X-Men: Schism #2 – Review

by Jason Aaron (writer), Frank Cho (art), Jason Keith (colors), and Jared K. Fletcher (letters)

The Story: The X-Men race to deal with the global rash of out-of-control sentinels, Cyclops and Wolverine butt heads over Quire, and Kade Kilgore makes plans.

What’s Good: Like many kids who grew up in the late 80s to early 90s, I was an avid X-fan growing up.  That said, I’ve felt increasingly alienated by the last few years of X-Men stories to the point where I only cursorily followed what was going on in the X-verse.  The various creators, many of them quite talented, just weren’t telling the kinds of X-Men stories that I wanted to read.

And so, the first issue of Schism was a revelation as, out of nowhere, Aaron began telling a story that I was interested in.  With this second issue, we get more of the same.

In many ways, with Schism, Aaron appears to realize that a lot of what worked in the past for the X-Men didn’t need fixing and so, we’re getting a story that really brings back the basics of what makes for a compelling X-Men comic.  Namely, we’re getting Sentinels and anti-mutant hysteria.  More importantly, we’re not getting outlandish or bizarre reactions from the X-Men to all this either.  Instead, the mutants are heading out, kicking robot ass, and suffering the slings and arrows of those who hate and fear them all the same.  It’s not re-inventing the wheel on Aaron’s part, but there’s no mistaking that this works.  It’s a central conflict that makes for a relatable and enjoyable comic that pulled me in.

There’s solid character work as well.  An early scene between Wolverine and Idie of Generation Hope is tragic, haunting stuff that his the mark of an excellent writer.  It’s a scene that really punches you in the gut, and Wolverine’s reaction (and how he carries himself, as a result, through the rest of the issue) is a testament to his heart and empathy, beneath all the gristle.