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Posted March 28, 2011 by Earl Maghirang in Columns
 
 

Review: New Mutants # 23

Reviewing New Mutants # 23 by Mike Carey, Steve Kurth and Allen Martinez which is the fourth part of Age of X.

The next chapter for Mike Carey‘s Age of X saga continues and I am totally thrilled by the new turn of events.

From Magneto‘s defection and eventual alliance with Rogue and Gambit to the building mystery of who the mutants really are up against in this alternate reality.

The issue was solid and packed with characterization. From the re-blossoming romance between Rogue and Gambit (and an eventual kiss mid-issue) to the building terror and sheer scale of how screwed Marvel’s merry mutants really are.

I also admired Carey for having the guts to make significant changes to the status quo in a span of few issues. The Force Warriors particularly Legion is starting to be a major threat in the world of Age of X and it looks like they are only just beginning.

No sign of Basilisk and Wolverine in this issue, which I was totally expecting, since it was Basilisk‘s angry mug that ended the previous chapter.

Ofcourse, this wouldn’t be New Mutants without the original next generation. And we do have a very mean bunch of young mutants in this issue. From Moonstone to Dust, everybody in this cadre seems to resent Homo Superiors with a vengeance. And though they are angry, it doesn’t mean that they won’t share a listening ear to Magneto.

The biggest shocker in this whole issue can be seen in the last page, when Rogue and Gambit finally break in to the middle part of the Fortress X where a frozen-in-time Dr. Nemesis seems to be panicking while looking at a bunch of brain scans. Still scratching my head on who the mysterious X is.

Overall, this is such a solid book. It’s like watching for a very fast paced season of Survivor thanks to the multiple shifting alliance and ulterior motives.

Here is what I consider as the bad part for Age of X. I hated the fact that it was too short. I did not have enough time to build characterizations for other characters.  In my opinion, I feel like the other revised looks for the other X-Men did not feel right since they only appear in a panel here and there with not much dialogue. Its sad because I checked the Age of X checklist and found out that there are only two more chapters left before we officially say goodbye to the world of Age of X.

The book also has a great vibe in terms of the battle, however, it does not feel like the battles seem grand as what the writer wanted. Maybe because of the art or maybe because of the limited page count. Either way, it feels like that’s a big void that has a need to be filled.

With two more issues left (and that mini about the Age of X Avengers) I’m scared to think that this issue will leave us wanting more of this version of the X-Men and we might get this “bitin” feeling when the final chapter arrives late next month.

Hopefully though, Carey manages to pack all those subplots and mysteries before the end and I hope to see more action sequences.

You might want to check my site at Thefanboyseo for Spoilers for Age of X.


Earl Maghirang