X-Men (1963) #45

Cover by John Buscema

Cover Date: June 1968

On-Sale Date: April 1968

FIRST STORY: "When Mutants Clash!"

Synopsis: Cyclops escapes from Magneto and gets in a fight with Quicksilver.  The Avengers show up at the end.

CHRONOLOGICAL NOTES:

Page 1

Cyclops thinks that Angel's had enough time to get to New York and return with help, so a number of hours must have passed since last issue.  On the next page he says that he hasn't used his optic blast in hours, which backs that up.  I figure that's good enough to place this the day after last issue.

Page 5

This page is set exactly one hour before the last scene, in which Cyclops made his escape.

Angel has some flashbacks to his encounter with Red Raven from last issue, but they don't reveal anything new.

Page 9, panel 5

One of Hawkeye's spy arrows can be seen at the top of this panel.  Because it's the Silver Age this is pointed out in a caption, rather than left to be spotted by observant readers.  Where the arrow came from will be made clear in Avengers (1963) #53.

Page 13, panel 3

Magneto's description of Cyclops as a teenager is a bit iffy at this point.  We've established that Iceman was 16 in X-Men (1963) #1, and saw him celebrate his 18th birthday in #32.  I have that birthday placed in January of XY 2.  The current storyline is taking place in Fall, so currently Iceman would be a little over 18-1/2.

The letters page of issue #17 said that Cyclops was the oldest, a year-and-a-half older than Iceman.  The rest of the team were two months to a year younger than Cyclops.  This is already incorrect, as we know that Beast is the oldest, but I'm still using it as a guide to how old the X-Men are in relation to each other.

If Iceman is a little over 18-1/2, that means Beast (the oldest) is a little over 20.  The next oldest, at two months younger than Beast, would then be pushing 20.  My assumption is that the second-oldest is Cyclops but I have no evidence for that; it's just my gut feeling.  The second youngest would then be a year younger than Beast, so currently a little over 19.  I assume this to be Marvel Girl (again, no evidence).  That would put Angel somewhere between Cyclops and Marvel Girl, probably 19.

So whether Cyclops is still a teenager depends on where he falls in relation to the other X-Men, and when exactly his birthday would be if he's the second-oldest.  Regardless, it's not like Magneto would know, so it's perfectly fine for him to be wrong.

Page 15, panel 4

The Avengers show up on the last page cliffhanger, and the story continues in Avengers (1963) #53.

COUNTING THE DAYS:

This story takes place over a single day, probably the day after last issue.

SECOND STORY: "And the Mob Cried... Vengeance!"

Synopsis: Cyclops shows up to rescue Bobby Drake from jail, and they punch on for the entire story.

CHRONOLOGICAL NOTES:

Page 3

I have no notes for this story, it's just Cyclops and Iceman having a stupid fight for five pages.  It continues next issue.

COUNTING THE DAYS:

This story takes place over one day, the same day as the end of last issue.