Writer: Chris Claremont
Art: Rob Leifeld

Colors: Glynis Oliver

Letters: Tom Orzechowski

Publisher: Marvel
Price: $1.00
Release Date: 6/1/1989
Reviewer: Soycornholio

Of course, the guys had to do something! On the heels of the infamous Ladies Night of Uncanny X-Men #244, Uncanny X-Men #245 by Chris Claremont, shows the exact inverse! We are taken from the glitz and glam of Beverly Hills and transported into a good old fashion dive bar. But was this comic a forgettable comic or a bold entry to the Uncanny line?

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Plot:

There was a period of time when every other issue of Uncanny X-Men took place in space. This issue is no different. We are introduced to a ghastly cast of aliens throughout the galaxy. What are they doing? They are planning on conquering Earth of course! As we all know, this is normally not an easy task due to the various superhero teams who are consistently defending Earth. The next couple of pages sets the stage for a good old fashion bar brawl. After catching Havoc spying on all of the X-Men, Wolverine takes all of the guys out to the local watering hole. Shortly after womanizing the local women, the guys are thrown into a knock-out drag out with the alien invaders. Now of course the invaders do not win but upon returning to the Outback Headquarters, they are all greeted by a very concerned group of ladies. What does Wolverine do to clear the air? Kisses Storm and walks away to plan a road trip! The final page shows a beautifully drawn version of Tessa realizing that Donald Pierce had escaped leaving a bloody mess in his wake. Ominous!

Pop culture references:

Marvel in the ’80s was a pop culture phenomenon. First off, this issue mocks the DC storyline of the same timeframe appropriately title “Invasion!” Secondly, the cast of aliens that are shown as the invaders in the opening pages consists of the “who’s who” of the 70’s and 80’s. We are shown Alf, various members of the Star Wars franchise, a Xenomorph (check out my Alien #1 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson), and shockingly enough several JLA members! I love it when the big comic companies poke fun of one another (or even acknowledging that the others exist). Marvel has done a great job of this over the years. One panel that sticks out the most to me is in New X-Men by Grant Morrison. I literally laughed out loud when one of the X-Men was teasing Multiple Man for singing “Justify My Love” with a group of his clones. Beauty. Just pure beauty.

x100:

This issue took the various traits of the X-Men of 1989 and dialed it up to 100. Going to a bar as a getaway is a typical Wolverine characteristic. The man loves his “cold ones” and good old fashion scraps. Alex (being the typical Summers boy) has several soliloquies that could make his older brother jealous. Longshot is of course womanizing every female with his goofy boyish smile and Colossus is playing the tortured artist. In a way, Claremont was having fun when he wrote this issue. He took very little seriously, and it served as a nice break from the consistent soap opera nature of the X-Men.

Final Thoughts:

So, was this a forgettable issue or a memorable entry in the Uncanny line? Well, if you were like me and never really cared to read about the X-Men’s Australian years, you would not really care. However, once you read this issue, you will remember it. This was a light-hearted issue that was chocked full of various pop culture references. In fact, it was so full of references, that I had to read a list of everyone who made a cameo! With Leifeld on pencils proving epic eyebrows for Wolverine, this is a charming comic. Being fairly cheap, you can find this issue in any of the $2 bins at your LCS OR read it on Marvel Unlimited. Check it out!