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New
X-Men
Riot at Xavier's Part 3
137/APRIL/2003
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Grant Morrison
Pencils: Frank Quitely
Inks: Avalon Studios
Colors: Chris Chuckry
Letters: Richard Starkings
& Comicraft’s Jimmy!
Price: $2.25/R28.00 SA |
Finally New X-Men has become consistent enough to warrant good reviews
again. Although strong writing from Grant Morrison [The
Filth] has kept this book original and interesting, the
constant shifting of artists in and out of the line-up has left
this series looking more like a fifty-man American Football team
than a comic.
The current arc, Riot at Xavier’s, had tremendous
hype before it started and has managed to live up to it so far.
The artwork has been gorgeous and for once steady throughout the
first three issues of the storyline.
An unruly gang of students has gotten hold of an experimental new
mutant drug to go along with their hatred of humanity and decide
to capture Professor X and start a riot at his school.
The story has been great throughout the first two issues of the
arc. Morrison has managed to bring the uglier and downright nastier
mutant characters into the foreground of the story. This makes for
some great reading and is basically unknown territory in an X-Men
book. You barely see the ‘X-Men’ but when you do you
start to question their motives and actions. A really great job
of characterisation and plot development is highly apparent in this
arc.
The artwork is very truthful and packed with detail, very much based
on reality. The realism of the main fight scene is just sickening,
broken legs bend out at strange angles, plenty of blood and some
amazing action based artwork to be gawked at. If you are used to
the “normal” i.e. Joe Madureira[Battle Chasers]
etc, X-Men artistic styles of the past and haven’t picked
the New X-Men up before now, you might be quite shocked and somewhat
confused by the choice of artist. No need to worry, I was in the
same boat once before but now have been converted. No other artist
in the current Marvel stable, and many have tried, has been able
to pull off the down-to-earth side of mutant life as well as Quitely
has and none have managed to team up so well with Morrison’s
writing. Simply said, they work well as a team and the one enhances
the others realism in their work.
On the whole this is a highly engaging story which explores many
new and unexplored regions of the X-Men. For cutting edge art and
storytelling with a penchant for a touch of realism and grit, you
can’t go wrong with this creative team. I must add one spanner
in the works at the end, this was a great issue but the two before
it kicked so much more ass, wait and pick up the trade for this
arc it’ll be well worth the money.
Score 8/10
Reviewed By:Iain Duncan
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Comic Reviews
