X-Men and Power Pack: The Power of X

The Power Pack are four siblings, and I wince to report that "Power" is their real last name. Alex is Zero-G, who can do interesting tricks with gravity. Julie is Lightspeed -- not only can she fly very fast, but she leaves a rainbow trail behind her. Jack is Mass Master. He can change his size and take the form of a cloud. The youngest and most powerful is Katie. As Energizer, her energy blasts pack quite a punch. They received their powers through an alien. Their parents don't know about any of this. All of the Power kids except Jack are pretty nice. Jack is rude, snarky, self-centered, and can be mean to his little sister. In short, he's the Bad Example. Good thing he's also pretty funny. If you have an annoying sibling yourself, you'll enjoy when he sets himself up for a downfall. You'll probably enjoy the sibling squabbles, too -- they get some good zings at each other. Although the four adventures seem unrelated, a casual remark in one may become an important plot point in another. This book has plenty of action, adventure, and jokes. The kids know how to use their heads, too. The art is cartoony, but expressive (and it doesn't hurt to check the backgrounds for visual jokes or foreshadowing). The colors are bright. Because I'm a fan who wants to know if a favorite character of mine appears in one of these reprint books, the X-Men appearing are Beast, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine. The villains who show up are the Circus of Crime (Bruto, the Clown, the Great Gambonnos, the Human Cannonball, Princess Python, & the Ringmaster); , Mr. Sinister, Mystique, Prism, Riptide, Sabretooth, Scalphunter, and Vertigo. No, these adventures aren't in continuity, but who cares? They're fun! If you have younger friends or relatives whom you wish to hook on comics/graphic novels, this book wouldn't be a bad start. Don't forget to read it yourself -- some of the jokes are meant to keep an older audience entertained. The cover is taken from the first issue and I must admit that that little Halloween party disaster is my personal favorite.