Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here…I only have a few reviews for the week so I am going to get started.  First up we have ‘Uncanny X-Men: First Class’. Hope you enjoy it.

Uncanny X-Men First Class #1 (preview)
Writer: Scott Gray
Penciler: Roger Cruz

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue starts with Nightcrawler running around New York City in a great mood, but that does not last. He saves two young girls from a construction accident and his reward is anger and hatred. He uses his image inducer and flees back to the mansion.

At Xavier’s the rest of the team is having a Danger Room session. They successfully defeat the challenge but their performance is not good enough for Cyclops.

Noticing Kurt is missing, Piotr goes to search for him. Colossus finds him on the grounds brooding over the earlier incident. Kurt is contemplating the future and his place in it.

We get a brief interlude with Scott talking to Jean on the phone. He tries to convince her to return to the school but she says that part of her life is over. She has a job interview and is ready to move on.

Professor X then calls the whole team together to introduce some visitors, namely the royal family of the Inhumans; Karnak, Gorgon, Black Bolt, Medusa, Triton, and Lockjaw. They were in New York meeting with the U.N. and came to visit along with Lilandra and Moira.

The teams get along fine until Gorgon and Karnak are given a tour of the Danger Room by Wolverine and Banshee. The Inhumans’ derision of the training facility leads Gorgon to get a hosing by Wolverine. He kicks Logan through the roof in retaliation.

The rest of the Inhumans apologize for the incident and agree to take Kurt and Piotr back to Attilan with them to visit their city. The pair are given the grand tour and Kurt is impressed by the love for the royal family and the ease with which he is accepted by the people. He ponders staying although Colossus tries to talk him out of it.

That thought ends when they are shown the ritual in which the Inhumans are changed by the Terrigen mists. Kurt sees the mutation of the Inhuman children as an abomination and tries to stop the ceremony. In the ensuing fight one of the mist chambers is destroyed and thus breaks one of their most sacred laws. In response, Kurt is blasted through the chest by the Inhuman high priest.

MY TAKE: I had some initial concerns about this series but this issue was very well done. The characterizations feel much more natural then the giant-size issue and the plot is nicely relevant. You can really feel for Kurt’s dilemma and understand both his frustration and his need to finally find a place where he can fit in.

The plot is still very simplistic, however, and it does suffer slightly from a lack of focus. The scene between Scott and Jean, while nice, did not really need to be included. The same goes for having Lilandra and Moira in the issue.

I also felt that a couple of Kurt’s reactions were exaggerated. He has been judged on his appearance before and had never allowed it to bother him to this level. The biggest overreaction was his response to the mutation of the Inhuman children. Considering he had been willing to leave the world due to them judging him on his looks, it did not seem right that he condemned their whole civilization without even asking for an explanation.

I would have preferred to see Wolverine be the one that accompanied Kurt on his journey. While I like Piotr, the Wolverine and Nightcrawler bond will become one of the strongest on the team. It would have been very nice to see its beginnings shown here. But so far they are using Logan as a comic relief and the role does not really suit him.

Still, in the end the issue works fine. It is a nice little story about Kurt exploring his place in the world and trying to make sense of both his past and his future. I would like to see both the plot and the characterization be tightened up a little bit but it was a strong start to the series. Hopefully we will see another limited or even an ongoing come out once this series is completed.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again next time.