Broken Frontier

A lot of fallout from last issue is dealt with in rapid succession: the Scarlet Witch has all of her memories back and wants to commit suicide for what she has done; Wiccan and Speed finally learn if she is their mother; the Avengers want to detain – and possibly kill – her; Scott Lang, a.k.a. Ant-Man, is alive again; and after all of that, there are still eight pages left involving X-Factor, the X-Men, and a startling revelation. Heinberg has crammed enough plot developments and characters into this issue that it threatens to overwhelm the reader, but he uses each character to develop the story in an engaging way, helped along generously by Cheung’s impeccable art.

Over 30 different recognizable Marvel characters make an appearance in this book, and over half of them have a speaking role. Characters constantly jump in to offer a quip before retreating into the background: Beast gives scientific exposition, Hulkling harps on Wiccan for being reckless, and Ant-Man smiles contentedly at how he used to be dead.  Amazingly, Heinberg focuses on the true heart of the story, Wiccan’s journey to find his supposed mother and keep her safe. The best moment comes when the two share an embrace while floating in the sky, their red capes artfully flowing around them, in a way only a pair of magical mutants can.

Cheung’s artwork turns what could have been a bloated mess of characters into a dazzling assemblage of heroes that all look and act distinct from one another. Iron Man’s armor is scratched and dented, Stature’s outfit is sullied with dirt, and just about everyone else looks equally battle-worn. These characters have been through a lot, both physically and emotionally, and it shows. However, despite the possible reality-altering crisis and the reappearance of Kree warships and an army of Ultron robots, the characters just don’t seem concerned: they stand around cracking jokes, giving hugs and handshakes, and smiling at each other. Their complacent demeanor saps the situation of its tension and makes its eventual resolution less climactic.

Still, seeing years worth of plot points concerning the ever-controversial M-Day all converge at once packs one heck of a punch – and there’s still three issues left! Heinberg doesn’t miss a beat as he quickly steers the story in a new direction after the group of heroes meet up with X-Factor. To mention it here would spoil what will inevitably become a great source of fan rage and/or joy, but the outcome of their meeting will have huge ramifications for the X-Men and a majority of the Marvel Universe. All eyes will be on the Scarlet Witch as this miniseries concludes, but hopefully a little time will be spent detailing how Hawkeye wound up having sex with a Doom-Bot.