What Came First, Genosha Or Threshold?: Reviewing ‘Marauders’ #11

Once upon a time, the nation of Genosha was wiped out to kick off a new era for Marvel’s X-Men comics. Over twenty years later the island nation and the human and mutants that called it home are still (mostly gone) and the nation has remained a massive graveyard. Now that an even bigger new status quo has been going on for quite a few years, Kate Pryde has an idea on how to change that.

Don’t let it be said that this current volume of Marauders isn’t full of some pretty big ideas. Whether those ideas are hitting, that’s a subjective question that depends on the reader, but the series sure is taking swings. Since that whole trip to the past didn’t work the way Kate wanted but apparently worked the way that fate meant for it to work out, she’s got her eyes on apparently trying to save Genosha through means connected to Threshold and a new mutant circuit. Truth be told, I was a bit lost on exactly what she is trying to do because a lot of words were thrown around as things cut between the (almost forgotten) Brimstone Love plotline and a bevy of deep-cut mutant cameos.

I think it’s something about casting the ghosts/souls/whatever of the dead mutants and humans of Genosha back through time so that they become Threshold, to explain how there was suddenly a nation of mutants and humans that far in the past or something. This is one of those issues that a second, maybe even third read might be the best way to parse everything it is presenting.

Steve Orlando has tried to introduce a whole lot of new lore in this run and even eleven issues in and with trips through space and time it still feels like not a ton has happened through those issues. There hasn’t been a lot of room for a lot of character moments, and some that we get like with some romances feel a bit rushed because the overall Threshold plot has taken up a lot of page space from the start till even now. That being said we get some better moments here such as Kate and Kurt together (her going to him for advice and to talk out her idea was such a great move) and a moment where the team goes to Santo Marco to rescue a mutant (the first of the obscure callbacks) to remind us they do have a mission to save mutants on Earth still.

As much as I like some bits of the big sci-fi stuff from this book, it sure would be nice to have a volume of this Marauders where they do the whole pirate/rescue mutants thing full-time for a few arcs. Both volumes so far have that as the premise but don’t hew too close to it as they aim for wider bigger things, which is fine but ya know some pirate Kate and her crew doing their thing would be divine.

There is a ton for Eleanora Carlini and Matt Milla to do in this issue since there are a metric ton of characters bouncing all over a variety of places doing a ton of varying things. Lots of posing and conversation moments and even a brief sort of fight scene that is really more just interrogation I guess maybe. Now that we can actually see the faces of the characters (since they don’t have to wear the full-body suits anymore) it’s easier to follow things and Carlini gets to really show some emotion and facial expressions as well as some solid setting and figure work.

Carlini has a style that is a bit cartoony and energetic with backdrops that are a bit more skewing toward the real which is an intriguing combination. It’s a good fit for this book with the wild concepts and spaces that it needs to explore and fill issue to issue. It also pairs well with the colors that Milla brings because there are pops of middle vivid colors that are enhanced by the rest of the colors that are a bit more toned down and feel closer to how we see many colors in the real world. This allows the costumes and powers of the various characters to stand out even more, like the introduction of Wicked (a deep-cut obscure Chris Claremont character from his third return to the line) with the swirling green ghosts and such.

As much energy and color and power as there is in the rest of the art is returned equally within the lettering that Travis Lanham lays out. There is plenty that helps us hear the voices of the characters and their volume/tone while finding ways to have a little bit of fun with all those letters with colors and varying fonts. Especially with the SFX that are dotting many of the pages, that have a voice and personality of their own.

Overall, this is a fine issue that is very much a lot of setup for what is to come as it throws a whole ton at the reader in a mostly neat package that does quite a bit in its page space. There is no telling where this will all go and if we’ll see more beyond Threshold going forward, but I’m engaged with this arc which is always good.

Marauders #11 is now available from Marvel Comics.