The Original X-men have their own book again, but things have changed!
Creative Staff:
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Art: Jorge Molina and Matteo Buffagni
Color: Mat Milla
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
What They Say:
THE ORIGINALS! Join MARVEL GIRL, CYCLOPS, BEAST, ICEMAN and ANGEL as they reclaim the title of X-MEN. After the world-shaking events of IVX, the original five X-Men are here to bring mutant criminals to justice and restore a heroic sheen to their team. But with a new leader in JEAN GREY and a new mentor in their “arch-frenemy” MAGNETO, will old rivalries and new conflicts tear these heroes apart?
Content: (warning, content sections may contain spoilers)
The old school X-Men have their own comic again! We join them as they fly by Blackbird towards an unknown destination. We learn that Jean Grey (this one still under the codename Marvel Girl) is the leader of the group now. The target is a yacht, and here we meet our villain, Black Tom Cassidy. The X-Men immediately go on the offensive, trying their best to contain the damage. Just as it seems our heroes have gotten the best of Tom, backup arrives in the form of Juggernaut. Juggernaut seems to think Cyclops is the same Scott who killed Xavier (the Cyclops who died in Death of X), and he’s not hearing anything otherwise, so the merry mutants lure the goliath outside to help on the preventing casualties front.
Juggernaut seems impossible to stop until Beast steps in and uses magic to send him away. Cyclops takes issue with Hank’s methods of getting rid of their opponent, but the civilians on the ship feel differently. in a surprise twist, the mutants are greeted with applause and thanks for saving the ship and its occupants. The X-Men return to base where we get the biggest reveal of the book: Magneto is guiding them! The meanwhile section shows us Sabretooth fighting with the bestial Wendigo.
In Summary:
Well, that’s a big surprise! The original X-Men opted to stay here a while ago, and they’ve reorganized under their oldest enemy. Jean Grey is the leader of the group now, which is a welcome sight after both Marvel’s lack of female leaders and the now deceased Cyclops recent failures. The book takes the X-Men back to the classic days where they operated as a team and the book succeeds in feeling more like an X-Men book than many books featuring Mutants have recently. Magneto acts as their Professor X now, hoping to keep Xavier’s dream of a world where Mutants and humans coexist alive and achievable. The art is pretty good and the writing is actually done well here, giving a glimmer of hope for the X-Men franchise.
The tone is one of hope for once. The mutants are starting to rebound from all their setbacks and this issue helps prove that they don’t plan on leaving just yet. There’s plenty of action in the issue as well as an exploration of the team as a whole. It makes for a very enjoyable read, and Marvel fans and Mutant fans should really pick this one up! The characters and dialogue work well and the story is fast-paced but flows very well.
Grade: A
Released By: Marvel Comics
Release Date: April 12th, 2017
MSRP: $4.99
