Review: Laura Kinney Takes The Lead In ‘X-Men’ #10

Prior to this series, Laura Kinney had fallen out of the spotlight that she’d fought so hard to earn. X-Men has returned her to the prominence she deserves, and this issue keeps her upwards trajectory going.

Gerry Duggan, Javier Pina, Marte Gracia, and Clayton Cowles lead Wolverine on a rescue mission.

The X-Men continue to monitor Orchis agent Feilong on Phobos above Arakko. When their recon discovers a captive with an adamantium skeleton, Wolverine knows she needs to take action. What she finds may shake the X-Men, or give them an ally they never expected against Orchis.

Duggan gets Laura right in this issue, and I’m glad to see the series upswing continue. He gives her excellent motivation, and ensures she feels like a part of the team. Too many solo spotlight issues in team books ignore the rest of the group, in favor of getting a few more pages in with a fan favorite. This issue strikes the balance really well. It’s primarily a Laura story, but the rest of the team is heavily featured, and the issue wouldn’t have worked without Rogue.

I’ve really enjoyed Pina’s art as he’s been filling in for Larraz on his off issues. He has a similar line, and he does some amazing fight scenes in this issue. The brawl between Laura and her rescuee (I’m not going to spoil but the cover basically does) is absolutely fantastic. It feels feral, but not wild and uncalculating. Gracia puts in his normal great work, but in the fight it’s especially good. He uses reds to make Pina’s pencils feel more violent, and evoking blood without it actually being drawn onto the page.

I really enjoyed this issue, and the series is getting better by the month. I’m excited to see what the next arc holds.

X-Men #10 is available now from Marvel Comics.