Exceptional X-Men #3: HEY TEACHERS! LEAVE THEM KIDS ALONE!

Eve Ewing and Carmen Carnero’s third issue of Exceptional X-Men hits the stands and it looks to be my favorite issue yet. The team is starting to coalesce, and we get to get an in depth look at the kids, as well as they finally come face to face with Emma, plus we finally see Iceman make his debut in this book!

The book opens on Kitty and Emma having a showdown over the kids, who Emma psychically snared the kids, and were leading them out of Kitty’s apartment when Kitty arrives home, and the two X-ladies get into a fight. The fight lasted for just a few pages, and you can see them from all of the previews of this issue, but what caught my eye was Emma displaying telekinesis. I’ve been a rabid X-fan since the 90’s, and have religiously worshiped at the shrine of Generation X Emma, and I can say that Emma has never shown the ability (Jean using telekinesis while in Emma’s brain dead body in Uncanny X-Men 282 does not count). It just seems unnecessary, especially with Emma’s diamond form. Every mutant psychic needs both telepathy and telekinesis. It’s just lazy storytelling, and I expect more from Ewing.

After the scrap is over, Emma does her best to convince Kitty to allow Emma to help train these new mutants for the mutant phobic world that surrounds the kids on the daily. She even went so far to psychically push the kids into a telepathic Danger Room session. Aside from the telekinetic snafu, Eve’s Emma is spot on, and she feels like she did when she joined Generation X, and later, joining the X-Men in Morrison’s run. She’s edgy, and not afraid to do some unscrupulous things in order to help these kids for the dark future that awaits them.

Eve’s Kitty is pretty enjoyable to read as well. Kitty’s portrayal during the Krakoan era was very…uneven. Making her a drunk pirate, who later becomes a space pirate, who later becomes a ninja assassin was a wild progression from who she had been up until this point, but it’s also fun watching Kitty take in these three kids under her wing is both a treat, and a return to form for my favorite X-Man. Being a Jewish fan in an industry that doesn’t have a lot of Jewish representation is disappointing. Especially considering that was built off the blood, sweat, and tears of jewish talent going back to the very beginning of capes and heroes comics. I’m wondering if Ewing will explore this at all, or if it’ll be ignored all together.

Carmen Carnero’s work here is exceptionally good. I’ve been a very big fan of her since her time on X-Men Red, as well as the Kelly Thompson Captain Marvel run, and her work was the reason I read Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty with Kelly and Lanzing, and she gets better with every new project she’s on. Her style is clean, and fluid. Her character work looks natural, and they don’t look like they’re posing for an absurd body vending angle that nobody can naturally do. I’m particularly fond of Bronze. She’s that wide eyed girl who’s just astonished about this new world she’s been thrust into. I hope Carmen will stay, because her work here is exceptional (pardon the pun).