X-FORCE #9: The People You Count On

GUEST REVIEW

Jenn K. Tidwell is a producer, writer and director working in animation and video games. When she’s not working on spreadsheets or schedules, you’ll probably find her relaxing at the movies or curled up with a cat and a comic.

REVIEW

This issue of X-Force serves as the penultimate chapter of not only the current crossover, X-Manhunt, but of this volume of X-Force itself. There is a lot to wrap up in two issues with a crossover on top of it all, so while I have been a huge fan of the series thus far… I’ll admit I was nervous going in. X-Manhunt has been an uneven event in my eyes, most notable in the tonal dissonance between the end of last week’s X-Men #13 and the start of X-Factor #8. X-Force #9 likewise picks up just after X-Factor #8’s ending, where Xavier revealed one last Krakoan egg (with a fully developed husk inside!) to Cyclops. During this reveal he has also reached out to Sage, aka Tessa, aka the newly revealed Teresia Karisik. He needs Sage’s help, and she immediately jumps into action to save him by calling in a few different favors.

To X-Force’s credit, it handles the split focus of an event and an ongoing plot incredibly well. One problem I have had with this event is the shifting tones and also the shifting motivations of our main players. So much is happening! Xavier is dying! He’s spreading a psychic infection wherever he goes! He wants to help his daughter! He wants to find a Krakoan seed–wait, that’s a lie, he was after Cerebro! Who waits in the last egg!? (Y’all read Timeslide, right?) At last we are able to slow down and reveal what Xavier has really been after all this time. Charles Xavier is a character I have a difficult time with, especially after last year’s Fall of X. He is someone who believes so much in his own righteousness that he is too willing to make decisions for those around him – decisions and sacrifices – for his version of “the dream.” For the greater good. One of those decisions lead him to killing Rachel Summers, an event which has had an impact on her role in X-Force.

Here, in front of Sage and guest star John Wraith (yes, the guy will.i.am played in X-Men Origins: Wolverine), Charles laments the sacrifices he has made for the betterment of mutantkind. Personal losses. He says nothing of the sacrifices he has asked of others. He tells Sage that this one time, he chooses to be selfish. He not only wants to save his daughter, he wants to do it with his wife at his side. I think it’s a good reveal that works well within the story. It sets us up for the finale to come next week, but it also makes me wish we had gotten to this moment sooner. The emotional beats of having Xavier choose his wife and his daughter, against the choices he made for Scott’s family in Fall of X, is an interesting idea! And it’s one I believe should have formed the crux of the event, not just its ending.

Before I get to the other half of the issue, I do have to comment on something that absolutely did not work for me: the reveal that Sage somehow erased her alcoholism, along with her telepathy, because they were “distracting.” Honestly, I recoiled when I read that. Sage’s alcoholism during Krakoa was rough to watch but it was – like so much of Krakoa – something that had value to some readers. It was not just a character trait, it was representation. We saw her struggle and we saw her overcome. To remove a character’s disability in this way is not something I enjoyed reading, though I’ll admit it could lead to some interesting ethical dilemmas with Sage in future arcs of the character.

The other half of X-Force #9 continues the ongoing battle between Forge, Captain Britain, Askani, Tank and the villain La Diabla. First off, no we still don’t know who Tank is. Honestly, I stopped caring three issues ago… We are light on exposition and heavy on action in this half, which helps to balance the issue even if it means we see little forward plot progression. Still, I’ll never say ‘no’ to Captain Britain whipping out a big psionic sword, or Forge’s continued use of techno-magic. I am going to miss this pairing when the book ends, because it has been interesting to see how they connect. Betsy Braddock is a mutant whose body is a vessel for magic; Forge is a mutant who is also trained in channeling magic. Together, they form a circuit that, for the second time in this book, nearly takes La Diabla down.

As much as I enjoyed the pacing of both stories, I cannot lie that I was disappointed they did not overlap at all. After X-Force #7 revolved around Rachel’s murder, to have her not interact with Xavier at all feels like a missed opportunity. From a pacing perspective, it makes sense, but as a reader: I crave that drama.