I love Jean Grey, and I was so happy with how her journey as the Phoenix ended during the Fall of Krakoa—saving mutantkind, defeating Enigma, and discovering the truth about her identity as the Phoenix Force and her connection to Hope Summers. So, of course, I was incredibly excited about Stephanie Phillips’ Phoenix solo series that debuted as part of the X-Men’s new “From The Ashes” relaunch. Unfortunately, I was really not drawn in by the first major arc of the series, which focused on new character Adani and the Dark Gods, and really decentralized Jean as the main character of the series.
Phoenix #11, from series writer Phillips with new artist Roi Mercado, is the start of a fresh new arc, focusing on the return of the long-dead Sara Grey, Jean’s sister, who was murdered by the Purifiers and Phalanx decades ago. Admittedly, I am excited about this new arc, because it seems much more focused on Jean’s past and character growth, and de-emphasizes the whole “Can Jean find a balance between her human side and Phoenix side” question that feels pretty played out.
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I also just gotta say off the top, this issue has such a gorgeous cover from Lucas Werneck, and some of my favorite variant covers I have ever seen at Marvel Comics. The variants are illustrated by Peach Momoko (a personal favorite), Joe Quesada, and Rod Reis. They are all just so dynamic, beautiful, and different, I am honestly thinking of collecting them to add to my short box collection. I especially need the Quesada one… it reminds me of that classic Absinthe Fairy artwork that every college kid had as a poster in their dorm room (except it’s Jean goddamn Grey).
The reintroduction of Sara Grey is interesting indeed, and I am excited to see where it goes. Similarly to Hope Summers, it has been revealed that Sara was a mutant all along, with latent powers that allow her to detect latent power in other repressed mutants. Interestingly, this was Chris Claremont’s original plan for Sara decades ago, when Jean Grey was going to stay dead after Dark Phoenix and Sara was going to join the X-Men, until editorial forced him to resurrect Jean. I am excited about this retcon, since it really is realigning Sara’s story with her original intended background… but I do worry about how retcon-heavy this new arc will be.
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Sara has founded a community on a far-off planet called Greyhaven, which her “followers” named after her, where she has collected new mutants in a commune. Jean, shocked and overjoyed at Sara’s appearance, is not questioning any of the highly sketchy aspects of Sara’s resurrection or Greyhaven… which is going to lead to a major clash with her stepson, Cable, who is not happy about Greyhaven’s existence.
All in all, I really am excited for this arc! It is sweet to see Jean reunited with a family member (every other member of her family is still deceased it seems), and I am looking forward to the drama when it all starts to unravel. I do have some gripes with how trusting Jean immediately is (but I loved the scene with her and Scott because shirtless Scott) since she is generally a brilliant woman who has a discerning mind. But, love and family do cloud all of these things.
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Unfortunately, I don’t think the artwork from Mercado lived up to my hopes and dreams for the series. They are incredibly talented, to be clear (please check out their Instagram, it is awesome). However, the style of this issue almost seems better suited for a middle-aged graphic novel, and not the intensity and detail that I expect from a Marvel series. Some of the poses seem stiff, there are some parts where lines look too obviously digitally drawn, and the backgrounds aren’t as fleshed out in some scenes as I would prefer. That being said, it is still beautiful, the coloring works well, and the facial expressions are super evocative.
Side note: I’ve decided I don’t love Phoenix’s new black starry costume, which has nothing to do with Mercado’s art. It just feels like it doesn’t “pop” as much on a regular panel in comparison to it being featured on a cover, where it can really shine.
I am definitely going to continue reading Phoenix to see where Phillips takes this Greyhaven arc. Roi Mercado is new to Marvel Comics, so hopefully their style will continue to refine and grow, and I am excited to see how their art develops throughout this arc. I hope that Sara gets to stick around in some capacity, and her return doesn’t end up being a gimmick. I think Jean having her sister back, especially one living off of Earth, would introduce some interesting dynamics to the Phoenix’s responsibilities on Earth versus the cosmos as a whole.
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