This issue is difficult to follow at times, but it works, since the events are also difficult to follow for the kids. Scott has dropped them into Tabula Rasa as a training exercise and they spend most of the issue trying just to collect themselves. In that way, Bendis does a good job of reminding us that they are actually inexperienced kids; the Stepford Cuckoos keep having to remind everyone not to scream, something that Wolverine doesn't exactly have to do when he's leading the X-Men in the field.
Two major developments come from this unexpected trip to Montana's version of the Savage Land. First, Eva goes...somewhere. She returns bloodied and bruised. She knows that Celeste knows where she went thanks to her telepathy and makes her promise never to tell anyone. I'm a little confused why the location of where she was fills Eva with such shame. I'm guessing that it has more to do with what she had to do to leave there, but I guess we'll see.
Second, Scott kicks Hijack off the team because he used his cell phone, drawing attention to where the team was and leading S.H.I.E.L.D. to Tabula Rasa to arrest them. I thought this development has a lot of potential. First, Chris is increasingly showing a strong command of his powers, using them here to take over the S.H.I.E.L.D. troops' armor, which I'm guessing has at least some defenses against such an event. As he says to Cyclops, he got them into, and saved them from, the situation. It's this control of his power that makes you wonder how Cyclops couldn't see the danger of cutting him loose. I'm not even talking of his rivalry with Logan and worrying that he'll defect to his team. Chris seems a little...off. He seems to have all the makings of becoming a bad guy. It's not an oversight on Bendis' part, Scott making some unbelievable or uncharacteristic mistake. Instead, Bendis makes it clear that Scott is so self-absorbed that he can't see that he could've just pushed Chris into becoming a villain. That's some tight writing right there.
My only real criticism of this issue is the art. We have a moment where Fabio takes down a monster with one of his gold balls, but Bachalo makes it difficult to figure out how exactly the ball took down the monster. Did he choke on it? Isn't that a little...grim? But, I've got to accept the bad with the good here, since, for the rest of the issue, Bachalo does a great job showing the deadly weirdness of Tabula Rasa.
*** (three of five stars)
No comments:
Post a Comment