Bendis starts this issue by not only giving a spot-on portrayal of Mystique but also an insightful look into why the X-Men have taken steps against elder Scott. Then, he gets dark quickly. Great stuff, as usual, for this title.
First, I totally bought Mystique as Logan, only realizing that it was her when she called Scott "darling." (I loved how Bendis drew a line under how accurate her portrayal was by having Logan repeat something that Mystique said (as him) earlier, "Did you rob a bank?") Moreover, Mystique's analysis of the situation at hand is absolutely totally correct: the X-Men haven't killed elder Scott because they just can't bring themselves to do it. Mystique says that it's because they respect him too much for the sacrifices that he has made to be able to end his threat. Wolverine also adds that it's because the X-Men still believe in redemption, a key lesson of Charles Xavier. Bendis crafts those two arguments to show that they're clearly both right, one reinforcing the other. It's a subtle, but important, point and, by making it, Bendis successfully puts the onus on original Scott to solve the problem of elder Scott. It's all incredibly organic, which continues to surprise me, since that's not Bendis' strong suit.
However, I was bothered by how pro-Scott and pro-Xavier Mystique was. She's almost fawning over both of them in a way that felt completely false. Under normal circumstances, I would assume that it was just Bendis doing what Bendis does, molding the character to fit the role that he needs her to fill, regardless of whether it makes sense in terms of her previous characterizations. But, to my shock, Bendis actually takes Mystique's characterization into account here; just as she was able to act as Wolverine, she's displaying her acting talents here by subtly manipulating Scott. What better way to get a young Scott to do what you want him to do then by praising his mentor, implying that his mentor's successor is subverting his dream, celebrating him for having the ruthlessness to make the decisions that no one else has the guts to make, and then suggesting that he treats his teammates with suspicion? What does Mystique want to get Scott to do, you ask? Why, sow the seeds of discord, of course! By shaking up the cat (Scott) and throwing it (at the X-Men), Mystique hopes that she'll exacerbate the tensions within the group. She (wisely) figures that they'll be so distracted by their Cold Civil War that they're not going to be able to focus their attention on anything else, opening the door for Mystique to do whatever it is that Mystique wants to do. Again, this argument makes total sense to me (and makes me wonder what it is exactly that Mystique is planning on doing).
In other words, for seven issues now, Bendis continues to flesh out a compelling and complicated vision of who the X-Men are and how the presence of the original X-Men is calling into question that identity, whatever it may be. Honestly? As stunned as I am to say it, I can't think of a better seven-issue start to a series than this one.
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