All-New X-Men #12: For the most part, this issue is a solid look into Laura's psyche as she goes on a bunch of solo missions Cyclops original meant for himself. He can't do them since he's still recovering from his encounter with Toad, and she can't relieve her boredom by playing video games. However, she's frustrated to learn someone else has made his way through the hit list before her, and it's no surprise when she learns it was Warren. Hopeless also provides us insight into Warren's thoughts, as we learn the powers he got from the Black Vortex are slowly consuming him. Laura understands this need to engage in violence, and their shared bloodlust brings them together again. Warren also apologizes for making her feel bad about said lust, explaining the "fire" is messing with his head. This part is the only area where I raised an eyebrow. Hopeless is essentially trying to make it seem like Warren was more scared by what he recognized of himself in Laura than by Laura herself. It makes sense, but I also can't help but feel like it's a ret-con, like Hopeless hadn't originally intended to go this route. We never really got a hint that Warren was motivated by anything other than his inability to be in a relationship with someone who he watched essentially get murdered every day or so. If we had seen those hints, it would've been easier to accept what Hopeless does here. But, since this issue is pretty much the first time we've mentioned Warren's new powers in this series, it feels like an overly convenient device to get them together, for whatever reason. That said, I am glad to see them together again, so I shouldn't complain too much.
All-New, All-Different Avengers #13: Whoa, I did not see that coming. I figured Vision would learn a lesson about free will, recognizing his own struggles with emotion and logic and leaving Kang to live his life the way he saw fit, an enemy to face in his prime. But, we do not get that ending here. Instead, the wraith-like figure we've seen assisting Vision throughout his journey into Kang's past whispers a secret to him, leading Vision to kidnap an infant Kang and, presumably, put him in the wraith's care. Waid makes it clear with this cliffhanger that he's playing a very long game here. It's the type of story we used to see in the '80s and '90s, where we got hints of threats lurking in the background as the Avengers confronted more immediate problems. It's more proof to me that Waid is going back to basics in this title. Everything feels like the good ol' days, before Bendis made the title feel like a TV show written for people with ADHD or Hickman turned it into an art project. On a side note, Waid gets ahead of the main series a bit when he reveals that Black Panther and Spider-Man both join Carol's side. I'm not surprised about T'Challa, but Peter surprises me, particularly given the developments so far in "Civil War II: Amazing Spider-Man." I guess we'll see.
Amazing Spider-Man #16: [Sigh.] I'm really, really trying to keep an open mind. After all, the revelation that the Jackal (or, at least, someone calling himself the Jackal) resurrected the loved ones of Spidey's rogues gallery makes sense. Peter becomes aware of this technology when one of the Jackal's scientists -- representing "New U Technologies" -- approaches him, JJJ, Jr., and May about using it to cure Jay of his mysterious hereditary disease. (Side-bar: Jay apparently didn't tell JJJ, Jr. about said disease, despite the fact it appears early intervention can help. That seems...dickish to me, but I'm trying to stay positive.) Peter asks to vet the technology and excitedly declares to Anna Marie that he can basically cure death with it, since it regrows organs without any flaws an accident or disease might have caused. It's here where the story (once again) goes off the rails for me, because it shouldn't take Anna Marie to warn Peter about the ethical issues this technology would cause. But, Peter doesn't care, calling New U to use it on an employee hurt in an industrial accident. The Jackal mentions to his minions it's not "part of his plan," making it clear that using it on Jay was part of the plan. But, he does it anyway, in part to build up Peter's belief in the technology. But, Peter realizes something might be wrong when the employee sparks his Spider-Sense. Ruh-roh! Maybe moved a little too fast there, huh, Parker? At any rate, the stakes go up even further when the Jackal's scientist reveals to JJJ, Jr. that they've resurrected Marla. Also, it's pretty clear that Doc Ock is going to use the technology to resurrect himself. [Sigh.] At least the letters page announces they're launching a "Renew Your Vows" series. Can I just read that instead?
Black Panther #5: The brilliance of what Coates is doing here is clear when you realize you pretty much agree with everyone but T'Challa. When he interrogates the boy turned terrorist, I was totally on the side of the "terrorist" as he spat back T'Challa's indignation. After all, T'Challa was gallivanting with the Avengers as Namor drowned his village and the Black Order made his brother beg for death. The "evil men" behind the revolution are offering him something T'Challa is not: security. Similarly, when T'Challa looks down on the "counter-revolutionary" masterminds, I rolled my eyes as they did. Again, T'Challa clearly thinks he can be feared and loved simply because he demands to be, while the masterminds remind him he actually has to provide the aforementioned security to be feared and loved. T'Challa thinks that he can just dismiss the revolutionaries as dishonorable and be done with it, but it's not that simple, as I'm sure he's going to learn.
Darth Vader #24: We learn two conflicting lessons in this issue. First, Darth Vader is more man than machine, contrary to Cylo's comment at the end of last issue, as he uses the Force to will his body into motion, killing Cylo and reactivating the machine parts of his body. But, that "man" isn't Anakin Skywalker, as we learn through a series of hallucinations where he not only kills Anakin but Padme. He truly is Darth Vader. We end the issue with Vader going after one loose end (Cylo-VI?) and Aphra appearing before the Emperor to tell him she knows some stuff he needs to know. I have no idea where we're going from here, but it's going to be good.
Spider-Man 2099 #13: Due to my move, I stopped reading comics the week I started this review; it's now December, not August. As such, my recall of previous issues is a little...dim. David is telling a fairly complicated story at this point, with numerous timelines in play, and I admit the delay in reading this issue left me fairly confused at parts. After all, we're dealing with at least the third iteration of the 2099 Universe in just this run. But, David seems to be implying this iteration of the 2099 Universe is close enough to Miguel's* that he has a shot of actual reconstructing his timeline. Of course, he can't do that if he's in an Alchemax prison, where he seems to be headed after the Punisher quickly disposes of him. (I added the asterisk here as a reminder that even the baseline timeline that Miguel is trying to resurrect is different from the one we saw in the original run. But, you're all probably tired of me mentioning that, so I'll just stop here.)
Also Read: All-New, All-Different Avengers Annual #1
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