Uncanny X-Men #186-#188: Life, Death and Dire Wraiths

This story - Uncanny X-Men #186-#188 is the one I bounced off, this first time I started reading X-Men-from-the-start (or rather, from 1975). I'm not sure why. I think it might be Windsor-Smith's art not being especially well-served by the reduction to monochrome for the Essential collections?

Storm has been depowered by Forge's depowernating gun, after the government sent a team to go after Rogue, who is highly wanted after having busted out Michael Rossi from a SHIELD prison (when she was temporarily under the delusion that she was Carol Danvers). Glad that's cleared up.

Forge is feeling very guilty, and offers Storm a place to recuperate, and creeps on her. Then they are attacked by aliens from Rom and my already low level of interest in this story decreased further. Apparently they get added to the Chart.

If we mostly skip past the aliens, to page 19 of #187, we see Colossus and Rogue arrive to Storm and Forge's aid, having had a "talk" with Val Cooper (we know what). There's some more fighting, and in #188 more X-Men arrive: Nightcrawler brings Amanda Sefton to help, and Illyana comes along with her soulsword at Xavier's request (and so Colossus finds out she's a sorceress - he doesn't give a bean, of course - he just loves his snowflake.) Wolverine isn't present, because he's busy doing something else. (Something that hasn't happened in the last ten years.)

Back at the mansion, Nightcrawler and Storm are flirting pretty heavily. I think we get the first mention that Nightcrawler is furry (although I wouldn't swear to it). Come team meeting time, Nightcrawler is really upset at what's been done to Storm, at everyone who has died in the X-Men's cause, and for what? The Mutant Affairs Control Act? While listing the names of the dead, he of course includes Jean. Which Rachel flips out about. See, Jean is her mother. And anyway, hadn't she spoken to her on the phone in #185?

And in a two-for-one blast-from-the-past offer, Lee Forrester is sailing near Bermuda and rescues Magneto from drowning. He'd dropped from the sky after his near-encounter with Warlock in New Mutants #21, which isn't so much as footnoted. First time we've seen Magneto in Uncanny since #150, although he popped up in God Loves Man Kills and is currently still appearing in Secret Wars.

I realise not caring about Lifedeath is not a popular opinion, but I really don't like what they're doing here with Storm. There's a reason why the refrigerator list had to be written, and this was some of it.