Uncanny X-Force #19 – Review

By: Rick Remender (writer), Robbi Rodriguez (art), Dean White with James Campbell (colors)

The Story: “The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning is also open for, uh…non-traditional students…”

The Review: Issues like Uncanny X-Force #19 can be tricky. It directly follows a massive and thrilling arc, and while the main conflict has been resolved, there are still some dangling plot threads to be tied up. It was almost inevitable that this would be a quieter issue, then, serving the function of both tidying up the loose threads and resetting the intensity bar so it can build again later. Potentially, this could have killed the momentum of the series, but Remender manages to keep it engaging by ratcheting up the drama. What’s the extent of Warren’s condition? What will happen to Evan? Who from the Age of Apocalypse will stay, and who will leave? All these questions are addressed and answered with a satisfying tinge of melancholy. There are many farewells to be said, and nearly all are touching without becoming sappy.

Apart from the characters, this issue also sees the departure of Jerome Opeña from the art team. After doing such gorgeous work on DAS, he will be sorely missed. Dean White, with some assistance from James Campbell, helps ease the transition by continuing to use a similar palette. Robbi Rodriguez also seems to make a conscious effort to not jar readers; his panel work and framing is far more conservative than it was in his run on Tek Jansen or Maintenance. Some fans of the series still may not take to Rodriguez’s style, but I found it a strength for this issue. In the same way that Opeña’s realistic pencils gave a sense of gravity to the battles with Achangel, Rodriguez’s more exaggerated and angular work here gives a sense of dynamism to scenes that simply feature people talking. Admittedly, some characters’ reactions seem over the top—Wolverine’s exchange with Sabretooth, Nightcrawler’s response to Kitty’s embrace—but there’s also a remarkable amount of subtle tenderness to Fantomex’s and AoA Jean Grey’s goodbyes.

WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Severed #5 – This comic scores of a couple of fronts.  First, it’s well written and illustrated.  In my opinion, reviewers get sloppy when praising “writing” and use it to mean “having good ideas”.  Severed is well written.  The pages and dialog just have an elegant flow to them that some writers just cannot manage.  And, it looks GREAT and very much pulls you into this time period when people were sweaty and wearing rumpled clothes.  Stuff just looks dirty.  But the other area where Severed scores is that it is keeping me guessing better than any comic I’ve read in a long time.  It’s amazing how the writers have been able to maintain this tease of when the old cannibal would attack the little boy without anyone yelling, “get on with it.”

Most Anticipated: Wolverine and the X-Men #3 – What a jolt of energy this series has been to the X-franchise!  I love how Jason Aaron is approaching this series with a dry and black sense of humor because these mutant books can get overly serious really fast.  Oh yeah….and that Chris Bachalo/Tim Townsend team is providing the art.  Should be awesome!

Other Picks: Batman #4, The Activity #1, Last Battle One-Shot, Amazing Spider-Man #676, Daredevil #7, Lady Mechanika #3, Avengers #20

DS’ Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Warlord of Mars #13 – Oh yeah, no surprise for me. Warlord of Mars is a great book with a solid creative team and about half a million words of best-selling material to draw upon. Issue #13 is the first issue in the most excellent “Gods of Mars” arc. If you haven’t picked it up, give your head a shake and get out there

Most Anticipated: Lady Mechanika #3 – Benitez’ art alone is worth the price of admission, but his art turned to steampunk exuberance is a real treat.

Other Picks: Thunderbolts #167, Daredevil #7, Uncanny X-Force #19, Avengers #20, Defenders Strange Heroes #1