[Comic Book Review] X-Men Vol. 4 #001 by Brian Wood (2013)
Plot Summary: An old enemy shows up at the X-Men’s door, seeking asylum from an ancient evil come back to earth. Meanwhile, Jubilee has come home, and she’s brought with her an orphaned baby who might hold the key to the earth’s survival…or its destruction.
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Brian Wood
Pencils: Oliver Copiel
Inkers: Mark Morales and Olivier Coipel
Colorist: Laura Martin
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Review: by The Superior Spider-Sam
LADIES! LOVE IT!
With this new book, simply titled X-Men with no defining adjective in front of it (Astonishing, Uncanny, Cable and-, Wolverine and-, Avengers VS-, and the like), Marvel has given the edge to one of the two aforementioned teams and made it easier for comic retailers to decide which team’s books should take up more shelf space.
Without giving too much away, X-Men #1 in a nutshell, involves the X-men villain Sublime, a billion year old bacterium that has grown both sentience and a physical form and has the ability to control the minds of human beings and mutants alike. He was there at Earth’s beginning and, therefore, sees himself as the de facto inheritor of the planet, but he has discovered a threat coming that not even he can stop. So who would be better to ask for help than the one team that always beats him, the X-Men?
What I Liked:
This was a great set-up story. The pacing was very well done, and I commend writer, Brian Wood, for his ability. He did not take a couple of issues to draw out the threat and explain why these individuals should come together to stop it; instead, he got right to the point without glossing over detail. We got exposition on how the threat came to be, how and why the x-men became involved, and why they would be motivated to stop it, all in one issue.
The art, in a word, is normal. This is a good thing. While I cannot say that I was blown away with the coloring and lettering or that the detail of characters was spectacular, it was good enough. Oliver Copiel and his art team do a good job of keeping the action on the page lively. That, combined with the great story telling, made me feel like I was back in ’95 watching the cartoon.
The roster for this book is something I am looking forward to. The X-Ladies taking center stage is something to be excited about, and it’s not just for the potential covers (though that is a plus). I am happy to see Rogue back on center stage in a book of her own. The same goes for Rachel Summers. Rachel has hosted the Phoenix and is an omega level telepath, and I am excited to see what directions Brian Wood takes her in. I’m also amped up to see more Jubilee.
A new villain is introduced and seems like a doozy.
What I Didn’t Like:
There’s not too much to put here since I enjoyed the book so much; however, one small thing, that is not even an issue yet, is the way the book ended. Brian Wood took a very standard approach to his introduction of the main threat. The villain shows up on the last page, says a one liner, and then we’re left waiting for the next issue because we think this person just HAS to be awesome. This is a small issue (or even non-issue) because it’s that type of thing that happens so often these days that it’s less of a cliff hanger than an expected standard ending. Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.
Summary
I wish I could see more of this new villain that showed up; however, Sublime is terrified, so maybe that is enough to go off of. This was a great read. I highly recommend adding it to your pull list. I would recommend this over either X-Force book (Uncanny X-Force and Cable and X-Force) out right now. I see a real winner with this one.
User Review
( votes)You can purchase the X-Men vol 4. 1: Primer from Amazon here:
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