Amazing Spider-Man #30: Spider-Man has been suspiciously absent from "Secret Empire" so far, and Slott seems on the verge of explaining why. He left his battle with Otto last issue to join the Battle of Washington, and this issue picks up the story shortly after "FCBD: Secret Empire" #1. After Cap lifts Thor's hammer, Peter realizes they're doomed, and he rallies the troops to escape. He explains to Mockingbird he can't join the Resistance because he has to stop Otto -- and, by extension, HYDRA -- from gaining control of Parker Industries. Mockingbird promises him that date if they save the world, and Immonen makes the moment cinematically perfect, the sun highlighting both of them as they kiss. As Otto raids PI's San Francisco HQ, Peter rallies the troops in Shanghai. Slott takes some shortcuts in getting Dr. Wu and Lien Tang to pledge their loyalty to Peter, Wu because Peter put the value of his cancer research above profit and Tang because Peter gave her a second chance after she betrayed him. (I still have no idea why Peter gave her that second chance or would ever remotely trust her, but I at least buy Wu feeling some sort of inclination to help him.) Otto confronts Peter and reveals he remains completely in control of PI, using the back door he built into its systems to turn Tang's Spider-Racers against Peter. I've been dreading each issue of "Amazing Spider-Man" lately, but Slott is surprisingly on his game here. You can see into the future after this arc pretty clearly: Peter seems likely to lose PI and Mockingbird (if she really is Steve's mole in the Resistance). We'll see how that goes when we get there. For now, I'm just happy to be happy with an issue.
Uncanny Avengers #25: Although Zub's characterization of Rogue still feels like it's coming from 2008, this issue is pretty damn awesome. Rogue berates herself for abandoning the team while trying to stop Scorpia and Shocker from robbing a bank (something I admit I don't quite remember happening last issue). But, she rallies the two of them into a make-shift team to fight off the demons pouring into Manhattan under the orders of the spirit who took over Voodoo's body. She's reminded of the importance of teamwork, and we're treated to some pretty hilarious exchanges between Scorpia and Shocker as they grapple with their newfound hero-dom. (At one point, Shocker explains to Scorpia his gloves don't shoot electricity but vibrate the air, leading to her starting to say he should've called himself the Vibrator. He stops her before she can finish the word, and I think it's probably the funniest moment in comics.) Meanwhile, the rest of the team is trying to free Voodoo from possession, and they succeed when Rogue answers Synapse's call for help and provides much-needed muscle. As the demons disappear, the team shares a nice moment as it ponders this new reality. For how many artists worked on this issue, it's a pretty great showing, and it helps make this issue one of the best "Secret Empire" tie-in issues I've read. I really do love this title.
X-Men: Gold #8: This issue is notable for a few reasons. First, it has Piotr admitting he was trying to impress Kitty when he leapt in front of the bullet the serial killer shot, meaning we're going in exactly the direction I'd hope we'd go. (Guggenheim is an X-Man fan!) Second, it has Kurt admitting to Logan and Storm he did, in fact, die when the mob attacked him ("mistaking" him for a devil), but he can't return to Heaven as a result of the loss of his soul. I thought this issue might've been resolved in Kurt's solo series, but it looks like it wasn't. I assume we'll be addressing that at some point. Third, it has Kitty deliver one of the best rebuttals to a distraught family-member-turned-killer. She admits the X-Men might be negligent when they ignore the consequences of solving the crisis at hand and move right onto the next one. However, she points out this guy is a premeditated murderer, as sympathetic as we might be to his plight. Guggenheim isn't really buying this guy's insistence he's committing justifiable homicide, particularly with Kitty showing she's fully aware of the compromises she has to make to keep saving the world. Finally, we see the first hint of the post-"Secret Empire" era, as the bubble is lowered around New York and everything -- including the NYPD and Congress -- appears to be fine. For all he crams in there, the issue really flows well. This "Secret Empire" tie-in arc might not have been essential to the larger plot, but it was pretty enjoyable, always a good bar to clear in these events.
Generation X #4: Strain does a solid job of showing the team coming together as they unexpectedly face an Emplate-possessed Monet in searching for the perpetrator of the attack on Face. Benjamin and Trevor in particular take on the roles of the responsible adults, and it suits them well. That said, Strain reverses some of the character development we saw in Quentin under Jason Aaron's "Wolverine and the X-Men," and the story is weaker for it: Quentin is basically reduced to a caricature of the person we know he can be. But, Strain does a great job when it comes to Roxy, showing her drive to be an X-Man coming from her panic that it's her only remaining option, since her physical mutation means she can never really fit into human society. The moment she has with Chamber as she confesses these feelings is touching, and it reminds us these kids really are just kids, in need of the mentorship he and Jubilee can provide. Strain also does well with Jubilee, as she realizes the kids have fled the Mansion because it's what she would've done. All in all, it caps a solid start to this series. Jubilee's pledge to go after Monet also incorporates the original team's dynamic into this series, and it helps convince me to hang in here to see where we go.
Spider-Men II #1: I didn't read the original "Spider-Men" event in 2012, primarily because I wasn't reading Miles' book at the time and I felt like it probably involved too much knowledge of his character to enjoy. But, I feel like I'm well versed in Miles' reality now, and I'm ready to take a deeper dive. Bendis confirms something I don't think we've seen confirmed anywhere, that Miles remembers his old dimension. This revelation raises all sorts of questions, not just about Miles' memories but also his family and friends' memories. We know Molecule Man resurrected Miles' mother and moved his supporting cast into the combined Marvel Universe to thank him for giving him a cheeseburger (in "Secret Wars" #7). But, if Miles remembers the Ultimate Universe, what does everyone else remember? Did the Molecule Man give them false memories? Otherwise, you'd assume Ganke and Miles' parents would wonder why the Marvel Universe's Peter Parker isn't a dead teenager. Ganke and Jefferson should probably wonder why Miles' mother is alive. Marvel avoided answering a lot of the questions "Secret Wars" raised, and we've mostly just continued as we were, realizing it wasn't as analogous to "Flashpoint" as it originally seemed. But, Bendis has opened a can of worms here he's going to have to close at some point. Moreover, we've got the matter of the original Marvel Universe's Miles Morales, who seems responsible for the inter-dimensional rupture that results in a robot's head crashing onto the grounds of Miles' school. Bendis has a mixed track record when it comes to his performance in events, and I'm just hoping he can navigate these waters in a way that ties up some loose ends from "Secret Wars" and doesn't make matters worse. It's a low bar, but I'm still not sure we're going to clear it.
Also Read: Darth Vader #3; Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #9
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