I haven't read superhero books in maybe 15 years (got sick of the constant restarts), but a friend gifted this to me, saying it'd be relevant to my "how does belief change the supernatural" interests, and boy, was he right. I've always had a soft spot for the Watcher, and the way EARTH X deals with the alternative timelines/universes is masterful. The blending of "being told a story" plot and active engagement made the series nigh impossible to put down. Also: Because I've been reading this duri...

I thought this was going to be like Marvel's version of DC's Kingdom Come, instead it's a guide to the Marvel universe and some little things that might happen. Seen this on other reviews, this need more what is currently happening rather than what did happen. Maybe if you never read a Marvel comic before you might like this. I see there is a Universe X I'll probably read in the future in hopes it's more story and less Marvel history I already know.

Omega powered cosmic entities vying for power are Marvel's ace in the hole. But what this proves is that only DC excels when it comes to superheroes in their golden years facing grim late life lessons. What I'm saying is that Marvel can't Kingdom Come the way DC can. This wasn't bad, but I had honestly never heard of Machine Man before and several other readers give me the impression that he was around before this, so whatever. My biggest problem with the story, aside from DC doing it better twe...

This graphic novel contained so much written text that I decided to count it as a full novel, even though I usually do not review the graphic novels I read on Goodreads. Also, this was so good, I thought it deserved a place on here, and also deserved the attention of writing a review. I was surprised by how good this book actually was. Plot summaries didn't make it sound that appealing, and just leafing through the book I didn't see a coherent whole. My expectations were lowered, I thought I wou...

One of my favorite graphic novels, kind of Marvel's answer to Alex Ross's other major work Kingdom Come but with very much it's own style. Jim Krueger's encyclopedia knowledge of the Marvel Universe turns this story -- along with his Universe X and Paradise X -- into what feels like a true conclusion to the entire Marvel story. As if it was some grand science fiction epic planned that way all along. Of course, in the many years since this was published a lot of the revelations are contradicted b...

Too much backstory, not enough "happening". Enough said.OVERALL GRADE: C minus

Years ago, Alex Ross, comic book artist, showed off some of his artwork depicting a dystopian Marvel future in Wizard magazine. The magazine sold out. He drew some more for a special sketchbook. That sold out. So the honchos at Marvel said, “If we print an actual comic with a story centered on this artwork, we’ll make millions. If we print a series, we’ll make billions, maybe even gazillions.”So it was written and drawn, but not by Ross. Ross did the pretty covers.This one bites off a lot more t...

I absolutely loved Marvel comics alternate timeline event that was Earth X. The cover art by Alex Ross & his sketches are absolutely amazing. I also appreciate the internal art by John Paul Leon. The premise, story and presentation all fit together to create a dark & brooding epic within the marvel universe. Cataclysmic events occur on the earth with the fate of the universe hanging in the balance.An excellent thought experiment that explains why some people of Earth in Marvels universe have sup...

A little heavy going at times and I wasn’t overly keen on the long text pieces at the end of each issue, but really loved this! It goes deep into marvel history and lore and creates a new story from it. Would have been stellar had it been drawn by Alex Ross, though I don’t mind John Paul Leon’s style.

I love this entire series, I reread it despite having read it nearly 20 years ago, it hasn't lost any of it's appeal! A must read for any fan of the Marvel universe

I did not love this one. The art, the story, nothing really clicked with me. It was okay, and I can see where others might love it, but it wasn't for me.

Even though I had read it before, in the last 24 hours I started, finished reading and all but devoured Earth X. I must admit that when I first went through the book it was a fast, superficial read and I knew much less about the Marvel Universe than nowadays. Today, even when I realised I remembered at least a good part of what was about to happen in the story, I found myself unable to stop until I had read and laughed at Jim Krueger's afterword.Earth X is an alternate universe where the reader

I have always enjoyed alternative future stories (and historical ones too) in both the DC universe and the Marvel universe, so obviously, Earth X and its sequels have long been on my radar. I actually picked up this fine hard cover volume quite a while back, but had not got around to reading it until now.And the reading process was a mixed experience.Starting out some 20 years plus into the future of the Marvel universe, Aaron Stack, a.k.a. Machine Man a.k.a. X-51, is summoned by the Watcher on

This book starts out like a barely-prosaic version of the Marvel Encyclopedia, just a pretty dry retelling of the high points of the Marvel universe’s history, sprinkled with the occasional “why did it work this way?” “Shut up and stop asking intelligent questions - it’s a mystery”. Very nearly veered into “it’s all part of gods’ plan” schlock territory. I could swear that this book at its time was evolutionary - updated and refactored many of the key moments in Marvel history to bring it all to...

Meh. The plot was all over the place and tedious to follow. The art was too dark. Worth a read, but I'm not likely to go back to it in ten years.

I actually read the signed Graffiti black and white version. I found it at an inexpensive price so I went for it. In concept this story was supposed to be a Marvel Kingdom Come. And there are a few similarities. But some of the most poignant moments of Kingdom Come don't hit me in this book. Perhaps it really needs to be in color for me to get into it better. Overall the story was interesting and I believe there is more story that follows the events in this book. I would really like to see an om...

I don’t know why I struggled with this one so much. Not too long ago, I also tried and failed to get through The Nail. Both are grand, big-scale comics reliant on exposition. So maybe that is the reason. I like Alex Ross, and I like seeing a comic that boldly reimagines Marvel, but this one just didn’t do it for me.

Decent but way too many plots going on at same time

I've known about this book for ages but it's taken me ages to get hold of a copy - even in this internet age! I tried not to read too much about it so not to spoil it. I harboured a secret wish that it was an undiscovered gem of the calibre of Kingdom King or Marvels. It isn't, unfortunately.I really liked the explorative elements of the book, which I suppose is a fancy way of saying I enjoyed the continuity fanwank. A look at 'the future' of your favourite heroes and villains is always fun. I l...

I re-read this to see if I should remove this from my collection (and I will). This is basically a huge "What If?" about a future dystopian Marvel Universe with a heavy, heavy dose of Celestials and Inhumans. A lot of the concepts and designs come from Alex Ross, but art-wise, he only provides covers and some images in the appendices. The pencils are done by John Paul Leon and are beautiful, but the story itself spends way too much time on world-building. (Even in the last issues, the narrative