Ultimate X-Men #20: Emperor Rising

The battle with the Children of the Atom concluded with a somewhat disappointing whimper, but we are starting to see a return to form with the pieces being set in place for the X-Men to face the true mastermind behind the Children of the Atom. 

After what seems like an eternity, Emperor Sunfire has finally made his presence felt. It was more than a little odd that we hadn’t seen hide nor hair of him since the around the single digit issues of the book, but it was better late than never. A few things are set up in this issue. The first half specifically deals with Sunfire’s return and how it expands the world of the X-Men now that Hi No Kuni at large knows much more about mutants. Mutant registration is on the table, and if it’s anything like the attempts at registration on 616 there is no possible way this will end well. 

There is also a small moment with Surge, whose purpose has been completely uprooted since the COTA dissolved. Looking more like her 616 counterpart, she helps a young mutant boy who is being bullied. This is an interesting turn for the normally arrogant and selfish Noriko so it will be interesting to see where this thread leads. 

The second half of the issue is highlighted by a confrontation between Kanon and Sunfire’s right-hand woman, Viper. Running off half-cocked Kanon gets in over her head when she tries to call Sunfire and reveal just what the COTA were doing. This leads to a very violent warning from Viper, bookended by Hisako reminding everyone of Kageyama still lurking in the shadows. No pun intended.