X-factor vol. 5: The Only Game in Town

By Peter David and Pablo Raimondi

Collecting X-factor 28-32, and The Quick and the Dead one shot.

The Lowdown:
X-factor struggles to find it's place and purpose, post Messiah Complex and suffers with the loss of two team members.

The Review:
Before reading this volume, I was very worried. I had heard that this series takes a terrible drop after the Messiah Complex. I can honestly say after reading this volume that, that is simply not true and if it is, it's certainly not an immediate drop.

In fact, this volume showcases some of Peter David's best work on the entire series. The first issue (#28) is absolutely fantastic and sets up the theme of dealing with loss of direction and building oneself back up in this volume.

The team lost two member during the Messiah Complex event, Layla Miller is stuck in the future in a mutant concentration camp, and Rahne has left to join X-force. These departures (one forced, one more voluntary) both have real consequences and Peter David makes a sucky situation into something that he can use. The first issue, and in a way this whole volume, deals with the team falling apart, hitting rock bottom, and pulling themselves out of the rubble. Layla Miller and Rahne were the heart and soul of this team, and Peter David makes it show, as the team barely holds together. Making things worse, Arcade, one of the most ridiculous villains in the X-verse, shows up to wreak havoc.

Peter David touches upon some interesting ideas here, first off, it's very obvious the team is falling apart and Madrox, surprisingly enough, is attempting to hold them all together. When Layla Miller arrived into the group, Madrox slowly grew into the leadership role, he was able to make tough decisions and take a stand, because Layla brought with her a sense of certainty about the future turning out alright. With her gone, Madrox lost his sense of confidence in the future, as Peter David makes clear, he lost hope because that certainty that everything would turn out okay was lost with her. Madrox, and the rest of the team recover a little bit by the end of this book, but it's still heartbreaking in the long run.

Rahne was the moral grounding, the faith of the team, and with her that is a bit lost. Speaking of Rahne, it makes no sense for her to go to X-force, yes she wants to avoid killing Madrox and Layla, but she's going to a place where she'll basically be used as a....Killer, considering the whole group is made up of pretty ruthless individuals. Anyways highly affected by this loss is Rictor, who was just starting a fling with Rahne. He seems to be hurt the most next to Madrox by the loss of his teammates. He has some very poignant scenes and seems to be greatly affected by the loss of Rahne as he questions his purpose on the team, and he questions his purpose in life. While everybody is doing that at this point in the series, but he seems to be doing it more because he is no longer a mutant.

Adding to the difficulty of the situation, you have a useless villain, Arcade, interfering in Mutant Town. Peter David picked Arcade for that reason, he's entirely ridiculous, it adds to the weight of the situation, it's like the cherry on top in a sense. He also inspires Madrox with a sense of purpose, and the reason he keeps going, because people like him who hate just to hate still exist whether there are 100 mutants, 1 million mutants, or just 10.

Again, a big meta plot of the survival of the mutant race, expertly entwined with X-Factor's small time drama.

The one-shot deals with hitting the bottom another way. It's entirely about Quicksilver and it's a great character study on a character who hit rock bottom. He's been bested by Layla Miller, he's been scorned by his father, he failed in protecting his sister, he failed in protecting the mutant race, he's assumed he was a vehicle for God's will and now it's all come back to him. It's not really a one-shot, as it's really part of a larger defining arc for the man. It's a fantastic story outside of the ending which I found a little silly.

Conclusion: Outside of a couple of wonky things, like Rahne's reasonings, the ending to the Quicksilver one-shot, and a couple of other things involving the villains of this series so far, it's a great volume and it may be the best one since the Longest Night.

X-men Crossover: Messiah Complex

by Ed Brubaker, Mike Cary, Craig Kyle, Chris Yost, Peter David, Marc Silvestri, Billy Tan, Chris Bachalo, Humberto Ramos, and Scott Eaton

Collects X-Men: Messiah CompleX One-Shot, Uncanny X-Men #492-494, X-Men #205-207, New X-Men #44-46, X-Factor #25-27, and X-Men: Messiah CompleX - Mutant Files.

The LowDown: Just when it seems like M-day was going to stick, a new mutant manifestation is discovered and the X-men, Mr. Sinister's Marauders, the Purifiers, among others race to get the new mutant.

Review: Yes, I'm taking a bit of a detour from X-factor, because this crossover book deals directly with that title and there are a ton of consequences to that team and future books that occur here.

Have you ever played a King of the Hill type game? It's very common in First Person Shooters, one team has to get to an area and hold that area first for a certain amount of time while fending off all the other teams. This book is a lot like that. Except substitute an area or piece of land for a baby.


There are multiple teams (one of them being the X-men), each with their own agenda, and each with their own viewpoint of the world fighting over this new mutant manifestation, that happened at birth. I have a couple of issues with this, mutant manifestations aren't supposed to happen at birth, Peter David's X-factor book went over this a little bit by introducing a third species, the changeling, that manifests powers at birth. So technically this new "mutant" shouldn't even be a mutant, per se. Another thing that I had an issue with is that these multiple groups with multiple interests makes for an exciting and easy conflict, but balloons the amount of characters involved. There's a lot of characters in this book, few get actual development, and little more than a few lines, and it's not very accessible to a new reader of the X-franchise. Another issue is that, yes, I understand that there's a lot of competing and conflicting interests at work but sometimes these interests aren't ever brought up, we never find out why Mr. Sinister and the Marauders want the baby for (just from previous knowledge of Mr. Sinister, I assumed genetic experiments). But everything happens in such a rush that it's glossed over. There are also many deaths or near-deaths, that aren't very clear or memorable because the character gets very little build up to the death. They happen, out of nowhere, and yes I understand that their friends and teammates are upset, but because I don't typically follow the books that they feature in, it's hard for me to really care and get emotionally involved.

It may sound like I'm harping on the crossover, but there's a lot of good that came out of this. It provides a REAL sequel to House of M. Although Peter David's X-factor has been dealing with the consequences of that event for a while and has done a great job exploring the possible storylines from that book, this brings back the larger scale of the X-universe. It's also an action packed booked and really the equivalent of a blockbuster movie, the pacing is rarely slow and it just keeps moving from one action set-piece to the next. The plot moves at a brisk pace and there's very little noticeable diversions from author to author, they all seem to come together as one cohesive unit to tell this story. The artists though, are more divisive, as while most of the artwork is serviceable, the artist on New X-men uses a very cartoony, manga style that doesn't mesh well at all with the other art styles.

Although emulating the style of a summer movie blockbuster, there are significant, interesting developments. Cyclops really takes hold of the reigns of mutantkind and triumphs in his power struggle with Xavier. Seeing Cyclops forcefully move into the role he was trained for all his life is honestly a sight to behold, and seeing the clean-cut poster boy make some controversial decisions is also a lot of fun to see.

One of these controversial decisions is the reinstatement of X-force as a mutant black-ops team led by Wolverine and full of trackers and potential killers. While I like the idea of the move, I don't like that the team is taking X-factor mainstay Rahne "Wolfsbane" Sinclair. Rahne has always acted as a morality and conscience to the X-factor team and David was going somewhere unique with her giving in to her more animalistic side in order to live a clearer life.

Also this book sees Madrox (and Layla) take a trip to the future, where the world isn't all that bright (when has it ever been). It's cool to see the relationship between the two come a little bit closer to fruition to Layla's predictions. Peter David really turned Layla Miller from a plot device in House of M to a increasingly intriguing, if not likable character. So when Layla goes through what she goes through here it has an instant impact on me as a reader and follower of X-factor and on Jamie Madrox. We still have two competing futures, and if you've been following X-factor, you've seen the one where the mutants destroy the humans (as Future Tryp divulged) and now, you've seen the one where humans attempt to control the mutants after a genocidal disaster caused by a mutant. It still plays into the larger picture of X-factor's meta story, and it serves its purpose here in the Messiah Complex to show us the purpose of this new mutant baby and the consequences of it's upbringing, and provide the info for a twist near the end of the story.

There are some other huge status quo changes, but I don't want to spoil too much. Overall the book delivers as a fun action blockbuster but doesn't really come together in terms of plot, character development, and final destination. It's still a chapter in a saga of the X-verse, so there's no real conclusion. Hopefully we'll get somewhere that's worthwhile.

Finale: Like I said, it's a fun book. It's not necessarily good, just fun. It'll help fill in the holes from X-factor Vol. 4 to X-factor vol. 5 and it plays a huge role in the X-universe that will be referenced for at least a while. So it's probably important to read it at least once, but be prepared to be lost at times as it's not the most new-reader friendly and the art isn't the best especially in New X-men issues, and near the end.

X-factor vol. 4: Heart of Ice

by Peter David, Pablo Raimondi and Khoi Pham

collects X-Factor 18-24

The LowDown: X-factor continues to deal with the fate of mutant-kind and human/mutant relations as they stop Mutant terrorists, and become confronted with a new approach to the mutant species.

Review: Happy New Year!

In this fourth volume, David continues chugging along with his meta-plot dealing with the fallout of House of M, Decimation, M-day, "no more mutants," and whatever tag-line or nickname the writers can come up with.

There are two major arcs in this volume. The first arc deals with a mutant terrorist group X-cell who believe the government is responsible for their loss of mutant powers. This arc is the culmination of the storyline they've built up with Quicksilver and his abilities to restore powers. It also brings back the differing ways these ex-mutants deal with their loss of powers.

The second arc is a bit more interesting and deals with the Isolationist and his plotting against mutants. The isolationist is an interesting plot device and character and analyzes the mutant issues in a rational way. There is a bit of retconning as this Isolationist character has monologues that make his influence seem to be throughout the first 24 issues, but yet he just decides to put his plot into motion now. It kind of doesn't come together as cohesively as David wants it to and some of the ret-cons are kind of dropped in. It still makes for a great adversary of the piece, one where the audience can feel his plight and understand the motivatiosn and reasons behind the motivations.

This is a very plot heavy trade as David wraps up plots that he's been teasing for a long time. But it's not like there's any small character moments. Layla Miller and Quicksilver have some great interactions. Rictor really gets some "heroic" moments at the climax of both arcs. Madrox has a great heroic moment at the end of the X-cell arc. Speaking of heroic, Peter David has fully made the transition from noir book to superhero book, and really it's better off especially when dealing with this large meta plot about the future of mutantkind. The small-time noir book wouldn't cut it with these large big superhero team plots.

Although this is a plot heavy trade, there are a ton of themes sprinkled throughout and the character relationships continue to be strong. David definitely plays with the theme of power, what it is, what does it mean to have it, how it should be used, and how it relates to knowledge. Quicksilver had power, but it was twisted, and he used it in a devious manner for selfish (or as he would say, selfless) motivations. Yet X-factor has the knowledge, and thus have power over Quicksilver, yet still have to make a choice of who to divulge this information to and the consequences and the cost of that knowledge. Again, the Isolationist has all the powers, but no peace of mind, leaving him broken and somewhat mad. Also the consequences of Jamie's trysts with both M and Siryn continue to have consequences as his relationship is forever changed with the two women and a pregnancy test is found (although it could also be Rahne's technically).

Review: The X-factor volumes continue to be very good, Peter David continues to balance large meta scale plots, with small B-plots, and never lets his characterization fall through the cracks. If you've been following X-factor up to this point than you deserve to continue. If you haven't than this volume isn't really the one to start with, you should either start with Madrox of the first volume, the Longest Night. If you don't you're missing out on the best series to come out of the modern Marvel Mutant line.

P.S. Be on the lookout for a cameo by someone from the Madrox miniseries.

X-factor vol. 3: The Many Lives of Madrox

By Peter David, Pablo Raimondi, and Khoi Pham

Collects X-Factor 13-17

The LowDown: After a confrontation with Singularity Investigations, X-factor gets some much needed therapy which causes Madrox to pursue a journey to collect his wayward dupes and Siryn and M to spend some "quality" time together.

Review:

There will probably be spoilers about previous volumes every new edition from now on.

This is a story about 7 superheroes, forced to start a detective agency, find out what happens when people stop being polite, and start being real. The Real World: Mutant Town.

God, I hate MTV! Is that show even relevant anymore?

Anyways, we return with another edition of X-factor and this volume has a couple of excellent issues packed in.

First, we have issue #13, which is a semi-sequel to the classic X-Animations issue (#87) from Peter David's original run. You don't necessarily need to be familiar with that issue, but you'll get a lot of this one if you do. It's right up there with the best issues of this series thus far, as it takes each one of the members of X-factor and does a psychiatric evaluation on their place in life and any current issues they may have. It shows how dysfunctional these members are, no matter their outward facade, all these superheros are still people that suffer from something deep down. It's a fantastic issue where we learn new things about each and every member. It also continues the plot lines from last volume with Madrox's sexual encounters with Siryn and M. It puts Madrox in a very interesting predicament, and it's the last straw for Madrox to really journey out and gather wayward dupes.

Madrox's journey to gather his wayward dupes makes up the bulk of this volume, as he gathers up his dupe from S.H.I.E.L.D. in a two part arc, gathers his married with one kid pastor dupe, and his detective dupe. Along the way, we find out a lot about Madrox's personality and see different sides to Madrox. The SHIELD arc, is the most superheroic endeavor as Madrox gets mixed up in the ever-ongoing war between S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA. It's a very quick paced arc with the least depth but it does tell us a little bit about Madrox's guilt issues regarding his childhood, and shows that Madrox suffers from a ton of self-loathing due to his lifestyle. It also kind of shows how unbareably unsympathetic Madrox is in terms of gathering up his dupes and not caring about what consequences their sudden disappearances may cause.

Issue #16 is really the first instant classic in this series. It deals with Madrox gathering up his dupe that he sent off to study religion, only to find that the dupe doesn't want to go back. The less said about this issue the better, as it's a fantastic issue, that really puts Madrox face to face with the consequences of his dupes actions and face to face with himself, at least more than normally. It's really shows the questions of ethics in what Madrox is doing and Peter David weaves religious themes, text, and subtext into this issue beautifully.

Madrox also gathers a wayward "detective" dupe in Issue #17, but it reintroduces the next arc and the main plotline. Throughout Madrox's quest, M and Siryn go off to France and are confronted with mutant racism which helps realign the two after their debacle with Madrox putting them at odds. It's a very simple B-Plot arc, and helps keep the story updated with what's going on with some of the other members and the larger plot line about the mutants who lost their powers and their struggle to understand what happened, to survive without their powers, and for some, to get them back. That's what we are confronted with in Issue #17 as the next arc begins here really. Mutant terrorists who blame the government for the loss of their powers. It's actually quite understandable and realistic that people would believe the government had something to do with M-day, and Peter David tries to weave this idea into the fabric and the current ongoing storylines of X-factor and their struggle for Mutant survival. Ultimately it's the weakest issue of the volume, as while the Madrox stuff is still quite strong, it's just too superhero-ey for a book the prided itself on being a little bit different.

There's a lot of build up for the ongoing meta-plot of mutant survival. The plot-line involving the Tryps gets lost here. I'm not sure if David is planning to return to it, or if it was just a small one-off piece of the larger meta plot, used to help make big reveals about the future last volume. It's still a complain though since it was still left a bit in the air with Future Tryp's seeming survival and appearance to Layla Miller.

Conclusion: This is more Madrox focused than previous volumes, and as a fan of the character and this take on the character it is much appreciated. There's a couple of very excellent issues amidst some above average, but still fun, issues. This series continues to roll along and is a delight, especially in terms of David's mastery at weaving small minor plots, street level plots, character arcs, and this large meta plot. It's on par with volume 2 but still weaker with than volume 1's neonoirish beginnings. This volume is an obvious transition to more superhero like plots and it's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just disappointing.