Having caught up on this month’s X-books (specifically the Fall of the House of X/Rise of the Powers of X), I was interested to glance back at issues from six months ago to see how plot threads came to fruition. While we are still in the early stages of the Fall of X storyline, I was pleased to find the fifth volume of the current X-Men title to be rewarding as a singular read while also establishing essential primer for the current narrative-shattering of the X-line.
Written by Gerry Duggan and with art from some of the best folks working at Marvel, this trade collects issues #25-29 of the present X-Men monthly. With issue #32 hitting the racks today, these issues are immediately relevant to the current arc of the X-books, even if not immediately perceivable. Duggan has always excelled at being able to tell personal character stories that deliver those fan-favorite moments of comic book action and comradery. His X-Men run seemed to be a direct response to world-building focused storytelling of his predecessor, and these issues continue to add that same charm. We have a Kitty Pryde-focused issue, one about Emma Frost and her marriage to Tony Stark, Juggernaut’s newfound place as a key member of the mutant society, and the X-Men finding a potential safe-haven on Dr. Doom’s Latveria. Understandably, the looming threat of Orchis is omnipresent in all these adventures, with the mutant-hating organization finding success, and pushing the team do desperate extremes.
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It’s generally a bad sign when a flagship book like X-Men has so many artists over the course of 5 issues, but the quality of artistic talent (and tonal consistency) dissipates those concerns. In fact, each artist seems well selected to tell their specific portion of this collection. Stefano Caselli gives Kate Pryde’s assassin role an epic action vibe, while Javier Pina and Phil Noto’s pretty line work works with the more character-focused interactions of their arcs. Joshua Cassara is in top form as he draws a tortured Cyclops and an unreasonably opulent feast between the X-Men and Dr. Doom. Each issues looks great, while still feeling consistent with Duggan’s script and the overall look for the title.
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I often note how I wish these trades would include each of the variant covers as a full-page reproduction at the end of the book, but this may be the first collection where I understand their miniature version: there are 15 pages of covers, and most of them are half or quarter page reprints! There is some beautiful work (especially the connecting covers), but I guess you will have to hunt down the single issues if you want to see them at full size.
I expect that X-Men will get a significant reboot at the end of Fall of the House of X/Rise of the Powers of X, and while I am excited to see what comes next for our merry mutants, I know I will miss the work that Duggan has done on this title over the last few years. The issues here capture a love and interconnectedness between the cast that effortlessly weaves the larger line-wide plot into each issue. This isn’t just a book to read to get caught up, but to celebrate the artistic power the X-Men continues to emanate into the comic community.
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