Uncanny X-Men #15: Hope Springs Eternal

To paraphrase Roy Sheider…”we’re gonna need a bigger basement”. So many captives now, even more than the X-Brig had I think. I have to say I partially agree with Steve, some of the people Scott is calling friends he really shouldn’t. Beast offering to help is bad enough, but Dark Beast even more so. Though the end result was a boon to the team he still bears watching. Mark my words, there’s an ulterior motive here and I’m sure he’s getting ready to make a move. The way he suckers selffriend Shan in to his web is downright manipulative from the start.
Though it was nice to see Alex watching out for him as Hank plays doctor to Scott after his operation. A theme running right through the issue, both with Alex and Logan. Seeing him and Logan both rallying to his side when Cap showed up was heart warming. Both prepared for whatever move he was going for. That’s what you call a wingman. Then again at the rally and Wolvie taking Hope down after she shot Cyke. Admittedly it maybe wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t gone off half cocked in the first place, but Cyclops knows what he’s capable of so that was no surprise. And to see Captain America trying to mend bridges was nice, it seems he is making up in small ways, very small ways, for the nightmare that was AvX.
Finally loving the way Jono is being written now, the language is spot on and true Brit. The dialogue at the start of the confrontation with the crowd actually sounded right at last in my head. The rally got out of hand as expected just like the last in Uncanny X-Men #11. I can’t say I’m surprised, although I like how Jamie is the one pointing out the arrival of the MLF. Maybe Callisto was wrong, he shouldn’t be Xerox Boy, he should be Captain Obvious. Speaking of Callisto, her statement to Cyclops last issue seemed a mite prophetic. What with warning Kitty at her bachelorette party last year now this I wonder if she’s getting a second mutation. Naaaaa.
On the subject of Cyclops going literal, I have to say the panic is a little over the top. For every fan moaning about how nobody takes risks with characters and retreads the same old stories we now have people complaining Cyclops being mutilated like this is tantamount to sacrilege. Can’t seem to win these days. Just because this was done I hardly think Rosenberg hates him. If that were the case he wouldn’t have brought him back in the first place and made him the central figure of the team, when it’s at such a strong point narratively speaking. If anything this makes him stronger AND more of a sympathetic character for the rest of the hero contingency to relate to.
And personally I don’t see Rosenberg has written himself into a corner. If he can’t find a way out, there is still residual Phoenix energy maybe? My main cause for concern however is Hope. How distraught is she about Cable that she goes into guerrilla mode? Surely he wouldn’t approve of this. And the way she showed no clear sense of remorse for what happened to Cyclops as a direct result of her actions was off-putting. Though I did love the way she kept calling Cyclops grandpa. And the way she took down Wolverine shows she is a force to be reckoned with. And I’m sure she adapted his own healing factor easily enough into her defence as he attacked.
That visual alone was worth it, as well as seeing the full on metal skull. Salvador manages to make the edgy pencils work wonders and show the shiny skull perfectly. Though it’s difficult to see the defining line, and where melted and burned flesh ends and the skull begins is a little undefined. But there was a worthy addition to the hall of comebacks in the vision that is Warlock. Always a tricky thing to visualise and make realistic, I think that’s part of why a lot of writers and artists don’t include him. But here he looked perfect. Such a shame it came at the cost of a Dupe. Jamie seems to be taking one for the team a lot lately. So do we call this one…Madlock?
The coloring of the whole issue was also straight up dynamic and Guru-eFX suits the style. The power signatures of Cyclops and Magik shine out above the muted background and draw the eye right to the action and the determined expressions are not overpowered but feel natural and fleshed out. Even dead looking Banshee had a lived in look and not just pale and…well, dead looking. Though I do miss Rachelle’s coloring as that was great too, but at least she is still part of things and her coloring is front and center on the cover, which gives a strong indicator of the content and a memorable image of Cyclops, with the dramatic and what will surely be the most talked about image in the next few months at least.