The Uncanny X-Men: Red Wave

Another franchise reboot. Krakoa, the living island of misfit toys, has fallen and the X-Men have disbursed around the globe. Beast and Cyclops are looking for new digs in Alaska while Rogue, Gambit, and Wolverine get together to toast wieners and drink beer in the Louisiana bayou. Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters has been turned into Graymalkin Prison, a penitentiary for mutants run by Dr. Corina Ellis, which is where Professor X is currently being held. And Charles’s old flame Sarah Gaunt, after being turned into a Javier Botet/J-horror demon called the Hag, is out hunting for more mutants to add to Dr. Ellis’s collection. The Hag’s next stop is the bayou, where a foursome of young mutants, along with Jubilee, have found Rogue and company and are looking for protection.

I’m guessing none of that synopsis will mean anything to most people reading this. Suffice it to say that this is all about Gail Simone setting things up for a new X-Men run, with the usual generational dynamic. Right from the start with the X-Men there’s been the idea of educating and training young people in the responsible use of their powers. That looks set to continue, and the newbies seem like a fun bunch to follow. Especially emo-manga boy.

Also to the good is the character of the Hag. I didn’t like her backstory of romancing with Charles back in his Oxford days, but after her transformation in a hurricane that kills her kid she turns into a pretty fearsome foe, even taking down Wolverine handily. The way Rogue stops her though was corny as hell.

The romance between Rogue and Gambit was a little more advanced than I was expecting, but I guess comics are growing up. What I found hardest about having the two of them together so much was their silly accents. Rogue, a child of the Mississippi bayou, is all folksy (“I mighta coulda got a mite overconfident”), while the Cajun Gambit is all “dat” and “dem” and calling Rogue “chère.” A little of this goes a long way. Or, put another way, it soon gets annoying. Not quite as annoying as that silly script they started putting Thor’s speech into in his comics, but getting there.

Overall then a decent way of kicking off a new story cycle, with some good stuff and a few hiccups. Worth seeing what comes next anyway.

Graphicalex