“He was looking at my body, torn to pieces…”
The X-Men exist in an awkward place. The original Mutant Metaphor has lost the power it once had as the X-titles of mainline Marvel became focused on maintaining an older status quo that longed for abandonment eons ago. Without the X-Men, however, being able to tackle social and political issues under a left-wing lens is somewhat impossible to do in the superhero industry. Thankfully, since the release of Ultimate X-Men, helmed by superstar artist and Heavy Metal alum Peach Momoko and adapted by Yurei: The Japanese Ghost author Zack Davission, the two modernize the idea of the Mutant Metaphor using real world horrors and mythology to create a more relatable and foundational X-Men.
Now at issue #15 of Ultimate X-Men, I think it’s fairly clear that this Secret Society X-Men is here to stay.
Continuing off of the previous installment, we follow Futaba, a mutant investigator, and Tatsuya, Kanon’s older brother, into a shaky investigation of the Children of the Atom. With this, the issue as a whole takes readers’ hands through a dreary calm before the storm, showing the slow and evolving preparations that are the upcoming months of Ultimate X-Men.
Marvel
As the saga evolves issue to issue, the classic X-Men feeling slowly seeps into the book, mixing in storytelling methods borrowed from various Seikai-Kei stories of the past and comics such as Barry Windsor-Smith’s Weapon X. The best thing about this is how it shows exactly how UXM succeeds at real-time storytelling, as we see this rag-tag team of teenage girls slowly descend into the same world of madness that their 616 counterparts fell victim to. Additionally, the threat that the Children of the Atom pose to the main cast merely aids in that descent with Nico’s infiltration revealing the dark insides of the cult’s hideout in Kirisaki City.
The Children of the Atom reflect that of clinical cult environments such as Happy Science and Aum Shinrikyo with a clear prying into the manipulative beliefs both groups represent towards the youth of their country. Momoko and Davisson create an atmosphere that is rotting with the decay of hopes and dreams; out of any X-Men threat of the past, this one truly makes a focus on children that leaves the readers and characters trapped in a metaphorical Hell. It would be bold to say that Momoko and Davisson have created the most soul-sucking world-building out of the Ultimate Universe, but they have. There is a disturbing realness to their side of 6160, one that revels in the reality of suicide epidemics and cults that succeds to its fullness. All of which is reflected in an imperialist government that cares little about its people.
Marvel
With this in mind, Peach Momoko’s art is gorgeous and this installment especially highlights her J-Horror roots as readers get a glimpse into plenty of symbolic gore and nightmarish imagery to keep our cast of heroes up at night. Something noticeable about Momoko’s art style is the clear inspiration she takes from mangakas Hideshi Hino and Suehiro Mauro. Her sense of beauty always felt as if it was complementing the beautiful but terrifying works of Mauro. As for Momoko’s horror and gore, the inspiration from Hino comes out as her messier pencils and blood red watercolors flood the pages with Akihiro and Mori, teasing a new mystery for our heroes to uncover while they search for Hisako and Natsu.
Ultimately (ha), Ultimate X-Men #15 is a masterclass example of what Peach Momoko and Zack Davission bring to the table as a duo and mystery/horror creators. UXM exists as the main teenage superhero title of Ultimate Marvel and brings with it the same sense of terror any teen-focused comic book should and I cannot wait to see how Momoko and Davisson torture the titular cast next.
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