Friday, August 8, 2014

Uncanny X-Men #23 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Bendis makes it pretty clear here that we've put the S.H.I.E.L.D. arc behind us (at least for the time being) and entered the next phase of this title.  Accordingly, he starts several new stories in this issue, and it takes a bit of effort to keep all of them straight.

First, we do attend to some old business.  The Stepford Cuckoos apparently told Scott what happened to Eva in Tabula Rasa, because they were scared for her (a disturbing prospect in and of itself).  But, Scott handles his attempt to get Eva to talk about it badly, and it drives her from him.  It's a funny scene, despite the fact that Bendis hints that something really, really bad happened to Eva (and that she is aging as a result of her powers).  Moreover, Dazzler's attempt to find Mystique is frustrated by the obvious trouble of finding Mystique when she doesn't want to be found, pushing her to a Britney-esque nervous breakdown.  Finally, and most obviously, Hijack rejoins the team after Scott actually apologizes.

The new business is more intersting, though.  First, we're introduced to a guy named Matthew.  A Skrull killed his wife and child (presumably during the "Secret Invasion" storyline), and it appears that his mutant powers activated, allowing him to kill the Skrull.  He's become a recluse in the year since then, but we don't really learn anything more about him (except that he has no control of his powers, evident when he accidentally kills his sister-in-law).  Bendis clearly has a plan for him, though we don't have enough information about him even to guess at this time.  Next, we get the titular development, She-Hulk receiving the last will and testament of Professor Xavier.  Unsurprisingly, Scott is included in the will, and Jennifer asks the X-Men where he is.  We also have no idea where Bendis is going with this story, though I could certainly see the possibility of Charles leaving the School to Scott.  If so, it would suggest two possible developments:  it'll either bring about the possible re-unification of the two sides, ending the schism (particularly given the upcoming death of Wolverine), or drive them further from one another if Scott evicts the Jean Grey School from the premises.  We shall see.

In order to move through these stories, Bendis doesn't do anything remarkable narratively in this issue; it's pretty clear that the goal is just to get us going into the next phase.  But, he accomplished exactly that, and I'm excited to see where we're going.

*** (three of five stars) 

No comments:

Post a Comment