Cable and X-Force #1

It’s hard to believe that there are now two X-Force comic books - I guess I never thought the group was that popular. But Marvel apparently thinks there’s no such thing as too many X-Men comics, so there you go.

Judging by the first issue of Cable and X-Force, I’m not so sure one series is warranted, much less two.

The series drops us in the middle of the action, as the X-Force team (which includes Cable, Colossus, Domino, Forge and Dr. Nemesis) has just committed what seems to be an act of terrorism.

They’re confronted by the Uncanny Avengers - and quickly we jump back in time to see how the latest X-Force team was gathered.

Frankly, it’s not all that interesting.

Cable’s struggling with some kind of debilitating illness while keeping a distant eye on his daughter Hope. He’s also recruiting new soldiers for his team, but his plans, their reasons for joining and what they hope to accomplish are largely unknown or unexplained.

The art by Salvador Larroca is excellent, but the color pallet is muted, giving the comic a grim tone - which is obviously intentional, but it doesn’t show off the art to its best effect.

Hopefully future issues will clear things up - but since Cable’s stock in trade is to be a mysterious figure, I’m not expecting much. I’m going to pass on this one.

Grade: B-

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