X1C #8: "The Treasure Hunters"

("I wanna be like you-hoo-hoo!")

Comments

Well, it's not exactly a fireworks-strewn finale to the run or anything - though that might be at least partly because the comic is about to graduate to ongoing status - but it's a nice fun issue to finish off a nice fun series.  No earth-shattering threats, no dark secrets, just eight books about some of the lighter aspects to being a mutant in a world that hates and fears you.

This time around, there's the barest bones of a continuation from previous issues: the holiday Xavier has been taking for the last three issues (or just the last one, depending on how you arrange the continuity) may have taken a worrying turn, based on Jean's possibly prophetic dream.  The resulting metaphor - that the team are treasure hunters but what is truly valuable is their friend and mentor - is laid on a bit thick, but it manages to avoid being too saccharin.  I like the idea of a trap for the obsessed, as well, though I'm not entirely sure who would go to the effort of building it.  Mind you, that's also true of whoever slapped together the Oak Island money pit Ken mentions.

Speaking of Gorilla Ken: that is one awesome ape.  "I'm fascinating", as he puts it.  If I'd been the X-Men, I would have been sorely tempted to leave Xavier to his fate and just study under Mr Hale instead.  I mean, who's going to prepare you better for a life of fighting supervillains and dodging lynch mobs?  Is it a liberal intellectual? Or is it a tough-talking immortal gorilla who can tear you apart with his bare hands?  I think we all know!

Clues

This story takes place over two days.

We can assume Jean wakes from her dream of Xavier after midnight, which allows us to sneakily make use of our "one adventure a day" rule, and so have the team board the flight to Africa the day after Wanda breaks up with Warren.  By the time the team land in the Congo, it's just past midnight on following day back in New York, meaning that since the X-Men's rescue mission happens entirely during daylight hours, it's still the day after they left in New York by the time Xavier is saved.

Date

Monday 2^nd to Tuesday 3^rd October, 1978.

X-Date

X+185 to X+186.

Contemporary Events

A superjam organised by Paul McCartney takes place at Abbey Roads studio, involving James Honeyman-Scott, Hank Marvin, Pete Townshend, David Gilmour, John Paul Jones, John Bonham and Bruce Thomas (or so Wikipedia says, at least).

Standout Line

"Just humor the gorilla, OK?"