Messiah CompleX Impressions! She has come to save mutantkind!

I know Messiah Complex has been over for a few months now, but I just bought the HC and was just able to read it last night. I couldn’t afford buying all those comics, and having all those titles piece together this modern classic. So, instead, I just bought an extremely overpriced hardcover. Was it worth it?

The long and short of it is "yes, it is." When they said this was the defining arc of modern X-tales, they weren’t kidding. This pretty much has set the tone for stories in the foreseeable future.

Coming hot off the heels of Endangered Species, an arc that made up for its lack of action by implanting raw emotions of helplessness into the reader and sympathy for the mutant race, Messiah CompleX launched into an amazing action-packed, fast paced tale spanning through the X-verse.

The stakes really never have been higher, and you could really feel that, as you drool onto those gorgeously rendered pages by artists Marc Silvestri, Billy Tan, Scott Eaton, Humberto Ramos and Chris Bachalo, as master scribes Ed Brubaker, Peter David, Mike Carey, Craig Kyle and Chris Yost bring you on a fantastic adventure for the survival of a species. This time, they weren’t just fighting to save a world, they were fighting for their world. They were fighting extinction.

The story was an intricate masterpiece of mystery, intrigue, mass murder, genocide, destruction, action, and hope. And, unlike a lot of other crossovers, this came together very nicely, like the way Ferraris are put together.

Since I read it in HC format, I encountered very few pacing problems, but I think if these were released as individual issues instead of parts within issues, I think there would be very few, if there are any, pacing problems. It moved at a very comfortable pace, while sneaking in those money shots. And trust me on this one, there are more than enough to keep us satisfied.

The art is fantastic. I describe Marc Silverstri’s pencils as "sharp" and "fierce." His art is probably my favorite within the whole series. Chris Bachalo and Humberto Ramos have similar styles, with lots of exaggerated movements and anatomy, and it works very well. No art in there is bad. None of it is even anywhere near bad.

One of the things that really made me enjoy this is a bit of bias on my part. I’ve been a Cyclops fan for years now. Even befre X-Men: Children of the Atom came out in the arcades, I’ve been using Cyclops as my character in multiple games, even that old 6-player beat-em’-up. Cyclops was FUCKEN AWESOME in Messiah Complex.

He kept a cool and calm demeanor, just the way great leaders like Captain America or Batman would when leading their respective teams. He demanded respect- the respect he has deserved for years. It’s time people recognize Cyke for who he is- the leader of the X-Men. He’s the big cheese of the team of which every mutant want to be a part.

He barked orders left and right and was responsible for the success of their missions. Everyone looked to him for instructions and everyone followed, not because he was the most powerful- he definitely isn’t- but because he is who he is, but because he knew what he was doing, but because he was competent. The one guy who can tell Wolvie what to do? Cyclops, baby.

And speaking of babies, anyone have guesses here who the baby is? Anyone who has a super convoluted history?Anyone who was raised in the future? Anyone who’d have the potential for great destruction? Any girl with green eyes and red hair?

That’s right- Rachael Summers. Makes a ton of sense, doesn’t it?

All in all, this is a story any x-fan would love. I give it:

Five out of five X-logos!