in control of Xavier's mind and body almost like a parasite. In Onslaught X-Men, Onslaught goes so far as to actually call Xavier his host and assert that his identity has been destroyed by Onslaught (though even this issue treats the idea inconsistently). Thus is a powerful idea, perhaps even more powerful than the Jean Grey/Phoenix/Dark Phoenix dynamic because Xavier wouldn't be under the influence of an outside forces but rather would have grown Onslaught on his own, however unintentionally, because he's that repressed and that powerful.

Unfortunately this concept completely falls apart after Onslaught X-Men. We don't even see Xavier again until Uncanny X-Men 336 where he is rescued from within Onslaught, conveniently absolving him from directly contributing to Onslaught's future, more inexplicable actions. And whereas Onslaught first appears as a shell built atop Xavier's body that links the two both mentally and physically, his later presentation is as some kind of larger entity with an interior body that's like a prison--Xavier is inside of Onslaught but seemingly not necessary for his existence. This idea is handwaved away thanks to Franklin's vague reality changing powers, and Onslaught is ultimately not affected at all when Xavier is ripped from within him.

X-Men 54

I find myself wondering how much more interesting the story could have been if, instead of Onslaught taking progressively absurd actions as the event goes on, he uses Xavier's knowledge and even physical appearance to give a psychological edge to his conflict with the X-Men. And how much more poignant and disturbing might the human heroes' sacrifice be if Xavier is still inside Onslaught, feeling their "deaths" as they rush in? The X-Men might view renewed hostility toward mutants differently because Xavier actually experienced those deaths. Xavier as we know him could be crushed beneath the weight of that pain and loss, utterly changed (at least as long as the ongoing storylines allowed).

Onslaught X-Men

Onslaught, in the end, is not a successful event. It's main plot is too damaged (and at times incoherent) to hold up under any kind of scrutiny, and by the time Onslaught Marvel Universe has ended, the event has limped--broken and bloody--across the finish line. If Onslaught is to be judged on that criteria and that criteria alone, it is unquestionably bad.

I'm not sure if that's fair, though. The character arcs running through Onslaught are surprisingly good. The idea behind Onslaught's connection to all of Xavier's bad impulses, examples of which can be found going back almost to the X-Men's very beginning, is compelling despite being only half realized. A villain who is able to use Franklin Richards's powers to continually transform himself until he's eventually a psychic entity that can't be hurt physically is an interesting notion and a somewhat diabolical way to take advantage of Franklin's abilities. When all is said and done, I think Onslaught is more incomplete than anything. With a little more development of Onslaught so his motives remain consistent, more build up to the big final threat so the heroes' sacrifices feel more organic, or more time to explore the working relationship between the three teams I think this could have been something good.

X-Men '96

 And with that the Onslaught Retrospective comes to an end. If you've missed any earlier posts you can find them here: Introduction, Prologue, Phase 1, Phase 2, and Epilogue.

For issue-by-issue commentary check out Twitter @theroncouch #CompleteOnslaught.

Until next time...