Excalibur #10: Like a Wrecking Ball

One of my colleagues described this plot as ‘bananas’ and that’s a more than accurate description of this issue. The writing absolutely failed to impress me (no one really sounds like themselves) but the plot has some merit. And anyway, isn’t it fun to blow up London? 

The basic premise (without giving the big twist away) is that the citizens of the UK have suddenly turned against Captain Britain. This is happening for the totally valid reason that Krakoa seems to be lobbing bombs at Westminster. Of course, not everything is as it appears (and once again the actual writing is damnably bad) because Jamie is pulling the strings.

In terms of plot, there are a few things that really stick out for me. The first is that the structure of the story absolutely fails to make sense. The second is that it appears that Tini is forcing Betsy into another relationship with a straight male jerk. Betsy is one of the perishingly few LGBTQ heroes in the X-Men’s front line. Why is she being paired with a pedophile? Remember, this is Pete Wisdom. He was the thirty-something who dated a sixteen-year-old girl. Why not (finally) pair her with another woman? 

Oh yeah, the fanboys. Editorial always bows to the fanboys. They’ll throw a gay character in for colour (and usually, like Rictor, in a supporting role) but otherwise it’s straight central. Even when a queer person is doing the writing. 

As for the art, the colours were absolutely beautiful. Seriously, Erick Arciniega is the best in the business. His colours are rich, vibrant, and they are the reason that this series (weak though it is) occasionally manages to be fun. 

Marcus To’s penciling, on the other hand, suffers from the same problems it always does. All the women wear exactly the same face. All the characters look twelve. He has a limited eye for detail. But I did love the costumes of the new Captain Britain Corps. Jubilee’s glasses were a charming touch. Pity there was so little charm to the rest of the story.