Rogue gets a new assignment and an old temporal-manipulating and power-replicating villain surfaces.
X-MEN: LEGACY ANNUAL #1
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Mike Carey
Artists: Daniel Acuña, Mirco Pierfederici
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
Summary: Rogue takes over the driver’s seat of X-MEN LEGACY with a bang. But she’s not alone. Her new role with the X-Men puts her in close contact with the Legacy of the X-Men, the students. It’s up to Rogue to foster the last generation of mutants, but can she even keep them alive? A classic X-Villain returns in this giant-sized special that kicks off X-MEN LEGACY’s NEW DIRECTION!
Review: This annual does indeed kick off a new storyline by Mike Carey subtitled Devil at the Crossroads Part 1 of 4. Maybe it’s just because Rogue is a favorite amongst the X-fans but there doesn’t seem to be too much besides her that’s compelling. Since the development of her powers has seemingly removed the harmful side effects she used to suffer, it seemed more logical to have Rogue back as a team leader; instead Cyclops has benched her and offered her the position of guidance counselor to the younger mutants now living on their Utopia island nation.
The reintroduction of the 1990s character Emplate, predator of mutants, is fine for new audiences but otherwise rezzing an old character rather than creating a new nemesis could be considered a stale and weak plot device. Are fans supposed to believe Norman Osborn is no longer the Big Bad since the Exodus issue? Or is Osborn a dead horse being beaten considering how many books in which he appears? So Emplate is a toss up. It could be grasping at straws for a book that hasn’t been its best or it could be just the thing to veer away from the never-ending Osborn saga.
As for the art, Acuña is suffering from inconsistency. Some panels are stellar showing wonderful details in skin texture and facial expressions while others could use a bit more time on them, especially Wolverine who just seemed a bit scrawny for the stocky and brutish character he’s supposed to be. Overall, it’s not a bad visual product. I’m a fan of the heavier outlines to characters and scenes where they overlap the panels. Kids, don’t listen to your teachers – drawing outside the lines can be excellent! And for the record though it doesn’t need to be said, Rogue’s new costume design is fantastic and sure to be added to many cosplayer’s To Do lists.
October 13th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
I’m pretty sure this was one big comic bundle of mediocre.