New Mutants kicked off with a promising new start in New Mutants #14 last month. New Mutants #15 continues along that path, taking the title back to the volume 1 team while honoring later incarnations of X-kids as well. There’s a lot to love in New Mutants #15, which resurrects old stories while introducing new plots.
SPOILERS AHEAD for New Mutants #15!
Shadow King’s vaguely devious presence continues to linger throughout the book, and it’s through him that one of the more interesting ideas comes into fruition. He inspires Cosmar to seek out the Crucible ritual to get her old body back. When the Crucible issue of X-Men occurred, it was clear that this idea was meant to be both morally conflicting with readers and raise a host of questions — resurrection itself on the island has brought up several ethical and functional questions as well. One such question involved people using resurrection to come back in new bodies or bodies that aren’t their own, as well as modifying their own powers. Cosmar’s situation touches on a few of these questions.
She wants to come back in a new body, using Crucible for a purpose that it wasn’t intended for. After all, Crucible exists in its current state because of the backlog of mutant victims of M-Day, which would be far too hefty a load for The Five to lift at once. Should this be allowed? Despite Dani’s objection, it’s unclear what the overall verdict here is on the island just yet. This story is still in its early stages, but it’s clear this is yet another moral and functional issue of Krakoa that New Mutants aims to explore.
Doug and Bei’s relationship is still wholly weird — they literally just met and can’t functionally communicate with one another, which is a necessity for any healthy relationship — but it’s nice to see the volume 1 New Mutants get together and celebrate his wedding. These moments are sure to please any fan of the original run, touching on those themes of friendship and showing how far those kids have come.
One of the most disappointing things about the current X-line is how plots seem to happen and they don’t get brought up again until it’s time to finally resolve them. Something like Laura Kinney being stuck in the Vault should have sent shockwaves throughout the mutant community who currently feel invincible, and it should be especially crushing to her family. But for some reason, Laura is never brought up — it’s almost like she never existed. Once again, Ayala’s New Mutants breaks the mold by raising that question, using Gabby Kinney to mention how she misses her sister. The family scenes between Akihiro and Gabby are always a treat in X-books and this one is no different.
By far the best point of this issue was a rather unexpected plot point from Peter David and Leonard Kirk’s X-Factor returning: the death of Tier Sinclair. Rahne’s son was ultimately killed by a soulless Strong Guy in issue #256 as part of a tournament-like event. By killing Tier, Guido sought to resurrect Monet, with whom he had romantic tension with in the title. Of course, this death was devastating to Rahne, who ultimately left the X-Factor team afterward.
Marvel Comics
The data page (and Rahne’s conversations with Dani) reveal that she has tried to get Tier resurrected on the island, though for some reason this case keeps falling through. Some other force’s meddling seems implied, though considering Tier’s death saved the world, it’s intriguing to see if he’s being kept dead for some reason linked to that. Rahne vows that she’ll get him back, and Dani agrees to help. These scenes are both reminiscent of the early New Mutants in a way, because they show the team’s deep love for each other, but also illustrate how this team is really good at getting each other into trouble without meaning to. Tier’s resurrection almost certainly will end in trouble.
Marvel Comics
One of the best parts about Peter David’s X-Factor run is how he phases the team out so that the title comes to what feels like a natural conclusion. For Theresa Cassidy, that meant she was elevated to Godhood by becoming the Morrigan and for Rahne, she had to go find peace with herself after losing her son. Theresa’s Morrigan situation is currently being touched on in X-Factor, which hints that the Goddess might still be giving the feisty redhead some trouble. And just as Siryn’s X-Factor plot is being expanded on, so too is Rahne Sinclair’s via her son’s resurrection status. Seeing these plot threads brought back up in the way they currently are is by far some of the most exciting things this era has offered yet.
Vita Ayala is a natural on this title and it’s clear they know these characters and their histories quite well. Rod Reis’ artwork is beautiful, making every page look visually stunning. When it comes to creative duos, these two are easily among the best in the X-line at the moment, becoming instant standouts.
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