I was surprised and thoroughly impressed with the first chapter of this two-part fill-in story, as writer Bollers touched upon plenty of issues that are highly relevant in this day and age of terrorism, war and paranoia. But I was incredibly disappointed to find that most of the political and social issues that he brought up in the first half of the story are dropped in favor of a science-fiction story with an ending that's more than a little obvious.
Jonas Keller -- the leader of a racist militia group known as White America's Redemption, or W.A.R. -- has failed in his attempt to kill Nathan Summers, and Keller couldn't be happier. It means that Summers is coming for him, and with him, he will bring the answers that Keller has been seeking all his life. Keller's ignorant militia troops pose little obstacle to the powerful mutant, and Summers learns the nature of Keller's mutant powers... and the killer's self-fulfilling delusions.
Ranson's artwork is the most enjoyable aspect of this issue. His highly detailed style reinforces the more realistic elements of the story, and therefore brings out how disturbing that reality can be. At the same time, though, he boasts a cinematic flair for bringing out the superhuman powers of the title character. There's a crisp, special-effects quality to the depiction of Summers's powers. I'm pleased to see Ranson's stuff again. After his successes on the X-Factor limited series and now this fill-in, Marvel editors needs to avail themselves of his services more often.
I was disappointed that the story degraded into a discussion about time and knowledge of the future. What's worse is that the answer that eluded Keller for years was painfully obvious, and it made the brilliant but mad character seem like little more than an idiot. The clairvoyance revelation in the plot also shoves the racial, terrorist and political plot elements out of the book, and those were the aspects that made Bollers's script strong in the first place.
Credit where credit is due, though. His opening scene is powerful and poignant. We meet a little man who realizes his zealotry was for naught, and in the process, he sees perhaps not just a wasted death, but a waste life as well. The scene also reinforces the soothing, Christ-like image of the title characters. The character's shift from a life of violence and war to a calling of peace and comfort -- albeit in violence-ridden settings -- is an interesting one.
