All-New X-Men 2: Here to Stay Paperback – January 1, 2014

After reading the first volume in this new series, I couldn’t help downloading and blazing through the second volume. If you haven’t read the first review I’ve done for this series, take a minute and do so.In this book things really come to a head. Young Scott is trying to figure out what he’s supposed to do, trying to deal with knowing Professor X is dead (killed by his future self – although he still doesn’t know how that can be possible) and that the love of his life (Jean Grey) is also dead. He can’t think inside the revamped X-Men Academy so he decides to leave – and steals Wolverine’s motorcycle to do it. That, of course, sets up a hilarious sequence of events that actually turns out to be more touching than I would have supposed. Bendis is just awesome like that.Jean Grey goes through a lot of turmoil as well, trying to make sense of everything that’s going on. I really like what Bendis is doing with her, giving her the approach that if she just works hard enough at everything, she’ll be able to fix it. That’s the Jean of old, and I like her as much now as I did back then.The old X-Man character that really steals the show in this graphic novel, to me anyway, is Angel. When Warren Worthington III discovers that the high-flying Angel is still around, he expects him to be changed. What he doesn’t expect is that while Angel is still here, Warren isn’t. This is another change that I missed while being away from the X-books. This new Angel is just really freaking weird.There are plenty of plot twists in this one too. Mystique is out doing her own thing, freeing bad guys and setting up missions. Bendis does like to stir the pot when he’s putting things in motion.The most hilarious part of the book, and you can be amazed at how Bendis pulls that together while beating his readers over the head with sadness and melancholy – and even freaking them out a little, is when the Avengers discover that the past X-Men are hanging around with the present-day X-Men. The discussion between Captain America and Hank McCoy, as recounted by present-day Iceman and Kitty Pryde, has to be seen to be believed!This book ends on quite the cliffhanger too. Present-day Cyclops confronts the Academy and his past self, and lays out the reasoning behind his course of action. Then he invites them to join him. And one of them evidently does, but we have to wait till the next graphic novel to find out who.There is a lot to enjoy in this book as well as this series. Bendis does a lot with characterization, including the relationship between present-day Cyclops and present-day Magneto (though I’m thinking it would be interesting if past Magneto joined the party at some point). The layers Bendis builds up with the different characters, pushing them in different directions that you might ordinarily think, is really cool.

I'll keep it plain and simple: if you like X-Men, you should be reading this book.Brian Michael Bendis continues to tell the story of the original five X-Men and their exploits in the present day, and it's a story that doesn't look like it'll be losing steam anytime soon. There's a fair of amount of action in this book, but as with the last volume, the action takes a backseat to the story itself; the dialogue and characterization are where this book really shines. I love the mentor role that Kitty Pryde has taken on for the young time-displaced X-Men. In this volume, we see Jean's powers continue to develop, Scott and Warren deal with the reality of their futures, and both Icemen continue to be hilarious. Speaking of hilarity, I believe that's one area in which this book one-ups its previous volume; with all introductions out of the way, Bendis is free to have more fun with the dialogue. As far as the visuals go, there's nothing to worry about; David Marquez and Stuart Immonen both do a solid job on the bright and vibrant artwork.I do have one major complaint about this book, though: THE PRICE. All New X-Men Vol. 2 is only 5 issues, and a total of 136 pages. As good as this book is, 136 pages isn't worth paying nearly $20 dollars for it (or OVER $20, if you look at the retail price), even if it is the hardcover edition. Marvel seems to have made a marked increase on the prices of their trades since the Marvel NOW! initiative, and I can't speak for anyone else, but I've definitely had to sacrifice a few titles because of it. I realize there's not much that can be done in this arena, but it would be nice if the prices of these X-Men books (Uncanny X-Men is also a bit overpriced, in my opinion) and some of Marvel's other books were more proportionate the amount of content they contain.At any rate, All New X-Men Vol. 2 is great, and if you enjoyed volume one, then volume two most certainly will not disappoint.

Brian Michael Bendis continues his excellent run on “All-New X-Men" with “Here To Stay." Bendis offers a nice balance between showcasing the classic X-Men characters with where Marvel has taken them in recent years. Add in some interesting twists, exciting scenes and some Avenger cameos and this is a fine collection of comics. The art team led by David Marquez and ‎ Stuart Immonen add to the book with their excellent work, capturing the differences between the younger and the older X-Men. This is a great collection of comics though it’s not a good jumping on point by any means. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed this book. I'm currently reading the All-New X-Men series, so far I've read volume 1-3 the battle of the Atom crossover, & the guardians of the galaxy crossover. I like the plot but this volume isn't the best. I feel like this one tries to go too deep into the thoughts and consequences of the original xmen being in the present, and doesn't really have too much action. Also they could have gone with a variant cover the avengers are only in this for at most 3 pages and they don't really do anything.

As a long time fan of the X-Men, this story line is really exciting & fun to read. I began reading The Uncanny X-Men comic back in the start of Elementary School. I'm old enough to remember the story lines and it just happened to be the famous run of the creative team of Claremont, Byrne, and Austin. It was the Fate of the Phoenix Saga & the classic Days of Future Past. Now we see the original X-Men & the current roster in one story line. I am very curious on how the plot affects the other Marvel Mutant titles.

So basically if you get this graphic, pick up vol. 3 too. Finished reading this graphic and the cliffhanger doesn't shock or anything, just leaves readers thinking "okay? So now i need the next vol."A close parallelism would be an Game of Thrones episode ending where characters are shocked by something/someone off screen and episode ends with no idea what was seen. Seems Bendis went for same feel with this graphic.

This book collects issues 6-10 of Brian Michael Bendis' All-New X-Men - where the original five mutants have come forward to the present to confront adult Cyclops as he foments a revolution.Having set the scene at a fairly stately pace in volume 1, Bendis starts to press a little on the accelerator here. The focus of these issues is very much on Jean. In a pretty much direct reversal of the first issues of X-Men in the 1960s, when she mostly juggled stuff around with her mind and fretted about being a girl, here she is a tempestuous and hot-headed young woman whose godlike power is coming into bloom way too early. The consequences are natural: she starts throwing her weight around in ways which immediately begin to remind the older X-Men of what happened when Jean went Dark Phoenix.One of her unwitting victims is Angel, who after a quiet first volume starts to spread his wings (sorry) here. He finally meets his older self, amnesiac thanks to the events of the Dark Angel Saga in Uncanny X-Force, and is horrified by the fact that he grows up to be so tortured that he loses all sense of self. Cyclops, meanwhile, struggles with who he will become, and falls foul of Mystique, who immediately starts stirring the pot, knowing that the X-Men are such a dysfunctional group that they will chase their tails and fight one another, leaving her new Brotherhood free to steal monumental amounts of cash.It's another well-plotted and brilliantly scripted set of issues by Bendis, who as well as nailing the trash talk delivers wonderful scenes like Kitty and Iceman roleplaying yet another angry conversation between Captain America and a condescending Beast - doing exposition in a very neat way. After having to illustrate a slower story, Stuart Immonen gets to cut loose a bit more here, too, with the two Angels battling Hydra at Avengers Tower, and a cool scrap between the original five and the Sentinels in the Danger Room.Then, at the end of the book, the kicker: Cyclops brings his Uncanny X-Men to the Jean Grey School for a direct confrontation with the people who think he murdered Charles Xavier. Here the narrative catches up to Uncanny X-Men vol. 1, "Revolution", with some clever direct overlap. What continues to develop here is one of the best X-Men runs of recent years, and certainly the most compelling story since "Messiah CompleX".

Didn't really understand the concept when I first saw these books, but on giving them a try I am really enjoying them.Good to see the original five portrayed as the teenagers they were when first recruited by Professor X, and the modern-day Beast's part in this can not be understated.I will be buying Volume 3 today !

The story has been set up and there are questions to be asked . . . . . . promises to be interesting and it is. Not too much Logan and a good deal of Kitty makes the balance work well. A good investment if your a Marvel/X-men fan.

Bought this for the artwork by Stuart Immomen, which is ground breaking.

Interesting story and great drawings. As always a great Marvel comic with all the actions it requires, I Loved it.