GW's Profile

First off, this is the best Magik has been written in years. Writer Ashley Allen gets the character much better than so many recent writers. The set up of her inner struggles and her Darkchild persona is very well-handled and finally makes the Darkchild relevant and a threat again. The art from German Peralta is absolutely stunning and perfectly fits the dark, supernatural tone of the book The big action scene is tense and exciting thanks to both the art and the writing. The new Demon Crow villain makes a strong first impression, and Magik actually struggles realistically against his unique tactics instead of being presented as all-powerful. She also actually uses some spells, as opposed to most writers who refuse to let her use magic despite that literally being her name. For a first issue, Magik #1 is close to perfect. It sets up the main character and the first arc masterfully and is just a compelling read in its own right. Full marks.

The quality is a pretty big drop down from the first issue because the opening scene does not work. It is clear that the main characters are in Japan because Cal figured out that's where the next seal is, and that Magik only agrees to go the concert because it became suspicious when she heard about the disappearances connected with it, but the whole process of learning about the concert and transitioning to it could have and should have been handled much better than it was. As it is, it's rushed and the entire character of Haruhi is confusing. Thankfully, once they arrive at the concert things improve immensely. The art is just as good as issue 1, and the action is riveting and more emotional than the action scene of the previous issue. I hope the problems with the beginning of issue 2 are a one-off and future issues do a better job of setting up their conflicts, because it's a waste to have what could easily be a 9 out of 10 issue become a 7.5 out of 10 issue just because of some rushed and poor exposition at the start.

This was a nice improvement over issue 2. Liminal is a great foil for Illyana. I really liked the scene where he turned into Belasco and how it affected her PTSD and the callbacks to her imprisonment in Limbo. Issue 3 is also very different from the first two issues. Instead of finding a demon with a quirky power who is killing mutants and figuring out how to beat the enemy of the week, this is battle of wits against the big bad of the arc with minimal, but effective, action. The handling of Illyana's character continues to be stellar. The art is a bit of a mixed bag this time. Illyana continues to look great and Liminal is well drawn, but the environment they interact in is fairly drab. Overall I continue to be impressed with Ashley Allen's writing and her voice for Illyana.

Issue 4 brings Dani Moonstar into the series to great effect. On the one hand, Dani is one of Illyana's oldest friends. On the other hand, Dani does not understand Illyana as well as she thinks she does, since no one can really understand what everything Illyana has been through has done to her. This means that if she isn't careful, Dani's presence could do more harm than good at a time when Illyana is especially vulnerable. A subtle callback to the issue where Illyana first joined the New Mutants cements this as the most emotional issue of the series so far. The action is less of a focus this time, but what's there is still good, with some really cool uses of the soul sword. Magik remains one of Marvel's better books.

Issue 5 brings a little of everything. Cool action, high stakes, character development, emotion, and a bittersweet ending. Poor Illyana. She cares so much. Her friends and family almost never truly understand her or are capable of being there for her when she needs them. The only exceptions are Cyclops and Dr. Strange, the former of whom has a nice scene at the end. This was a great conclusion to the first arc of this series.

This was a fantastic 1-off issue, with strong character development for both Magik and Madelyne Pryor. Moreover, it finally justifies the move to have Magik give up rulership of Limbo to the Goblin Queen after previous stories failed to do so and treated the whole thing as a joke rather than as something that has serious consequences, as they should have done from the start. The issue does not get a 10 solely because the art is not up to the high standard of the first 5 issues with the fill-in artist, but that is hardly enough to bring it down.

Ashley Allen knows how to write a first issue. This issue wastes little time in getting to the action and very quickly and concisely establishes where the title characters are in relation to each other. German Peralta's art continues to elevate the storytelling, and once again the use of Magik's powers is more creative than in most X-Men books.

This is one of the worst finales to a so-called "event" I have ever read. In the end, nothing happens or changes, the main character of Rogue acts weirdly out of character, and aside from a small number of decent character moments among the supporting cast, there was nothing of substance or note. I can't even make a longer review because there's just nothing to talk about.

I think this was my favorite issue of Jed Mackay's X-Men run so far. What impressed me this time is the way nearly the entire cast got to contribute, with the exception of Cyclops, who remained out of commission after the beatdown he took last week in Storm. Magik did the most, which makes me happy, Temper and Juggernaught each got moments, this was a big issues for Quentin, and Psylocke got a big moment at the resolution. The moment with Magik and Magneto was also hilarious. There was something cathartic about seeing the X-Men stand up to and equal one of the so-called "omega-level" mutants, especially one who has the added boost of being powered by Eternity. A bit of an aside, what's the point of getting more power from Eternity when your power is already unlimited to begin with? I know Eternity is also controlling her actions, but there's more power as well. Omega-level powers are stupid, and that includes Xavier and Quentin, though since they were equal in power during their confrontation there was some actual tension, something that is usually missing from any conflict involving an Omega-level telepath. I haven't been a fan of this 'Manhunt' story so far, but this issue was a nice action issue with some humor and no major problems for me.