Uncanny X-Men #27: The Even Newer New Mutants

April 8th’s Uncanny X-Men #26 kicked off a new story arc with a change to the series’ ongoing arc in a big way. At the end of last issue, readers were given the bait for issue #27: the outliers have somehow been transformed into the New Mutants.

This story arc is already confusing; there is a lot of character work going on, and the action sequences are clear enough. But seriously, what is even going on?

Now, I’ve enjoyed most of Gail Simone’s run on Uncanny X-Men, which began back in 2024. However, both issues #26 and #27 seem like an indicator that something is going wrong. You can tell a comic’s writing is in trouble when the solicits of each issue tell you more than the comic does in 20+ pages.

Rogue’s characterization is the only one that seems to make any sense in this issue. She is portrayed by Simone and Vecchio as very motherly. This approach echoes what she and Gambit talked about last issue, about having children of their own or treating the Outliers as their children. It’s an interesting enough hook, but it gets lost in the mess of New Mutants madness and plays second fiddle to the reader waiting for Gambit’s curse to actually do something.

During the issue, the script eventually goes all night with the living Sentinels, who are more flesh than steel and who eat mutants. Using violent convicts and biotech as the backstory for these sentinels is both interesting enough world-building and gets woven into the dialogue naturally, which is a plus. Ultimately this does come across as a fresh twist on the classic X-Men villains, but it still remains buried in a story that has gone truly off the rails.

The issue’s most notable selling point is in Luciano Vecchio’s artwork and Matthew Wilson’s colors. Picking up a series that had David Marquez is no small feat. And on some level, Vecchio seems to be imitating Marquez’s art style with considerable skill and a few light touches of their own. Wilson also provides the issue with a much-needed lift, as their colors drench the page in eerie ambience and moody lighting, such as in a scene where Gambit tosses open a door to confront an old friend turned enemy. The scene feels almost painterly, with spilling light and texture work that enhances the experience for the reader considerably.