I'm of two minds about this book so far. The action, and Vaughan's interpretation of Mystique's powers, is terrific, and I like the overall premise. At the same time, Lucas's artwork is uneven, and some of the dialogue and quips, not to mention a bit of revisionist history with Mystique to make her a more palatable protagonist, grates on my nerves a bit. Overall, I'd say that I'm interested in seeing where this one goes, and it certainly has the solid execution I've come to expect from Vaughan thanks to Y: The Last Man and The Hood, I just would like for the book to feature more consistent artwork and a little less of the cheesy James Bond style quips, which don't really fit the lead.
While it's certainly a cool power, shape-shifting isn't quite the physical power that something like super-strength or energy blasts are. However, Vaughan is making it clear that in the hands of someone like Mystique, it's very dangerous, whether it's her ability to confuse her enemies or to use the power in unusual ways, such as moving around her internal organs to make her tougher or retaining her full body mass in smaller size for more effective hand-to-hand combat. Vaughan even puts a new twist on the old shapeshifter counter-tactic "shoot us both" in an amusing sequence with Mystique and the combat unit sent to take her out.
Vaughan clearly has a flair for doing things a little differently, as seen in his imaginative action sequences with Mystique and the troops or with the somewhat predictable but still clever use of Magneto in the close of the book. So it comes as something of a surprise that some of the dialogue is a little flat and cliched, which I suspect is an attempt to imitate the James Bond style. Mystique's weak gag about Kazaa is probably the most obvious example. More importantly, it seems he's cleaning up Mystique's past a little, making her out to be dedicated to mutant rights rather than simply out for herself, and I find that take to be much less interesting; it also makes her sound like a bargain-basement Magneto at times, which I think is a disservice to the character.
If the writing is sometimes uneven, however, it's considerably stronger than the artwork most of the time. Jorge Lucas clearly has the talent to pull this off, with some fantastic action sequences in the opening part of the book and some imaginative designs for the flying fortress or other technology, but his characters sometimes look ugly and over-rendered. Charles Xavier in particular doesn't come across too well this issue, with numerous facial wrinkles making him look either extremely old or somehow scarred, and his Mystique tends to look a little too girlish, which robs her of some of her obvious power as a strong female protagonist.
Despite my complaints, I really want to like this book, and I see a lot of potential in it. This issue features some great action and use of Mystique's powers, and continues in the setup of her new status quo, which seems to me an ideal use of her character. I'm not always crazy about the artwork or the dialogue, but I am always intrigued by the possibility of what's coming next and I find myself again looking forward to the next issue, so the creators are doing a lot right.
