So the point of this series is to make the "Uncanny" version of the X-Men into the most powerful - and most feared - super-team on the planet.Sounds a lot like they're becoming super-villains, doesn't it?
Oh, they still perform the work of heroes - sorta. Saving the world, that sort of thing.
They face down Mr. Sinister, who has somehow taken control of the head of a Celestial (one of those godlike, incredibly powerful creatures that are on a level with Galactus). How did he do it? No idea.
Sinister has created an army of clones, giving the X-Men an endless supply of bad guys to kill. Yep, kill. They shoot clones, blast them, smash them - just as though this were a videogame. It's terribly out of character for heroes (at least in my book). Killing should be a last resort, not the first step.
Once they get that menace under control, they're faced with a bigger, more galactic problem - and their solution for that challenge is even more absurd.
Like the story, the artwork is a mixed bag, with three artists, thre inkers and three colorists working together. The final product isn't bad, it just feels fragmented.
This comic, written by Kieron Gillen, is trying to paint on a big canvas, but it forgets that, in order for the reader to root for the main characters, they have to have some personality, some likeability, some humor - all we see here are an army of powerhouses running over the opposition.
It's not that the X-Men can't play on the big cosmic stage - usually the tromping ground of the Fantastic Four or the Avengers - it's just that there has to be a balance between characterization and epic struggles.
So far, this "new" series is too one-sided. It's all pomp and no personality.
Grade: C+
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