After 900 years, the Broken Land still stands, and its people remain unafraid of a life that ends. The growing desperation of a dying universe gnaws at them, but they continue to cling to one hope: Their goddess, Storm. Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3 sees a cataclysmic change for the Brotherhood of Mutants, and Al Ewing and Alessandro Vitti have brought their absolute best to the book.
SPOILERS AHEAD for Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3!
Their goddess may have fallen centuries ago, but the Brotherhood of Mutants is still fighting. As prayers and songs ring around him, Ironfire broods on the past and nurses a deep-seated loyalty that has only just begun to falter. Together, Khora and Ironfire reflect on their losses and meet with a devilish-looking Mister Sinister.
Sinister and the Brotherhood have put together a group of mutants to make up a new Five. Ironfire’s plan from Immoral X-Men #3 is finally coming to fruition. As Emma approaches, the Five resurrect the titular hero of Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3, breaking the Broken Land’s laws of life and death in the process.
Ironfire cries as a youthful Storm returns, bathing in the knowledge that he offers her. She has no memories of her own, but her natural talent is raw and unblemished.
They don’t have long to bask in their victory. Emma arrives with Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3’s deadly new chimera.
Marvel Comics
The chimera slaughter what remains of the Brotherhood. With one mighty blow from a sentinel of her own, Emma tears the homeworld of the Brotherhood to pieces with a gigantic metal whip. It’s very Hellfire Club, making Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3 tie into her origins nicely.
The Five, Ironfire, and Sinister launch into battle. Sinister even manages to steal a gun from Doombot’s claw. Storm also tries to contribute, but she only has the knowledge of what she can do. She doesn’t actually know how to do it.
Khora offers everything that she can to fuel her goddess, and Storm drinks in the power. It returns a piece of Storm’s soul and more strength than she knows what to do with. Afterward, Khora is left weakened, as Storm charges off into the battle. As the Brotherhood of Mutants dies around her, the Burning Heart lifts her sword. Tragically, she won’t lift it again. After a millennium, Khora dies with her brethren by chimera hands. Ironfire screams, but it’s too late.
In her sentinel, Emma greets Storm with mockery. She would have feared the old Storm, but this reborn child is nothing to her; too raw and inexperienced to be any true challenge. What she doesn’t account for is Storm’s might. The goddess reminds her that she has never learned how to lose — echoing the story of Isca in X-Men Red #7 for Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3.
The reborn Storm reaches for lightning and grasps it in her hand. It tears through Emma’s sentinel, rending it to shreds. Storm falls down to the world below, exhausted and burned almost beyond recognition. She failed to account for the radiation, but she did not fail to kill her foe. She dies, unafraid of a life that ends. Ironfire carries her away, mourning what he has only just gained. As he turns away, Sinister approaches, gun raised to Ironfire’s head. Zap.
After an eternity at war, the Broken Land falls.
Marvel Comics
Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3 is bleak in a way that even the rest of the Sins of Sinister event has not yet managed to be. The tragedy is only set to grow as Sins of Sinister: Dominion approaches, but it will be hard to top Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3. The swan song of the Brotherhood of Mutants certainly makes anything less than desolation feel like a happy ending.
Darkness is all that remains in Sinister’s universe in Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3, as exemplified by Rain Beredo’s dreary coloring. Even Mister Sinister himself looks like a monster out of a horror movie. His ever-present smile makes it obvious that he is always one step ahead of his temporary allies.
It should be noted that his characterization feels at odds with his appearances throughout Immoral X-Men. Far from the cunning and charismatic creature he is under Kieron Gillen’s pen, his cruelty and arrogance is turned up a notch. As he nears his goal — the Moira that the Brotherhood has been keeping from him — his true nature is slowly beginning to reemerge.
Emma’s arrogance is what leads to her demise, but it is fitting to see her origins tie into her Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3 death. Of course, this is comics, and there isn’t a body, so the jury’s out on whether or not the Diamond Queen is actually dead.
The major flaw of Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants #3 is just the lack of any true exploration of the past 900 years. While Ironfire and Khora lament together, centuries have gone by. There doesn’t seem to have been enough practical change through the many years of loss. The Brotherhood feels like they are exactly where they were before Storm’s death. The only practical difference is that they’ve grown slightly more religious.
Storm is also an understated presence in a book named after her. While she does take down Emma’s sentinel, she is also fundamentally not herself. Storm lacks the memories and history that makes her such a beloved character. It’s also disappointing to see her die twice in the span of two issues when so much of her Krakoan arc has revolved around her refusal to die at all.
Storm & the Brotherhood is a must-read for any Storm fan, but the third issue especially will likely earn some mixed responses. Lovers of tragedy will adore it, while anyone hoping to see a happy ending for Storm and her Brotherhood will be sorely disappointed. But really, in the midst of the death of dreams, only the most sinister will earn their dominion.
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