I have possibly never been happier reading a comic in my whole damn life than when I turned to the last page and saw "Dazzler, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D." splashed across it.
The main story in this issue -- the team suddenly finding itself at the mercy of Dormammu as he tries to take Limbo from Magik -- isn't all that thrilling. It mostly sets up the possibility that some of the new recruits will bail for the Jean Grey School, since they're all maybe a little overwhelmed at finding themselves in Hell within a few days of joining the X-Men. But, they have to survive first and we get to see them in action for the first time, thanks to a shot of courage from the Cuckoos.
But, it's the S.H.I.E.L.D. side of the story that I found the most interesting. First, Bendis shows that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s appearance in this title wasn't just limited to Magneto approaching it to (allegedly) take down Cyclops. Maria knows that she not only needs to protect humanity from Cyclops and the Brotherhood, but she also needs to protect the mutants from the Sentinels that someone apparently has at hand. She takes a step on the first party by enlisting Dazzler to get to the bottom of Cyclops' revolution, to determine if they're motivated by good or evil.
It's a brilliant move, since Dazzler is exactly he kind of old-school mutant who Cyclops could trust to come to his side, but who also would have reservations about his side in the first place (see her comment about Magneto). She's been such a criminally underused character for so long that I'm just really excited to see her in play in such a major way. But, it's also a great move to keep S.H.I.E.L.D. in play here, because it helps contextualize the Brotherhood, reminding us why they exist and how people see them. In other words, it helps ensure that this title doesn't devolve just into Cyclops ranting.
Man, I love this series.
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