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Excalibur (2019)
Excalibur, Vol. 4
The tower and the storm! Captain Britain and Excalibur have reunited at last, and Otherworld is their new domain. But an escort mission is about to reveal deep political unrest among Saturnyne’s court — and a brutal sacrifice will bear bitter fruit! As guardians of the gate, the members of Excalibur have sworn to safely escort those who quest to the Otherworld within. But when doom returns to Avalon, they will soon find those duties tested to their very limits. Tini Howard’s mystical mutant saga continues!
COLLECTING: Excalibur (2019) 22-26
COLLECTING: Excalibur (2019) 22-26
136 pages, Paperback
Published March 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
January 13, 2024
A conspiracy of mutant detractors work with the UK Government to not only expel mutants from the country, but to also rid them from the Otherworld. The book's attempt to embolden the role of Betsy Braddock by seeing her as the central protagonist in this series is the best the series guest with its very limited characterisations of Brian Braddock and family, Jubilee, Riktor etc. For me one of the lowest points of the Hickman X-Me universe, but for context this volume wasn't that bad. A 6 out of 12 , Three Star read for me.
2024 read
2024 read
June 14, 2022
From beginning to end this title was terrible. Tini Howard is a crap writer. For some reason, Merlin now hates mutants and is trying to kill all the mutants in Otherworld. It's never explained why, even though he was an ally of Captain Britain's for decades. Most of the writing doesn't make any sense. Between pages, the status quo shifts dramatically. I find myself trying to split the pages apart looking for pages I accidentally skipped over because the transitions are done so shoddily. The characterization is off. Magic is just treated as a catch-all to just do whatever Howard wants it too. There's no rules. Just wave a magic wand and advance the plot.
January 10, 2022
I cannot express enough how much I hated this entire run of Excalibur.
Tini Howard is very, very bad at her job. From the poor pacing, and the way the story lurched forward between issues; to the inexplicable decision to introduce Captain Britain versions of four American characters, whom then served no real purpose in the plot.
The entire premise of this series made no real sense. It featured Betsy Braddock as the main character taking over the title of Captain Britain; which was logical, because Betsy really is British and her brother is normally Captain Britain. And she has even subbed for him in the role before. But what did not make sense was the decision to have Gambit, Rogue, Rictor, and Jubilee tag along with Betsy on her adventures, despite the fact none of them were British or particularly close friends with Betsy. Marvel editorial must have had something to do with this, wanting to use some more popular characters to encourage readership, and perhaps ordering Tini Howard to use Rictor and Jubilee so that there could be some token representation by characters of color. (Even though I am not 100% certain that Rictor and Betsy had even met before they were forced to be in this title together. And I say that as someone whom has been reading comics since the early 90s.)
The end of volume 1 concluded with characters claiming that Rogue, Gambit, Jubilee, and Rictor were somehow "experts" on magic. This made no sense. None of those characters had ever had any real insight into magic, but lots of other mutants on Krakoa did. Magik is a demonic sorceress, obviously. Dani Moonstar is a Valkryie, plus she has some ill-defined connections to Native magic as well. Wolfsbane had some of her hybrid baby's Asgardian DNA transferred to her. Kylun carries magical blades and was married to a sorceress in a magical reality. Forge is an actual spellcasting shaman, not to mention friends with Roma.
But, screw all those people. Someone had ordered Tini Howard to use these four mutants. So, that is what she did.
Mostly, I take issue with her abominable decisions to butcher/retcon characters' powers, personalities, and origins. She did this so thoughtlessly, it genuinely felt as if she had not read any prior comics, so did not understand just how much she was getting wrong.
--She at one point referred to Jubilee's powers as "light," and had Jubilee manifest orbs of light. This was wrong and impossible, because Jubilee's powers are actually about firing "plasmoids" of energy that just happen to look like fireworks.
--Tini Howard at one point showed Gambit using his powers to "charge" a playing card and a train. Nothing happened to the items afterward. This was wrong and impossible, because when Gambit charges objects with kinetic energy, they detonate afterward.
--Tini Howard butchered Rictor most of all. In Peter David's beloved run of X-Factor, Rictor was a swarthy, laidback man. He would tell you that, after his powers were restored post-House of M, his powers were vibratory in nature. Basically, he fires the same kind of sonic blast that Banshee does, but he does it from his hands. He just happens to often use this on the ground, causing localized earthquakes. However, under Tini Howard's watch, Rictor was shaved and drawn as a much younger character. His powers were retconned into power over dirt. Not just mutant power over dirt, but fucking magical power over dirt. He was called a druid, or even king of druids, after a bare handful of issues, ultimately revered by a group of druids he only met twice. He displayed fanatical devotion to --and possible romantic feelings for-- Apocalypse: a straight, married supervillain. Previously, Apocalypse has kidnapped some of Rictor's friends (like Gambit, Polaris, and Caliban) and tortured them into becoming horsemen. Not to mention all the other times Apocalypse has killed people. Apparently, Rictor didn't care about any of that?
--By this final volume, Meggan (Betsy's sister-in-law, and a founding member of the original Excalibur team) had become something of a full-time cast member. She was the next-most-butchered character after Rictor. Because Tini Howard just liked the idea of her characters being more magical than mutant, you know? So, because Meggan has had pointed ears for most of her appearances (since the 1980s), Tini Howard felt comfortable writing Meggan going around telling people that she was both a fairy and a mutant. She did this casually, as if it were something already established, and not a new retcon. To really drive home this change, she arranged for Meggan to be drawn with fairy wings in every issue. ... This made no sense, because Meggan is a kickass-powerful mutant with powers of flight, shapeshifting, empathy, and elemental control over nature. She has been shown flying without fairy wings for 40 years. But, hey, Tini Howard liked the idea of her having them, so...
--Saturnyne is traditionally a fairly compassionate, hardworking person who works alongside Roma at the Starlight Citadel. She is an ordinary woman from Earth-9, whom worked her way up to a position of cosmic importance based on her own merits, without any powers. ... But not so, according to Tini Howard. Now, she is a witch and bitch. She throws around cosmically powerful magic all the time, without bothering to explain where these powers came from. She is obsessed with Betsy's married brother, Brian Braddock, and for some reason can't remember that because of her position protecting the multiverse, she has access to infinite Brian Braddocks. If she wants to date/fuck/marry one, all she has to do is find a reality where he is single, and she can ask him out. But, that is never articulated as an option by Tini Howard, because that would ruin her butchery of the character. I mean, back in the 90s we watched Saturnyne bodily shield Franklin Richards from Abraxas. But, okay. Sure. Saturnyne is supposed to be a bitch, now.
Then the "plot" of this whole mess was supposed to be about Merlin and King Arthur hating mutants. For, I don't know, some reason. They call mutants "witchbreed" without any trace of irony about the fact Merlin is an ACTUAL FUCKING WIZARD. Their animosity is never really explained. That's setting aside the fact Merlin is traditionally an ally of Captain Britain, and I have read issues where he resurrects Betsy's brother from a thigh bone and equips him with better armor. And that's setting aside that King Arthur is supposed to be dead, and Dane Whitman (the Black Knight) is supposed to be the new Pendragon, as explained by the Lady of the Lake in the 1998 run of Heroes for Hire.
In the last few issues Bei, Cypher's stranger wife we readers are ordered to care about, hung out with the group. For no reason. She only had a few lines of dialogue. The group didn't need her power for anything in particular. No one ever felt the need to explain why she was present.
The final issue concludes with a subplot (?) that came flying out of nowhere, and offends me to my core as a gay person.
... I despise Tini Howard with every fiber of my being.
Tini Howard is very, very bad at her job. From the poor pacing, and the way the story lurched forward between issues; to the inexplicable decision to introduce Captain Britain versions of four American characters, whom then served no real purpose in the plot.
The entire premise of this series made no real sense. It featured Betsy Braddock as the main character taking over the title of Captain Britain; which was logical, because Betsy really is British and her brother is normally Captain Britain. And she has even subbed for him in the role before. But what did not make sense was the decision to have Gambit, Rogue, Rictor, and Jubilee tag along with Betsy on her adventures, despite the fact none of them were British or particularly close friends with Betsy. Marvel editorial must have had something to do with this, wanting to use some more popular characters to encourage readership, and perhaps ordering Tini Howard to use Rictor and Jubilee so that there could be some token representation by characters of color. (Even though I am not 100% certain that Rictor and Betsy had even met before they were forced to be in this title together. And I say that as someone whom has been reading comics since the early 90s.)
The end of volume 1 concluded with characters claiming that Rogue, Gambit, Jubilee, and Rictor were somehow "experts" on magic. This made no sense. None of those characters had ever had any real insight into magic, but lots of other mutants on Krakoa did. Magik is a demonic sorceress, obviously. Dani Moonstar is a Valkryie, plus she has some ill-defined connections to Native magic as well. Wolfsbane had some of her hybrid baby's Asgardian DNA transferred to her. Kylun carries magical blades and was married to a sorceress in a magical reality. Forge is an actual spellcasting shaman, not to mention friends with Roma.
But, screw all those people. Someone had ordered Tini Howard to use these four mutants. So, that is what she did.
Mostly, I take issue with her abominable decisions to butcher/retcon characters' powers, personalities, and origins. She did this so thoughtlessly, it genuinely felt as if she had not read any prior comics, so did not understand just how much she was getting wrong.
--She at one point referred to Jubilee's powers as "light," and had Jubilee manifest orbs of light. This was wrong and impossible, because Jubilee's powers are actually about firing "plasmoids" of energy that just happen to look like fireworks.
--Tini Howard at one point showed Gambit using his powers to "charge" a playing card and a train. Nothing happened to the items afterward. This was wrong and impossible, because when Gambit charges objects with kinetic energy, they detonate afterward.
--Tini Howard butchered Rictor most of all. In Peter David's beloved run of X-Factor, Rictor was a swarthy, laidback man. He would tell you that, after his powers were restored post-House of M, his powers were vibratory in nature. Basically, he fires the same kind of sonic blast that Banshee does, but he does it from his hands. He just happens to often use this on the ground, causing localized earthquakes. However, under Tini Howard's watch, Rictor was shaved and drawn as a much younger character. His powers were retconned into power over dirt. Not just mutant power over dirt, but fucking magical power over dirt. He was called a druid, or even king of druids, after a bare handful of issues, ultimately revered by a group of druids he only met twice. He displayed fanatical devotion to --and possible romantic feelings for-- Apocalypse: a straight, married supervillain. Previously, Apocalypse has kidnapped some of Rictor's friends (like Gambit, Polaris, and Caliban) and tortured them into becoming horsemen. Not to mention all the other times Apocalypse has killed people. Apparently, Rictor didn't care about any of that?
--By this final volume, Meggan (Betsy's sister-in-law, and a founding member of the original Excalibur team) had become something of a full-time cast member. She was the next-most-butchered character after Rictor. Because Tini Howard just liked the idea of her characters being more magical than mutant, you know? So, because Meggan has had pointed ears for most of her appearances (since the 1980s), Tini Howard felt comfortable writing Meggan going around telling people that she was both a fairy and a mutant. She did this casually, as if it were something already established, and not a new retcon. To really drive home this change, she arranged for Meggan to be drawn with fairy wings in every issue. ... This made no sense, because Meggan is a kickass-powerful mutant with powers of flight, shapeshifting, empathy, and elemental control over nature. She has been shown flying without fairy wings for 40 years. But, hey, Tini Howard liked the idea of her having them, so...
--Saturnyne is traditionally a fairly compassionate, hardworking person who works alongside Roma at the Starlight Citadel. She is an ordinary woman from Earth-9, whom worked her way up to a position of cosmic importance based on her own merits, without any powers. ... But not so, according to Tini Howard. Now, she is a witch and bitch. She throws around cosmically powerful magic all the time, without bothering to explain where these powers came from. She is obsessed with Betsy's married brother, Brian Braddock, and for some reason can't remember that because of her position protecting the multiverse, she has access to infinite Brian Braddocks. If she wants to date/fuck/marry one, all she has to do is find a reality where he is single, and she can ask him out. But, that is never articulated as an option by Tini Howard, because that would ruin her butchery of the character. I mean, back in the 90s we watched Saturnyne bodily shield Franklin Richards from Abraxas. But, okay. Sure. Saturnyne is supposed to be a bitch, now.
Then the "plot" of this whole mess was supposed to be about Merlin and King Arthur hating mutants. For, I don't know, some reason. They call mutants "witchbreed" without any trace of irony about the fact Merlin is an ACTUAL FUCKING WIZARD. Their animosity is never really explained. That's setting aside the fact Merlin is traditionally an ally of Captain Britain, and I have read issues where he resurrects Betsy's brother from a thigh bone and equips him with better armor. And that's setting aside that King Arthur is supposed to be dead, and Dane Whitman (the Black Knight) is supposed to be the new Pendragon, as explained by the Lady of the Lake in the 1998 run of Heroes for Hire.
In the last few issues Bei, Cypher's stranger wife we readers are ordered to care about, hung out with the group. For no reason. She only had a few lines of dialogue. The group didn't need her power for anything in particular. No one ever felt the need to explain why she was present.
The final issue concludes with a subplot (?) that came flying out of nowhere, and offends me to my core as a gay person.
... I despise Tini Howard with every fiber of my being.
March 16, 2022
I think I've said before that I've only been half paying attention to this book: the Otherworld stuff has just never interested me.
This volume is basically split into two stories. The first has a visit by Doctor Doom. Betsy's interactions with him are probably the highlight, standing up to him and not putting up with his BS. Seeing Doom act like an impatient child was funny too.
The second half is basically the confrontation with Merlin, which has been building to a head. While it mostly delivers, it feels a little rushed, as if there was too much fit in before they ran out of issues; a couple spots it felt like something was skipped. There are also characters and references to previous events which I either overlooked or they happened in other books in Excalibur's history and I just didn't know about it, resulting in a moment of confusion. The story ends on a cliffhanger and at this point I really don't know the future of this title, but I believe it is continuing in some form.
I still like the art a lot, and hopefully this title keeps moving in a direction that will be keep my interested.
This volume is basically split into two stories. The first has a visit by Doctor Doom. Betsy's interactions with him are probably the highlight, standing up to him and not putting up with his BS. Seeing Doom act like an impatient child was funny too.
The second half is basically the confrontation with Merlin, which has been building to a head. While it mostly delivers, it feels a little rushed, as if there was too much fit in before they ran out of issues; a couple spots it felt like something was skipped. There are also characters and references to previous events which I either overlooked or they happened in other books in Excalibur's history and I just didn't know about it, resulting in a moment of confusion. The story ends on a cliffhanger and at this point I really don't know the future of this title, but I believe it is continuing in some form.
I still like the art a lot, and hopefully this title keeps moving in a direction that will be keep my interested.
Read
February 1, 2022DNF.
February 25, 2022
Excalibur has always beat to the sound of its own drum, even amongst a line of X-Books that couldn't be more different from one another. It loses none of that individuality in this final volume, as Tini Howard's Otherworld saga reaches another crescendo.
Despite Betsy Braddock being back among the living, Otherworld and the Starlight Citadel are still plagued with unrest. Nothing Excalibur does seems to help, and there are growing threats from all sides. Just the way we like it. This is one of those books that balances the politic with the superheroic, and while Saturnyne sassing her way through court is always fun to see, it's when she's on the back foot that things really get interesting.
Marcus To, the unsung hero of this run, pencils all five issues here on his farewell tour. He won't be carrying over to Knights Of X (a shame), but we can enjoy his beautiful pencils one last time for now.
There's a sense of finality by the time this volume comes to a close; things are looking bleaker than ever, and it seems that Excalibur have failed in every sense of the word, but that's the point. This is just another step on the journey for these characters, and times of change are often difficult to endure.
Writer TIni Howard has always been unapologetic in her storytelling, and by this point she's proven that it's well worth suffering alongside Captain Britain and her friends, because the payoff's going to be even more exciting and unexpected than you could dream. Whatever the follow-up Knights Of X title has in store, there's no way we can guess it, and I'm not even going to try.
Despite Betsy Braddock being back among the living, Otherworld and the Starlight Citadel are still plagued with unrest. Nothing Excalibur does seems to help, and there are growing threats from all sides. Just the way we like it. This is one of those books that balances the politic with the superheroic, and while Saturnyne sassing her way through court is always fun to see, it's when she's on the back foot that things really get interesting.
Marcus To, the unsung hero of this run, pencils all five issues here on his farewell tour. He won't be carrying over to Knights Of X (a shame), but we can enjoy his beautiful pencils one last time for now.
There's a sense of finality by the time this volume comes to a close; things are looking bleaker than ever, and it seems that Excalibur have failed in every sense of the word, but that's the point. This is just another step on the journey for these characters, and times of change are often difficult to endure.
Writer TIni Howard has always been unapologetic in her storytelling, and by this point she's proven that it's well worth suffering alongside Captain Britain and her friends, because the payoff's going to be even more exciting and unexpected than you could dream. Whatever the follow-up Knights Of X title has in store, there's no way we can guess it, and I'm not even going to try.
June 15, 2022
I am very disappointed in thus book. The worst thing us I did not give my expectations that high to begin with. The problem with this book too many things going on at the same time and it keeps jumping from one to the other. All the magicians and reality shapers do not help either.
War is coming to both Outworld and the real world. Captain Britain has responsibility to both and is wanted by neither for being a mutant or withbreed as they are called in Outworld. Now with the return of Merlin and King Arthur things are only getting worse.
Usually I like all things Camelot, but here there are too many switching around the different places. The fights are also very con fused, they draw swords, chash then the scene changes. Some of the best mutant fighters are in this book yet they don't use them. I am only reading the Knights of X because I am told it leads to a Gambit series. Please let Betsy use the sword in and actual and complete fight.
War is coming to both Outworld and the real world. Captain Britain has responsibility to both and is wanted by neither for being a mutant or withbreed as they are called in Outworld. Now with the return of Merlin and King Arthur things are only getting worse.
Usually I like all things Camelot, but here there are too many switching around the different places. The fights are also very con fused, they draw swords, chash then the scene changes. Some of the best mutant fighters are in this book yet they don't use them. I am only reading the Knights of X because I am told it leads to a Gambit series. Please let Betsy use the sword in and actual and complete fight.
May 14, 2022
Hmmmm... not sure...
This Volume seemed a bit all over the place, but that's sort of par for the course when you talk about Excalibur. With the UK having ceased their treaty with Krakoa, but also being a vital part of Krakoa's connection to Otherworld... its kind of a mess plotwise. Also to deal with: A temper tantrum by Doom over some items he left, resurrection of Arthur to help secure Merlyn on the throne, a trial, Shogo needing magical training, etc.
I hope whoever is in charge of the next Volume of Excalibur realizes that they need to consolidate storylines and characters. It has the least consistency of all the X-Books.
That being said.... the art is still fantastic and there are still characters in this book I love.
Recommend with hesitation.
This Volume seemed a bit all over the place, but that's sort of par for the course when you talk about Excalibur. With the UK having ceased their treaty with Krakoa, but also being a vital part of Krakoa's connection to Otherworld... its kind of a mess plotwise. Also to deal with: A temper tantrum by Doom over some items he left, resurrection of Arthur to help secure Merlyn on the throne, a trial, Shogo needing magical training, etc.
I hope whoever is in charge of the next Volume of Excalibur realizes that they need to consolidate storylines and characters. It has the least consistency of all the X-Books.
That being said.... the art is still fantastic and there are still characters in this book I love.
Recommend with hesitation.
July 10, 2022
3,5*
Can't say I've been too thrilled with Howard's tenure on Ecalibur- I gave the 1st three volumes an average 2* rate- but this final volume is actually good, better than could be expected, considering.
Things come to a head in Otherworld and the various factions acting against mutants unite to expell them from there. Obnoxious King Arthur himself joins the party to claim his realm back, backed-up by poisonous hatred-filled Merlyn.
Good action, good pacing, good tension management in a dark atmosphere and honest art by Marcus To. If only Howard had managed this level of craftmanship for her whole run!
Can't say I've been too thrilled with Howard's tenure on Ecalibur- I gave the 1st three volumes an average 2* rate- but this final volume is actually good, better than could be expected, considering.
Things come to a head in Otherworld and the various factions acting against mutants unite to expell them from there. Obnoxious King Arthur himself joins the party to claim his realm back, backed-up by poisonous hatred-filled Merlyn.
Good action, good pacing, good tension management in a dark atmosphere and honest art by Marcus To. If only Howard had managed this level of craftmanship for her whole run!
August 1, 2022
Was it my imagination or did this book suddenly become a bit better than before? Sure, I have an issue with the characters not acting according to their history and the fact that the reasons for Arthur and Merlyn's war are pretty murky to unfathomable. But if you can get past those things, this actually wasn't that bad. The artwork continues to be strong. And I find myself suddenly caring about the story, where I didn't much before...
March 29, 2022
I really wish this series was better. It never found all it's pieces, or put the ones it did have together. Motivations we're thin and undefined, characters seemed not themselves, the cast never made much sense, it wasted Doom for the one issue it had him, and the only nice thing I can say about it is Marcus To's art is amazingly consistent
April 10, 2022
I know this story is being continued in a new series, but I found this to be a very unsatisfying ending, with the STRIKE subplot just starting to build, and a cliffhanger that feels very abrupt.
June 16, 2022
Excalibur consistently has excellent art - all kudos to Marcus To as he powers through page after page of Otherworld battles between the Captains Britain and King Arthur that look just spectacular. Why are these two foes (?) battling? Couldn't tell ya. Merlyn is up to something, trying to undermine Saturnyne, who is like, the leader of the Otherworld(s)?
Notably, the Otherworlds might soon be cut off from Krakoa since England has renounced their association with Krakoa. That plot point is frequently shuffled under the rug in favor of various heroes and villains announcing their intentions for each other.
Oh! And Dr. Doom shows up for a few issues (he wants something from the recently resurrected Morgan Le Fay). It's amusing and offers welcome world-building as Cap and Doom visit various Otherworld locales. Then it's over and forgotten.
Notably, the Otherworlds might soon be cut off from Krakoa since England has renounced their association with Krakoa. That plot point is frequently shuffled under the rug in favor of various heroes and villains announcing their intentions for each other.
Oh! And Dr. Doom shows up for a few issues (he wants something from the recently resurrected Morgan Le Fay). It's amusing and offers welcome world-building as Cap and Doom visit various Otherworld locales. Then it's over and forgotten.
July 15, 2022
Obligatory reading, and I felt it with each issue. There aren’t any characters here that, as written, are all that deeply compelling. I’ll never feel like I fully have Betsy Braddock’s backstory firmly enough in hand to appreciate any possible nuance taking place here, and as such, the cliffhanger (is it?) ending doesn’t really land for me. Merlyn just seems like a silly manifestation of that character, and all the stuff in Otherworld just seems so pointless. Characters keep suggesting it be sealed off, and given the stakes for what I’m invested in here, I tend to agree. I also could give zero poops about the UK’s ire with Krakoa. It too feels utterly devoid of major significance.
December 31, 2022
What an absolute mess this was. In this final volume of Tini Howard's Excalibur, Merlyn finally makes his play for the Citadel which serves as the axis upon which all of Otherworld spins. These final issues give us the most haphazard, confusing, rushed, and unsatisfying conclusion of any of the modern X-books.
The story in this volume is just all over the place. It's revealed that King Arthur has been resurrected by Merlyn, who he intends to use to take the Citadel from Saturnyne with his army. At the end of one issue the forces of Arthur are in a pitched battle with Excalibur and the Captain Britain corps outside the citadel, with Arthur and Captain Britain facing off against one another. The next issue begins with our protagonists in the middle of a strategy meeting preparing to face off against Arthur and his army. One might assume that this is a flashback showing events before the battle was joined at the end of the previous issue, but no, apparently author Tini Howard had not read the previous issue that she had written. Later, Betsy faces Arthur on the battlefield and incredulously asks "You're Arthur? King Arthur?" as if she hadn't been facing off with him one-on-one in the previous issue. As I was reading digital single issues I had to double check to make sure I hadn't read things out of order. I had not. It was actually that sloppily written.
There's another sequence during the battle where the protagonists are talking about how they have to prevent Merlyn from getting inside the Citadel...AT ALL COSTS!! Nevermind that he was just inside the Citadel in the previous issue talking to Saturnyne and left of his own volition. And in the final issue there's another battle that breaks out at the gates of Avalon--our heroes are all in the midst of a pitched battle, enemy soldiers all around them. But on the very next page, our heroes are suddenly on one side of the battlefield with Arthur and his forces on the other, with Betsy and Arthur facing off with one another in the middle threatening each other about how they can't possibly stand up to each other's forces. It's as if author Tini Howard had printed out her script pages, dropped them on the way to the publisher, and then haphazardly shuffled them together in a random order before submitting them. And this happens in multiple issues!
There's another bizarre subplot that wastes precious page time (on a story that already feels incredibly rushed), where Pete Wisdom has been resurrected on Krakoa and then makes a special request to get four previously unidentified mutants resurrected as a priority. These four mutants make up the membership of a team called S.T.R.I.K.E., who I, not having read the original Excalibur run, was completely unfamiliar with. And I would remain unfamiliar with them, because they provide nothing of value to the story aside from standing around in the background. I'm so glad that so much page time was devoted to this, so that sequences important to the actual story Howard was attempting to tell could awkwardly transition from one scene to the next with no coherent linear continuity.
It is a bizarre feeling to read something that it seems no one involved in the creation thereof (writers, editors, etc.) had read before me. I know that Howard continued this story in the Knights of X mini-series that followed this, so I could forgive some dangling plot threads--but there is no excuse for this absolute dumpster fire. The only saving grace of this book is the wonderful art of Marcus To. He deserved better material.
The story in this volume is just all over the place. It's revealed that King Arthur has been resurrected by Merlyn, who he intends to use to take the Citadel from Saturnyne with his army. At the end of one issue the forces of Arthur are in a pitched battle with Excalibur and the Captain Britain corps outside the citadel, with Arthur and Captain Britain facing off against one another. The next issue begins with our protagonists in the middle of a strategy meeting preparing to face off against Arthur and his army. One might assume that this is a flashback showing events before the battle was joined at the end of the previous issue, but no, apparently author Tini Howard had not read the previous issue that she had written. Later, Betsy faces Arthur on the battlefield and incredulously asks "You're Arthur? King Arthur?" as if she hadn't been facing off with him one-on-one in the previous issue. As I was reading digital single issues I had to double check to make sure I hadn't read things out of order. I had not. It was actually that sloppily written.
There's another sequence during the battle where the protagonists are talking about how they have to prevent Merlyn from getting inside the Citadel...AT ALL COSTS!! Nevermind that he was just inside the Citadel in the previous issue talking to Saturnyne and left of his own volition. And in the final issue there's another battle that breaks out at the gates of Avalon--our heroes are all in the midst of a pitched battle, enemy soldiers all around them. But on the very next page, our heroes are suddenly on one side of the battlefield with Arthur and his forces on the other, with Betsy and Arthur facing off with one another in the middle threatening each other about how they can't possibly stand up to each other's forces. It's as if author Tini Howard had printed out her script pages, dropped them on the way to the publisher, and then haphazardly shuffled them together in a random order before submitting them. And this happens in multiple issues!
There's another bizarre subplot that wastes precious page time (on a story that already feels incredibly rushed), where Pete Wisdom has been resurrected on Krakoa and then makes a special request to get four previously unidentified mutants resurrected as a priority. These four mutants make up the membership of a team called S.T.R.I.K.E., who I, not having read the original Excalibur run, was completely unfamiliar with. And I would remain unfamiliar with them, because they provide nothing of value to the story aside from standing around in the background. I'm so glad that so much page time was devoted to this, so that sequences important to the actual story Howard was attempting to tell could awkwardly transition from one scene to the next with no coherent linear continuity.
It is a bizarre feeling to read something that it seems no one involved in the creation thereof (writers, editors, etc.) had read before me. I know that Howard continued this story in the Knights of X mini-series that followed this, so I could forgive some dangling plot threads--but there is no excuse for this absolute dumpster fire. The only saving grace of this book is the wonderful art of Marcus To. He deserved better material.
June 18, 2022
I really wish someone other than Howard were writing this, or that there was another Otherworld-focused series that wasn’t so Avalon/Capt Britain-centric. I really enjoyed X of Sword’s line-wide jaunt into Otherworld, and other series’ briefer ventures in have been similarly interesting. Unfortunately, Howard’s plotting continues to be brutally boring and her dialogue tends to be overwrought and verbose. This final volume was almost a rare DNF for me in its needlessly convoluted build-up to war, but then the war issues were much faster paced and, if not great, at least closer to an average superhero comic and featuring a few thrilling splash pages. Marcus To makes these issues look nice as usual, and Asrar’s and Wilson’s cover art continues to be great.
July 2, 2022
This was kind of a 3.5 for me. What tipped it higher is that I think this is the best ending I’ve read so far to this first wave of Krakoan books. I’m far more interested in Knights of X than in the new Marauders, though I hear that SWORD will set up X-Men Red really well. It actually feels like Excalibur was kind of the driving force through this first part of the Krakoan era, and the second half of the book (plus X of Swords) has really benefited from it.
The downside is I think I prefer when this book has much more of a focus. Volume 3 was all about getting Betsy back, and it gave it a better emphasis on characters and a more narrow scope to allow for more decompressed storytelling. In this volume, there are a lot more moving parts, and it goes back to a broader scope looking at all of Otherworld. That said, it also means that it was the least connected to Krakoa for these issues out of all the X-books. We see bits and pieces, but it’s almost entirely set in Otherworld and Avalon.
There’s something about Betsy that I have trouble connecting with, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. There are times where she’s fantastic, but others where she’s completely bland to me and hard to engage with. We also saw a lot less emphasis of Gambit, Jubilee, and Rictor in this volume, while also adding Bei the Blood Moon and Shatterstar to the roster. They’re both great additions, but we’ve still seen very little of them.
The art by Marcus To remains fantastic, though Betsy looks a little more fae than I think she should, and it makes her resemble Meggan very closely, despite the lavender hair. Saturnyne can fall into this as well. Still, an overall great look for the book in general.
I am very eager to see what happens with Knights of X spinning out of Inferno and the new roster for that book. Hopefully we get more balance in the characters, too.
The downside is I think I prefer when this book has much more of a focus. Volume 3 was all about getting Betsy back, and it gave it a better emphasis on characters and a more narrow scope to allow for more decompressed storytelling. In this volume, there are a lot more moving parts, and it goes back to a broader scope looking at all of Otherworld. That said, it also means that it was the least connected to Krakoa for these issues out of all the X-books. We see bits and pieces, but it’s almost entirely set in Otherworld and Avalon.
There’s something about Betsy that I have trouble connecting with, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. There are times where she’s fantastic, but others where she’s completely bland to me and hard to engage with. We also saw a lot less emphasis of Gambit, Jubilee, and Rictor in this volume, while also adding Bei the Blood Moon and Shatterstar to the roster. They’re both great additions, but we’ve still seen very little of them.
The art by Marcus To remains fantastic, though Betsy looks a little more fae than I think she should, and it makes her resemble Meggan very closely, despite the lavender hair. Saturnyne can fall into this as well. Still, an overall great look for the book in general.
I am very eager to see what happens with Knights of X spinning out of Inferno and the new roster for that book. Hopefully we get more balance in the characters, too.
May 5, 2023
This series only got more excruciating to read with each subsequent event. Post "X of Swords", Tini Howard's Excalibur was treading water trying to re-establish both the team and the status of Captain Britain. Losing Apocalypse was a major blow to the series in that period, and then figuring out what to do with the newly revived Captain Britain was also handled clumsily. But following the "Hellfire Gala", this book went into an absolute tailspin. I've been reading through Reign/Trials of X in an issue-by-issue order, and each time I see Excalibur as being the next issue up to read I've found myself praying it'll be over quickly.
The fourth volume of Howard's Excalibur run focuses on Merlin's attempts to take over Otherworld, and Captain Britain and Excalibur must once again be the last line of defense. Post "X of Swords", Saturnyne has maintained a steady peace between the individual realms of Otherworld, but it's good to see that once again no event has lasting consequences. The series concludes limply with a tease for the follow up series, Knights of X, which I'm assuming is a rebranding on Marvel's part to try and revive the depleting audience for this series.
The fourth volume of Howard's Excalibur run focuses on Merlin's attempts to take over Otherworld, and Captain Britain and Excalibur must once again be the last line of defense. Post "X of Swords", Saturnyne has maintained a steady peace between the individual realms of Otherworld, but it's good to see that once again no event has lasting consequences. The series concludes limply with a tease for the follow up series, Knights of X, which I'm assuming is a rebranding on Marvel's part to try and revive the depleting audience for this series.
March 13, 2022
marcus to's art + erick arciniega's colours!!!!! there was a big group shot panel at the end of issue #24 that blew me away. the RAINBOW GRADIENT!!!!!!! it's so mesmerising i just stared at it in awe for the longest time
once again maggie (and meggan) are so cuteee with their matching faces and hair and dress
when saturnyne and betsy were falling into the hole or whatever oh my goddd saturnyne's hair in that panel was so luscious
this ended just as it was getting good! i like this spin on the king arthur/merlyn story even though i'm really confused about who some of the characters are because first of all idk the non-marvel versions well enough and also cos the names are really similar/some characters have multiple name versions like ok morgan le fay in marvel is morgana but also who are morgaine and morgause again? glad this is continuing in knight of x though!
WAIT OMG also !!! betsy and rachel ????????? what was that ???? i need to know more !! truly i do not care about any of these stupid battles and swords and worlds i just to know the goss on everyone's relationships thanks
once again maggie (and meggan) are so cuteee with their matching faces and hair and dress
when saturnyne and betsy were falling into the hole or whatever oh my goddd saturnyne's hair in that panel was so luscious
this ended just as it was getting good! i like this spin on the king arthur/merlyn story even though i'm really confused about who some of the characters are because first of all idk the non-marvel versions well enough and also cos the names are really similar/some characters have multiple name versions like ok morgan le fay in marvel is morgana but also who are morgaine and morgause again? glad this is continuing in knight of x though!
WAIT OMG also !!! betsy and rachel ????????? what was that ???? i need to know more !! truly i do not care about any of these stupid battles and swords and worlds i just to know the goss on everyone's relationships thanks
March 25, 2022
Bloody hell this is good. Maybe it's because I'm also a mutant who was made to feel unwanted and unwelcome in the UK very recently, but yeah, Captain Britain fighting for a Britain that is not defined by hatred, bigotry, rampant nationalism and xenophobia hits hard.
I don't know for sure that Tini Howard is speaking to the nastiness of a post-Brexit "TERF island", but I can't imagine she's making these statements and these plots in 2021/2022 by accident. And I love her for it.
Because Betsy is fighting for the Britain I love. The one I moved halfway around the world to be a part of. And the one I watched slowly slip away and turn to hate and fear of me and mine. I wish I still had the hope irl that Howard has given me in the pages of Excalibur that things can change, that the UK can overcome this and that the country is more than its hateful leaders and vocal bigots. Where's the Captain Britain of Earth-1218 when we need her?
I don't know for sure that Tini Howard is speaking to the nastiness of a post-Brexit "TERF island", but I can't imagine she's making these statements and these plots in 2021/2022 by accident. And I love her for it.
Because Betsy is fighting for the Britain I love. The one I moved halfway around the world to be a part of. And the one I watched slowly slip away and turn to hate and fear of me and mine. I wish I still had the hope irl that Howard has given me in the pages of Excalibur that things can change, that the UK can overcome this and that the country is more than its hateful leaders and vocal bigots. Where's the Captain Britain of Earth-1218 when we need her?
September 21, 2022
Our favourite British/Not Really British superhero team are defending the Isles, not only from political crisis within but also from the return of Merlin and Arthur, who aren't as nice as the Legends would have us believe!
Captain Britain (Betsy Braddock), Rictor, Gambit, Jubilee are joined by Shatterstar and Bei the Bloodmoon, Meggan Braddock, Brian Braddock, Margaret Braddock, Shogo and Jamie Braddock. Which if you ask me is quite a formidable team. But when they're up against the combined might of several Kingdoms of The Otherworld and trying to protect the conniving and lying Saturnyne, who really dislikes Betsy, things are never going to be easy, even with The Captain Britain Brigade as their support.
A great mix of teamwork, humour, action and suspense and you really do worry about our heroes throughout.
Captain Britain (Betsy Braddock), Rictor, Gambit, Jubilee are joined by Shatterstar and Bei the Bloodmoon, Meggan Braddock, Brian Braddock, Margaret Braddock, Shogo and Jamie Braddock. Which if you ask me is quite a formidable team. But when they're up against the combined might of several Kingdoms of The Otherworld and trying to protect the conniving and lying Saturnyne, who really dislikes Betsy, things are never going to be easy, even with The Captain Britain Brigade as their support.
A great mix of teamwork, humour, action and suspense and you really do worry about our heroes throughout.
April 19, 2024
The age of Excalibur has come to an ending of sorts, casting the light on some of the highs of this series as well as sadly showing off a great number of the lows to be found. I'm always on the verge of being too confused to keep reading this series. This series' writing never agreed with me, and true to form, I find this last script severely over-written and loaded with a lot of annoying digressions and dead ends. But … It delivers *a lot* of dramatic plot development and it sets the stakes extremely high. I don't think I'm as engaged with the characters as the author would like, but I'll take responsibility for that being subjective. There's plenty of meaty character work here, and just because it doesn't work for me doesn't mean it doesn't work.
December 30, 2021
This series gets dumped on so much, but I genuinely enjoyed it. And I am interested to see where it goes in the new title. Otherworld is fun and I want more adventures there.
These last few issues delivered on Betsy and Saturnyne being sassy at each other. The scenes with REDACTED and Betty? Some really cool panels.
Would have liked more development with really ANY of the other characters. More Gambit magic, please. Can Rictor please develop his magic by teaching Gambit what he has learned so far? Please.
These last few issues delivered on Betsy and Saturnyne being sassy at each other. The scenes with REDACTED and Betty? Some really cool panels.
Would have liked more development with really ANY of the other characters. More Gambit magic, please. Can Rictor please develop his magic by teaching Gambit what he has learned so far? Please.
February 19, 2022
This was always going to be 5 stars for me because... Rictor and Shatterstar, sitting in a tree, k i s s i n g.
Yes sometimes the story is a mess but I don't care. The art is great in the most part, as is the team and entourage. Braddocks by the bucket load, a baby who turns into a dragon, reunited lovers, druids, vampires, sword wielding Knights and mad wizards. It's just DnD where the DM has lost control and even the NPCs are doing whatever the hell they want.
Yes sometimes the story is a mess but I don't care. The art is great in the most part, as is the team and entourage. Braddocks by the bucket load, a baby who turns into a dragon, reunited lovers, druids, vampires, sword wielding Knights and mad wizards. It's just DnD where the DM has lost control and even the NPCs are doing whatever the hell they want.
April 23, 2023
Honestly, this felt like a big build up to something that I gather didn't really take off, which is a shame because it felt like we might've been going somewhere. As it is, it doesn't work as a stand alone because it's very much a cliffhanger and there's no real payoff to be found, and I mean that as a run for Excalibur as a whole, not just volume 4 here.
The art was gorgeous and Gambit freaking out about his cats is actually worth 5 stars alone but the other issues drag the rating down.
The art was gorgeous and Gambit freaking out about his cats is actually worth 5 stars alone but the other issues drag the rating down.
June 22, 2024
Absolutely mind numbing word salad
I feel sorry for the poor artists who had to be part of this for a paycheck
Imagine having to read these scripts and try and make something interesting out of it
Tini Howard, Vita Ayala, Leah Williams, Danny Lore and Charlie Jane Anders are like a pox on this xline. Unreadable tedious garbage. Amazingly Howard is twice the writer of the other 4 and is still dire. No wonder Marvel and DC are in the shitter.
I feel sorry for the poor artists who had to be part of this for a paycheck
Imagine having to read these scripts and try and make something interesting out of it
Tini Howard, Vita Ayala, Leah Williams, Danny Lore and Charlie Jane Anders are like a pox on this xline. Unreadable tedious garbage. Amazingly Howard is twice the writer of the other 4 and is still dire. No wonder Marvel and DC are in the shitter.
April 2, 2022
Yo, this got really good! All the magic stuff is making sense now, and I love the callbacks to recent and distant history. Elizabeth is really coming into her own as Captain Britain, and I’m enjoying all the small moments with the other members of Excalibur. And man, Peter Wisdom is gonna bust some heads.
December 21, 2022
In many ways, this final volume fulfills the promise of Howard's Excalibur. It builds up the Otherworld that was just sketched out in previous volumes and continues to develop characters from far, far back in Captain Britain's history.
The only problem? It doesn't offer a conclusion to the storyline!
The only problem? It doesn't offer a conclusion to the storyline!
March 3, 2022
De todos los relanzamientos, este titulo fue el que menos me enganchó, y fue decayendo hasta este final sacado de la manga de los ultimos 3 numeros. No leeré la serie Knights of X, que sigue esta historia.
March 22, 2022
4.25
This has been one of my favorite X-titles. The fantasy angle with the X-Men worked better than I thought. Long time cahrasters were developed and pushed in different direction. Betsy as Captain Britain was pretty awesome. Totally worked. Great ending. Looking forward to the relaunch.
This has been one of my favorite X-titles. The fantasy angle with the X-Men worked better than I thought. Long time cahrasters were developed and pushed in different direction. Betsy as Captain Britain was pretty awesome. Totally worked. Great ending. Looking forward to the relaunch.
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