Written by Jason Aaron
Illustrated by Nick Bradshaw– Kitty Pryde is pregnant?!?
– A billion Brood?!?
– How could things get worse?
They seem to be getting rather taciturn in their solicits lately, haven’t they? Well, this book has been on a tear since it debuted a few months ago, but does it continue its dominance in creativity that it’s held since it premiered? Follow me onto the living island of Krakoa to find out!
Of course, but that I mean jump past the cut!
I’m not really sure how to put it other than “this book is the most fun book on my pull.” It really doesn’t get much better than this to be honest. I would even argue that this book is better than my favorite Avengers book on the shelves (and currently, the only one that has a spot in my hold) Avengers Academy because of the fact it has more of an equal balance between students and faculty as well as the business of running a school like this. Where do they get their funding? How will the new Hellfire Kid’s Club react to getting utterly stomped, despite having Frankenstein cannons?! Well, they cut off the funding.
That last descriptor is the key to how much fun this book really is. It never takes itself seriously, and it’s quite mad cap. It speaks to Jason Aaron’s range as a writer as well, because his books, like Scalped or PunisherMAX have always been rather grim and violent, but this is about as far away from the tone of Scalped as you can be. It’s astounding how talented the man is when it comes to telling a story regardless of genre.
It’s also rather surprising that up until this book, he had largely not written team books. In retrospect, that was a mistake, because he has a rare talent of balancing a large cast, giving them a moment to shine, and never feel like they were shoe-horned for the sake of being in the book. Two of the show stealing characters are actually new comers in the School for Higher Learning, and strictly speaking, they’re not exactly human. That’s right, Broo and Kid Gladiator. They are two of the most engaging characters in the book, and add a lot to the story just by being there, interestingly enough, for the exact opposite reasons. Where Broo is shy and quiet, Kid Gladiator is loud and ostentatious. They’re would be the perfect odd couple, if they’re ever bunked together, that is.
But the great characterizations don’t end with Broo or Kid Gladiator. One of the best characters in all of the X-Men Universe is the strange little creature known as Doop. Aaron knows this and takes the opportunity to use clever sight gags with the character to add something to every scene, whether he’s an unwilling substitute teacher or playing Safety Monitor during an attack on the school. With all due respect to Kieron Gillen, whose art I enjoy, this book is more interesting because of the humor. It steps up the game from a superhero book set in a school to something truly special. If Uncanny were as fun, it’d be a lot harder to pick a favorite flagship title. Right now it’s definitely Wolverine and the X-Men.
Another pleasant surprise is the addition of Nick Bradshaw as the artist of the book. One of my complaints about the book (if there was one) would be that I’m not a fan of Chris Bachalo’s work, and it takes me out of the book at times. While I actually enjoyed the book when Bachalo was on it, Bradshaw’s clean lines and warm character designs that “get” the tone that Aaron is going for. Their chemistry truly make the book something special.
Even his environments are as varied as his character design. Going from the inside of members of the staff, good and evil alike, to the depths of space, his range is as large as his collaborator. I hope he sticks around on the book for a long time, and if not, I want him on another top-tier book STAT.
This book is one you should be reading. It’s only the fifth issue out, so if you’re intimidated by the heavy continuity, it’s the perfect time to jump on. I promise you won’t regret it.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy
