The Dark Web event is now upon us after last week’s series launch, so tie-in issues are firing off this week! Enter Gerry Duggan and Rod Reis’ Dark Web: X-Men #1, which features Spider-Man, Magik, Cyclops, Jean Grey, and Iceman attempting to save Rockefeller Center from a demon uprising. Objects like mailboxes, motorcycles, and even the Rockefeller Christmas tree have come to life and are eating people. If that wasn’t a cause for a team-up, I don’t know what is.
Dark Web: X-Men #1 is a lot of fun. It opens with Magik reminding us via captions how she relinquished her power of Limbo to the Goblin Queen. At the time, it seemed like the right thing to do, yet demons are now roaming New York City, and the X-Men need to do whatever it takes to keep people safe. It’s a friendly reminder that something is up with the Goblin Queen since Magik had total faith in her.
The focus of this issue is decidedly on the X-Men, although Duggan gets to write a few solid Spidey quips too. It’s established early on that Magik, Havok, Jean Grey, and Cyclops are headed to Limbo to speak to the Goblin Queen while Iceman, Firestar, Forge, and Spider-Man hang back. This allows total chaotic action in the best of ways to intermix with the plot progressing story in Limbo.
The action is fabulous, with great monster creation by Rod Reis that blends comedy and horror well. The Rockefeller Christmas tree in particular is a cool-looking demon. And while Spider-Man’s costume is still not the best, he looks excellent swinging and thwipping.
Help that dude mail his letter!
Credit: Marvel
X-Men fans will love the scenes in Limbo, and it’s nice to see little comedic touches there; you may never look at Havok the same way again. Duggan gets to dig into the Havok and Cyclops brotherhood a bit, too, with a significant promise for some confrontation with the woman they both loved at some point in time. You know who. The writing and rendering of Magik are on point throughout this issue as well.
The balance of the story is a bit off here, but Duggan has to do a lot early, like establish Magik’s point of view on the Goblin Queen or reestablish why demons are attacking in case someone didn’t read Dark Web #1. That throws off the book’s overall feel, making it more of a first part rather than a self-contained great comic from cover to cover. But then, that’s why there’s a second and third issue coming, isn’t it?
If you want action and great callbacks to X-Men elements, Dark Web: X-Men #1 is a full-on blast. It leans into the wacky fun of demons assuming control of inanimate objects, features many superhero fight scene action, and promises significant revelations for key characters like Havok and Cyclops. As far as tie-in comics go, this issue is even better than the series launch!
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