Category Archives: Marvel
Review: X-Factor #258
Now this is more like it! The last issue of X-Factor was a weird, context-less adventure in Marrakesh that didn’t seem to really have anything to do with X-Factor as a comic or as a superhero team. This issue, starring Wolfsbane, is a proper farewell. It tells a great Wolfsbane story, deals with her personal fallout in the wake of the Hell on Earth War, and sets her up with a new, post-series life. This is exactly what I want to see from the final issues of X-Factor.
X-Factor #258
Rahne gets the help of Father John Maddox to say goodbye, and once again, an appearance by Multiple Man’s religious dupe makes for a good issue.
Comic Rating: 4/5 – Good.
It’s sad to see X-Factor go, but it’s fun to watch writer Peter David say his goodbyes. I didn’t like the last issue whatsoever. It wasn’t a goodbye. It wasn’t a character story. It had nothing to do with anything. But this is very different. Father Maddox is one of the best creations to come out of X-Factor, and he’s a great narrator. Nothing has been as good as Maddox’s first ever appearance, but there’s nothing wrong with that. Maddox works well as a foil for Wolfsbane, given their religious connection, and he gives her a suitable outlet to wrap up her story. This issue definitely feels like a goodbye to Wolfsbane. I knew PAD could pull it off.
This issue also definitely feels like a farewell to X-Factor. As Rahne’s story wrapped up, as she shared a final scene with Guido, it really felt like an end of everything. Rahne and Guido used to be best friends, but in this issue I could really see how far they’ve come – and how far they are from friends anymore. Guido killed her son, after all. Rahne gets a very nice send-off. There’s a flash of Wolfsbane action, a heartfelt reunion with an old love, and some counseling with Father Maddox.
In the end, Rahne gets a chance to see the light. I hope we all get that chance when X-Factor comes to an end this fall.
The 6 Most Evil Fathers in Comics
Father’s Day was this past weekend, and like all dutiful sons in the Internet Age, I marked this occasion by writing ‘Happy Father’s Day’ on Facebook and assumed my father would see it. He and my mom have progressed to the point of getting their own Facebook page, but only so they can read statuses, not so they can actually post anything or interact. Parents, amiright? But as I looked around Facebook, I saw people really going the extra mile and writing nicer, longer messages, buying their fathers gifts and actually spending time with their dads. But I’m no good at fishing, I have yet to give him a grandchild, and I’m not making millions of dollars in a high paying job. What kind of son am I?
So I decided to celebrate my father with the one skill I do possess: writing! I decided to dedicate this week’s List of Six to comic book fathers – but in my research, I discovered something pretty horrible: most comic book fathers are totally evil!
Pa Kent was a drunk
This list was going to be titled ‘The 6 Coolest Fathers in Comics’, but once I actually started looking up comic book dads, I discovered that most of them are bad to the bone. For every Pa Kent, who raised his son to be the world’s greatest hero, there are half a dozen evil dads, who often force their children to become dark reflections of themselves. So I decided it might actually be a lot more fun to do a list of the 6 most truly evil fathers in comic books. Though it should be noted that this list is not a reflection of my own father, who clearly raised me into one of the coolest, most handsome bloggers on the Internet!
Heartbreaking…
My favorite comic book series, which stars my favorite comic book superhero, is coming to an end in September. Well the September solicitations came out today, and it’s goodbye to X-Factor.
Singing, the Marvel Movie Way
It’s fun, it’s nicely drawn and delightfully musical. We have the good people of Animated James to thank for this morning’s entertainment.
Review: X-Factor #257
It’s times like these I wish I did better in literature class. Maybe then I could understand why Peter David wasted one of the last six issues of X-Factor on characters we’ve never met before and the elementary lesson of being careful what you wish for. Did I miss one of the themes or subplots of Hell on Earth War? Does this lesson have something to do with why Jamie Madrox is still stuck in demon form?
X-Factor #257
Why the heck is Madrox still a demon!? Spoilers, he’s still a demon by the end of the issue! PAD only has five issues left of the entire series and his main character is still a mindless, purposeless demon monster! Argh!
Comic Rating: 3/5 – Alright.
I can only hope that this issue is some kind of prologue to the entire End of X-Factor storyline, that maybe its themes will reverberate throughout the entire arc. Maybe it will make sense once the whole series is wrapped. Or maybe it won’t. I just don’t know. PAD has promised that each issue is going to focus on different characters to wrap up their stories. So is this Layla’s issue? Is this the wrap-up we get for Layla Miller? If it is, it’s a terrible wrap-up for her character. Seriously, I just don’t know the purpose of this issue. I’m hoping that it will all become clear in the end, otherwise this is a dud of a story that doesn’t really have anything to do with X-Factor at all.
I’m not dreading the end of the series. X-Factor has had a long, healthy run, and maybe it’s time to say goodbye. The rest of the Marvel Universe has passed it by, and I’m glad that PAD has the opportunity to wrap up the series on his terms. So I guess I was just expecting something more…meaningful? More important? More in line with saying goodbye? I kept waiting for something to happen that would change Madrox back to his normal self, but it never came. All of a sudden the issue was over and nothing had changed. I’m just at a loss as to the purpose of the issue. I really hope it becomes clear soon enough.
Also, not to be too rude, but the art is clearly in “comic soon to be cancelled” mode.
Henchman-4-Hire