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X-FORCE #125
"One Of Us"
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Peter Milligan
Artist: Mike Allred
Colors: Laura Allred
Letters: Mike Allred & Blambot
Editor: Axel Alonso
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
I think one of the reasons that I enjoy X-Force as much now as I
did when it relaunched is because it has maintained its unpredictability.
There's no guarantee from month to month who is going to live and who is going
to die, and the stories range from more standard super-hero conflicts (with a
darker edge) to themes of racism and media manipulation, all while making the
characters more well-realized and believable.
The selfishness and
paper-thin characterization of the characters has given way to surprisingly
strong bonds amongst the team members, while still maintaining the infighting. I
love that the characters have basically been paired off, and that those pairs
are still in conflict. The bond between Edie and Guy is surprisingly sweet, and
both of these characters have become easily the most human and heroic of the
group. Meanwhile, Phat and Myles have developed a strong friendship driven by a
sense of survival but with perhaps more surprising romantic undertones, and The
Spike and Tike Alicar are brought together by an intense rivalry. There's
basically a wide variety of character interaction going on, and while some of
the characters have grown closer, there's no less conflict amongst the team,
which keeps it interesting.
One of the other really entertaining aspects of X-Force has been the
creators' willingness to almost break the fourth wall, mocking some of the
conventions of the genre and the style of the book. Having the specter of death
literally point at one of the main characters is a clever goof on the marketing
that has been used specifically on this book and in general in super-hero
titles, and Spike Freeman's desire to change the name of the team is a cute play
off the rumored name change for the title in industry news.
I continue to believe that
Mike Allred was the one and only choice for this title (although Darwyn Cooke's
art last issue was fantastic), because his style keeps the intrigue and darkness
of the book from becoming cliche. While Milligan is a skilled enough writer that
these elements and his take on them are new, the contrast of Allred's fairly
bright style with the dark subject matter immediately sets the reader's mind in
a different place. In addition, I thought this issue had some of Allred's
strongest work, with some very detailed faces and some spectacular designs for
the tail end of the book.
If someone had told me that X-Force would one day be a book full of satire and
cultural observations, I would have thought they were nuts. But these days,
that's exactly what it is.
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