The X-Men #123 [Direct]

(July 1979)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 1) (Expand) /

advertisement / 1 page (report information)

"Listen--Stop Me If You've Heard It--But This One Will KILL You!" (Table of Contents: 2)

X-Men / comic story / 17 pages (report information)

Script

John Byrne (plot); Chris Claremont (plot, script)

Pencils

John Byrne (breakdowns); Terry Austin (finishes)

Inks

Terry Austin

Colors

Glynis Oliver

Letters

Tom Orzechowski (credited as Tom Orz)

Job Number

LG451

First Line of Dialogue or Text

It's springtime in New York.

Genre

superhero

Characters

X-Men [Banshee [Sean Cassidy] (featured); Colossus [Piotr Rasputin] (featured) (last page as Proletarian); Cyclops [Scott Summers] (featured); Nightcrawler [Kurt Wagner] (featured); Storm [Ororo Munroe] (featured); Wolverine [Logan] (featured)]; Arcade (antagonist); Terry Austin (cameo); Mr. Chambers (antagonist); Chris Claremont (cameo); Miss Locke (antagonist); Glynis Oliver (cameo); Amanda Sefton (supporting); Spider-Man [Peter Parker] (supporting); Roger Stern (cameo); Colonel Alexei Vazhin (antagonist) (first appearance); Len Wein (cameo); Betsy Wilford (supporting); Betsy Wilford (supporting); Bonnie Wilford; Colleen Wing (supporting); Mariko Yashida (supporting)

Synopsis

Arcade captures all of the X-Men and places them in Murder World, but Spidey is hot on their trail.

Reprints

• in Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men (Marvel, 2009 series) #4
• in Marvel-Maxi-Pockets (Condor, 1980 series) #5
• in Spécial Strange (Editions Lug, 1975 series) #25 (10 août 1981)
• in Superaventuras Marvel (Editora Abril, 1982 series) #14 (Agosto de 1983) [Do original, falta a página 7.]
• in X:en (Semic, 1984 series) #1/1985 ([januari] 1985)
• in Prosjekt X (Semic, 1984 series) #2/1985 (uke 6 1985)
• in Die Gruppe X (Condor, 1985 series) #6 (1986)
• in Marvel (Labor Comics, 1986 series) #1 (Giugno 1986)
• in Classic X-Men (Marvel, 1986 series) #29 (January 1989)
which is reprinted
• in El Asombroso Hombre Araña Presenta (Novedades, 1988 series) #93 (Enero 25 de 1990)
• in X-Men Saga (Semic S.A., 1990 series) #12 (avril 1993)
• in The Uncanny X-Men (Tor Books, 1990 series) (November 1990)
• in Marvel Special (Marvel Italia, 1994 series) #9 (Dicembre 1996)
• in Essential X-Men (Marvel, 1996 series) #2 ([August] 1997) [black and white]
• in Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men (Marvel, 2003 series) #4 ([October] 2004)
• in The Uncanny X-Men Omnibus (Marvel, 2006 series) #1 (2006)
• in Marvel Gold. La Imposible Patrulla-X (Panini España, 2011 series) #2 - Días del Futuro Pasado
• in X-Men Epic Collection (Marvel, 2014 series) #6 - Proteus (2020)
• in X-Men - La Collection Mutante (Hachette, 2020 series) #39 - Foudre cosmique (mars 2022)

Indexer Notes

Page 17, panel 1: Colossus shows up with a new outfit and calls himself ‘the Proletarian.’ Anchored in Marxist-Leninist philosophy, basis of communism doctrine, the proletariat represents the social class of workers, ‘the proletarians,’ opposed to the capitalist class. The proletarian designates a worker, a peasant, or an employee who lives only on his salary. The costume Colossus wears includes several explicit references and symbols to soviet communism: The worker’s red cap and overalls, the initials ‘ C.C.C.P.,’ Cyrillic acronym translated as ‘Union of Soviet Socialist Republics’, for U.S.S.R.; the face of Lenin, architect of communism and first Chairman of the Council of People’s Commissars of the Soviet Union, highest governmental authority; and the sickle and the hammer, ancient symbols of the U.S.S.R flag and Communist ideology (the sickle for agriculture, and the hammer for industry). When this comic was published in 1979, relations between U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. were still very tense due to the Cold War. Both countries ideologically and, therefore, politically, were wholly opposed. Recall that Colossus’ character, Piotr Nikolaievich Rasputin, is of Russian origin and was raised on a Siberian farm.

The character of Col. Alexei Vazhin is an android version created by Arcade. The real Colonel Alexei Vazhin appeared in Marvel Team-Up Annual #2, December 1979.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 3) (Expand) /

advertisement / 1 page (report information)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 4) (Expand) /

Bullpen Bulletins; Stan's Soapbox / in-house column / 1 page (report information)

The Thing and the Ultimate Weapon! (Table of Contents: 5) (Expand) /

Hostess Fruit Pies; The Thing / comics-form advertising / 1 page (report information)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 6)

X-Mail / letters page / 1 page (report information)

Script

Chris Claremont

Letters

typeset

Reprints

• in The Uncanny X-Men Omnibus (Marvel, 2006 series) #1 (2006)

Indexer Notes

Letters from Joan Ludlow, Susan Jaworowski, and Verde.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 7) (Expand) /

Fun Factory / advertisement / 1 page (report information)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 8) (Expand) /

advertisement / 1 page (report information)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 9) (Expand) /

Sales Leadership Club / advertisement / 1 page (report information)