X-Men #43
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeX-Men (vol. 2) #43 — titled 'Falling From Grace' — delivers the climactic destruction of Avalon, Magneto's orbital space sanctuary, closing off a central chapter of the post-Fatal Attractions era and reshaping the Acolytes as a faction for years to come. The issue marks the first time the Age of Apocalypse transplant Holocaust operates as an active villain in the mainstream Marvel Universe (Earth-616), having crashed into orbit in a block of ice and now tearing through Magneto's space station in a battle with Exodus that neither side can win. The fall of Avalon reverberates structurally across the X-line — it scatters the Acolytes, forces Cyclops and Phoenix into a harrowing re-entry, and clears the board editorially ahead of the Onslaught event, making it a meaningful pivot point in the mid-1990s X-Men narrative. Paul Smith's guest-penciling turn also gave readers a brief, nostalgic callback to his celebrated early-1980s X-Men run.
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Writer Fabian Nicieza and guest penciler Paul Smith crafted this issue as the second half of a two-part arc begun in X-Men #42, both under editor Bob Harras. Smith's presence was a fill-in assignment — fan commentary from the era noted he was celebrated for the work but that deadline considerations made extended stays on monthly X-titles difficult for him. The issue lands in the 'Road to Onslaught' editorial phase, a period in which Harras and the X-editorial office were systematically untangling post-Age of Apocalypse loose ends (including where AoA transplants like Holocaust would fit into the 616) while building toward the Onslaught crossover.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published August 1995 (cover-dated), X-Men vol. 2 #43; story titled 'Falling From Grace'; 22 pages.
- Written by Fabian Nicieza; penciled by Paul Smith (guest); inked by Matt Ryan and Cam Smith; colored by Kevin Somers/Digital Chameleon; lettered by Richard Starkings/Comicraft; edited by Bob Harras.
- The issue concludes the two-part 'Fall of Avalon' arc begun in X-Men #42, ending with the orbital space station Avalon destroyed by the battle between Exodus and Holocaust.
- Holocaust — an Age of Apocalypse villain and son of Apocalypse, created by Scott Lobdell and Roger Cruz, who first appeared in X-Men Alpha (February 1995) — makes his first active appearance and conflict in the mainstream Earth-616 Marvel Universe in this arc, having been transported there via a M'Kraan Crystal fragment.
- Acolyte Isaac Javitz is killed during the chaos of Avalon's destruction, and Cyclops rallies the surviving Acolytes to escape the dying station.
- Jean Grey (Phoenix) rescues former New Mutant Sally Blevins (Skids), who had been living among the Acolytes; Carmella Unuscione uses her exoskeleton power to survive an unsuited atmospheric re-entry when no escape pods remain.
- Colossus and Magneto escape to Earth, continuing Colossus's status as a defector to the Acolytes that began during Fatal Attractions.
- The issue is collected in the X-Men: Road to Onslaught Omnibus Vol. 1 (alongside X-Men Prime #1, Uncanny X-Men #322–328, X-Men #42–47, and related 1995 annuals and miniseries).
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Reprinted in X-Men #2 (1996), Gli Incredibili X-Men #76 (1996), X-Men #25 (1996), X-Men #13 (1998), X-Men: The Road to Onslaught #1 (2014), X-Men: Road to Onslaught Omnibus #1 (2024)
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