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Included for the time being are: Mystique #1, Mystique #2, X-Men Unlimited 48, Uncanny X-Men 428, Mystique #4, Mystique #5, Mystique #6, Mystique #7, Mystique #8, Mystique #9, Mystique #10, and New Mutants v.2 #9, Mystique #11, Mystique #12, Mystique #13, Mystique #14, Mystique #15, Mystique #16, Exiles #50, Mystique #17, X-Men #161, X-Men #162, Mystique #19, Mystique #20, X-Men #163, X-Men #164, Mystique #21, Mystique #22, Mystique #23, Mystique #24, Hulk #83, and Hulk #84.

[Again, because this finicky program...or something...is acting up, here's some artificial spoiler space]

[And again...sigh]

[I bent my wookie!]

[My cat's breath smells like cat food]

[When I grow up, I'm going to Bovine University!]

[The Simpsons is a very cool show...]

July 22, 2005
Hulk v.2 #84
Part two of the House of M story set in Australia, and we get the apparent downfall of the mutant regime. This is curious, because there are two more issues to come after this one, and no indication in the issue solicitations that the mutants will play a role in them (that doesn't necessarily mean they won't, of course). I wonder if the story will go in a radically different direction? The big set up during the last issue was the oppressive mutant regime posing a big threat to the humans, but they're fairly easily dispatched at the end of part two, so it'll be interesting to see if the plot suddenly swings someplace else...or if the mutants aren't as defeated as they look.

The story: Pyro and Vanisher get some nice characterization time together (even mentioning Pyro's history as a writer -- which, for those keeping track, is only the second time that part of his background has been mentioned in an actual comic) as they wait for boss Exodus to talk to Magneto. Exodus is chastised off-panel by Magneto -- exactly as Pyro predicted last issue -- but doesn't seem to have lost any arrogance or confidence. Meanwhile, Bruce Banner is travelling with AIM to confront the mutant regime in Sydney, and he has a fairly intense and revealing conversation with Dr. Monica Rappaccini, the woman in charge (who also happens to be the Scorpion's mother). Rappaccini is playing some kind of psychological mindgame with him, which the Hulk notes when he emerges, and warns her not to do it to him. When they arrive in Sydney, they send a message to Exodus that they want to talk, and he lets them come, but he telepathically attacks the envoys when they arrive. Pyro is worried again, despite Exodus' supreme confidence, and his fears come true when the robot kid they'd kidnapped earlier breaks free and shoots up the lab, distracting Exodus. The Hulk is able to emerge due to this momentary lapse, and as Pyro frets, Hulk leaps up at the balcony where Pyro and Exodus stand. He shrugs off a second psionic attack and leaps up to the balcony again -- the next thing we see is Exodus being thrown to his apparent death. Then we see the Hulk standing alone on the balcony as the people below proclaim him to be humanity's last hope against mutant oppression...

...so where's Pyro? He isn't shown falling, nor running away, nor on the balcony with the Hulk. I can only assume he is supposed to have fled, but he would have had very little time to do so. It isn't clear what happened to Vanisher either. A few pages earlier, it's barely noticeable that rubble from the destroyed lab is falling on him; did he teleport out of the way, or was he injured or killed? He's never shown after that. It's also possible that he teleported Pyro away, but I don't even know if he's capable of teleporting another person. So this is a development that bothers me. If it was an obvious plot point, that'd be fine, because it'd be some kind of cliffhanger, but nobody seems to notice that the others are not there. They either escaped, or were subdued off-panel, and I would have liked at least a hint that it isn't an oversight on the artist's and/or writer's part. Also, Exodus seems to have been defeated too easily, despite his known immense power. I liked that earlier he was incredibly self-confident but actually seemed to have the power to back it up -- if he comes across as weak, then he just seems delusional in his confidence. Most readers were probably rooting for Exodus to get taken down a peg, but I would have liked to have seen him put up a better fight. I like the fact that Pyro turned out to be right all along (and he even gets an 'I told you so' moment -- see scan below), but he does come across as a bit hysterical in the two issues. Again, he clearly had reason to be, but it was still annoying in places.

The art was somewhat improved here. The colouring was not nearly as dark and murky, though it was still a bit darker in some scenes than I would have liked. The lines are rather thick on some pages and much less so on others, which is a curious effect at times. One problem I have is that Dr. Rappaccini and her daughter look nearly identical -- the only real difference is that Scorpion has a bare midriff -- and it was difficult to tell them apart in some panels, which is annoying. The storytelling and panel placement are much better in this issue than the last, although there are some unfortunate speech balloon placements that cover up pictures I liked, notably the panel in which Vanisher uses the robot kid's hand to scratch his back as a joke. On the plus side, I like the visual design for the Hulk in the HoM reality: the bald head and white paint are striking and distinctive, and it's a shame he'll be going back to his old look when the event is over (or so indicates the cover on the first post-HoM story -- which, by the way, will deal with elements of this story, which is intriguing).

Overall, there's a lot to like about this issue (and the story as a whole so far). I'm very glad that Pyro's back, at least for a while, and it's nice to see him as the intelligent voice of reason, albeit a bit shrill. I actually like Vanisher and Exodus, even though I've never liked them in the regular Marvel Universe. Same with the Hulk and the Scorpion, although as a fan of X-villains, they interest me somewhat less. I still have reservations with and am puzzled by Pyro and the whole Nazi schtick, which has never rung true to me. Still, I hope that he hasn't just been written out of the story, that his fate will be addressed one way or the other in the remaining issues, and that at some point, there will be some explanation as to why he and other dead people seem to be alive in the House of M reality.

Exodus and Pyro are in big trouble from the Hulk.

July 10, 2005
Hulk v.2 #83
This is part 1 of a four-part story, set in the House of M reality. For those not familiar with the House of M, the basic premise is that reality has been altered by the Scarlet Witch...seemingly to suit someone else's agenda. Most people are unaware of the change. The main series is actually called House of M (there will be eight issues of it, of which we've seen three. Mystique is in #2 and #3), and covers the main events and mysteries of the storyline. And many of the Marvel titles are tying in with it, depicting characters in this very different reality that has a different history. Mutants are on top in society, and humans are second-class citizens, but for the most part, life isn't so bad for the humans of the world. However...

...that brings us to Hulk #83. We learn that Australia is being ruled by extremely oppressive mutants who apparently want to exterminate humanity, and have been pursuing that goal. Many humans have fled to the territory of the Aborigines, where Bruce Banner has been living peacefully for some time, now a part of the tribe. They are then attacked by soldiers serving the regime (commanded by Unus the Untouchable), and the Hulk fights back, angry that they've been disturbed. Meanwhile, A.I.M. is apparently a pro-human group who also fights the mutant regime. As the Hulk and some A.I.M. operatives defeat the fleeing soldiers, we see the apparent leaders of the ruling junta: Exodus, the Vanisher, and Pyro, who are arguing over what this means. Pyro angrily tells Exodus that he isn't taking the presence of the Hulk seriously, and rather than acknowledge his point, Exodus punishes Pyro for apparent disrespect (see the scans below) -- it's obvious that Exodus is the real power in control here, or at least thinks he is. Exodus intends to wipe out humanity to ensure the safety of mutants, doing all of this against Magneto's orders, it seems. Later, Banner talks with an aboriginal elder about fighting against the regime with A.I.M., and the elder lets on that he knows something is wrong with reality.

A big question for Pyro fans: is this really him, thanks to an altered past in which he never died from Legacy, or did the Scarlet Witch resurrect him with her powers, or did she simply create a duplicate that isn't really him (even if everyone thinks it is)? Nobody knows yet. Hopefully, this will be cleared up by the time the overall storyline ends, whether in the Hulk issues or the House of M series. The next big question is: will Pyro still be alive once reality goes back to normal? Nobody knows that yet, either. There are a number of 'dead' characters seemingly alive and well in the House of M reality, so it's not like he's an anomaly. There are a few differences between this Pyro and the one we remember -- his hair is permanently on fire, and he's dressed like a Nazi (as are his cohorts). Otherwise, I found him to be delightfully similar, what with his rude mouthy behaviour and general sensibility and intelligence. However, we only see him in a few panels, so there isn't much to go on yet.

The art was very disappointing. The colours used are extremely dark and murky in most scenes, which made the action very difficult to follow. I almost missed one of the visual sight gags thanks to the darkness of the panel. Overall, I didn't particularly care for the pencils and the artist's storytelling abilities either -- thanks to these and some bad panel layout, it was difficult to tell what was going on in places. Vanisher's teleportation looks more like phasing or invisibility, which has confused some readers, and Vanisher, Exodus, and Unus don't really look like the guys I remember. I do like Pyro's fiery hair, though.

However, I liked the story very much, and not just because it brought back my favourite character ;) It manages to take place in the House of M reality without being too jarring for the Hulk -- it's still a good Hulk story, not just a HoM story with the Hulk in it. There's some interesting discussion between Banner and the elder, and the connection between them and the general sense of their peace is genuinely touching. The issue has Peter David's fun dialogue and some humour, which is a plus. And I liked the dialogue and actions he gave Pyro, which is nice because I admit to slight concern about how Pyro will be portrayed; I didn't really like the way PAD wrote Pyro in the past. I think it's a bit strange to have him as a Nazi, because that doesn't really seem like him, but it must be remembered that it's an altered reality. I'd be annoyed if Pyro returned after the HoM storyline and was still a Nazi, though.

Overall, definitely a promising start, although the art could really use some improvement. I'm looking forward to the next three issues, and hoping my fave character will survive, both in this story and at the end of the HoM storyline. He's been dead for more than four and a half years now...

Pyro argues with Exodus about the Hulk.

In the following panel, Exodus smacks Pyro around.

March 6, 2005
Mystique #24
Unfortunately, this is the end of the Mystique series. As such, this issue has to wrap up all the loose ends created throughout the book's two-year history, and does so reasonably well, even if leaving a few openings and questions along the way.

The issue is full of revelations: some expected, some not. 'Shepard' is actually 'Francis', and the brother of Prudence (eww, they're a bit too close). The Quiet Man has Prudence inside him, as had been predicted. Fantomex isn't dead, and is helping Mystique. And Mystique saved Shortpack -- for those worried about him, he does indeed survive, which made me happy. I'd feared he would be killed off in an attempt to tie up a potential loose end and add drama, so it's nice to see that Sean McKeever didn't go in that possibly-predictable route. Nor did Mystique and Shortpack end off hating each other, although he might be annoyed that she didn't let him know she'd survived the explosion/river. I hope to see him used again in another series, although it might feel strange to see him in a different role under a different writer (having had only two writers up to this point).

I was highly amused by all the cracks about the name Francis, and even felt kind of sorry for Shepard over it. It does seem like something that smartasses like Mystique and Fantomex would repeatedly riff on, just to annoy him. And again, I like how McKeever uses Fantomex; the character has mostly annoyed me in other series, but here I've actually enjoyed him. It's not entirely clear why he's working with Mystique, but at least he's a fun addition to the story. And Mystique herself is handled well: caring towards certain people like Shortpack, cruel to her enemies, and always clever (pulling one over Forge was a nice touch). This issue -- and this series -- remind me why I started liking her in the first place, despite years of her coming across quite poorly in other books.

However, there are some questions left by the issue. How did Prudence take over the body of a man? We were told earlier in the series that she could only possess women. I'm not averse to her powers having grown or changed in some way, but it would have been nice to discover how or why. It was also a bit strange to discover that Shepard had powers; this oddity was acknowledged in the story with Fantomex declaring that he hadn't been informed about it, but it still came out of nowhere. Another strange thing in the issue might have been an art error, but without explanation, Shepard suddenly had two hands after getting one chopped off. The severing of that hand and showing it to Prudence certainly was creepy, but I guess it shows how ruthless Mystique and Fantomex can be.

It's probably clear by this point that I'm not a huge fan of Manuel Garcia's art. I've outlined my complaints in previous reviews: sketchy pencils, male faces looking too similar, and poses and storytelling are sometimes confusing. This issue has a bit of artistic weirdness too: when Shortpack injures his leg, that leg is just anatomically impossible (it's too long and seems double-jointed). The Quiet Man/Prudence/Steinbeck looks strange too; appropriately crazed, but physically varied. Sometimes he has a fairly normal body shape, but later he looks fat and misshapen. Was this a deliberate effect of what was happening to him? I don't know, but kind of doubt it. And, as mentioned in the previous paragraph, Shepard suddenly has two hands after getting one cut off, and I don't know if that's an art error or on purpose. Either Garcia made a mistake, or McKeever should have explained the scene better. Garcia does continue to draw demonstrative and clear facial expressions on many of the characters in this issue, which in my opinion has always been his art's greatest strength.

I'm going to miss this series. I thought it ended fairly well, and I've enjoyed seeing Mystique every month and acting relatively stable -- something that had been missing from other X-books. Though she was originally my favourite character when I'd started reading comics, her portrayal during the 1990s (and a bit beyond) annoyed me and made me actually dislike her. I've liked her again in her solo series, and am disappointed to be losing it. Mystique had its flaws like all series do, and I've always felt some chagrin over the lack of connections to her past, but the book was well-done, and was regularly a solid read with a strong cast. I don't think Marvel should have cancelled it.

February 12, 2005
Mystique #23
The second-last issue of the Mystique series is an interesting one. It doesn't really address some of the questions readers have been waiting for, but it does play into Mystique's established history in a way the rest of the series hasn't. The guest stars are handled quite well, and I've been waiting to see Mystique meet up with Rogue for a long time.

This issue has the first meeting between Mystique and her daughter since the infamous story in Dream's End -- in which they'd stabbed each other, making their relationship even more dysfunctional. I like the continuity utilized here, and Sean McKeever uses it in a way that isn't overwhelming or needlessly confusing. It's too bad we didn't see more of Mystique's family ties throughout the series, but I'm glad to have it here (it's also nice to see a picture of Destiny in the remains of the house; there wasn't a big deal made of it, so it too probably won't bother unfamiliar readers, but it's a nice bonus for longtime fans, and helps add to the sadness of the scene).

Rogue and Wolverine are used well in this story, rather than being gratuitous guest stars (even if the cover art seems to lean in that direction). They're in-character and their actions make sense, and they provide an actual reaction on the part of the X-Men to the attack on Xavier. All too often in comics it seems that consequences to reprehensible acts are glossed over or forgotten, so I'm pleased to see characters reacting as they should to the attempted murder of their beloved mentor. And the issue leaves Mystique with an interesting status quo: her home/sanctuary and favourite possessions are gone -- destroyed by her own hand -- and Rogue hates her. She'll also surely be persona non grata with Xavier and the X-Men, setting up future conflicts. I hope these will be followed upon the next time we see Mystique in other X-books.

On the down side, there were aspects of the story that puzzled me. The scenes at the beginning with Forge et al were not quite clear; was it Mystique herself who tipped him off, and if so, why did he nearly kill her when he came to Xavier's rescue? I understand putting on a good show for the Quiet Man and Shepard, but she did get battered around rather badly. And might they not have seen her warning Forge anyway? Mystique is later said to reach "supersonic speed" during her escape, and I don't know if I'm supposed to understand how, or if this is a mystery for the readers that may or may not be answered in the final issue. The scene of Mystique turning paper-thin to escape the explosion of her home is just strange, considering her usual limitations of changing mass, and thanks to the way the events are conveyed (or not suitably conveyed) by the art. Finally, I guess I'm surprised that the revelations and plots of Shortpack and the Quiet Man weren't really furthered, so not only was that slightly annoying, it makes me wonder if they can be adequately wrapped in just one more issue. We'll see.

I've had my share of problems with the art of Manuel Garcia in this series, and it seems to me that his work in this issue is particularly wanting. Part of my confusion mentioned in the previous paragraph is certainly due to poor artistic storytelling. Events don't really flow well in certain scenes, particularly the opening ones with Forge and Xavier in Genosha, as well as the explosion of Mystique's home, which did leave me wondering what was going on. The characters themselves looked more poorly-drawn and sketchy than in some previous issues, and some scenes have the characters posed rather awkwardly during action sequences, making it more confusing. Overall, I'm left wondering if Garcia did a rush job on the art, which is never a good impression to get.

So, there's only one issue left of Mystique. I've enjoyed the series, and hope that the final issue will clear up the questions and plots seeded throughout. It might not be a good idea to leave some of the major reveals (such as the fate of Shortpack, and true identity of the Quiet Man) until the very last issue, but we'll have to wait and see before judging.

January 17, 2005
Mystique #22
I felt that the previous issue (Mystique #21), which was part 2 of this five-part storyline, was largely filler. Unfortunately, I have a similar reaction to this issue. The Mystique series has always been one in which a reader can expect at least a good read, and this is no exception, but there's no escaping the nagging sense that the story has been padded somewhat. Perhaps it should have been a four-part story--?

In the previous issue, it was Mystique's unnecessary side mission that seemed like filler; in this one, it's a lengthy action sequence. I felt it went on too long, took up too much of the story, and was somewhat unbelievable. Sure, they nearly got her in the end, but somehow she evaded and destroyed multiple military helicopters attacking her (all without offensive powers, of course, and starting out with nothing more than a knife). She's clever and a great fighter, but she was too good, so ultimately the scene seemed contrived. I might have been more favourable to the scene if it had been shorter, but it took up a fair chunk of the story, and as such becomes a major part of it. It's a nice action sequence, conveyed well by the art, but I'm happier sacrificing some action in favour of more plot.

There's more to the issue, however. The plot moves forward, even if more slowly than I'd like. There are more clues that the Quiet Man is not exactly as he seems, and may not entirely be a 'he' at all, perhaps with a mixed-gender body, as suggested by Shortpack's surprised reaction to seeing his robe open. I've suggested that he's possessed by Prudence in previous reviews, and the clues do seem to be hinting in that direction. Certainly, something's wrong with him, and it will be interesting to see what it is when the storyline is wrapped up. I have my own theories, but they could well be wrong. The stuff I liked most about this issue was the furthering of the main story, regarding the relations between Mystique and Shepard, Mystique and Shortpack, the Quiet Man and Shortpack...and Mystique and Xavier. We all know what the Quiet Man wants Mystique to do to Xavier, and she goes about it in an interesting fashion. It remains to be seen if she's playing the Quiet Man and Shepard like they've been playing her, and it'll surely be the culmination of the long-term plot we've seen seeded throughout nearly the entire Mystique series.

Though the artistic team here is the same as in previous issues (the colourist has only been board for this storyline), I find myself liking the artwork more than usual. Readers of my previous reviews may recall some of my ongoing complaints with the art of Manuel Garcia and Raul Fernandez, but in this issue their work is more aesthetically pleasing to me, perhaps because it seems less sketchy. I'm not sure if Fernandez has changed his inking style, but it's a positive development. In addition, the colours are brighter than they were under the series' previous colourist, which makes the panels easier to follow here than they sometimes were in the past. However, the faces of male characters continue to look too similar in this book, a problem that has plagued this art team from the start, and apparently has yet to be addressed. It would be a good idea for this to be rectified, as many of the men look the same and can be difficult to distinguish at times.

The artwork in the fight scene between Mystique and the soldiers is particularly good. Garcia manages to capture the rapid dynamics of pursuit and attack, adding to the tension of the sequence, and the characters' faces show alternating desperation, excitement, anger, and fear as they battle. The art is probably the best thing about the scene, which otherwise seemed quite long and as I've said, contributed to my impression of story-padding.

The issue is a good read, despite its faults. I think writer Sean McKeever should have spent more time on the interesting interplay between the characters and the furthering of the main plot rather than the lengthy action sequence, but he crafts a good story that's worth seeing. The art also works better than in any issue since the departure of former artist Michael Ryan. There are only two issues left of the series, and hopefully they will contain the climax to a plot readers have been waiting quite a long time to see.

December 18, 2004
Mystique #21
The theme of this issue seems to be treachery. Almost every character is lying, blackmailing, or back-stabbing someone else, which certainly helps spread around the villainy and keeps any one character from being notably stand-out evil. It's kind of an interesting approach, and a nice aspect to an issue that is well-done, but is seemingly filler in an important plotline.

The 'filler' aspect is my one big problem with this issue. I enjoyed the action of the story, and it was a nice little adventure, but it's difficult to deny that it seems like padding or at least a diversion from the main plot. It does play into the overall storyline of Mystique going after Xavier at the behest of the Quiet Man, but the plot is really only advanced a little bit. The most interesting aspects of the issue (aside from the ongoing theme) are the pursuit of Mystique by the government, and the betrayal of Shortpack by his supposed friend, Shepard. Shepard and the Quiet Man torment him by pretending Mystique and Xavier have turned on him, leaving him helpless and despondent, and deliberately taunt him whilst promising to kill him. This too is more treachery, because Shepard had promised Mystique that he wouldn't kill Shortpack. So unless he double-crosses his "beloved", Shepard is lying to yet another person.

Fantomex blackmails Mystique, much to her annoyance, but she plays along (I won't discuss how she ultimately resolves the situation, but it isn't to his benefit), which provides the impetus for a good chunk of the action. Mystique then manipulates an adulterous couple betraying the hapless husband, and it would have been interesting to watch how her actions cause the husband and couple to react to each other after they've been discovered, since we only see one panel of it. So it seems that few, if any, of the people in this story are innocent, and there's plenty of treachery all around. I don't know if this is to show that for all her nasty actions, Mystique doesn't always come off as the worst person, or if it's to show that there's plenty of evil to go around, but the chessboard image shown on the cover is certainly apt.

The artwork by Manuel Garcia is about the same as it typically is; certainly very competent, but still possessing some of the flaws that keep it from being great. There's a bit more variety in the males' faces than there has been in previous issues, but Forge and Shortpack still look near-identical (aside from the obvious size difference). On the other hand, the characters' faces are very expressive and help to convey the emotions of the various situations, such as Shortpack's confusion and despondency, Fantomex's surprise and pain, and Shelly's terror at being caught by her husband. Fantomex's body language often conveys his devil-may-care attitude, which is a nice touch. And Garcia's art also provides another subtle clue that the Quiet Man is actually Prudence, if one notes the rather feminine pose 'he' adopts in one panel.

This issue's frequent incidents of treachery certainly add to the intrigue, but overall it does little to advance the main story, and that is perhaps its greatest weakness. It's something of an obvious side-track from the big plot, which is a bit frustrating for me. As much as I like the way Sean McKeever writes Fantomex (and I do), I would rather have seen more of the Xavier/Quiet Man/Shortpack story than a piece centered around Fantomex and his requested mission. In a way, it makes the issue more about him than about the ongoing plot. However, the story is well-done overall, and provides at least a pleasant diversion, even if not giving me what I wanted.

November 23, 2004
X-Men #163 and #164
I didn't get around to reviewing X-Men #163 when it first came out (due to a busy schedule), so this is sort of a review of both #163 and #164, the final two parts of the Brotherhood story. Bluntly, neither are particularly good. The art stays at the same level of quality it's had throughout the story arc --- fortunately, Marvel has kept Salvador Larroca on all four parts, which is great for consistency --- but the writing is hit and miss, and most of the characters act phenomenally stupid.

Avalanche is definitely among the stupid in the story; #163 opens with the Brotherhood standing on a hilltop overlooking the X-Men's mansion. Anyone familiar with his powers should realize he can destroy or at least damage the school from his remote vantage point, whilst staying out of the X-Men's reach. He could crush them before they even escape the building. But the Brotherhood instead head down to the school, and attack it up close. Naturally, they get their butts handed to them, and naturally, they don't actually succeed in their goal of destroying the school and killing everyone inside. The Brotherhood is held off by a blind Gambit, Northstar, and one teenage telepath, proving just how lame they are (and how much they've been de-powered -- especially Exodus). In the meantime, the X-Men dig Xorn and Havok out of the buried pit Avalanche dumped them into in the last issue; how Havok managed to breathe all that time, and how he and Xorn avoided being crushed by the tons of earth and rock is not mentioned. The X-Men then head for the school to get revenge on the Brotherhood for killing Sammy.

In #164, Mammomax finally gets to do something, and he's partially annoying and partially amusing. He insults Avalanche enough that Av freaks out and shouts "Whu --- just who do you think you are, you overgrown stuffed animal?! I'm one of the toughest super-villains ever to set foot on the face of this Earth, and I--" (he promptly gets knocked out by Northstar). I don't know what Austen thinks of Avalanche's intelligence, but the guy isn't delusional or a complete moron, and that "toughest super-villain" thing is just ridiculous. It's obviously a comedic scene, but I didn't like it.

A big melee then ensues as the Brotherhood fight the assembled X-Men, plus some students and the school cook. Black Tom the tree kills the cook and plays around with Rogue, whilst the Brotherhood generally get the stuffing beaten out of them. One amusing bit comes from Mammomax yelling at Exodus for being a dope with no plan and for how lame the Brotherhood is; obviously, it's what we're all thinking, so I liked that (it doesn't excuse the writer for making the villains incompetent, though). Juggernaut wants revenge on Tom for killing his little pal Sammy, but Tom seems unstoppable, so Nocturne possesses him with her powers. Exodus orders Avalanche to kill Tom and Nocturne (presumably so she can't turn Tom against them, though this is never mentioned), and in the only Avalanche bit I liked in the entire story, he protests "But...but Tom's one of us." This is reminiscent of the Avalanche who loyally sticks by his buddies, and is really the only time he seems like the character I remember from a few years ago. But the Brotherhood doesn't get a chance to respond, because Xorn then sucks Avalanche, Exodus, Tom, Mammomax, Nocturne, and Juggernaut into the black hole in his head. Nobody knows where they went, or if they're still alive, and this is the last we hear of them. Xorn then leaves to meditate over what he's done, and the story pretty much ends.

So. I can't say I'm pleased that one of my favourite characters was so badly handled, and then handily sent into limbo (possibly dead, although I'm guessing not). I'm a big fan of the Brotherhood teams, and this one was horrible. They were all stupid and under-powered (except Tom, who was rather powerful and at least had a plan, even if it sucked), and were just made into an embarrassment. The X-Men acted pretty stupid too, which doesn't make any of the characters look good. Exodus could once have defeated most of these characters single-handedly, but here he and the Brotherhood together can't handle them. And why did the Brotherhood go into battle with the barest of plans? It's like they didn't even think it out in advance. So I feel fairly confident in saying this is the worst Brotherhood ever, which is just sad. However, considering the general quality of Chuck Austen's overall work on the X-Men titles, this isn't really a surprise.

It's nice that Larroca maintained continuity between issues; I like that he remembered to depict Avalanche's helmet as badly damaged after the hit he took in #162. Tom's tree look is visually impressive, even if he does look a bit silly and his roots rather like tentacles. The colours are kind of muted, though, which is fairly easy to look at and determine what's going on, but they're also kind of subdued. I like the way Larroca draws most of the characters, and they are generally attractive to look at, but Avalanche's costume is just horrid. It's based on pre-existing armours he's had, but Larroca brought back the big 'A' on his chest and even put one on his back too, and made it look more like a vest than an armoured chestplate. Silly. I hope he'll look more impressive the next time he shows up. And Mammomax is just plain amusing to look at, even if it's in a bit of a 'train wreck' way.

Overall, this four-part story was fairly laughable and forgettable. I suppose there's something to be said for big fight scenes (and lots of them), but there's really no point to them if the characters are acting like idiots. You just end up rolling your eyes and mocking them. Still, a lot of people online seem very pleased now: this story marks the end of Austen's tenure on the X-books, and hopefully, a new era. I just wish characters I like didn't have to be messed around with in the meantime.

Also, please excuse the egotism, but I'm happy to say that I helped with the bios of Pyro and Destiny in The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Book of the Dead 2004, and even got credit for it! Since I worked on part of the book (just a little bit), I'm not going to review it, but I will offer a few opinions on the two FFers' entries. I helped with the written bios, but I did not choose the pictures and did not see the power grids ahead of time. The pic and power stats given for Destiny seem fine; however, I don't care for the Pyro picture (it's an old one, used on his action figure package and a few other things) and two of his stats are incorrect, in my opinion. That's too bad, and I've never liked those stat grids, but I suppose that's life.

Also, the book could have used some more proof-reading; whilst I didn't see any goofs in the FFers' entries, there are some obvious ones in entries for other characters. Otherwise, I think the book is pretty keen, and am glad to have helped, because I fixed some errors in Pyro's and Destiny's rough drafts, and wrote some of the paragraphs.

November 19, 2004
Mystique #20
This issue kicks off another five-part storyline by Sean McKeever, and I'm quite impressed. McKeever's debut story arc on this title was something of a disappointment, but this issue is considerably better, and I very much enjoyed it. Hopefully the rest of the arc will be this good.

The issue had a lot of things I enjoyed. It had all the characters I like best in the series, and frankly, I felt they were written more in-character here than they were in McKeever's first storyline. I liked Mystique's brief reference to her children and lost love Irene; it's bothered me since the series began that they've scarcely been mentioned, even though they're very important to the title character. There's also something of a return to the book's trademark witticisms under Brian K. Vaughan, and certain characters are genuinely funny. And of course, there's the reveal of the Quiet Man's identity, a long-simmering plot in the series. We learn that he's actually Steinbeck, the killer of previous agent Prudence from the first issue, and poor Shortpack learns this too late. He'd made an alliance with the Quiet Man's lackey Shepard to get revenge on Steinbeck, not realizing he was being played. However, there are some hints in the letters column that all is not as it seems, and I have my suspicions of what's going on...the way Shortpack has always talked about Prudence makes her sound far too saintly, and we know she could at least possess women. Perhaps she gained the ability to take over men? We'll see.

The benefits Mystique will get from the Quiet Man for doing his bidding are quite believable, as she herself points out, so it's a relief to see characters doing things for smart reasons. All too often it seems that characters in fiction will do or accept stupid things just to further the plot, presumably for the convenience of the writer. Mystique is an intelligent character, and while even clever people do foolish things at times, it's nice to see her intelligence reflected in the plot. At the same time, her 'patron' Charles Xavier, who has always disliked her, is expectedly hard on her and not willing to tolerate dissent. He sets the plot in motion by forcing her to obey him, and changes her status quo completely by the end of the issue. It'll be interesting to see how long this change lasts, and how it affects her, particularly because it's at the heart of the series' entire premise!

And finally, I found the characters themselves entertaining and likable, and am certainly interested in what happens to them. I've never liked Fantomex before, but he was amusing and well-used here. His appearance may or may not be a gratuitous cameo (perhaps depending on if he appears in future issues), but it was a good one. Even Forge's crankiness was rather funny, and he gets some good lines to keep the story hopping. Shortpack was less bitchy ---something that had annoyed me about McKeever's previous issues--- and his confusion at Shepard's betrayal and the Quiet Man's final reveal was kind of sad. The cliffhanger is definitely a good one to make the reader want to come back for more.

I'm also slightly happier with the art in this issue. Manuel Garcia's male characters still look too similar, which sometimes causes problems for me in the story; for instance, there's a tuxedo-clad man in the casino scene that I at first thought was supposed to be Forge. But no, Forge turns out to be dressed casually, and is somewhere outside the casino. It's irritating to be unable to tell some of the characters apart, and I keep hoping this will be fixed. However, the colouring in the issue has a lot of lighter tones, making it clearer to understand, and more pleasant to look at. It's worth noting that there's a different colourist in this issue than most of the previous ones (I believe former colourist Matt Milla took over with Vaughan's second storyline), and whilst I'd be glad to see the previous colourist return to the book, I'd hope he would take a cue from the lighter colouring used in this issue.

Overall, I was very impressed with this issue, and felt more pleased about reading Mystique than I have in a while. The series had seemingly started to slip in recent months, and this is a great start for a new story, and hopefully a positive sign for the book as a whole. With any luck, McKeever's future stories will continue to capture the same sense of timing and characterization that made this issue so successful.

October 29, 2004
Mystique #19
This issue of Mystique is a quick one-shot story before the arc fans have been jonesing to see: the identity of the Quiet Man. That doesn't mean this issue is pointless or bad; it does advance several plot points, and is a nice little adventure. However, while a good jumping-on point for new readers, it's not a particularly noteworthy issue.

Mystique accompanies Shepard on a mission to retrieve something from HYDRA, after he pleads that he needs her help and that she's the only person he trusts (we've already seen her have run-ins with HYDRA before, and while these aren't mentioned, it's nice that her dislike of them is strongly emphasized). She later realizes he's manipulating her, though is apparently unaware of the degree to which the reader is privy. Regardless, she sleeps with him, which I found slightly creepy; this may be a ploy of her own to get him on her side, but she's also aware of the ploy he just pulled to get her on his. It's not exactly a healthy relationship. (As an aside, something mostly not to do with the Mystique series, she's slept with quite a few men in issues published over the past couple of years, mostly in stories by Chuck Austen. It kind of makes one wonder who she hasn't slept with).

Shortpack's conflict with her is interesting, but slightly disappointing. What I most liked about him when he was introduced was his unrelenting cheerfulness, and almost constant positive attitude; since Sean McKeever took over the writing duties on this series, Shortpack's been angry and negative towards her because of her ruthlessness. This is somewhat understandable, given his rather Boy Scout-like leanings (except when it came to the man who killed Prudence), but he seemed to get along fine with her before, and now he's suddenly done a quick change. It almost seems to have come out of nowhere, especially since he surely already knew about her hardened past. He'd be a lousy field handler if he didn't know what she's been doing for the past few decades. Now he doesn't want to manage her anymore, and tells Xavier he'll quit if he's forced to stay with her. On the plus side, the pint-sized obstacle course he runs on Xavier's desk is very cute, and a good visual gag.

The issue leaves us with some questions, the most obvious one being the identity of the Quiet Man, which we'll presumably find out next issue (or at least sometime in the storyline). I liked the way it was revealed to Mystique but not to us, as well as her surprised but understated reaction. Presumably it's someone she (and possibly we) knows, but not somebody terribly shocking. It's good that the series isn't dragging on the question for too long, and it'll be nice to finally have it out in the open, if only so people will stop trying to guess it in the letters page. The other question I have is based on the opening scene: we see Mystique in the shower, with discarded clothes on the floor, and later she tells Shepard that the towel is real but otherwise she's always naked despite the appearance of clothes. As far as we know, she doesn't shed her skin, so what were those clothes on the floor? Is it just an art error? Heck, why even bother with the towel when creeping up on an intruder? This may seem like a nitpicky fan question, but I've always been leery about the clothes-changing aspect of her power and the iffy revelation earlier in this series that she's always naked, so it would be nice to have a concrete and consistent answer for it. I'd have preferred some comic book-y explanation like wearing unstable molecule clothes, which plenty of people in the Marvel universe seem to have, are conveniently all-purpose, and would avoid iffy situations like this one.

All my opinions of Manuel Garcia's artwork have pretty much been said before: many of his male characters' faces look similar, his art can be somewhat sketchy at times (although perhaps that's the work of the inker), and in general I don't find it aesthetically pleasing. Some of this is completely subjective, of course, although it does concern me that these trends have continued throughout the past six issues or so. I wish he'd differentiate the men's faces more, because at times it seems only the hair or clothes can be used to tell the characters apart. The way he draws Shortpack and Forge, for instance, is nearly identical. The scene in which Shepard and Mystique confront Richter in his office was done well, though, largely because of the expressive faces and bright colours. Many scenes in this series ---and in this very issue--- have murky colouring, so it's a nice change to see a scene with bright, airy colours.

This was a nice little issue, a few quibbles notwithstanding. It's nice not to have long, drawn-out storylines all the time, even if the main plot itself was relatively inconsequential. The next story arc will probably be an explosive one, picking up on some long-running plotlines, so having a breather between arcs is pleasant, and will likely get readers juiced up for the Big Reveal.

October 3, 2004
X-Men #162
Here we've got part 2 of Chuck Austen's Brotherhood storyline...and it's not really that bad. Shocked the hell out of me, that's for sure. I wouldn't say it's up to the standards of some of the better X-Men writers, but I actually kind of liked the issue. So. The Brotherhood is hanging out in the woods near the X-Men's mansion for some unspecified reason, and when new arrival Juggernaut notices Nocturne, he announces that he knows who she is. She runs off in terror as he chases her, and when he catches her, he seemingly beats her to death---I'm certain he faked it, though, because he whispers something to her. Then Juggernaut's friend Sammy (the little fish kid he befriended) sees him 'attack' her, and angrily tells him off. Juggy's upset that Sammy hates him for his violence, but Black Tom cheerfully kills the kid, and Juggy goes nuts on him. He tears Tom apart (somehow, Tom's able to chastise him as his face is being torn off), and generally acts crazy. He punches Avalanche so hard that it dents his helmet (see the picture below), and the X-Men are attracted to the commotion. During the ensuing fight, Avalanche somehow gets up and shatters Iceman into water and chunks of ice, and then buries/crushes Havok and Xorn after they've been downed by Sabretooth and Exodus. Triumphantly (even though we don't see what happens to the *other* X-Men who entered the fight), they ---including Tom, who's not hurt at all--- announce their decision to kill the rest of the X-Men.

Nocturne is 'dead', and Juggernaut is furious with the BoM, so their ranks have suddenly been depleted. Remaining with the team are Avalanche, Exodus, Black Tom, Sabretooth, and Mammomax. Mammomax doesn't get to do anything in this issue, not even speak, so he's rather wasted here, and so far just seems like a warm body taking up space. I found the scene of Tom chiding Juggernaut rather calmly as he's torn apart quite funny: "Really, Cain! Is this any way to behave?!", particularly because his mouth and an eye were actually separated from his body by that point. I guess it's difficult to kill (or silence) a talking mutant tree. Juggernaut's grief over Sammy's death and hatred was actually well done and believable, as was his furious "You --- are --- DEAD!" threat to Tom. Sammy himself was slightly annoying, but I liked Juggernaut in this issue, which is somewhat rare for me. Exodus and Sabretooth are just...there...and not very interesting, although Exodus' occasional wry comments provided at least some amusement. He doesn't act anything like he used to, though, and while I hate the old Exodus' guts, there really should be some consistency.

I'm not sure what to say about Avalanche in this issue. It's very hard to believe he could quickly bounce back from one of Juggernaut's punches, one so hard it severely dented his helmet. But he does, and is far more aggressive (and deadly) to the X-Men than he's ever really been before. He looked rather maniacal as he grappled with Iceman, and then of course managed to shatter him. I'm sure Iceman will pull himself back together, but that was an interesting scene: unlike the dumb scene with Rogue in the previous issue, it's actually sensible that Av can use his powers directly on Iceman. So what's up with Dom here? How'd he shrug off that kind of punch, and what's made him so...nasty? (besides squishing three X-Men, he and the others just stood by as Nocturne and Sammy were killed, even though he'd defended Nocturne moments earlier.) And why's he hanging out with these guys? As I've said over the past few years, he'd had a kind of redemption theme going throughout much of the 1990s, and then suddenly in Dream's End made a complete change which has stuck ever since. I don't necessarily mind that, but I would like an explanation, because otherwise it just seems like the writers weren't paying attention to his earlier appearances. I might have believed he'd become embittered/changed after Pyro's death, except Pyro was alive until partway through Dream's End, trying to stop the scheme of Av and the rest of the then-Brotherhood. So I'm not really getting where all of this violence comes from. Regardless, Avalanche's battle prowess is very impressive in this issue, though I'm sure he's earned himself a severe beating when the X-Men regroup.

I liked the art and colours for the most part, although the inking was a bit heavy in places. One of the panels of Avalanche grappling with Iceman is very heavily inked with thick lines, and I don't like the aesthetics of the result. Tom just looks plain funny/silly, and there's a nice job done on Sabretooth and Juggernaut. Avalanche looks weird in quite a few panels, whether it's from his maniacal expression, or just the way the artist draws his face, helmet, and armour --- though it's a nice touch to have his helmet dented in all the panels after getting hit by Juggy, and I hope the artist remembers this for the rest of the storyline. So this issue is a distinct improvement over the last one, and maybe there's hope for the overall story yet. Hopefully, Austen's other issues will be more like this one, and less like Part One, and that we'll get some explanations for some of the stranger plot developments (including ol' Mammomax).

September 18, 2004
X-Men #161
Most of the time, I try to write out a thoughtful and thorough piece whenever I review a comic. If you've read any of the reviews of the Mystique series I've done for ComiX-Fan (and later posted on my own site), you may note that I try to intelligently discuss the plot and characters, as well as the overall story arc, and carefully analyze the art.

This won't be one of those reviews.

This is a Chuck Austen issue. Austen has his fans, but for the most part, he isn't particularly popular with Marvel readers. That's probably why this is his last storyline on the X-books (for now, at least), but he managed to get in a four-part story with the Brotherhood of (Evil) Mutants before leaving. And this is surely the most random grouping of Brotherhood members we've ever seen. We've got: Avalanche, Exodus, Sabretooth, Black Tom, Mammomax (a big elephant guy), Nocturne (seemingly via coercion)...and Juggernaut as the surprise member. They attack some Philadelphia landmark for no apparent reason, although they proclaim they're out to enslave humanity. Anyway, everybody has some lame lines, and the Brotherhood gets beaten up but somehow escapes. Then the X-Men interact amongst themselves, and we see a bitchy Iceman, a bitchy Gambit, and Polaris acts less psycho (the only thing I liked about the issue). Havok is dumped by Nurse Annie, and Sammy's mom is already lusting after Juggernaut. The Brotherhood ---living in the woods--- grumble to themselves that someone must have tipped off the X-Men to their scheme...they plot to attack the mansion, and out steps *dramatic music* ...Juggernaut.

I can't help but rant about Avalanche's role in the issue. Firstly, his one and only line is extraordinarily lame. "Hey, Rogue! Wanna shake things up, for old time's sake? Too bad ya don't hang with the Brotherhood anymore, babe...then I wouldn't have to---urk!" Yeah, I'd hit him too, and he's my second-favourite character. Secondly, the art seems to depict him using his powers directly against her. Being unable to affect/attack living tissue directly has always been a major limitation of his powers and character, so I find it very hard to believe that this restriction has suddenly been lifted, and if it has, then somebody should damn well mention it. It's a big deal, because it would make him vastly more powerful and dangerous (imagine him just shattering the bones of all his opponents). And finally, his chestplate looks more like a warm vest than metal armour, which is silly, and he now has that big letter 'A' on the front and back. Having it on just the front looked foolish enough before.

It's also difficult to take a talking tree seriously, and yet that's what Black Tom Cassidy is these days. He's literally a walking tree with a goofy-looking face, and uses his very long roots as tentacles. He also seems to be the mastermind of the team, so this Brotherhood is able to boast they're being led by a tree. Exodus, always a powerful arrogant jerk, gets beaten with one shot from Havok, and is surprisingly subdued here (plus he can't figure out who tipped off the X-Men, despite his incredible telepathy). And why's he trying to enslave humanity, when the last time we saw him, he was all lovey-dovey about humans and mutants on Genosha? As for Sabretooth, what place does he have with these guys? He's become far too over-exposed these days, so I can't help but feel he's here just for name recognition and kewlness. Finally, there's Mammomax, who's at least kind of funny in a strange way.

Well, there are three more issues left in this story, so maybe we'll get some answers to some of these questions. I'm honestly not holding my breath, because I haven't liked Austen's work in quite some time, and I don't see why it'd pick up now. I do hope he'll write Avalanche better in the future, but the story will probably focus more on Juggernaut and Black Tom, for obvious reasons. Nocturne will probably also be fairly prominent due to her unusual status in the story. I don't really think Juggernaut has gone bad again, but if he does, it won't be a problem for me, because I never really bought into his reformation anyway.

All in all, it was a mediocre story with reasonably good art (even if I disliked the way Avalanche looked), and not really worth your time unless you count yourself amongst the legions of the damned also known as comics completists.

August 22, 2004
Mystique #17
This is part four of a five issue storyline, so things are beginning to wrap up. It's a big improvement over the last issue, which largely felt like filler material and was thus somewhat dull. I'm not sure Sean McKeever should have started his run on the Mystique series with a five-part story; it was ambitious, but it's not uncommon for writers to take a while to get a 'feel' for a book when they take over for another writer, and perhaps he'd have been better served to write a shorter story for his debut. However, it's not like his work has been poor so far, and I liked this issue fairly well.

What I like most about this issue is the story; Mystique's role is a clever bit of misdirection, and I was genuinely surprised by it. The obvious set-up was to have her as the young Frenchman, or possibly the American girl, but her as the potential slave-buyer was totally unexpected. One aspect I'd like to see McKeever focus on in future stories is her amazing acting skills, because usually we see more of an emphasis on her physical abilities. But she'd never be able to pull off the schemes she does without her aptitude to slip easily into multiple roles or her ability to mimic other people. Did she learn it through trial and error? Did she have any formal training? Or (as I've long suspected) does she have some kind of low-key psionic or sensory powers to help her pull off some of the stunts she does? It's an interesting question, to say the least.

Another thing I liked about the issue is McKeever's use of characterization for some of the story's incidental characters, like Luc, the twins, and the DermaFree mutants. The villains of the storyline have suffered somewhat in this department, unfortunately, but McKeever makes us care about the fates of the innocent mutants, even when they're annoying (Jura's whining comes to mind). It would be too easy to make them mere cannon fodder. I do wish the villains were more fleshed out, because as it is, they seem to have very simple motivations, and aren't particularly interesting. I also like Mystique's humourous explanation for why she was 'mind-silent' with Shortpack, but considering that it's a major part of his motivation in the story, it does come across as a bit simplistic. Shouldn't he be able to tell if she's silent because she's incapacitated, or if it's just because she's ignoring him? Perhaps there should have been another mitigating factor at work, such as she had a device to jam his powers, or something was wrong with him, and that's why he couldn't tell what was wrong with her. It isn't a major problem in the issue, but the resolution to his big concern turned out to be pretty easy. His reaction to it was amusing, however, considering that's probably what I would have done in his place.

Shortpack doesn't get a lot of page time in the issue, but he certainly caught my attention. I like his single-minded dedication to rescuing Mystique despite his annoyance with her, and feeling responsible for her life and the now-deceased Prudence's. His scenes are fun, like they often are; I love his little roller blades and his struggles to make his way in a very tall world. I guess I kind of wonder why nobody noticed him (he may be small, but he's not invisible), and it's kind of too bad no one did, as Brian K. Vaughan's scenes with someone reacting to his tiny size were some of the funniest. But my main reaction to how he's behaved since McKeever took over is to wonder why he's so ...well... bitchy these days. I liked his relentless cheerfulness and usual friendliness to Mystique under Vaughan, and now he mostly gripes at her, calling her "Psycho" (not that I blame him). Since this is a distinct change in the character from Vaughan to McKeever, I hope it will be addressed in the near future; perhaps it is a plot point? There don't seem to be any hints toward that, and Mystique herself hasn't really commented on the change, so I wonder if it's not deliberate. In my mind, that would be a shame.

I'm still not thrilled with the art since the new creative team took over. There's not really much to say that I haven't said before: I still find it sketchy, certain characters' faces look too similar, and overall I find the art unattractive. It's usually competent in story-telling, though, so that can't be faulted. But apart from the visuals in a few select panels, I'm not fond of the work, and it's kind of a letdown after the fine artwork the series has had in the past.

As McKeever's first storyline on Mystique almost draws to a close, I'm happy that this issue is better than the last one. At the same time, the arc has had its ups and downs. Hopefully the final issue will wrap up all the plotlines (there was very little about the Mystique clones in this issue, for instance) in a satisfying manner, although I can't help but wonder if the arc's overall pacing has been a bit off, and one issue will be enough to finish the story properly. Time will tell.

August 16, 2004
Exiles #50 (quick review)
The Exiles end up at a world with a Brotherhood similar to the classic Mystique's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and Destiny has anticipated their arrival. Mystique creates a plan to impersonate Blink and manipulate the Exiles into getting the BoEM back together, and springing their world's Mimic (who seems to be their leader/pal, and a scary guy indeed) from prison. She and Avalanche carry out the impersonation scheme, by drugging Blink and taking her place; they then recruit Blob from his bank-robbin' activities, and rescue Pyro from AIM (where he's being held prisoner for some unexplained reason). The fake Blink has successfully gotten the Exiles to help with the early stages of her plan, and the two teams will soon make an attempt to break into the Vault.

It was awesome to see the Brotherhood again, even if it's not the same one as we know...it's close enough to pretend ;) Sassy Destiny was fun, as was jokey Avalanche, and goofy bank-robbing Blob. Writer Tony Bedard handled the team wonderfully, and I liked this issue a lot. But I'm greedy, and want more Pyro and Avalanche, so hopefully they'll get to do more in #51.

The art is pretty cool in places, for most of the issue. I don't like the artist's rendition of Pyro's uniform, which is even tackier than the old one it was based on during the early 1980s. There are a few problems depicting the action scenes, and the released cover to #51 is bizarrely horrid. However, the depictions of female characters are lovely, and the artist pulls off some expressive faces to help the story along, which are always a plus.

I'm kind of wondering about the possible significance of one little detail; are Pyro's eyes coloured red for a reason, or is it just the colourist being weird? They're red in #50, and red on the cover of #51. Might this tie into his inexplicable captivity at the clutches of AIM? Mimic's eyes are notably a bright blue, as Pyro's should be, so it's not a question of the colour being unable to show up properly in the issue. Or it might just be an art error, which would be unfortunate, as I've now gotten to like the idea of something strange involved with Pyro --- it'd be nice for there to be a good reason for his absence in much of #50.

August 5, 2004
Exiles #50
Here's my favourite panel from the issue! (review pending, hopefully). It's an alternate reality Mystique (in disguise) with Avalanche. The issue also features Destiny, Blob, and Pyro.

July 28, 2004
Mystique #16
At the third issue into Sean McKeever's run on Mystique...I find myself with not much to say. The issue is decently good, not breath-taking, but certainly not a waste of anyone's time. All the same, the story feels somewhat padded, and there isn't much to discuss that I haven't already said about his previous two issues. This could be a bad sign, but I'm mindful that this is only McKeever's first story arc since taking over the series.

The plotline about DermaFree and its activities is advanced, but it's done too slowly. There are scenes that could have been briefer, and in a five-part storyline, this is why it seems like the plot has been padded to stretch it out. We'll see once this story has been concluded, but I suspect it could be told in four issues. I didn't really care about the lengthy fight scene with the two bruisers, because they aren't particularly compelling characters; they're bruisers, and that's it (although the Hans and Franz reference is amusing). Helena Carlson is a better villain, but we don't see much of her in this issue. Anyway, the fight scene should have been shorter, and perhaps we could have seen more of Helena, Viktor, or maybe even Mystique herself, pontificating on what the use of her cloned embryos mean for her and others. Also, an explanation of what exactly is being done with the embryos and the captive mutants would be useful, because the use of the latter is somewhat vague. We know that they're guinea pigs, but what has been done to them?

The issue briefly brings back Jura, the Czech-speaking boy from the story opener. I'm not sure if he's supposed to be a significant character, or if he's here just as a bit of continuity from early on. He does use his powers to help everyone escape from DermaFree's lab, and he also appears in a strange mindscape/group dream that the captive mutants seemed to have been trapped in until inadvertently awakened by Shortpack. It will be interesting to see if this dream state was caused by Viktor's powers, and it will probably become significant in the next issue, thanks to the cliffhanger ending. However, I'm wondering if there will really be enough plot to fill out two more issues, hence my concern about story padding. But one thing I did like is Shortpack lecturing Mystique about her legendary selfishness; right or wrong, it's something I've wanted to do for a long time! She actually has a good reason for it in this case, so perhaps he picked the wrong moment, but there are a whole bunch of characters who could realistically chew her out for it, and it's nice to see someone confront her about it in her own series.

As for the artwork, there truly isn't much to say about it that I haven't already mentioned in previous reviews. I'm still not particularly fond of it, but it's serviceable, and thankfully it does a better job of storytelling this time around. Last issue had some genuinely confusing panels which made it difficult to ascertain what was happening, but that isn't really a problem here. Manuel Garcia's art does seem sketchier-looking than before, but that's likely due to having a new inker (Jay Leisten, as opposed to usual inker Raul Fernandez). I find that the faces of a lot of the women drawn by Garcia --- aside from Mystique herself, who's helped by her unique colouring --- look similar, and a fair amount of the men look alike, too. This is a bit of an ongoing problem, but particularly noticeable in this issue, which could also be the effect of the new inker. And finally, there is the weirdness of Mystique's face changing direction and the electrical device emerging from her forehead during the fight, which may have been the writer's idea, but they seem like a terrible stretch to me. It's one thing to accept that morphing her abdomen and hiding things in there can be done, but a head is full of skull and brain, and should be far less flexible to drastic change. I just end up rolling my eyes when Mystique does things with her powers that are rather convenient and implausible.

This issue is not McKeever's best so far. It isn't terrible, but the padded story and sketchy art kind of bored me at times. Ideally, the pace will pick up in the remaining two parts of the storyline to make it a better read as an overall arc in a trade paperback. However, I do admit to some pessimism, and hope that McKeever will have worked out the new-series kinks in time for his second story arc.

June 11, 2004
Mystique #15
This issue is the second of new Mystique writer Sean McKeever, and continues his first story arc, "Unnatural". As with the previous issue, I'm liking the writing more than the artwork, which I find somewhat lacking. However, McKeever is still able to deliver a fairly solid story that helps raise the issue above the middling art.

There were a few things in particular that I liked about the story, and they were mostly 'concepts'. While it is a bit convenient that DermaFree's scheme involves Mystique --unless of course Xavier really did know about their connection-- it's an interesting twist, and it makes sense. I imagine that Mystique's cells could be useful in a lot of medical research and cures, so in a way it's strange that something like this has rarely happened before (there was once a plot involving her and organ harvesting, but it was a fairly different scenario). I like how the clones have made this mission personal for her, and there's a real-world aspect to the science behind the story, although as a humourous aside, she might recall that clones are hardly rare in the Marvel universe! I was amused by Shortpack's jetpack, and hope we see it sometime in the future; confusing art notwithstanding, the scene with him finally getting some real action was fun.

It's interesting that Shepard really seems to care about Mystique's well-being. While it could be a ruse to gain her trust, I felt it was genuine. Might this signify a change in the dynamics of their interpersonal dealings, possibly leading to him truly helping her and maybe even turning on the Quiet Man? It's certainly worth thinking about, and I hope we'll see more of his behaviour in the near future so we can get a better understanding of him. There was certainly some humour in this issue, although not as much of the snappy patter we grew accustomed to under former writer Brian K. Vaughan. I enjoyed the "out of shape" gag, but the artwork kind of dropped the ball on it, drawing both Mystique and Shortpack as tiny black silhouettes and causing me to at first think it was the same person (Mystique) complaining in both scenes. The art should have distinguished the two of them better, which would have improved the mechanics of the joke. Overall, the issue moved the plot along well and there were a few good bits, but otherwise I found the story fairly unremarkable: definitely solid and entertaining, but neither great nor bad. This could be because it's in the middle of a five-part storyline, so I hope it'll pick up as the action really gets going.

The penciling of Manuel Garcia combined with the inking by Raul Fernandez is again the issue's weakest aspect. Some of it left me scratching my head, frankly, and overall I found it wanting. The main problems are with the depictions of Mystique and Shortpack in various scenes, largely because Garcia puts them in confusing situations. For instance, I had difficulty figuring out what was going on when Shortpack attempts and then manages to burst out of her abdomen; the action was not clear, and thus the impact was somewhat lessened. And Shortpack looks almost normal-sized in that scene, which adds to the confusion. I like the concept of the scene, which is funny, but the art in it is disappointing, to say the least. Another problem comes from the depiction of Mystique's powers --whatever she's doing-- shortly afterward, when she seems to be phasing through a wall. Is she phasing through the wall? That's not one of her powers. The only other explanation I can think of is that she's blending in with her background very well, but that's not what it looks like. Either way, the art team did a poor job conveying what is happening in that panel.

I'm not even sure what to think about Mystique's jet wings, but it struck me as bizarre. I'd be interested to find out if McKeever's script specified that her wings look like those of a jet airplane, or if that's the way the art team decided they should look (Mystique has grown and used wings before, but they have always been ones that flapped like those of a living creature). For the most part, Mystique herself looks fine in the issue, and her emotions --in an emotional story for her-- are conveyed well. On the other hand, I don't understand why Shortpack doesn't really look like he used to; his hair looks black in most scenes which seems like an odd thing to change, and his face doesn't have the upbeat expressions he used to often have and were sort of his hallmark. As a minor observation, Shepard isn't smiling all the time like he used to, and given the way Shortpack's depiction has changed, I don't know if that's just an artistic idiosyncrasy or a development of Shepard's character (in showing concern for Mystique's safety). Finally, there are positive aspects to the art in this issue, most notably the backgrounds, which are nicely detailed without overly drawing attention to themselves. They help to establish the setting in all the scenes, such as the street in Salzburg, and are a pleasant addition to the book. I simply wonder why the care that obviously went into them didn't carry over into making the main action more clear and understandable.

Overall, I would say that my relative disappointment with the art dragged down my opinion of the issue. The art isn't bad like I've seen in some comics, but it's not really to my liking, and I've detailed most of the technical problems with it already. I gave the issue better marks for the story itself, which is solid enough though nothing that really shakes me by the lapels (hmm, I like that imagery). McKeever is so far doing a fairly good job taking over the series from Vaughan, although I am hoping things will pick up, either in this story arc or the next.

May 26, 2004
Mystique #14
This issue marks the beginning of new writer Sean McKeever's stint on the Mystique series, part of the "X-Men: Reload" overhaul in the X-books. McKeever is teamed up with artist Manuel Garcia, whose work we saw a few issues ago during the "Maker's Mark" storyline, and Garcia is set to be the series' new regular penciler. The creative team gets off to a good start here, although perhaps it'll take a couple of issues for them to really get into the groove; I found this issue fairly well done, but some things seemed slightly 'off'.

There's certainly one thing notable about this issue: it's the first in which Mystique's bisexuality is made clearly overt, which is not a change, but rather a clarification. Many other writers have hinted at it or skipped over it in the past, even though it's supposed to have been part of her character for decades, but here her attraction to a woman is particularly obvious. While some industry commentators have complained that recently Marvel has become "conservative", it's nice to see that in this series, the creative team is willing to go out on a limb with a character starring in her own book. This was one of a few things I liked about the issue; I also enjoyed Shortpack's fannish joke about the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, as well as Helena Carlson's clever reply to the old cliché about true beauty only being on the inside. "They only say that because they can't afford my services". McKeever has certainly gotten the series' trademark wit and patter down properly, which is a good sign.

Mystique's dialogue sounds much like it did under previous writer Brian K. Vaughan, which helps keep the writing change less jarring than it might be. On the other hand, I felt Shortpack was perhaps a bit off, even though I can't completely figure out why; I think it's perhaps that he didn't seem cheery or joking enough, as he usually does and has become his hallmark. This was a slight disappointment, though hopefully McKeever just needs some time to get comfortable in his new series. I also felt that Helena was a bit easily dismissive of the suffering of her mutant test subjects, for although she may not see them as human, surely she cannot equate them with rodents. Mutants can speak and have the intellectual capabilities of everybody else, so it's difficult to understand why someone would think of them as so lowly; on the other hand, maybe I'm just not familiar with the arguments of genuine stupid bigots (and there certainly are many of them in the real world).

Perhaps the strangest aspect of this issue was the five page opening sequence, which had dialogue in Czech without an English translation. I'm not sure I understand the point of such a concept, although it isn't completely new. Why keep readers in the dark? I asked a co-worker to translate it for me, and although Czech isn't her native language, she gave me the gist of it; fortunately I can say that the art mostly captures the action of the untranslated scene, but it's still a bit frustrating. The boy, Jura, escaped from Dermafree and seeks help from the shop girl, asking about a woman; when the commandos come in, they say they'll kill him if they can't take him back, and he surrenders. Much of the dialogue in this story is spoken in foreign languages, and it seems pointless to translate some of it, but not all of it. I don't know if McKeever's intent was for the opening scene to be mysterious, hinting but not giving us all the clues at once, or if it was just to look clever.

I actually prefer Garcia's art in the previous story he penciled, but am hoping that he just needs to settle in as the regular series artist. He may have simply had more time to work on the two-issue fill-in, but will now need to adjust to being the main penciler. He's teamed up with the inker from his other work, Raul Fernandez, as well as colourist Matt Milla, a Mystique series veteran. To be honest, I found the art a bit disappointing here. It's certainly very utilitarian, and conveys the action of the story quite well, but it's not as aesthetically pleasing as the work of previous penciler Michael Ryan, or even Garcia's last story as I said before. The visual depiction of Mystique's shapechanging looks a bit odd, with oily-looking 'tendrils' creeping across her body, and not much like what we've seen in previous issues of the series. Helena Carlson is obviously supposed to be a beautiful woman, and looks as such in her first couple of pages (very effectively, I might add), but she looks rather ugly in the rest of the book, which is surely not the intention. However, the art team does such a good job depicting the action and emotions of the characters that they deserve commendation; this is obviously their strength, and it's an important one. Still, I hope the aesthetics of the visuals will improve in future issues.

McKeever has gotten off to a mostly promising start on the series, and hopefully he and Garcia can smooth out the rough edges. I'm certainly willing to cut some more slack at the beginning of a writer/artist's new run. The storyline could prove to be an interesting one, as we may end up seeing more about Mystique's largely unknown past when she returns to her home country of Austria, and I'm looking forward to it. There are some improvements to be made, but certainly they're not insurmountable ones, and with any luck, McKeever will enjoy a quality run on the series.

May 10, 2004
Mystique #13
Sadly, this issue marks the end of Mystique writer Brian K. Vaughan's tenure on the title. New writer Sean McKeever takes over next month, and it will be interesting to see if he can match the tone and pace Vaughan has set for the series. Here, Vaughan gives us a standalone story about Mystique and Shortpack, and wraps up one mystery whilst leaving others open for McKeever to cover.

As a single-issue story, the plot is simple enough; Mystique is on a mission to retrieve a MacGuffin (a dead mutant's hand), which provides the impetus for the action and the characters we meet. The interesting stuff comes from the interaction between the characters, and the potential for double-crossing that working with Shepard can cause. Shepard himself is the source of the main tension in the story, as we learn that he and his boss want Mystique to kill Charles Xavier, and the reason Shortpack is communicating with him is because Shortpack wants revenge on the man who killed his last agent. I'm sure Mystique's new dilemma---should she kill Xavier to gain her freedom?---will provide some of the tension in McKeever's upcoming storylines. As for Shortpack, his reason for dealing with Shepard makes perfect sense, though I'm not sure why he doesn't want Mystique to know about it. There's also a possible hint to the Quiet Man's identity in something said to him by Shepard, which I find very interesting indeed.

There are other aspects I like about the story: the scene with Shortpack and the cat is funny and cute (maybe I'm just a sucker for cats), and the veiled reference to Mystique's longtime lover Destiny is delightful. Readers familiar with Mystique's history will likely catch the reference, and new readers will probably not be bothered about missing it. While I'd love to have more overt mentions of Mystique's past, this is a great start and very pleasing to me. I also liked her entirely sensible sympathy to the young transsexual person, which is fitting considering her own flexible sexuality and obviously flexible physical form. She can change herself as she pleases, which lets her become more than a visible mutant, but the young man has to work a lot harder to become a woman. So Mystique shows her mercy, just like she did the inexperienced Austrian agent and the little Cuban girl---which Shepard points out, and he suggests a reason for it. It seems fairly logical to me, and might explain why she does some of the (seemingly inexplicable) things she does. One aspect of the story that did seem odd and was left open was shown on the final page; she's looking out the window and we see her reflection...is she also looking at her own reflection? Readers may recall that she recoiled from her true face in the last issue, but here she seems fairly calm, so I'm wondering if this is supposed to signify that she's a bit more at peace with herself, or if she's not meant to be seeing herself at all.

I'm very pleased with the art in this story, and while I enjoyed Manuel Garcia's work on the previous two issues, it's great to see Michael Ryan again. Perhaps absence really does make the heart grow fonder. The colouring, which was my pet peeve throughout some of the last few issues, is less muddy-looking this time around, though it does get a bit odd in places, chiefly in the dark sewers. My one problem with Ryan's pencils here is that the knife scene in the sewers is rather confusing; I didn't even realize Mystique had a knife until reading it again. She was obviously holding something in the scuffle, but it wasn't clear what it was because of the unusual angles. But I'm still impressed with the shading done on Shepard in particular, although his near-constant smiling continues to weird me out (and that's one of the reasons I'm curious to know who---or what---he is). Shortpack has some great facial expressions throughout the story, which capture his emotions quite well, and frankly he just looks darn cute, particularly in the scene with the cat. And I have to praise the fun cover by Mike Mayhew, even though he's oddly uncredited for it inside the issue, as it's one of the more unique in the series. Even if Marvel continues to publish poster-style covers rather than showing a scene from inside the comic, the covers should at least look distinctive, and for once this one does.

This issue is a fitting finale for Brian K. Vaughan's run on the series. I'm sorry to see him go, as I'm very fond of Shortpack, who was created by him and to date is entirely his character. I've also enjoyed the dialogue he writes, as well as his take on Mystique herself; Vaughan has certainly set up a unique book within the Marvel universe. On the other hand, Sean McKeever's interviews have been interesting, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he does with the title. He has promised to continue with the running subplots, such as the Quiet Man and Shepard, and hinted at things that I want to see. So I wish both writers (and all the pencilers) luck on their new projects, and look forward to what we're going to get in this series!

April 7, 2004
Mystique #12
This issue concludes the short story arc focusing on the relationship between Mystique and Forge. I like the idea of a more relaxed story, one not dependent on a mission for its action and development, and I certainly give it points for that, but this issue was weaker than the one before it. While I've enjoyed the entire Mystique series so far, including this issue, there could have been improvements in the latest effort.

Brian K. Vaughan has turned heads with this series by keeping up a fairly brisk pace of action and witty dialogue, and will surely be sorely missed once he leaves in May. However, there was something about this issue that left me feeling fairly flat until the end; the dialogue wasn't as punchy this time around, and there could have been less fighting and more...something else. Fight scenes can be fun, but I'd prefer to see more character development. That doesn't mean the characters have to sit at a table and talk for half the issue, but I'd rather see fewer scenes of people punching each other. I did like Mystique's comment about beating a man with his own leg; it brings back memories of an early scene of her beating Carol Danvers' boyfriend to death with her bare hands, something that has become a dark joke between my fiancé and me, so we both immediately saw the parallels and had a good laugh over it. It's a nice use of her history without actually being a confusing continuity reference. On the other hand, while it's been stated on the Letters page that the series is avoiding references to past history in order to make it accessible to new readers, I'm puzzled that we had a rather obscure reference to Forge's old relationship with Storm. Even more surprising is Mystique impersonating Storm's punk look from about 20 years ago, just as she looked when she began her relationship with him; if that isn't obscure, I don't know what is. Personally, I like that kind of reference, but I don't understand why it is acceptable but we haven't yet had a mention of Mystique's important relationships with daughter Rogue or longtime lover Destiny. The book is about her, and it can't be too difficult to explain their connections in a sentence or two. I believe this would be beneficial to the series because it would help to ground Mystique in her rich past to a greater extent, although it seems that Marvel doesn't want to go that route.

Many of my other quibbles about this issue come from how seemingly convenient some aspects of the story are. Forge's recovery from Spencer's control came rather abruptly and at a rather helpful moment, particularly if he truly didn't believe Mystique was telling him the truth about having feelings for him. The device he used to capture the boy was built rather quickly and conveniently out of his damaged artificial leg; perhaps it'd be more believable if it had taken him longer. And I felt that Mystique recovered too easily from her injuries, particularly in the one scene in which Forge hit her in the face with some kind of clawed object. The art depicts flesh and blood flying from her face, as would be expected from such a gruesome attack, but she doesn't seem to skip a beat and quickly morphs into Storm with no apparent ill effects. She certainly has some recuperative powers to heal quickly from injuries, but surely those clawed spikes damaged her eyes, nose and mouth, and would be painfully severe wounds.

On the plus side, I enjoyed the appropriate intelligence displayed by Mystique and Forge, which was a pleasure to watch. Mystique may have been outmatched in the fight, particularly if she was holding back, but she used brains to emotionally manipulate Forge (even if it didn't work as well as she would have liked), and skillfully took out his mechanical leg. It kept him from killing her, and meant that she didn't have to kill him, although I expected her to do better in combat against him. Perhaps she isn't as good at it when not using lethal force. I also liked how Forge clearly understands her in ways she doesn't necessarily understand herself, or doesn't want to understand herself; the scene with the mirror was the most intriguing aspect of the issue for me. I've already seen readers question this part of the story, and it's true that we've seen her calmly gazing at her true reflection (and photographs) on a couple of occasions, but it's an idea that makes sense to me and fits with her character. The visceral reaction she had to her reflection may have been a bit much, but while I do think she's fine with many of the actions she's taken in her life, there's always been an undercurrent of some guilt with good reason, and Forge seems to have realized this. The fact that he understands her so well makes him an excellent choice to be a supporting character in her series, and it's good to see him playing that role here.

I don't have much to say about Manuel Garcia's artwork this month, other than it was somewhat weaker than his work in the previous issue. I like some of the human faces very much, find many expressive and appropriate, and dislike others for being cartoony. Since there's both a penciler and an inker working on this storyline it's difficult to tell who is responsible for what aspects of the art, but the character proportions are off in some panels and I find that distracting. On the plus side, Matt Milla's colouring is still an improvement over his work on the previous story arc, and the art doesn't look as impenetrably dark as it did in the smallpox story.

Overall, this issue was weaker than the last, but the two-part story still stands up fairly well. I'm glad that we saw something different (in both art and story) from the previous two arcs, and it was a nice change of pace to have more downtime for the characters. This could have been better, especially from an excellent writer like Vaughan, but even an average issue in the Mystique series is better than many other books available at the moment.

March 10, 2004
Mystique #11
This issue begins a two-part story about Mystique and Forge, and it's off to a great start. It provides a necessary break from the frenetic action-adventure plots that have become the Mystique series' hallmark, and while those are fun, it's good to see the characters getting some downtime and having more opportunity to interact. Mystique and Forge have a long history with each other, and while it's mostly not mentioned here (a bit to my chagrin), the reader gets the sense that they're well-acquainted and there's reason for them to go together on a casual outing.

The scenario in this story is believable and simple; Forge asks Mystique to join him for coffee because "I just thought you deserved an evening out", and they end up searching for a mutant boy whose kidnapping is announced on a televised Amber Alert. I liked the use of the real-life Amber Alert (for those unfamiliar with it, it's a widespread emergency announcement system for missing children) combined with the fictional anti-mutant politics of the Marvel Universe, a topical mixing Brian K. Vaughan has done in previous storylines with great success. This scenario, not heavy on action or intense plotting, lets Mystique and Forge do a lot of talking and verbally spar with each other, playing to Vaughan's strength of witty dialogue. I was particularly amused by the crack about the Blob, and by Forge's invocation of Godwin's Law (a Usenet-derived 'rule' stating that any mention of Nazis in a debate effectively ends it); I guess it makes sense that he'd be an Internet geek!

It's good to see the two of them interacting without other cast members around; while I very much like Shortpack and am interested in the Quiet Man subplot, I'm glad they're not taking up space in a story in which they're not necessary. Forge has been due for some time in the spotlight, and he's being written well. This is the first time in a while that I've actually liked him. While it's too bad that some of the major aspects of their shared history (specifically the love-hate relationship, and reasons for it) haven't been mentioned, it isn't surprising given the 'new readers' direction of the series. The way their dialogue is structured makes the nature of their relationship clear enough, even without details, so that is at least a consolation and a way for Vaughan to convey what is needed.

The art in this issue is provided by guest artists Manuel Garcia (penciler) and Raul Fernandez (inker), along with regular colourist Matt Milla. Oddly, I find Milla's colouring job to look very different from his usual work with Michael Ryan, and actually prefer it here; it is less dark and muddied. I do miss the skillful shading seen in the Ryan/Milla issues, but am not sure which of the two is responsible for that lovely effect. At any rate, the pencils convey the action of the story quite well, allowing it to flow naturally through each panel, and making it easy to follow (some issues in the series have had difficulties with this at times). If I have one complaint, it's that some of the characters' facial expressions and body postures look a bit strange at times, and there are panels in which I'd prefer the characters to look more detailed. These are fairly minor problems, though, and while they sometimes make me scratch my head at the weirder stuff, they do not really detract from the story.

This is a short story, and will probably be wrapped up by next issue. That's fine; not all stories have to be action-filled lengthy arcs. I'm a bit surprised, as it obviously won't fit neatly into a trade paperback, but am glad that Vaughan and Marvel aren't shoe-horning the entire series into trade-sized arcs. It feels more natural to do it this way, to have different types of stories at different lengths, and it's good to see a quiet piece that's heavy on the characterization and less so on the action. Forge provides some nice variety to the supporting cast of Mystique, and it'll be interesting to see what happens with the mutant boy in the second half of the story.

February 23, 2004
New Mutants v.2 #9
A discussion of this issue is impossible without mentioning some of its problems behind the scenes. We know, from what its writers (Nunzio DeFilippis and Christina Weir) have said, that the overall storyline was heavily edited and changed. Originally there was supposed to be a teen suicide, and the editors nixed it fairly late in the game, requiring a major re-write. Issue #8 was several months late because of this. We also know that this issue was originally supposed to be #10, but because the fallout of the suicide had to be ditched, this story was moved up an issue to #9. And further, we know that there once was supposed to be a major plot involving Avalanche and a mystery villain; this plotline was also nixed by the editors, and all Avalanche gets here is a cameo.

So. With all that in mind, on with the review...

The issue opens with Rahne Sinclair---Wolfsbane, who lost her powers when Mystique shot her with Forge's Neutralizer in the Dream's End crossover---hopping on her motorbike as the radio mentions Avalanche is tearing up New York City. And no, it's never mentioned why he's doing it...maybe he's bored or something. As he's destroying the street, she jumps off the bike, kicks him in the back, and he hits the ground pretty hard. He slowly starts to get back up again, and then she kicks him in the face, taking him down for the count, and the X-Men show up and presumably take him into custody. That's the extent of his appearance.

The rest of the issue, naturally, is about the kids and their teachers (past and present New Mutants), and the arrival of Wolfsbane at the school. She's changed a lot; no longer the shy religious girl often fretting about sins and wicked behaviour, she's got a revealing top, multiple piercings, long hair, and an ankh. She's ditched the Scottish accent, and recruits the kids to break Dani Moonstar's rules for a mission. She says these changes are because of her adoptive mother Moira MacTaggert's death (who died of injuries after Mystique blew up Muir Island)...and while I can understand her wanting to change after that kind of trauma, this is just too much for me, personally. Chris Claremont's run on the original New Mutants series was the first comic I wanted to get as a full collection, and I loved the characters; while I'm sure there is something building for Wolfsbane here, this just isn't the character I liked. So I wasn't happy about this, nor Avalanche's appearance.

The rest of the book was fine, with some cartoony art in places and fine on other pages, and the kids were reasonably interesting (this is my first issue of the current series), but it's hard for me to get past these two main sticking points. I understand that the Avalanche plot was messed around and it probably isn't the writers' fault, but even a line or two of exposition about what he was doing would have been nice. Plus it's a bit difficult to accept that he was taken out so quickly by an unpowered teenage girl, albeit one who's well-trained. He looks rather laughable as a result. And Rahne doesn't seem like....well, she doesn't seem like Rahne. So where does that leave us?

Nunzio DeFilippis assured me that their intention was to please us Avalanche fans, which I can believe and appreciate (he also said a while back that they like him). So I find it difficult to stay annoyed about the issue, unlike, for example, when I get the feeling a writer is being careless or sloppy. He also said that he hopes they'll be able to use the original plot sometime in the future, which could be interesting. In the meantime, I guess I have to consider this a quick cameo that isn't entirely to my liking...which is hardly a rare thing. Oh well.

February 17, 2004
Mystique #10
This issue wraps up the "Tinker, Tailor, Mutant, Spy" storyline, and it's fairly satisfying. I felt that the ending to the main plot was slightly anti-climactic, but it was a sensible finish even if dependent on a perhaps iffy premise. Mystique defeats the Host and foils the woman's plan to release the modified smallpox virus, and her colleagues are impressed by her careful and non-lethal work; could this indicate that she's begun to change her ruthless ways?

Regular readers of the Mystique series will be relieved to learn that Shortpack doesn't die. I had a good laugh at his panicked reaction to Mystique's casual assertion that he could survive a high fall, but despite his fear, he's still willing to sacrifice himself to stop the release of the smallpox virus. This strong sense of morality is what we've come to expect from him, so it's a genuine surprise that he has ties to Shepard and the Quiet Man. I'm very interested to find out where this plot thread is going. The Quiet Man subplot is advanced in a few unexpected ways, making it perhaps of more interest than the conclusion of the main plot. I felt that the smallpox story was kind of weak at the very end, as it has Mystique doing the old "here's how I did it" routine and is based on a somewhat unconvincing premise; I question how Mystique can create a glass test tube from herself and use it independently from her body. There has always been a bit of hand-waving necessary when it comes to her powers --- Brian K. Vaughan correctly points out that she's always been able to create glasses on her face --- but the independent test tube made of real glass just stretches credibility for me. Where does she get the body mass or material to create such things? This may seem like nitpicking, but it bothers me. In fact, there have been several uses of her powers during the course of the Mystique series that have bothered me, primarily in the Cuba storyline.

The question Vaughan has ably set up is whether or not Mystique has begun to reform. Forge clearly thinks she has (or is on the way there), and that's why he asks her out, setting up the next two-part story in the series. She finishes her mission in a fairly bloodless manner, without killing anyone. She [spoiler]won't even sacrifice Shortpack[/spoiler], and refuses to hand over the virus to Shepard unless he tells her what his plans are. Some of these moves are in her best interest, of course (no use retrieving the virus if the Quiet Man then unleashes it on the world and kills everyone), but she could have been more vicious and had ample opportunity to kill the Host. So, has the known killer and terrorist truly begun to reform, or is this an act? She is certainly double-crossing Charles Xavier because it suits her, and he may be inclined to let her leave his service if he thinks she's reformed, hence the good behaviour. We have seen mercy from her in this storyline and the previous one, so it's possible that she is slowly moving in that direction even if she doesn't realize it. However, I doubt we've seen the last of her worst tendencies, and I anticipate Vaughan dealing with this down the road.

The art by Michael Ryan and Matt Milla continues to be fairly solid, if a bit problematic for me. Ryan gives us some stilted poses in a few panels, such as when Mystique first collapses to the floor during her 'illness'. On the other hand, he effectively shows the spasms and agony she's pretending to endure, which helps illustrate her convincing acting skills. I still think that some of Mystique's facial expressions are out of place in some scenes, and I do have a gripe with Shepard's facial expressions; in every panel he has the same strange grin on his face, with no variation in appearance. It makes him seem almost robotic...which could possibly be a clue, or perhaps he's just an odd fellow. Either way, it stands out.

The dark and vivid colouring used for Mystique's skin (and sometimes her clothes) continues to seem out of place when compared to the other characters and backgrounds; they look more normal and even more aesthetically appealing, but appear subdued compared to her vibrant hues. I still wonder if this is deliberate, but regardless, it looks like she doesn't belong in the same world as they do, which yanks me out of the story from time to time. Finally, there is an unusual look to some of the pages in the issue, as some have an inked/finished appearance, while others look like bare pencils and colours that have not been inked. I don't know the specifics of the process to produce these kinds of looks, and it would be interesting to find out how it's done, and why some pages look different from others. It isn't really an art problem per se, just something I noticed.

I like the smallpox story overall, even though the individual issues were somewhat weaker than those in the first storyline. Vaughan knows how to craft some solid, enjoyable stories, although a bit of work has been needed on the endings. The upcoming story is of interest to me, because it seems as though it will touch on Mystique's history, something I've been wanting ever since the series began. An editorial in the letters page last month stated that the book is "aimed at new readers", which makes me wonder how her relationship with Forge and perhaps others will be handled, but I will be watching closely. Her rich history is part of her appeal, and I look forward to seeing development in her relationship with Forge.

January 23, 2004
Mystique #9
The strength of the Mystique series lies mostly in its dialogue and action scenes, which is appropriate for an espionage-themed book. This issue, part 3 of a 4-issue storyline, utilizes both familiar strengths and is all the better for having done so; however, I feel that perhaps action and dialogue are all it has. The issue consists of largely only two scenes; the opening one in which Mystique struggles with her infection and banters with Shortpack (dialogue), and an extended chase and fight scene in which she confronts the Host (action). Again, the dialogue is top-notch here, and the action helps to show the urgency of her mission. But I still feel as though something is missing, and I finished reading it a bit too quickly for my tastes.

This is not to say that the issue has no other successes. I like the concept of the Host, and she has unique abilities that aren't typically seen in the Marvel Universe. It's also interesting to compare her with Mystique; the Host uses violence to get freedom and protection for the viruses she communicates with, and she's conflicting with a woman who formerly used similar tactics in favour of mutant rights and freedom. Perhaps Mystique will see that support or opposition to such causes depends on the eye of the beholder, and that she's 'oppressing' deadly viruses like some humans oppress (sometimes dangerous) mutants. Or maybe she won't. The Host makes an allusion to the similarities between their causes, though Mystique doesn't acknowledge it here. It's an interesting idea, even though the vast majority of people obviously aren't in favour of saving lethal viruses. On the other hand, this is mostly all the characterization the Host gets, and we don't know much about her. She is a good antagonist, but perhaps not a well-rounded character, which could hamper the overall story.

Shortpack's combination of humour (I especially liked the comment "...fine. Just because you nailed Wolvie's voice, too") and actual concern for Mystique and distress over his previous agent Prudence continue to make him a lovable and interesting character. So it really worries me that he might come to a bad end at the hands of the Host! I honestly don't want him to die, and the book would be the poorer from his loss. Clearly he is a character who works, and I think he's the best new X-character in quite a while.

I am happier with the art from Michael Ryan and Matt Milla in this issue than in their previous ones. In fact, they have improved steadily since their debut, which is good news. Ryan's pencils look more natural and less stilted than previously, though I have mixed feelings about his use of facial expressions. Some convey the characters' emotions very well (the horror of the driver that strikes the Host is excellent), while other faces look kind of bland or sometimes just strange (such as when Mystique is relieved that the smallpox virus is intact). Facial expressions are very important to me when I read comics, and sometimes they can make or break the artwork. The colouring of Mystique by Milla has also improved, though she still looks considerably dark and unusual compared to the rest of the characters. Obviously Mystique has an unusual appearance to begin with, but her colouring makes her stand out and seem like she doesn't belong in the same panel as the other characters. If this is deliberate, it would be nice for a character to remark on her particularly different appearance. The overall colouring is good, with an excellent use of shading, though there is jarring contrast between some scenes; note the lightness of the bike-stealing scene with the darkness of the adventures on the highway). However, while I felt the colouring was somewhat 'muddy' in previous issues, this one did not have that problem.

Overall, I've felt so far that this storyline has been weaker than the first one. However, there is still one issue left to go, and the cliffhanger indicates it could be a good one. Hopefully the art will continue to improve as it has throughout the arc, and with any luck, next issue will pack enough punch to really pick up the story as a whole.

January 23, 2004
Mystique #8
Part Two of the current storyline finds Mystique arriving in South Africa, to carry out her mission to prevent a scientist from releasing a mutant strain of smallpox. The first issue was divided between set-up for this mission, and a side excursion in North Korea. At first the latter seemed unrelated to the main plot, although Shortpack makes a comment here that suggests they may be involved with the race to get the smallpox, which would be an interesting tie-in if true. Certainly the real-life North Korea might feasibly want to pursue such a weapon, given their current interest in nuclear technology; once again, Brian K. Vaughan incorporates reality into Mystique's fiction. It's an aspect of the book that I enjoy.

There were definitely some interesting scenes in this issue, though overall I felt the story was not up to its usual high standards. Don't get me wrong, this was a good issue, but I was left with a sense of something lacking by the end, as though it was not as 'inspired' as most of the other issues have been. The catfight scene is a bit clichéd and silly, which might be part of the joke, but it left me wondering why a hardened fighter like Mystique would get involved in it (although the line "think I'm out of synonyms. You?" almost made it worthwhile). However, I found the Host to be genuinely creepy as she surely ought to be, and was disturbed by Mystique's casual-but-cold anti-human comment, which fits her perfectly and reminds us that she's not a particularly lovable heroine. Nor does she take a dangerous situation ---the deadly mutant virus--- particularly seriously, which suggests that she doesn't have much concern for the millions who could be affected if she fails. Vaughan is right to emphasize this even as he makes her sympathetic, because she has never been heroic X-Men material and probably never will be. I did enjoy the way she freaked out the South African bigot, confronting him with probably his worst fear; I couldn't resist a little cheer at her disgust and her manipulations, though unfortunately it probably would only reinforce the man's nasty beliefs.

The artwork has largely improved since the last issue, which was Michael Ryan's and Matt Milla's first on the title. The shading and colouring on most of the characters is impressive, particularly in certain panels, such as the opening with Shepard. It is subtly done, and definitely enhances the quality of Ryan's pencils. However, I'm still disappointed with the colouring job on Mystique herself. She looks shiny and unnatural, and while that may be the intention (to make her stand out, perhaps), it's not what I'm used to from previous depictions of her, and I don't like it. The mechanics of the action scenes could use a bit of work, too; they look stunted at times, and do not always clearly depict what is happening. And the final page, with Mystique lying on the floor, depicts her in a very awkward pose that just doesn't look realistic. So while I really do prefer the art in this issue over the last, there are still some kinks to be worked out.

It's nice to see the return of a letters page, something that's been rare in Marvel comics lately. Maybe it means the creative team is listening to readers, maybe it doesn't, but I've always enjoyed seeing people's reactions to stories that I've read too (if only to be amused at times by what they have to say). It wouldn't bother me if the letters page only appeared sporadically, but it's fun to have around at least every now and then.

Overall, this issue was certainly good, but not one of Vaughan's best. I've enjoyed every issue of this series, though this one had a few weak points. One thing worth exploring, though, or at least pondering, is Vaughan's possible metaphor for mutants and mutation; the doctor's deadly smallpox virus is called "the mutant strain", which could be an allegory for mutants in the Marvel Universe and Mystique (with her anti-human beliefs) herself. We the readers have sympathy for the plight of mutants, and rightfully so, but they can be dangerous to others, just like the modified virus. Will Vaughan expound on this in the remaining two issues of the storyline? I hope so, because it's an interesting idea, particularly in light of Mystique's cynical and bigoted views. The Host is an obvious example of a dangerous mutant, even if she doesn't necessarily mean anyone harm. Humans, like the South African racist, may have repugnant beliefs, but theirs fears aren't entirely without merit. Vaughan may be setting up a larger philosophical issue amidst the rest of the story, possibly giving us more insight into Mystique herself, and it would be a welcome addition.

November 29, 2003
Mystique #7
This issue kicks off a new storyline, and introduces a new artistic team to the Mystique book, giving the series a whole new look. After the high quality of the first story arc, I've been looking forward to seeing if the second can match it, and so far it seems off to a good start.

Writer Brian K. Vaughan gives this issue what we've come to expect from him: snappy dialogue, a sense of humour from his main characters, and a mix of action and low-key scenes. I certainly have no complaints about the writing. We get another hint about Mystique's past (details of which have always been elusive throughout her appearances in comics), and she continues to be a character that is morally difficult to pin down; she expresses some anti-human bigotry, and yet admires a human woman's selfless actions. She is also conflicted about double-crossing Charles Xavier to work for the elusive yet lucratively-promising Shepard and his boss, which she seems reluctant to do. I get the feeling that we'll see her making a decision on this dilemma by the end of this four-part storyline.

This issue also brings back Shortpack, who's as fun as ever (GI Joe boots and all)! He even helps to save the day, and proves himself to be a capable and intelligent handler, although I do wonder why Mystique didn't know about some of his mission failsafes in North Korea; shouldn't she have been aware that an emergency jetpack was stashed on the roof? One would think he'd have informed her about this, if only to save time during a firefight. This was about the only aspect of the plot/story that I questioned, although to be honest, I've had similar misgivings about "secret mission" stories in other comics (one in particular has always stood out in my mind, but that's a topic for another time). Other than this, I felt the story itself was top-notch, and the set-up premise for Mystique's next mission is intriguing. The bio-engineered virus is eerily similar to a previous Mystique story from several years ago in which she herself was planning to unleash such a weapon, and perhaps not coincidentally, Vaughan hinted in the "Dead Drop Gorgeous" story that someone had impersonated her, meaning she was innocent. We'll see if he heads in that direction during this arc.

Unfortunately, I find myself missing Jorge Lucas' art from the first storyline. I've seen Michael Ryan's artwork before, and have enjoyed it, but am feeling ambivalent about it here, especially when combined with the colouring. I do not really like the way Mystique is drawn here; I can't quite put my finger on it, but she looks oddly static and shiny. Ryan does not give her the effective facial expressions that Lucas did, making her seem less dynamic and fluid (though a shapeshifter ought to be), and that hurts the overall work. Ryan and colourist Matt Milla do a better job with the other characters in the issue, but their work on Mystique herself is wanting, which is kind of problematic when she is the central character. As I said before, she is coloured to look rather shiny in some scenes---even her clothes---which is a strange effect to say the least, and she appears very dark and muddied in other panels. In the North Korea scenes, it is difficult to tell what parts of her were bare skin and what parts were clothes, since they were both coloured similarly. So the artwork in this issue is a bit of a disappointment to me, at least regarding Mystique, and I hope it will improve as Ryan and Milla integrate themselves into the book.

The cover, on the other hand, is a delight. While I have little interest in special cover effects, I am glad to see that this one is different from the previous covers. The image of Mystique herself is a bit difficult to see, but it is good to see a change from the sexy pin-up covers that characterized all the previous issues (as well as the future ones that have been previewed so far). Marvel would do well to remember that some variety is pleasant, and that action covers are just as welcome as generic posed images.

So, seven issues into the Mystique series, and I'm still pleased with it overall. Here, Vaughan has ably set up another interesting plot, brought back the core characters, and nudged along the new subplot of Shepard and "the Quiet Man". Once again, aspects of the story are grounded in realistic details like the North Korean regime and bio-terrorism, which are nice touches. While the art still needs some work, the story continues to intrigue, and is what makes the issue worth picking up. The characters, dialogue, and the details (such as the subtle hint of Mystique's sexual orientation) are what keep me interested, and so far they have been delivered in every issue of this series, including this one.

October 18, 2003
Mystique #6
This issue wraps up the "Dead Drop Gorgeous" storyline, and the finale is relatively satisfying, if a bit rushed. It's a bit of a shame that the first two issues of this six-part story were spent in set-up for the series premise, and then everything had to be wrapped up so quickly in the sixth issue, although I do understand the necessity of spending time to establish Mystique's history and character at the beginning of the series. Perhaps the events of the story could have been arranged more judiciously to avoid such a problem with pacing.

Like last issue, this one is action-oriented, and lacks the snappy patter Brian K. Vaughan established in the first few issues. This isn't necessarily a problem, but it is something I regretted not seeing. It may well have been necessary, though, to keep with the relatively sombre tone of the plot. The cliffhanger from last issue means Mystique has to make a choice here about killing little Evangelina, something she obviously struggles with, although we never get to see what she would have done, because a grieving Lazaro shoots his sister instead. This is a bit anti-climactic, as we don't get to learn what choice she would have made (a very important decision for a character like her, who has teetered between kindness and cruelty and is sometimes of ambiguous morality), although Vaughan acknowledges this by having Mystique herself question whether she would have done it.

I did find certain aspects of the story to be troublesome. As stated above, the mission itself was resolved rather quickly by simply having the characters shoot their way out, and the problem of the Sentinels was solved by having them crash into the facility to destroy both it and them. While this is quite logical, it did seem a bit rushed and too conveniently fixed. There is a resolution of sorts for the Cuban characters, who vow to protect mutants and achieve equality, but we don't see Lazaro's reaction to finding himself alive and the emotions that will surely roil through him. Also, I felt that the presence of the mysterious cloaked figure at the end was a bit jarring when juxtaposed with the relatively real-world setting of the Cuban mission. He or she seems like a bit of a Silver Age supervillain throwback, and while that doesn't make him/her a bad character, it doesn't really mesh with the realism of the Mystique series so far. I'm curious to find out what's going on with him/her and what the agenda is, but it just seems...strange.

Speaking of strange, the cover by Joseph Michael Linsner certainly fits the bill. It's unique, but I'm not really sure what to make of it. In the overall scheme of things, the cover isn't particularly important, but I've not been impressed with the ones seen so far (or most of the upcoming covers that have been previewed, for that matter). All of the posed images start to blur together after a while, and I certainly can't remember which cover goes with which issue, something that's never been a problem in the past with Marvel's previously unique covers. I don't yearn for the overtly cheesy covers of the past, but some variation would be nice, as would perhaps showing scenes from the actual story. This is something that has bothered me for a while, and not just regarding this series.

Jorge Lucas turns in his usual work: good, but not without some flaws. I still like it overall, but the faces are overly lined, and in a few panels the characters look different, as though touched up by another artist (or perhaps the colourist has done something different in these instances, I'm not sure). Fortunately, I didn't have any problems following the action in this issue, which I'd occasionally found with his work in previous issues. And, as usual, I'm very pleased with the facial expressions Lucas gives to his characters, which is perhaps his greatest strength. I can really get a feel for their emotions, for he conveys this very well. I am sorry to see him go, as he is leaving the series after this story arc.

If I can be indulged here for a moment, I'd like to reflect on the character choices in the series so far. Forge is definitely a good one, at least as a supporting character; he has some history with Raven, and that sets up some tension. I've never liked Charles Xavier, but he's certainly a necessary 'evil' to go with the premise of the series, and he works well in this context. Shortpack is new, but I like him a lot; hopefully we'll see more of him as a sidekick (if only occasionally) or mentor. However ---and I know we've only completed one story arc--- I hope we'll see more references to Mystique's rich past in future issues. To me, much of her appeal lies in her history and relationships with other characters. No, I don't mean that I want to see this book bogged down in continuity, but it would be great if her decades-long relationship with Destiny was mentioned, as it was a major part of her life. She has strained relations with her children, but Rogue is an important person to her. And she has friends and allies (and enemies) out there that could be referenced from time to time. In small doses, this would be a great addition to the series, I think.

Overall, the "Dead Drop Gorgeous" storyline has been a great start to a very promising series. While the ending was perhaps wrapped up a bit too quickly, the plot was sound, and it was an entertaining tale. Vaughan has shown that he can write Mystique well: witty, intelligent, and alternately sympathetic and harsh. He has so far avoided the trap that some writers have fallen into with her, namely making her too one-sided and exhibiting one trait above all others (such as completely cruel, or greedy, or insane), and he is depicting her as the more nuanced character she once was. The series premise of espionage and 'dirty missions' fits her like a glove, and is the perfect set up for a character like Mystique, hopefully leading to some more meaty stories. I look forward to the next story arc!

September 27, 2003
Mystique #4
The fourth issue of this series really gets us into the action of Mystique's new direction. She has to deal with people who want to collect a bounty on her, government corruption, and internecine scuffles---all so she can fulfill her first mission for Charles Xavier. It wouldn't surprise me if these were things she's had to deal with on at least a semi-regular basis! She's a professional, and it shows.

One of Brian K. Vaughan's great strengths in the book so far is his witty dialogue, and he doesn't disappoint here. Not only does he give Mystique the snappy one-liners we've come to expect from her, he also sets up some fun banter between she and Shortpack, which is enjoyable to read. I don't find any of the dialogue to be extraneous; all of it is useful to further the story or characterization, which makes for a pleasant, albeit quick, read. Vaughan writes Mystique with the intelligence and quick thinking that she clearly should have, which is something that some writers have unfortunately fumbled in the past. She is appropriately well-balanced, showing restraint when it's needed, but not afraid to use violence when required, a characterization that pleases this long-time fan. Shortpack is also very interesting as a beleaguered but competent handler, and I hope to see more of him, even beyond this particular story arc.

I was pleasantly surprised by the way Cuba is depicted in this story. Rightly or wrongly, I've often seen Cuba demonized for its Communism while some of the government brutality is often swept under the rug. Here, Vaughan pictures a country with positive features (mentioned by Shortpack) while not forgetting the all too frequent oppression suffered by its ordinary citizens at times. Though the addition of mutants here is obviously not seen in our world, it seems to me that this is a fairly accurate portrayal of a nation with good and bad aspects, and I enjoyed seeing it. I wonder if we'll see