As is often the case, it’s a hard time to be one X Men fan. The Krakoan age, Marvel’s latest ambitious take on the children of the atom, comes to an unsatisfying end this year. Picking up the dying torch of this parent series is a take on the beloved characters as business as usual. Looked like my funny debut car X Men-little. But mutant fans have another option. newly released Ultimate X-Men #one This is exactly what Marvel’s mutant fans need right now. Here’s why.
Ultimate X-Men it is a blank slate that eases the burden of the need to comply with canon and annual events. Located within new Ultimate universeThe breakthrough launched by the superstar writer Jonathan Hickman (The brain of the Krakoan age), Ultimate X-Men He handed over the reins to writer and artist Peach Momoko. Readers are introduced to recently graduated middle school student Hisako Ichiki; Some readers may know it as: Armor. But it’s not Armor yet. Instead, she is a deeply insecure teenage girl trying to find her place in a world that seems unwilling to accept her.
Unlike the other two Ultimate books currently on shelves (Spider Man And Black Panther), giving readers new perspectives on familiar characters and stories, Ultimate X-Melooks like n X Men It’s just a story in name. The first issue is stripped of all recognizable elements. No Charles, no Magneto, no nothing.
Momoko gets to the heart of what makes a good product X Men Tell the story thematically, not visually. The first issue focuses entirely on Hisako and makes the reader understand and empathize with her. As he falls deeper into the mystery of why people at his school are dying, he is also faced with a sense of isolation and otherness. This is a disturbing story J-Fear effects. There’s a palpable sense of dread throughout the issue, as Hisako is haunted by a shadowy figure rendered in Momoko’s signature watercolor style.
Just like his work on projects like this Devil DaysThe color and expressive line Momoko uses to describe the world and its characters enrich the emotions the story evokes. Sometimes scary but honorable X MenA history of standing up for marginalized communities or those who are marginalized for any reason. We may not even have read the word mutant yet. Ultimate X-Men, but we already know it’s the mutant experience. Narrative and artistic confidence displayed in just one issue Ultimate X-Men This is enough to make me hopeful for future events.
This hope, of course, brings with it great reservations. It’s not about Momoko or Hisako’s story, it’s about the Ultimate universe itself. When the Ultimate universe was first created (as Ultimate Marvel in 2000), it gave rise to incredible works such as: Brian Michael Bendis Spider Man to run. It was an attempt to ignore decades-old complex rules, opting for new stories that could easily be skipped without any prior knowledge. But by 2015, the Ultimate universe had become complex enough for Marvel to merge it with the main universe. Similarly, Hickman’s Krakoan age X Men— Starting in 2019 House of X And Powers of X—it already ends with this The Fall of House X And The Rise of the Powers of X.
Giving Hickman the opportunity to steer his own interpretation of the Ultimate universe away from canon seems like an attempt to deliver on the lofty promise of Krakoa: A new status quo. We just don’t know how long it will take. But while we have it, Ultimate X-Men A fresh alternative to the mainline comics that’s perfect for fans new and old.
