Elsewhen: X-Men fan fiction by John Byrne

1. What is this and how it came to be

This is a project that has made some waves a year or so ago when there was a possibility of Marvel actually publishing it. Since the negotiations have seemingly died down, John Byrne has turned it into a webcomic that now has eleven full issues (and formatted as such) of professional level craftmanship featuring a beloved creator working on his signature characters. Yet, I've failed to find a serious consideration of the work so far. For most readers that are aware of it, "Elsewhen" exists as a curio that they may or may not be aware of, something seemingly to be enjoyed only by the John Byrne faithful.

Still, disregarding this body of work is to be doing it a disservice, especially in view of the likeminded projects that Marvel and DC have actually published. Byrne alone has a string of very similar projects, with "X-Men: The Hidden Years" being perhaps the closest comparison. With Marvel celebrating the 80th year of their characters and their forerunners being published in comics, it would not be out of place to have "Elsewhen" stand alongside the works like Mark Waid's "History of Marvel Comics" and the like.

In any event, it's easy to forget the significance of Byrne's X-Men run when viewed in the context of his own diverse bibliography. When compared to his then collaborator Chris Claremont, it would appear that his X-Men work, which launched him into stardom, was something that he grew out of, seeing as he dedicated himself to a swathe of different projects since. And yet, the beloved run has remained something that he is perhaps most known for and when taking into account the way that he has quit the title, it would stand to reason that he was left with misgivings and things he wanted to do had he stayed on.

Such a project as "Elsewhen" is therefore an opportunity to continue the work on his own terms and to take into account the myriad scenarios he wanted to do with the characters since. 

What the editorial is asking these creators when working on projects like the X-Men is to treat these characters as something of their own for the time being. Yet, once they inevitably step away, it's rarely after having fully developed their vision as they wanted. 

Its is not uncommon to hear the creators speak that they have stayed away from following the later incarnations of the characters they previously worked on, as they just don't identify with others people's stories.

Thus, having John Byrne continue his X-Men run is a natural progression of the idea of considering the work as his own and willing to go about it as he would have wanted to. Looking at it like that, it's very interesting to see the new X-Men comics that he has produced so far.

2. How does it work and what it's like

The project starts with a one-off issue that was all Byrne originally envisioned “Elsewhen” as being. The first thing that strikes the reader is that these pages feature completely finished pencils, which have yet to be cleaned up and inked. They still exhibit a high level of cratfmanship synonymus with the veteran creator, though. With Byrne's stated goal of not intending to have these issues inked and colored, it looks more like a work in progress than a standard webcomic. Yet each issue is broken down to feature both a title page, an early in the story double-pager, standard subplots and of course a cliffhanger, basically lacking only in inks and colors.

As for the plot, it starts off as a Savage Land adventure starring the cast of the X-Men. For a fan of Byrne’s work, it even brings to mind his original run on "Next-Men" for Dark Horse that ended with his superhuman cast being stranded in prehistoric times. The X-Men themselves retain much of the character they had in Claremont and Byrne's run, with the instantly recognisible artwork exhibiting much of the Neil Adams like precision and impact that he is known for.

Byrne evidently found working on all this exciting enough that he quickly restructured the oneshot to add further subplots which ended up propeling an extended run on the series. Thus, in the next issue the reader is treated to the start of the main plot that has the X-Men dealing with being attacked by Sebastian Shaw's Sentinels. Meanwhile, a Dark Phoenix-related subplot simmers in the background only to gain prominence later on. 

It goes without saying that these are comics for readers who are fans of Bronze Age X-Men and are intimately familiar with all of these characters as they were back in 1980. It is particularly attuned to the fans of Byrne’s own mini Marvel canon, calling back to everything from his work on “Marvel Team-Up”’ to the previously mentioned “X-Men: Hidden Years”. 

Yet, despite the guest stars that grow in number issue by issue, at it’s core this is a classic X-Men story, dealing with these characters as if they were fresh off the “Dark Phoenix” storyline.

In its best moments, the result is a cast that feels both classic and new at the same time, with characters unencumbered by years of continuity and diverging takes. 

Seeing a slightly edgy Wolverine run through the forest in the latest issue, pondering what he feels for Jean Grey manages to remind us of a time when reading about Logan felt uncertain and he was not the veteran superhero that has been explored inside and out in decades since.

3. What will become of it?

While the story has yet to conclude, it’s pretty clear what we are dealing with here. In contrast to Marvel’s X-Men currently undergoing their biggest and arguably most successful relaunch in twenty years, Byrne’s stories feel like a throwback to a different time. Yet, they are something that fans of the classic take on these characters have every reason to enjoy. 

If Chris Claremont was allowed to have an official continuation of his own trunctated run with “X-Men Forever”, there is no reason why Byrne’s “Elsewhen” should be relegated to the status of a fan fiction webcomic.

Hopefully at some point all these pages will be cleaned up, inked and colored and allowed to stand side by side with their 1980 forefathers. Perhaps not as equal, but at least as equaly valid as countless prestige format series published with these characters since. 

Byrne himself deserves no less for his contribution to these characters’ enduring appeal, and there’s no reason to think that the fans enjoying the Jonathan Hickman’s current run wouldn’t be able to appreciate these old fashioned comics that still read as strong statements in the Bronze Age superhero idiom.