Classic Comics Cavalcade: ‘Exiles’ #18-19 Spotlights The Best Of The Classic Series
by Tony Thornley
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Marvel had a few problems. One was that the concept of the classic What If…? series was still good but sales had plummeted. Another was that the character of Blink had become a cult classic out of the Phalanx Covenant and Age of Apocalypse crossovers. And lastly the X-Men line needed a breath of fresh air.
All three issues were resolved with Exiles.
With the current season of Marvel Snap focused on the now-classic Marvel team, we wanted to look at a single story that captures exactly what the series was about. With the season wrapping up, it’s better late than never!
Judd Winick, Mike McKone, Jon Holdredge, Transparency Digital, and Paul Tutrone teamed for this story mid-way into the series’ second year.
The Exiles have been a team now for a while. They haven’t lost a member in months, despite the danger of their missions. And just when they’ve gotten a groove, they’re thrown for a loop. Mojo — the one and only — wants one of his biggest stars back. And he’ll do anything — death, destruction and torture — to make sure Morph plays ball.
Exiles wasn’t deep and ground-breaking. It was an alternate reality action movie every story arc. However, it was an excellent character book, and honestly was remarkably progressive for its time despite some dated dialogue and references. Winick knew what he was doing and it was a hell of a ride because of it.
This story arc puts Morph in the spotlight. Where the previous arcs kept the character as the silly comic relief, this showed his pathos. Putting the class clown face to face with Mojo showed that Morph was actually competent and caring. When faced with the possibility that Nocturne may die if he didn’t cooperate, he put his friend first. Meanwhile, the rest of the team put themselves in danger to rescue the duo.
Even in such a short time, Winick gave readers a complete adventure, with real stakes and strong characters.
McKone and Holdredge’s line art have a great kinetic energy to them. Everyone is always in motion, and McKone has a fantastic sense of facial acting, allowing him to make everything happen in close up. The art in general is one of the best things the entire series had going, and McKone is fantastic throughout it.
This story arc does break the mold of the reality hopping series, but it made the series better for it. It’s fun and silly, while building the characters up. If you’re a fan of Marvel’s multiverses, it’s worth looking at. While it isn’t high art, it’s a lot of fun, and that’s frankly all you need.
