Uncanny X-Men #395

Posted: Saturday, June 16
By: Jason Cornwell

Writer: Joe Casey
Artists: Ian Churchill (p), Art Thibert & Norm Rapmund (i)

Publisher: Marvel Comics

PLOT:
Having been drawn to London due to the detection of a large concentration of mutant signatures, we see a small team of X-Men discover that the sewers of London are home to a population of mutants, who were so physically deformed by their mutant abilities, that they can't fit into regular society. However, when the X-Men are unable to convince this highly suspicious group that they are there to help them, we see them forced to retreat, as these mutants were ready to rip them apart limb, from limb.

Meanwhile, we see former Generation X member, Chamber, has caught the eye of a pop-star/teen sensation, and his highly visible disfigurement does not keep his new lady friend from being seen in public with him. Meanwhile in the sewers of London, the population of mutants is starting to drop, as a nut-job calling himself Mister Clean has decided to clean up the sewers of London with a blowtorch.

COMMENTS:
X-Men fans are a loyal, but fairly vocal bunch, and Joe Casey didn't do himself any favors with this arc, as it's pretty much the same plot as the "Mutant Massacre" crossover that ran through the X-books way back in 1986. Now having read the original, I can't say I was overly impressed by it, beyond it's higher-than-normal causality count, but I've gotten the impression over the years that it's looked upon quite favorably by most hard-core X-fans.

In any event, given Gambit's belated involvement in this arc, and the effect that it had on characters like Warren, I'm sure most fans are aware of the "Mutant Massacre", and as such Joe Casey is going to end up looking like a grave robbing ghoul who is lifting plots from the bible that is Chris Claremont's first run on the X-Men. However, as long as Joe Casey keeps the excitement level high, and this mimicry act doesn't become habit forming, I'll give him every opportunity to prove himself as a talented writer.

When I read the list of characters that Joe Casey was going to use in this book, I was looking forward to this book more than I was Grant Morrison's X-Men. I do believe this issue make does mark the first time that Iceman & Nightcrawler have served together on the same team, and given both of them are among my favorite X-Men, I can't tell you how happy I am with this cast. Sure the book could use a couple female members, but I imagine this all male cast was largely impacted by the fact that Chris Claremont ran off with most of the X-Women.

However, based on the reviews I've read, I imagine Storm, Rogue & Psylocke will be available before too long. In any event, this issue the X-Men aren't called upon to do all that much, but there's a couple moments that made me smile, such Bobby's comment when Kurt explains he's a priest, or Bobby's reaction when he walks in on Kurt doing yoga. In fact, almost everything Bobby did in this made me smile. Have I mentioned that it's great to see Iceman back in the X-Men?

Ian Churchill's work is nicely detailed, and his figure work is fairly impressive, as each member of the X-Men does have their personality nicely represented by the way they stand. His facial detailing is a bit limited, but the expressions that he does have in his arsenal are nicely done, and for the most part one can follow what's happening on the page without having to read the text.

He also does a nice job making Chamber look like someone who would garner the looks of horror that seem to accompany the faces of everyone who sees him. Best of all though is the new visual look that Iceman has, as while his costume is a bit bland, the brief look at Bobby in his iced up form is nicely done, as are the scenes where he uses his ice platforms to explore the tunnels. One quibble that I do have with this issue though is the deformed mutants in this issue don't look nearly as bizarre as they need to.

FINAL WORD:
Take one recycled plot, and add a dash of that classic "lovers from two different worlds" romance, and you have an issue that leaves you questioning Joe Casey's ability as a writer. However, Joe Casey's brief stint on the "Incredible Hulk", and the unfairly ignored "Deathlok" are enough to keep me confident he'll turn it around, and the characters he's selected for his team doesn't hurt matters either. Still it is worthy of concern that Joe Casey exercised so little imagination in his first arc, though to be fair it is only the first issue, and perhaps he'll take a different path than the one Chris Claremont laid out. As for the Chamber subplot, it looks a bit predictable, but it may not be as simple as it looks. Right now though it looks like she's using him simply benefit her career, as teenagers love people who resist conformity.