Hank McCoy has been kidnapped. Not only that, but he is being held captive in what was once Charles Xavier’s school. Judging by the cover of this issue, I’m sure Cyclops will handle this successfully and won’t run into any unexpected problems. Yes, certainly. But let’s also address the elephant in the room. The series has eight issues, with crossovers between titles. why? Well, it’s very simple. Two X-Men teams are active, one led by Rogue (as seen in Gail Simone’s Uncanny X-Men) and the other by Cyclops. Given the offensive nature of the Cyclops’ plan, there will likely be disagreements between the two teams. It was previously hinted that the two were modern versions of Xavier (Rogue) and Magneto (Cyclops). Given this information, what does this mean? More importantly, is the first part of the crossover between the two titles good enough to continue?
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The story eventually goes in some interesting directions. As it passes quickly, we learn a lot about what’s going on in Greymalkin Prison. Not only that, but Hank McCoy gets a bit of a spotlight, with author Jed McKay reminding readers that pre-eugenics Hank was an X-Man. Most of the Hank stories I’ve read so far have shown him to be a questionable person at best, but it’s great to see who he used to be and who he is again. Additionally, once the story passes the halfway point, we see how the X-Men plan to carry out their assault on the prison. It’s still unclear why Scott and Rogue’s teams are at odds, but one thing is certain: the raid itself will have consequences. That being said, the intensity of the story was seen primarily through Scott’s eyes and the Warden’s actions. Through these moments, McKay does a good job of telling a high-stakes, suspenseful story. In each act, as the treatment of mutants is shown, you can’t help but think, “Oh, that’s going to come back to haunt them later,” or “I’m sure the Warden will regret it.”
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This issue features a great team: pencils by Ryan Stegman, inks by JP Mayer, Livesay, and Stegman, and colors by Marte Garcia. While the story is pretty lively, the art overall is starting to feel overcrowded. As seen in his Venom work, Stegman’s pencils were able to provide crisp detail, but at times there was a thickness that made the story a little flat. It’s hard to tell if this is due to the ink or the color, but the two combine to create moments that look a little too sharp. This leaves it a little short on moments that are clearly meant to evoke emotion. That said, this issue is still very readable, supported by great coloring and scenes where Stegman’s panels display a genius layout of movement across the page.
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I was hesitant to see the crossover begin so soon after the X-Men reboot. But needless to say, I was wrong. This story has an interesting hook that propels the X-Men to a more ambitious status than just a team of heroes stopping villains. Rather, they are further cementing themselves as liberators of oppressed mutants who fight back as fiercely as their oppressors. This makes for a captivating first issue of a month-long crossover with Uncanny X-Men, and there’s no doubt readers will be eagerly awaiting Uncanny X-Men #7.
“X-MEN” #8 Review: Let the Raid Begin
X-Men #8
X-Men #8 is an interesting story, but some artistic choices make it difficult to understand.
Cyclops’ emotions are well portrayed and show how effective he is as a leader under pressure.
The story does a good job of making Beast a sympathetic character.
It’s still unclear why the two X-Men teams are at odds
Sometimes the art feels a little disconnected from the emotional weight of the story
