Stephanie Phillips and Alessandro Miracolo threw a lot at readers during their time in Phoenix, including Jean Gray’s battles against cosmic enemies. Phoenix #5 takes things up a notch, or rather, several notches. In a battle with Go the God Butcher, Jean appears to die (again), but confronts Eternity and says it’s time for her to become part of creation itself. Gene’s ascension could not have come at a better time. Various factions, including the young warrior Adani and a council of alien figures, seek to end the Phoenix for good.
Phillips begins to pull together the various threads he has sown throughout previous issues of Phoenix, especially Adani. Adani blames Jean for destroying her home world and attempts to kill her, despite Jean’s attempts to help her deal with her newfound psychic powers. The same goes for Jean’s struggle to control the Phoenix’s powers and maintain her humanity. Eternity actually sums it up in a powerful and moving sentence: Once an idea is realized, it is never lost. It may change, but it will never be lost. ”
What this resonates with me is how Eternity, and in some ways Phillips, can change comic book characters if given enough time and the creators try to push them in different directions. Because we are talking about something. Jean is one of the biggest examples of this. She started off as one of the founding members of the X-Men, then gained the Phoenix Force, then died and came back to life, and has lived her entire life in between. Being part of the creation is just the next step in her journey.
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The journey comes to life thanks to Miracolo, whose artwork was joined by Marco Renna. Together, Miracolo and Lena paint a canvas filled with the grandeur of the universe. Eternity sports a new design with flowing white robes and a mask vaguely reminiscent of Moon Knight’s patron Khonsh, in what could be one of the best moments of the issue. , he literally waltzes across the galaxy telling Jean things like: order of things.
If you think you can’t top this, the next scene, in which Gene confronts Gall, is both horrifying and awe-inspiring in its construction. Goh is slowly swallowed up by All Black, its jet black tendrils tightening and crushing him until he literally transforms into a star. The sequence begins with a full page splash of Gene going into full phoenix mode as David Curiel illuminates the page with golden light. As Jean’s fiery speech bubbles begin to fill the pages, Corrie Petit joins in on the action, cementing her divinity.
Phoenix #5 continues to solidify its place as one of the best X-Men books on The Stand, putting Jean Gray in a new position and giving her a new threat. Moving a character forward is no easy task, but Phillips and Miracolo succeed on every level.
“Phoenix” #5 gives Jean Gray a new purpose and a new enemy
Phoenix #5
Phoenix #5 continues to solidify its place as one of the best X-Men books on The Stand, putting Jean Gray in a new position and giving her a new threat. Moving a character forward is no easy task, but Phillips and Miracolo succeed on every level.
Pushing Jean Gray into a new era on the stage of space.
Stephanie Phillips uses Gene’s entry into creation as a metatext about how comic characters change in the right hands.
Miracolo and Mana paint a cosmic-scale image that includes the battle between Gene and Goa.
It continues to be one of the most interesting X-Books on the stands.
