Issue 2 of the new X-Men took the story to an interesting place. Jubilee finally gave in to the vampire corruption spreading through her body and left Utopia. Additionally, Cyclops came up with the most insane plan ever; to resurrect Dracula and use him as a weapon against the other vampires. Normally, I don’t like tie-in comics, but this is one of the few occasions where it works. The search and recovery of Dracula’s remains was handled in two completely separate issues; the head in Namor: The First Mutant #1 and the body in the Curse of the Mutants: Storm & Gambit one-shot. The two issues told stories relevant to the central plot, but not vital, so a fan could read them if they want, but not miss out on anything too important if they don’t.
Obviously, Dracula is none too happy with his current situation. His son has taken over as Lord of the Vampires and he wants his revenge, but he doesn’t want to help Scott-freaking-Summers to get it. Recently, we’ve seen Scott stand up to Professor Xavier, Magneto and even Norman Osborn like they were nobody. It’s nice that Gischler has finally presented him with someone he can try to stand up to, but is more than happy to put him in his place. I like Badass Cyclops as much as anyone, but if the character’s going to develop any further, he needs to deal with someone he can’t steamroll in a conversation.
The rest of the issue features Jubilee diving into her role as a vampire and Wolverine’s efforts to save her. By the conclusion of the issue, they come together and the ending is definitely an unexpected twist. It’s solid writing and pacing, continuing to intertwine the separate plots into one cohesive story. Between that and Medina’s continually fantastic art, X-Men has become one of my most anticipated titles every month.
X-Men Issue 3: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 3”
Marvel Comics
Story: Victor Gischler
Art: Paco Medina, Juan Vlasco, Marte Gracia
