Review: There Is Such A Thing As Bad Publicity In ‘X-Men’ #23
by Tony Thornley
Orchis’ war against the X-Men is building before the Hellfire Gala. Right now, it looks like the X-Men might be Earth’s only hope.
Gerry Duggan, Joshua Cassara, Dee Cunniffe and Clayton Cowles introduce the world to the Stark Sentinels.
The Stark Sentinels have been programmed to attack any and all mutants, even those actively helping, like firefighters. Thankfully, the X-Men are on top of it, and are coming to their fellow mutants’ defense. Unfortunately, they might be biting off more than they can chew as these new robotic behemoths are more Stark than Sentinel!
I like what Duggan is setting up here, but also this issue kind of puts us in en media res. There’s a lot of assumptions made in the script- largely that the reader has also being reading Duggan’s Iron Man. It works if you haven’t read that series but it all makes more sense if you have. The actual issue’s writing is a lot of fun though, as the X-Men try and fail to stop the Sentinel by not considering the Stark parts. Even worse, the issue shows how the X-Men could win the day and still lose the publicity war against a group ready for it.
Cassara continues to knock this book out of the park each month. The Sentinel is imposing and scary. The team’s arrival on page is exciting, and he draws Cyclops’ X-Men Blue era costume perfectly. While his action is great, he’s even better in the close-ups, depicting the team’s inner struggles so clearly that those moments don’t need dialogue. Cunniffe’s color art is a welcome addition, balancing the bright superhero colors with the grit inherent in Cassara’s work. It looks fantastic.
X-Men #23 is available now from Marvel Comics.
Overview
The X-Men’s struggles are getting better and better, especially with Fall of X looming. It’s the best this series has been in a long time.
