This is going to be an exceptionally hard review to write, because the issue really hinges on a big surprise, and most of the issue involves setting it up, so I want to review the book but I don't want to give away the surprise, which I kind of liked. Suffice it to say, this issue answers some questions from previous arcs for those who have been paying attention, it pays off a lot of stuff that's been building in Morrison's New X-Men in general and it sets up some interesting questions for the "Planet X" story, which looks like another standard X-Men story dressed up with Morrison's style. In other words, after four months of The Filth lite, it looks like New X-Men might be returning to form, and I couldn't be happier about it.
Since its inception, this has been one of those "crossing boundaries" books that appeals to fans of the indy set as well as more mainstream super-hero fans. Whenever Morrison has tilted too far in either direction, either by playing things too straight super-hero or too much existential weirdness, the book has suffered. There are elements to this issue, including borderline goofy Silver Age style dialogue, where I felt like Morrison was tilting too far toward super-heroes, but in general the balance is pretty good this time out. In addition to the super-hero staples of a traitor revealed and a villain making his presence known, there are some of Morrison's neat ideas in Professor X's explanations of Cerebra or Jean Grey telepathically learning how to fly from a test pilot staying at a nearby hilton.
Really, though, the driving force of this first issue of "Planet X" is the revelation. I don't even want to hint too broadly at it, for fear of giving away the secret, but I was very pleased by the revelation and suddenly find myself anxious to see the next issue of New X-Men once again. Once revealed, it raises some questions of planning that make me want to reread older issues and see if the answers make sense, and I get the sense that maybe all the pieces aren't going to fit entirely into place, but as a general reveal it holds together pretty well and comes across as a believable shocker instead of an out-of-nowhere revelation that makes no sense. For those, you can turn to any given issue of Uncanny X-Men these days.
As per usual for New X-Men, the new arc brings a new artist, and this time it's Phil Jimenez who returns to the fold, with inks by Andy Lanning and colors by Chris Chuckry. Jimenez's realistic style is perhaps the closest to Frank Quitely's of anyone who has worked on the book, and it's a good match for the style of the story. Jimenez captures a lot in the facial expressions of the characters this issue, doing especially good work on the kindness (which comes across as almost naive and pitiable, given the circumstances) of Charles Xavier or the arrogance and malevolence of the villain. His depiction of power effects is likewise very impressive, especially the explosive powers of Dust or the powers of the villain.
This issue is all about the big reveal, as a master plan long in development is brought to fruition. There are some worrisome elements, as I wonder how much Morrison has planned from the start and how much he's making up as he goes along, and the notion of "everything you know is wrong" can sometimes lead to sloppy plotting and strange gaps in continuity from just the past few issues, but it's undeniably an exciting setup. Given that Morrison's intricate plotting on JLA sometimes descended into gobbledegook, I'm wary of him doing something similar on New X-Men, but at the same time, the implications of this issue are very intriguing.
