Piskor’s loving reverence for those elements is beautifully displayed on every page of the each issue he’s gifted readers thus far, and his care and craftsmanship only ramp up anticipation for his opus’ future installments. Read Full Review

There have been recent announcements of an upcoming new X-Men storyline, and yet despite all that is happening in current continuity, the older stories are still worth revisiting whether in their original form or through this retelling. Superhero comics often provide chances to read new stories about old characters and chances to see flashbacks of older scenes in a recent story. The chance to read a retelling of older beloved stories that rivals this series in breadth and depth is much more rare. Its definitely an opportunity to take up by reading this book. Read Full Review

While Piskor's approach does strip some of the emotional resonance away from Marvel's greatest superhero soap opera, it does help readers navigate the various retcons that have happened over the years, allowing for a chronological understanding of the X-Men that the comics themselves are hard-pressed to provide. Read Full Review

A beautiful, overwhelming tour through the greatest years of "X-Men." Read Full Review

With vast and confusing continuities being rendered consumable by Wikipedia entries, superhero comic books are easy to familiarize oneself with. But even then, the convoluted journey of the X-Men is one of the most daunting and impenetrable franchises for casual fans. That's why Ed Piskor's historic reimagining is one of the most enjoyable reads coming out from Marvel Comics today. Read Full Review

Do yourself a favor and pick up this book. It will be the best decision you will make all week. Read Full Review

Even if it focuses more on singular narrative building than the growth of one of superhero comics' greatest ensemble casts,X-Men Grand Design: Second Genesis#1 is a wonderful example of the cyclical nature of myth as Ed Piskor filters the beginning of Chris Claremont's run on X-Men through a lean, visually striking storyteller's lens or his childhood fantasies through a steadier, yet no less energetic hand. I'd probably rather reread the “Dark Phoenix Saga” though. Read Full Review

If you want a high speed take on the history of the X-Men, either to get up to date on all the happenings if your a new reader or fancy a trip down memory lane, this is a good pick up, but for me, it just didn't click and I won't be coming back for part 2. Read Full Review

This issue takes the team from the introduction of the international members up through the Dark Phoenix saga. As with Ed Piskor's first Grand Design comic, this one benefits tremendously from a central character and plot - the Phoenix is the spine that holds this issue up and makes it great. The sheer density of plot points otherwise threatens to overwhelm. The painstaking chronological introduction of the triple-onion-layer conspiracies arranged against the X-Men at the start of the 80s, for instance, tends toward the absurd. Potentially-contentious retcons are handled with firm clarity; this telling is very explicit about the split between Jean Grey and the Phoenix and it works quite well. The story is still jam-packed with appreciated detail, including stuff like the X-Men's first baseball game and the Big Deal revelation that Wolverine's claws aren't part of his costume. more

I appreciate this book very much even as it zooms past many things and flies way too quick over many plot points. The time it took to put this book together and have it make sense with the complex/convoluted history of the X-men must have been ridiculous. Kudos to Ed Piskor and Alonso for originally green-lighting this book.

I've been listening to Rachel and Miles explain the X-Men recently (from the beginning!) and i must say this is such a great companion piece to that. On it's own i agree it loses a lot of the emotional resonance of what makes stories like The Dark Phoenix Saga so great, but along with the podcast and the amazing presentation of Grand Design I highly recommend it to continuity nerds out there.