40 years ago this month, I bought X-Men # 137 off the stand from a Willis St Wellington newsagent, just down from where Unity Books is now. I had yet to discover the place in Manners Mall which placed price stickers on the covers instead of writing the NZ price on the front.
I read # 137 over and over, I even exhorted it to my mother. It filled my 14 year old world with wonder, excitement and emotion. When Jean died, it hit me in the gut. The refusal of a group of friends to give up on each other and the ultimate self-sacrifice.
I later learned that Jim Shooter had overruled writer Chris Claremont who wanted Jean to survive. No hero nor heroine or villain is ever truly dead of course but this was one of the few creative decisions I think Shooter got right.
X-Men # 137 cost me 90 cents, a fair proportion of my pocket money for doing chores around the house. It delivered far more value than that to me and today it is a priceless memory:).
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