Hellions #4: It’s A Bloody Family Mess

Hellions ends its first arc in a traumatic but bonding conclusion, combining bloody and raw art with dark coloring with an issue in which everyone has their heart a little tore apart.  The story clearly calls back to Louise Simonson and Chris Claremont’s Summers drama in “Inferno,” and the tribute and themes it takes focusing in Havok, the ignored brother, and Madelyne, the unreal girl, is bittersweet and perfect.

In the middle of a Krakoan reboot era that makes it impossible to tidy all loose ends or explore all characters, Zeb Wells makes sure we understand this team’s growing bond deeply, and that Madelyne’s loose end is tied closely, even showcasing the Quiet Council’s hypocrisy and imperfection.

The dysfunctional-but-clear-bond between these characters finally explodes when they all laugh together as they are “a bunch of crazy sons of %$!&!”. There’s a certain joy here for me as someone with a mental illness and survivor of systemic mental health abuse in watching these too-crazy-to-be-respectable characters thrive, even if overshadowed by Sinister’s manipulation and plotting.

Of course, there are also some things that I would prefer otherwise, like the impossible “sexy” postures and clothes design (and them tearing apart to show… boob windows?). Or the too-’90s style cover. Or Havok’s dissociation disorder being more dramatization than actual representation.  But even in those points, the end of the arc is heavily trying to be fair and kind to Havok as a victim more than a perpetrator, and not falling into unrealistic stigmatizing and demonization. And the art is still showing bloody terror in a way that makes us empathize with its main characters (including Madelyne) even in icky and morally complex situations. And THEN there’s a new angle in Kwannon thriving in this new situation that fits the book perfectly. Overall, I’m eager for what’s to come.