‘New Mutants’ #30 is a charming love letter to the team

The writers and artists demonstrate a clear and deep adoration for these characters.

September 21, 2022

Ever since Vita Ayala took over New Mutants the title has flourished, becoming one of the Krakoa era’s can’t-miss titles. Throughout their run, Ayala has demonstrated a deep love and understanding for the characters as well as a desire to move their stories forward in an organic way. New Mutants #30 is brimming with nostalgia and as the team reminisces about their experiences together, the reader is also hit with that same nostalgic warmth.

Dani Moonstar has been one of the characters Ayala has focused on most during this run, giving the issue’s opening story and emotional heart to her scenes with Roberto. Ayala wrote in their letter at the start that the team had been combing through old issues of New Mutants to really get the anniversary issue right and their work paid off. There are several subtle details here that would make any New Mutants fan smile.

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For example, in Dani’s flashback with Roberto, the panels are stylized like the old ’80s comics used to be. These days, you don’t see a little yellow text box explaining who the characters are and what they do when you see them in the issue, but it was pretty standard fare for the ’80s — especially ’80s Chris Claremont who loved his narration boxes. It’s a cute little detail that for these flashbacks, the team has white text boxes with the same information as the old ones used to have. The art in these panels does a good job of trying to emulate the style of how the kids looked in the original run and the characterizations certainly reflect the first volume of New Mutants (Roberto is a hothead, for example), making this part of story truly feel like it’s from that era.

'New Mutants' #30 is a charming love letter to the team

Marvel Comics

As you read the flashbacks, it’s hard not to feel a sense of joy when you see the story jump forward to the current era, seeing how much these characters have matured and how they’ve grown up together.

The other character Ayala has had a strong focus on in their run is Karma, a character who so often gets the short end of the stick in New Mutants runs historically. In Karma’s flashback portions, Ayala goes back to X-Force when she showed up at the festival with short pink hair, a bright red tank top, and two women. This story explains the reasoning behind Karma’s change in appearance, showing Shatterstar helping her cut her hair and give her the confidence boost she needs; it’s a really sweet scene that explains a really interesting moment from the original X-Force run that never got much exploration.

Ayala has done more for Karma than any New Mutants writer in the past, I’d argue and their love for that character shines in this issue as well. In Ayala’s run, Karma finally had an on-panel kiss with a woman for the first time and finally got herself a girlfriend, but in this flashback story, Ayala also depicts Karma’s growing confidence as she makes a play for another woman in the flashback. It’s nice to have a writer so invested in a character like Karma, one who is unafraid to delve into meaningful LGBT+ content as well as flesh out this character in all her aspects. Karma was truly the star of this run from start to finish.

The issue ends with a Deadpool sequence, which might be the most out of place element of this book. Wong does a good job writing him and capturing his voice, but it’s just a little obvious that Deadpool only has a story in New Mutants #30 for more name brand recognition. Let’s be honest, Deadpool isn’t a character associated with New Mutants beyond knowing his first appearance occurs in the book — something that’s more of a trivia fact than it is recalling any memorable stories from him in the series.

All in all, New Mutants #30 is the love letter the fan-favorite team deserves, and it’s delivered by writers and artists who demonstrate a clear and deep adoration for these characters. When one of your favorite teams has a new book, you hope you get a writer who loves them like Ayala loves the New Mutants, and that’s what has made this run so enjoyable every step of the way.