Exceptional X-Men #10: Emma In Wonderland

Caught in the psychic clutches of Mr. Sinister, Emma’s forced to look at her past with a fine tuned lens, forced to come face to face with some of her more heinous acts, especially those that involved Kitty when she was just a young teen. Meanwhile, Melee, Axo, and Bronze try to figure out a way to reach Emma on the astral plane, and to bring her home safely! Can the kids do it? Will Axo be able to use his untrained gifts to save the day? You’ll have to read that for yourself, these are my thoughts on the issue.

Eve Ewing and Carmen Carnero have been delivering one of, if not the best X-Men titles during the From The Ashes era, and this issue is no exception to the rule. Eve’s characterizations for this cast is top notch. She’s delivered depth and gravitas to these characters in just 10 issues, which in today’s decompressed for the trade writing is quite an impressive feat. She focuses on character, and making sure the cast is layered. She gives these kids pathos, and allows them to achieve growth on these pages. She allows them to make mistakes, and to grow from the mistakes.

These kids are young, and opinionated, with a strong sense of morality, but they’ve also come to learn that not everything is as black and white as it seems. It’s something that I myself have had to deal with myself. I see myself in these kids, and it takes a special kind of writer like Ewing that can do that. Her work here is very reminiscent of Claremont during the 80’s, and even writers like Fabian Nicieza, and Scott Lobdell on books like the New Warriors and Generation X. Could this book this generations Gen. X? It’s still early, but it definitely has the potential to become something more.

Carmen Carnero is on art duties, and she’s joined by Federica Mancin. Carnero’s work here really shines. These pages are dripping with a realistic look, mixed with a lush eye for detail when needed. Her style gets a bit frenetic when it’s needed, but it’s never messy. Plus that last panel with Lockheed is just chef’s kiss. While Carnero deals with the events going on in the real world, Mancin is taking care of the things that take place on the astral plane, or more accurately inside Mr. Sinister’s mind. It’s a wild ride, as the landscape is depicted as Alice’s adventures in Wonderland, with Emma being a dark mirror of Sinister. It’s a fun, yet dark take on the mission, which makes reading the story that much more enjoyable. These ladies have really made this arc a lot of fun to read.