For as long as I have been reading Marvel comics, I have loved Cyclops, and with Cyclops #1, my affinity for this character was enough to make me break the Marvel slump I have been in since the direction of X-Men books began to disinterest me once “From the Ashes” hit. I didn’t always love the new X-Men comics coming out when I was reading – the X-Men: Blue/X-Men: Gold era come to mind first – but I could never say the ideas were stale and that the direction of the books was moving backwards. This modern era of X-books is the first time in my 15 years of reading that I felt uninterested in X-Men books.
That is, until Alex Paknadel and Roge Antonio’s Cyclops #1 came out this week.
For weeks leading up to this book, I had seen Paknadel post about Scott, feeling optimistic because, as a lifelong Cyclops fan, I felt he understood the character. Within the first few pages of Cyclops #1, I knew that trust was placed correctly.
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Paknadel’s voice for Scott is excellent, balancing the field leader persona of Cyclops with the trusted ally and confidant of Scott Summers. Paknadel and Antonio strike the perfect balance between fan service and doing it with purpose, like moments where Scott uses his ricochet beams and gets a few trademark corny lines in as field leader or when names like Dr. Hanover come up, springing the story into action.
It’s clear Paknadel is seeking to do a deep dive of sorts with Scott’s character, revisiting Scott’s earliest years and taking him back to where it all began: a flying aircraft shot out of the sky and a less-than-stellar landing when he hits his head. The framing for Scott being in this predicament is poetic, with his past being front and center.
Outside of Scott himself, the work that Paknadel and Antonio do with Donald Pierce is striking for how chilling it is. Pierce has been, at times, a forgettable villain in the X-Men’s roster, but his portrayal is so sinister that I don’t think I will ever be able to forget him so easily by the time this series is over. Some of Antonio’s best paneling comes from moments showcasing the depths of Pierce’s depravity and disregard for life.
It’s clear that this book is a labor of love and that the team on board has put their time – and their hearts – into portraying Scott’s character and his story in a meaningful way. I’m eager to see where they take it next.
