Age of X: Alpha
Marvel Comics
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The Age of X: Alpha takes our favorite mutants to a reality where the world “fears and hates” them. Times infinity.
This issue is an anthology, written by Mike Carey, that introduces readers to the characters and the world they inhabit. What a world. The book serves as a prologue to the action. We get something of a who’s who of the characters with the most time given to Cyclops, Cannonball, Dr. Rao, Wolverine and Magneto. The X-Men—looking a little different and acting a little different as they sit around the fire and share personal stories—each drawn by a different artist.
The best sequence features Cyclops—known as Basilisk in this story—who is held in a Mutant prison run by Arcade. His eyelids have been cut off and he is forced to murder mutants with an awful mask that opens at Arcade’s control. This is a far cry from Utopia folks. It will be interesting to see how Scott’s persona plays out over the course of the series. The worst story, mainly because of its protagonist’s distracting behavior, features Cannonball and his sister Husk.
The art in the main story was gorgeous by Mirco Pierfederici. I don’t buy variant covers unless that is all that is available but the Olivier Coipel cover is beautiful.
