Review: UNCANNY X-MEN SPECIAL #1

STK641923

UNCANNY X-MEN SPECIAL #1
Written by Sean Ryan
Art by Ron Ackins
Published by Marvel Comics
Release Date: June 11, 2014

It’s hard to believe that Uncanny X-Men Special #1 marks only the second time Sean Ryan has written something for Marvel (his first was a short A+X story). The frequent DC writer dives into the world of Marvel’s mutants effortlessly with this lighthearted first chapter of a story that promises a focus on Cyclops’ students as they try to rescue their leader from space bounty hunters.

Bendis did a fine job at introducing his new generation of mutants but they’ve largely faded in the background for the majority of his Uncanny X-Men run, throwing out witty remarks but failing to do anything memorable. The book’s focus has simply been elsewhere so it makes it all the more surprising that Ryan was able to push these new recruits to the forefront and make them feel like established, individual characters in the process instead of the blank slates they really are.

When the X-Jet is attacked and Cyclops is taken prisoner, they don’t spring into action like you would expect from a story like this. Instead, these rookies go back to base and take orders from their superiors. One of the few things that Bendis has established with these kids is that they’re not being treated like students as previous X-Men newcomers were, they’re being trained as soldiers instead. Ryan takes this idea and runs with it, presenting the kids as the wet behind the ear trainees they are, wide-eyed as they’re taught to pilot the jet and feeling out of the loop at their own mission debriefings. It not only gives the kids much needed development but also strengthens senior characters like Emma and Magik, who come across as the experienced veterans they are.

It doesn’t matter that the overall plot is pretty thin and the bounty hunter villains are more comical than complex because Sean Ryan has something to say about the current X-Men status quo and is telling it to us by showing the current state of things through these newer characters’ eyes. Magik is not only seen as a brooding older sister to these kids but as a scary potential future. Even the Stepford Cuckoos, who are usually depicted as the students’ equals, are presented here as more adept and savvy with a scene of Irma Cuckoo face-palming as an undercover Benjamin Ford makes a terrible mistake simply because he doesn’t know any better. 

Ron Ackins’ art is perfect for the laid-back mood of this particular story. The facial expressions, especially those of the students and bounty hunter employer, elevate the comedy of Ryan’s writing. Likewise, the staging and body language of the characters in the post-attack regrouping scene is evidence that Ackins can convey Ryan’s themes as well as he can relay his jokes. It’s artist/writer synergy at its best.

Sean Ryan’s take on the Uncanny X-Men cast is so refreshing that one might feel disappointment when the book reminds them it’s part of a crossover. Like the All-New X-Men Special released last year, this is part one of a three-parter and will continue in special issues of Iron Man and Nova. Hopefully Ryan can balance the cast throughout the story since the students of the New Xavier School is what truly makes this issue of Uncanny X-Men special.

The Verdict: 9.0/10

Related posts

Top