THE X-AXIS
10 February 2008
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This week:
UNCANNY X-MEN #495 - X-Men: Divided, part 1
by Ed Brubaker, Mike Choi and Sonia Oback
CLANDESTINE #1 (of 5)
by Alan Davis and Mark Farmer
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According to the original schedule, this was the launch week for
X-Force. But it's already slipped by a week, so instead, there's just
the one X-book to look at - UNCANNY X-MEN #495.
It's an odd book, this - quite satisfying in terms of the story Ed
Brubaker is telling, but rather clunky when it comes to the bigger
picture. After three months of "Messiah Complex", this is the first
X-book to deal with the aftermath. A curiously tiny "Divided We Stand"
logo appears on the front cover to confirm that. And what do we
actually get?
Well, the X-Men haven't actually split up after all. Instead, with the
school smashed up as an aside during "Messiah Complex", they've simply
closed shop for a while, and gone their separate ways. Although they're
telling the government that they've disbanded, in order to get the
Initiative off their backs, the reality is that the X-Men have gone on
holiday, to figure out what to do next.
On the one hand, this is long overdue. The X-Men haven't had a clear
purpose ever since M-Day (other than trying to reverse it, which they
never attempted), and so the book has been drifting. It's past time for
the characters to sit down and figure out what to do with their lives.
But on the other hand, wasn't "Messiah Complex" supposed to have
provided the X-books with their new direction? The storyline seems to
have done a fine job of setting up the new Cable series, but all it's
done for Uncanny X-Men is to clear away some dodgy ideas like the
Sentinels.
Really, we could have got to this point without "Messiah Complex", just
by having Scott throw his arms in the air, call it a day, and leave the
country. Instead, we get some awkward attempts to tie in the X-Men's
dissolution with the disappearance of Professor X (only sketchily
addressed, and if you're going to do it that way, you really need a
footnote telling people where the story can actually be found), and the
Initiative. Neither of these makes sense - the X-Men have had long
stretches without Professor X in the past, and why is the threat of
Initiative interference any worse than the O*N*E, who've been keeping
the X-Men under armed guard for the last few years? Both ideas feel as
though they've been tacked on in an attempt to justify this story as,
somehow, emerging from "Messiah Complex." It doesn't. It's simply the
story that they could, and should, have done two years ago.
Unwilling to deal with the Initiative, most of the X-Men are lying low
out of the country. Scott and Emma are on holiday in the Savage Land,
hanging out with Ka-Zar and wondering what to do next. Brubaker has a
good handle on their relationship, and Emma continues to be a far more
interesting foil than Jean tended to be. Kurt, Peter and Logan are
sightseeing in Germany, and there's a gentle family atmosphere which
feels like a throwback to earlier days. Basically, without the lead
weight of trying to be the X-Men, everyone's having a much better time.
The issue ends with a set-up for the next storyline, as Angel arrives in
San Francisco and finds that everything has turned into the 1960s. This
seems like a light, fun story - and, once again, completely unrelated to
"Messiah Complex." It's a very strange editorial decision; you'd have
thought they'd want to capitalise on the crossover by following up with
that plot direction. Instead, we have the book going its own way again,
with some unconvincing lip service paid to the crossover.
Art comes from Mike Choi and Sonia Oback, regular collaborators who
produced some beautiful work on the X-23: Target X miniseries last year.
This is not in the same league. It's lacking the grace and delicacy
that they've seen in some of their earlier work. They don't seem at all
comfortable with Scott, who seems rather at odds with their style, and a
scene with Emma and Shanna makes them look decidedly similar. I've seen
a lot worse, don't get me wrong, but knowing what these two can do, I
can't help feeling that this is a little bit flat.
I'm not quite sure what to make of this issue, really. I enjoyed it on
its own terms, but it feels decidedly like more playing for time before
they finally get around to choosing a proper direction for the book -
presumably with the imminent issue #500. Or am I being unduly gullible
by assuming that this is heading anywhere at all? (Even round in
circles?) A story like this coming straight on the heels of "Messiah
Complex" kind of makes me wonder if they really do know what they're
doing here. But if the big picture is murky, Brubaker is still doing
fine.
Rating: B
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Alan Davis' original CLANDESTINE series was a cult success back in the
mid-nineties. In a period when superhero comics were, shall we say, a
bit light on traditional craftsmanship, it harked back to the values of
solid storytelling.
It was a story about a family of immortal superhumans, told largely from
the perspective of their youngest members, two kids who have just
discovered their powers and have hopelessly naive ideas about becoming
superheroes. The rest of the family, who had been jealously guarding
their secrecy for all these decades, weren't so sure about that idea.
With a strong premise, and Alan Davis' ability to bring characters to
life, it was a cut above Marvel's typical output of the period.
Naturally, it was precisely the sort of comic that some fans wanted to
read.
It wasn't, however, an enormous commercial success. And after Alan
Davis left the series, there was a precipitate and embarrassing decline
in quality as journeymen creators did their best for the remaining few
issues. To be honest, those issues weren't quite as bad as some people
would have you believe. They were mediocre rather than appalling. But
they weren't Alan Davis, that's for sure.
Now, Davis is taking another crack at them. I don't see it being a hit
- it's a revival of a fairly obscure comic from a decade ago, and Davis
hasn't been especially prominent in the last few years. But it's always
good to see Davis working on something that really engages his interest.
Frankly, I don't get the impression that Davis really expects to reach a
new audience with this series either. Although much of the first issue
is set-up, it's more of a gentle reminder for people who already know
the characters, rather than an attempt to introduce them to a new
audience. For example, there are plenty of references to the death of
Vincent, a concept from the first series which is apparently terribly
important to several of the characters, but not important enough to
actually explain.
So this is a strange introduction. It's not a terribly good starting
point for new readers, but neither does it launch straight into a new
story. It could probably have stood to be a little more explicit in
spelling out the set-up. As it is, we have an entire issue based on
Rory and Pandora still wanting to be superheroes - or rather, Rory still
wanting to be a superhero and Pandora being dragged along in his wake -
and the adults squabbling about how to deal with it. Meanwhile, a
villain hangs around in the background.
Even so, for those of us who do know the characters, this is a very
pleasant reintroduction. Davis' stories are simply charming, and his
characters are strong enough that he could fill an issue with them
arguing over breakfast and get away with it. The story might well have
enough appeal to overcome the "What the heck are they talking about?"
factor for newcomers, in fact.
While many creators aim to be down to earth, if not outright "gritty",
Davis is the exact opposite. His art is glossy, his characters are
beautiful, his hairstyles have not changed since the mid-1980s. The
Destine family are the superheroes of the Home Counties, and Rory's
school is a wildly anachronistic throwback to the days when kids were
depicted calling one another "dopey." In many hands, this could seem
painfully out of date.
But Alan Davis is different. He gets away with it, and instead of
seeming naive, his world seems like a bucolic fantasy. It's just so
bright, and cuddly, full of character and gentle humour. An Alan Davis
comic is a happy place, and makes you grateful that he's still around.
It's perhaps not the best introduction to the series, in that it falls
between too much exposition for the old readers and not enough for the
new ones. But it's still a pleasure to read.
Rating: A-
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Also this week:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #549 - Marc Guggenheim and Salvador Larroca take over
for the second month of the relaunch. Guggenheim doesn't quite have the
charm of Dan Slott, and his pacing is a little laid back, but he's still
fine. Larroca's work is a little odd here - his Spider-Man actually
feels like a guy in a costume, almost as though there were a Steve Ditko
influence just trying to make itself felt on the edges of his usual
highly polished style. I'm not quite sure it works, and I also suspect
that this is yet another Marvel comic which has printed a couple of
shades darker than the colourist intended. Generally a decent effort,
though, and it's good to see a focus on introducing new characters and
moving forward by building on old villains without actually bringing
them back. B
INFINITY INC. #6 - The cover promises that Batman guest stars, which
indeed he does, if your definition of "guest starring" is "appears on
one page." Still, this is one of the stronger issues of Peter
Milligan's series about mentally ill superheroes. The concept is
becoming clear enough now - the former members of Infinity Inc are stuck
together partly as a mutual support group, and partly because they're
trying to help other victims of the Everyman Project. Matt Camp's
artwork is much brighter and cleaner than previous issues, and it turns
out to be a change for the better. Milligan's oddball, absurd stories
don't really benefit from moodiness and atmosphere; they work best with
a lighter style that lets the humour in his quirkiness come through. B+
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There's more from me at If Destroyed, and if you're desperate for more
Article 10 columns, you can always hunt through the archives on Ninth
Art.
http://ifdestroyed.blogspot.com
http://www.ninthart.com
Next week, we have the debut issue of X-Force, which still doesn't seem
like the greatest idea in the world, but you never know. Jason Aaron and
Ron Garney begin their run on Wolverine with issue #62. More "Messiah
Complex" fallout in X-Factor #28. And New Exiles #2 guest stars Storm
and the Black Panther - or at least, versions of them.
--
Paul O'Brien
THE X-AXIS - http://www.thexaxis.com
IF DESTROYED - http://ifdestroyed.blogspot.com
NINTH ART - http://www.ninthart.com
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