Lot #4: Magneto Showcase
9 books, together valued at $120
X-Men: Magneto Testament #1-5 (complete set of 5 issues)
The New Mutants #49
Uncanny X-Men #150
X-Men #40
X-Men: The Movie Prequel - Magneto #1
Collection ID#: 319, 320, 321, 322, 323
Marvel Comics
X-Men: Magneto Testament (2008 - 2009)
X-Men: Magneto Testament #1-5 (complete set)
Published: September 2008 - February 2009
"Magneto: Testament" is a five-issue limited series that delves into the harrowing early life of Max Eisenhardt, the boy who would become Magneto, against the backdrop of the Holocaust. Crafted with meticulous historical accuracy, this narrative offers a poignant exploration of survival, identity, and resilience during one of history's darkest periods. Below are detailed teasers for each issue, emphasizing the historical context, Max's journey, and the significance of the story within both Jewish history and comic book lore.
Issue #1: The Boy
Set in 1935 Nuremberg, Germany, young Max Eisenhardt excels in academics and athletics, embodying the promise of youth. However, as the Nuremberg Laws are enacted, Max faces escalating anti-Semitism, transforming his once-promising future into a struggle for basic dignity. This issue introduces readers to Max's family dynamics and the societal shifts that foreshadow the impending horrors. A particularly moving illustration depicts Max's father, Jakob, confronting Nazi officers with quiet dignity, highlighting the family's initial attempts to maintain normalcy amidst growing persecution.
Issue #2: Shattered Innocence
As the Nazi grip tightens, Max and his family are forced from their home and endure the brutality of Kristallnacht. The depiction of shattered synagogues and burning books serves as a stark visual representation of cultural and personal loss. Max's resilience is tested as he witnesses the disintegration of his community. The artwork poignantly captures the chaos and despair of the pogroms, with panels illustrating the destruction of cherished family heirlooms and the anguish etched on the faces of the persecuted.
Issue #3: The Abyss
Deported to the Warsaw Ghetto, Max confronts the grim realities of starvation, disease, and oppression. Despite the dire circumstances, he forms a bond with Magda, a fellow prisoner, igniting a flicker of hope amid the darkness. The ghetto's claustrophobic alleys and overcrowded tenements are rendered with haunting detail, emphasizing the suffocating environment. One of the most moving illustrations portrays Max sharing a piece of bread with a younger child, symbolizing compassion's endurance even in humanity's bleakest moments.
Issue #4: Ashes and Hope
Max and Magda are transported to Auschwitz, where they endure unimaginable horrors. Forced into the Sonderkommando, Max is compelled to confront the depths of human cruelty. The art does not shy away from depicting the grim realities of the concentration camp, yet it balances this with moments of profound humanity. A particularly striking sequence shows Max and Magda finding solace in each other's presence, their clasped hands serving as a beacon of hope amidst the surrounding desolation.
Issue #5: Liberation and Legacy
As the war draws to a close, Max and Magda seize a perilous opportunity to escape during a death march. The narrative culminates in their liberation, but the emotional and physical scars remain. The final pages juxtapose the joy of freedom with the weight of remembrance. A moving illustration depicts Max burying a letter in the ruins of Auschwitz, a plea to future generations to remember and learn from the atrocities. This act underscores the series' overarching message: the imperative to bear witness and ensure that such horrors are never repeated.
"Magneto: Testament" stands as a significant work within comic book history, offering a profound exploration of a beloved character's origins while serving as a poignant reminder of the atrocities of the Holocaust. For readers, especially those of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage, it provides a narrative that honors the memories of those who suffered, emphasizing the resilience of the human spirit in the face of unimaginable adversity.
Collection ID#: 192
Marvel Comics
The New Mutants (Vol. 1) (1983 - 1991)
The New Mutants #49
Published: November 1986
Pg. 17-18 - Magneto backstory: magneto is dreaming about his family being murdered together by Nazis in front of their own graves. Magneto has the power to stop it, but allows it to happen and allows himself to die with his family. When he doesn’t die, the Nazis send him to Auschwitz.
Collection ID#: 254
Marvel Comics
Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 1) (1980 - 2011)
Uncanny X-Men #150
Published: July 1981
FIRST MENTION OF MAGNETO SURVIVING THE HOLOCAUST
3rd last page - magneto briefly recounts childhood, “the gas chambers at auschwitz”. He explains this is the reason why human lives mean nothing to him. Magneto mentions, in a fight with Cyclops, "I know something of grief. Search throughout my homeland, you will find NONE who bear my name. Mine was a large family, and it was slaughtered ... Without mercy, without remorse." So that eliminates German homosexual and French partisan, because the entire familes of such prisoners were not slaughtered throughout an entire "homeland." After Magneto thinks he has killed Kitty, he says: "I remember my own childhood ... The gas chambers at Auschwitz, the guards joking as they herded my family to their death. As our lives were nothing to them, so human lives became nothing to me." Storm is about to blast him for "killing" Kitty, and she says, "If you have a diety, butcher, pray to it!" Magneto answers, "As a boy, I believed. As a boy, I turned my back on god forever." So now we know that Magnus is not a political prisoner (German political prisoners were sent to camps on German soil, like Dachau, or Bergen-Belsen), he is not Polish, since whole...
Collection ID#: 289
Marvel Comics
X-Men (Vol. 2) (1991 - 2001)
X-Men #40
Published: November 1994
The story takes place in Haifa hospital, Israel is mentioned several times. A newspaper in Hebrew is depicted in one panel, and recognizably Orthodox Jews are depicted in several panels on another page. No discernible landmarks can be seen. Until recently, when, in Road to Onslaught, Marvel once again published that outrageous Gabrielle Haller speech about Magneto like they were proud of it (??) the next references in the Age of Apocalypse comics portrayed Magneto once again as Jewish. In X-Men Vol. 2, No. 40, where David Haller, Legion, pulls Magneto's memories out, you see young Magnus with the men, standing behind and below a high, barred window. This is an accurate portrayal of the quarters of the Sonderkommando at Auschwitz I. At Auschwitz I, only the Sonderkommando (other than prisoners awaiting execution) were kept in isolated basement cells, the windows of which were high, barred, and as seen from the outside, half-below ground level. And why is Magneto in Israel anyway? How could he have come there? Well, why would a Gypsy go to Israel when at least 30,000 Gypsies lived in Germany in the late 1960s and early 1970s? And many more Rom formed a thriving community in...
Collection ID#: 326
Marvel Comics
X-Men: The Movie Prequel - Magneto (2000)
X-Men: The Movie Prequel - Magneto #1
Published: June 2000
Explores the Auschwitz intro scene to the first X-men movie in greater depth.