Dark X-Men: The Beginning #1 (Utopia) – Review

Some Thoughts Before The Review: I’m always a bit hesitant to pick up story collections like Dark X-Men: The Beginning because they tend to be rather hit-or-miss. That said, I couldn’t possibly pass up a Namor story by the Captain Britain team.

“Namor/Norman”

By Paul Cornell (Writer), Leonard Kirk (Pencils), Jay Leisten (Inks), and Brian Reber (Colors)

What’s Good and What’s Not So Good: Little more than a tense standoff/exchange of words between Norman Osborn and Namor about Namor’s recent actions, “Namor/Norman” still manages to make an impact thanks to Paul Cornell’s strong knack for personality-driven dialogue and Leonard Kirk’s always reliable pencil work. What’s disappointing about “Namor/Norman” is that it really doesn’t amount to a whole lot beyond being an interesting character study. Now I’m all about character studies, but Cornell’s story left me wanting more…anything really. Thankfully, the “To be continued” lets me know that “more” is on the way.

“Mimic”

By James Asmus (Writer), Jesse Delperdang (Pencils & Inks), Andy Lanning (Inks), and Rain Beredo (Colors)

What’s Good and What’s Not So Good: James Asmus’ compelling Mimic story is basically the comic equivalent to a movie montage. That’s both a good thing and a bad thing. The montage style is a good thing because it means that “Mimic” is a great introduction to a troubled character that has been thrust back into the spotlight. It’s also a bad thing because it means that “Mimic” is a fast read that ends just as it begins to gain some real momentum. Now, with the good and bad out of the way, I can say that “Mimic” ultimately manages to avoid feeling like a wasted effort thanks to the art team’s impressive handling of Asmus’ (rather weighty) dialogue.

“Dark Beast”

By Shane McCarthy (Writer), Ibraim Roberson (Artist), and Matt Milla (Colors)

What’s Good and What’s Not So Good: I’ve always found the alternate Beast to be a cool character. He’s generic, sure, but he’s also quite interesting and a great addition to the Dark X-Men lineup. Shane McCarthy’s “Dark Beast” is a prime example of why I found the other Beast to be worth reading about. It works as both a nice introduction to the character and as a way to move some of the Dark X-Men story forward in regards to the secret project Fraction has been writing about. The only downside to “Dark Beast” is that it’s artwork looks a bit odd. Matt Milla’s color work sets a strong tone, but Ibraim Roberson’s Norman Osborn looks quite fat and his Beast goes from looking downright awesome to silly depending on the panel. It leaves “Dark Beast” looking visually inconsistent.

Conclusion: Dark X-Men: The Beginning #1 is worth picking up if you’re a fan of what Emma’s team of X-Men has to offer. All three stories read well, two out of three look quite good, and one, Paul Cornell’s, brings Namor’s special kind of awesome in a big way.  The problem though is that nothing of consequence happens.  If you can handle that and character studies, you’ll probably find a lot to like in this book.

Grade (As a whole): C+

-Kyle Posluszny