Marvel Masters: The Tales of Chris Claremont

SUPERHERO

Chris Claremont is perhaps the main reason for the international success of the X-Men during the 80s and 90s when they outsold pretty much every other title on the shelves. He wrote Uncanny X-Men for a staggering 16 years (from 1975-1991), specialising in long-running epics such as ‘The Dark Phoenix Saga’ and ‘Days of Future Past’, pivotal moments in X-history.

This meaty retrospective from Marvel UK attempts to showcase one of the most prolific writers in comics, however Claremont operates on a grand scale, often complex, convoluted and self-referential, which makes it hard to do justice to with just snippets of his work. There’s fun to be had with an Iron Fist story from 1975, a four part X-Men vs Fantastic Four through to issue 100 of Exiles from 2007, but you are likely to find yourself a trifle confused if you are a newcomer to Claremont’s universe.