NEW X-MEN #132
"Ambient Magnetic Fields"
Recommended (7/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Grant Morrison
Pencils: Phil Jimenez
Inks: Andy Lanning
Colors: Chris Chuckry
Letters: Comicraft
Editor: Mike Marts
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
Grant Morrison provides a fitting epilogue to the climactic opening story of his run on this title. He grabbed readers' attention with the obliteration of a mutant nation, and here, he conveys the power and the immensity of the attack in a solemn look back. I can't help but notice the timing of this issue. Though Morrison is telling an X-Men story, there are elements that put one in mind of the terrorist attacks of a year ago. But he does so without direct reference, keeping the horror of the real world from intruding too much into the wonder of the fictional one.
Professor X and Jean Grey lead a team into the devastated remains of Genosha, and they find a mutant alive in the expansive field of debris. He claims to have seen ghosts, spirits of 16 million slain mutants who continue to speak. The X-Men detect numerous magnetic fields in the area, and there seems to be something to the ghost story. Could the master of magnetism somehow still be alive and active in the rubble? Or are these ghosts just that... ghosts?
Jimenez's detailed, Perez-inspired style is perfectly suited to bringing out the extent of the Genoshan devastation. I was also particularly impressed with the realism he brought to Professor X. Mind you, there were specific panels that didn't seem to jibe with what Morrison writes in the script. The description of the magnetic "ghosts" doesn't really correspond with what we see, and there's an inconsistency in the climactic scene as well.
I love the central concept that fuels this story, but Morriron's initial explanations and exploration are a bit muddled. The story's climax boasts a surprisingly conventional super-hero storytelling tone that clashes with the more unconventional approach that Morrison brings to most of this issue -- and to most of run on the title thus far. I was also surprised to find that Storm's character remain impenetrable and stoodgy. Sure, it's consistent with Chris Claremont's portrayal of the character in X-Treme X-Men, but this is one of those times when consistency isn't such a good thing.
Still, it was good to see Morrison incorporate more of the Marvel's mutants. The use of Sabra and Quicksilver was surprising and fun, as was the return of some obscure mutants like Unus and Shocker. It makes it clear that Morrison isn't just telling the story of a select group of super-heroes, but it exploring a more inclusionary trend in society... or is this more of a voluntary segregation, even elevation? Clever ideas such as those and the magnetic voices in this issue continue to make Morrison's New X-Men an entertaining and challenging read every month.
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