Uncanny X-Men #180

"Whose Life Is It, Anyway?"
Published April 1984
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciler: John Romita Jr.
Inkers: Dan Green and Bob Wiacek
Cover Artists: John Romita Jr. and Dan Green

What's Going On?
Storm continues to deal with the emotional changes that led to her punk rock makeover back in Uncanny X-Men #175.  She confides to Xavier that she fears that she may be losing her mind; he gives her a cursory psychic scan and announces that he finds no obvious signs of mental illness.  She and Kitty later have a heart-to-heart about Storm's need to grow as a person, and Kitty's desire to keep things from changing.  After their talk, it appears that the rift in their friendship has been mended.

Sub-Plots, oh the Sub-Plots!
- Professor Xavier is finally able to walk without pain.  In fact, he is healthy enough to play basketball.

- Professor Xavier suffers yet another unexplained psychic assault from an alien scanning wave.  As the issue closes, Xavier is able to zero in on the source of the attacks, and the X-Men head to Central Park to investigate.  There, they find a giant mechanical construct that they are drawn to.  When they enter it, the X-Men disappear.

- Kitty Pryde and Doug Ramsey continue to bond.  When Doug reveals that he has an appointment to visit the Massachusetts Academy (which is run by the villainous White Queen of the Hellfire Club), Kitty decides to accompany him on his visit.  She reasons that, since the White Queen is still comatose (ever since Uncanny X-Men #169), there is no real threat.  On the plane to Massachusetts, though, she finds out how wrong she was; the White Queen is awake, and appears up to no good.

- Peter continues to feel insecure about his relationship with Kitty, and threatened by the fact that Doug has a lot in common with Kitty.

- Colossus' arm sling indicates that he is still healing from the wounds he received in Uncanny #177. 

Writing!
There isn't much of a main plot in this issue, so this issue is mostly character development and the advancement of sub-plots.  I tend to like these change of pace issues, and this one is no different.  I liked that we finally saw Storm dealing more with her recent changes; this was definitely overdue.  It was also nice to finally see Xavier walking without pain --- that sub-plot had been dragging on for far too long.  What I was less thrilled about was the moronic way that Kitty got herself into trouble in this issue.  For such a smart character --- a genius, mind you --- to come up with a plan that basically boils down to "I think I'll go into enemy territory without reconnoitering and assume that everything will turn out okay," is insulting to the reader; even worse, Xavier and Storm agree to the plan.  I realize that Claremont is doing this to explain A) why Kitty is not in Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars and B) give the New Mutants a reason to go to the Massachusetts Academy in their own title, but it definitely feels out of character for everyone involved.

Art!
The artwork is pretty solid once again, even with Romita Jr. having two inkers.  Honestly, I can't tell much of a difference between the work of Dan Green and Bob Wiacek in this issue, unless it explains this panel with Kitty's face being light on the details.

It doesn't have JRJR's typical wavy hair look, either.  I think it looks pretty good, honestly, but it stands out to me because faces and hair don't usually get a delicate touch with Romita's pencils.  I was a bit confused by the reveal of the White Queen, though --- what was going on with the shadows on her face? 

Since there's not a lot of action in this issue, Romita draws a lot of static images.  Still, he managed to fit in a nifty basketball scene with Xavier and a few panels of Storm looking intimidating.  I don't think the plot played to the art team's strengths, but it all worked out pretty well.

Retrospectively Amusing:
- Professor Xavier is surprised to find himself attracted to Storm.  It's harmless, but still creepy.  I don't think this point was ever brought up again, thankfully.

Worth Noting:
- The whole sub-plot with Xavier and the psychic scans that popped up in the last three issues was a lead-in to Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars.  The Beyonder was the one that Xavier sensed scanning the globe.  It would have felt a lot less drawn-out if Xavier didn't suffer a similar (but unrelated and unexplained) attack back in New Mutants #6.  It does seem odd that Xavier is drawn toward Secret Wars, but a similarly powerful telepath like Emma Frost apparently feels free to go about her own business.

- This is the first issue where Xavier is able to walk without pain, and that will remain the status quo for the next seven-ish years.

Everything 80s:
- Ladies and gentlemen, I present Kitty Pryde: fashion icon!  Headband?  Goofy earrings?  Leg warmers?  Tall boots over pants and leg warmers?  Quadruple check!  I love it when artists have Kitty wear trendy clothes.