Uncanny X-Men #20

   If you're going to be a fan of writer Brian Michael Bendis, then you have to accept the fact that his stories often spool out very slowly, taking months and months to get to the heart of the matter.

    Thus it is that we're 20 issues into this series and we're just now - maybe - getting to the heart of the secret behind the attacks on Scott (Cyclops) Summers' version of the Uncanny X-Men.

   Since the series began, SHIELD has been hunting for Cyclops - and at the same time, the X-Men have been fighting off attacks by ever-more-powerful Sentinels, the giant robots that track mutants.

   We may finally be seeing the source for those attacks - and it's quite a surprise (assuming it's not a false lead).

   As always, the art by Chris Bachalo (with six different inkers) is loaded with striking images and clever designs - and the storytelling on this issue is much improved.

   So has it been worth the wait? I can't render a final judgment on that until the conclusion. In many ways the story has been building nicely, but I admit the this one is straining my patience. Hopefully the finale will make it all worthwhile.

Grade: B+

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