At this point, I have to wonder whether Claremont was aware of how every time the X-ers get near a flying craft, it crashes. Because not only does the narration box talk about deja vu, but this time, the X-Men don’t crash the plane–the plane crashes on Colossus!
It’s early in their relationship, but Cyke and Logan are already fighting.
This issue is the first appearance of Eric the Red, a Shi’ar agent hired to stop Princess Lilandra from recruiting the aid of the X-Men. This is the first time any of these characters have been seen–a glimpse into how Claremont works. He doesn’t just introduce a character, he creates worlds. We don’t see Lilandra, but she’s mentioned in a fever dream/premonition.
We’re also reminded that the team is being stalked by Steven Lang, creator of the new Sentinels (which we haven’t seen yet), and someone is, in turn, stalking Steven.
“This issue is the first appearance of Eric the Red.” Wrong. Check the editor’s box! Editor Marv Wolfman was correct in pointing out that the first appearance of ‘Eric the Red’ was in issues #51 & 52, from 1968! It doesn’t matter that the first ‘Eric the Red’ was actually Cyclops in a bizarre ( and extremely unlikely guise, considering how elaborate it was- just where in the hell did Cyclops GET that outfit from, and so quickly-???! Remember, he had it techno-rigged to fire his optic beams out of his gauntlet’s fingertips!!! How did he have the time and the know-how to accomplish that, and so quickly-???! ) outfit- his appearance as ‘Eric the Red’ from those earlier issues technically qualifies them as the first appearance of ‘Eric the Red’. Technically, Davan Shakari is the SECOND ‘Eric the Red’. So there. Nice to see Havok and Polaris back in these issues. The forgotten, underappreciated, underutilized, potential-neglected X-Men. Written out earlier in the year simply due to their ethnicity. ( or lack thereof ) What a shame. What a DAMN shame. I do wish that the various ‘X-Men’ artists would work on creating a bit more of a facial distinction between Havok and the Angel. They have the same face. And hair color. And height. ( six feet even, in both cases, per The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe ) I am given to understand that there is a new ‘X-Men’ title out on the market now, with Havok and the Angel co-running a new team of X-Men. Sounds interesting, but I just hope that when they are out from under their cowls/masks/headgear, as the case may be, that they don’t look like identical twins. Six-foot tall blond white guys don’t all look alike, you know. Just sayin’.
That’s a different Eric the Red. This IS the first appearance of the second one.