Extraordinary Times
Jeff Lemire's Extraordinary X-Men is the core X-title of the "All New, All Different" relaunch. Storm is now head of the Xavier Institute, which is basically a refugee camp. After the events of Infinity, Black Bolt released the Terrigen Cloud, which has moved around the globe, poisoning and sterilizing any mutant in its path. Storm's mission is to collect the remaining mutants and keep them safe.
My complaints about this title are few, but they are for the editorial side of Marvel. First, it seems like the X-Men just overcame a very similar situation - sterilization - after House of M. During that decade-long story, the events that happened felt earned and the storytelling was very plotted, which leads me to my second issue. Here, it seems like an editorial swerve; that the writers and editors are fixing a missed opportunity, and that the M-Pox should have happened directly after Infinity, not years later. I understand why this direction was chosen, X-titles are more interesting with the X-Men on the ropes; however, it's unfortunate this feels like the editors are using the relaunch to fix a X-mistake.
Outside of that criticism, I really like this book. This is my favorite lineup of characters from any relaunched X-book so far. Everyone has a distinct voice and Lemire juggles the huge cast well (Nightcrawler being the one exception). Storm is a strong character in this book, and feels natural in her leadership role. Lemire also has a great handle on Colossus, and artist Ramos draws him fantastically. Magik, being one of my favorite X-Men, has a prominent role here and has some great scenes with her brother. It's nice to see her in a big role in a team book, and my only complaint is that she's sidelined for a few chapters.
Old Man Logan and Young Jean have a great rapport, and their relationship is truly the heart of the book. I really enjoy Lemire's handle on Iceman. Not many writers do Bobby justice, but here he's a complex character whom I enjoy reading. Nightcrawler is the McGuffin of the book, and the only main character who isn't done justice, simply because he's kidnapped the whole time. I hope to see more of him in the next trade, because he's one of my favorite X-characters.
Cerebra is a nice addition to the cast, and boy does Ramos draw an awesome portrayal of a sentinel. Forge is here as well, playing the role of "The man in the van," or the support character. Rounding out the cast are The New X-Men's Anole and Glop. I'm always thrilled when New X-Men characters are used, since they are all interesting characters. They begin as background characters, but they have much more to do by the end of the trade, even becoming full fledged X-Men.
I haven't even mentioned the villains yet! Mr. Sinister is the main bad, and he commands a team of henchmen who are interesting characters in their own right. My favorites are Aries, who has an awesome design and looks great fighting Colossus, and Azimuth, who has a cool black hole power. Used correctly, Sinister should be an intriguing baddy. Here, his motives and methods ring true, and he even has some interesting character growth.
There is a lot happening in this series. Essentially, this trade is the team building book. Lemire succeeds by having a solid team together by the final chapter, and writing an entertaining story on the way there. Lemire does a great job juggling all the characters, their motives and relationships. This book has a unique place within the X-verse by having them not just antagonized by humanity, who fear and hate them, but by having them face a rival group of outsiders: the Inhumans. Does one have to fail for the other to succeed? Is there room for both groups of people in the world? If you're interested in exploring that, I'd recommend checking out Uncanny Inhumans, which features Beast searching for answers to the mutants woes.
My absolute favorite aspect of the book is the art. Simply put, penciler Humberto Ramos and colorist Edgar Delgado are an exceptional team, and really hit a homerun. It's the perfect fusion of anime, Saturday morning cartoon, some special X-factor of Ramos' very own. The action is kinetic, faces look wonderful, and Old Man Logan has the best grandfather mouth in the business. The colors here are also so vibrant, and in particular the colors on Colossus look fantastic.
Who is the book for? If you like team based X-Men, this is for you. This fits in continuity, naturally, but you don't need to know any of it to enjoy this book. If you can afford to only read X-title, and want to read something that is pushing the franchise forward, this is it.
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