Fabian Nicieza was one of the definitive writers for Cable, starting nearly from the character’s debut 34 years ago. He was largely responsible in converting the character from the standard, flat Liefeldian ‘guy with a big gun’ into a mutant messiah, a character with deep history and interior anguish.
But a lot has gone on with Cable since Fabian’s last major run on the character, not the least of which Krakoa, age-shifting self-murder, and fatherhood.
It’s interesting, then, to see Fabian apply the new aspects of the Cable mythology – Kid Cable, holographic tattoo AIs, and even Cable’s wider travel through a multitude of alternate futures – to the character in the current Cable miniseries.
After what feels like a recent rocky approach to the character (starting, perhaps, with the ill-conceived war against the Avengers in Avengers: X-Sanction), it’s a bit of a relief to see the old man (and the young man) return to a less reactionary place. Sure, the second issue sees Old Cable in a punch-up with Grey Gargoyle – one that includes some severe property damage – but the character seems more adaptable and less gun-toting than he’s been portrayed in some time.
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For one, this issue sees him utilize his techno-organic virus both defensively and offensively, using it to shrug off Gargoyle’s transformative stone powers before turning it on Gargoyle himself. It’s an interesting touch, one that harkens back to a more considerate take on the character.
If there’s a weak spot in Cable #2, it’s the sidelining of Kid Cable, a more recent take who felt exciting and fun in Gerry Duggan and Phil Noto’s run on the character. That Cable and the young Cable seen in books like 1995’s Askani’Son don’t quite gel, and yet what better person to synthesize those disparate takes than a classic creator? Instead, Kid Cable is relegated to little more than a prop for the duration of the issue.
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Pencilers Scot Eaton and Lan Medina do a fine and exciting job of joining the two pressing aesthetics — the sleek tech of Kid Cable and the thick, blocky guns and shoulder pads of Old Cable. The book feels energetic even in quiet moments, its soldiers always on the move (even with one turned to stone).
The book continues spelunking into X-Comics past, digging up forgotten Nicieza characters Empyrean and Black Womb, and retroactively connecting them to the recent chronology – why didn’t we see Empyrean on Krakoa? The answer lies here.
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Though it’s got small flaws – and though it gives preferential treatment to one-half of the Cable crew – Cable #2 diverges from the bleak happenings surrounding Krakoa to deliver a story that utilizes the character’s specific time-spanning concerns. It endeavors, however uneasily, to reinstate a somewhat neglected depth to a incredible character.
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