ICYMI: X-Force #41: Playing Kick The Skull

Percy’s rigorous plotting, carefully seeded across over two dozen issues, has more than paid off. This issue is a madcap romp through time and space, as readers witness the results of Hank McCoy’s mutant meddling — and there’s at least one more issue’s worth of insanity before moseying to the finish line. All of the threads, from Hank’s horrific Guantanamo analogy to The Peacock Man’s made-to-order gene buffet, appear in this story.

Through it all, Percy balances high-octane action with the introspective character moments that form the highlight of his writing. Colossus, Deadpool, and Beast are given the highest level of focus in this story, though Percy does drop more than a few hints about the future history of Old Man Omega. There’s also a nice reference to the doppelganger-breeding Krakoa Jr that gave Nightcrawler so much trouble in Excalibur (now there’s a deep cut!), which quite frankly made me laugh more than a little.

Paul Davidson’s art looks like it would be at home in an issue of 2000AD; it’s got a level of sketchy, intentionally disgusting grittiness that would feel at home in a particularly dark Judge Dredd story. His take on Beast is delightfully repugnant — in a delicious, absolutely perfect way. The monstrous nature of the man has never been more clear. Future Quire’s decrepitude is equally lovingly depicted, scabrous scalp, suppurating tumors, and gaping gums very much included. Guru-efx’s colors tie the panels to the words, bridging the clean machinery of the plot to the beautiful decay the art depicts.