All good things must come to an end, and as good of a thing as the Krakoan era has been for mutantkind…its time has come at last. The tragedy and triumph of Fall of the House of X, the madness and mystery of Rise of the Powers of X…they have all come to their end and led to this moment that will change the future of mutantkind for years to come. X-Men #35 officially closes the Krakoan era and teases what’s to come.
Just because a series ends, doesn’t mean the story is officially over. X-Men #35 celebrates 700 issues on Uncanny X-Men as it also wraps up the Krakoan era of the X-Men’s story. And, it does so with a choppy over-sized issue that has its ups and downs. From the beginning, I wasn’t a fan of the new take on the X-Men as I felt it took them too far from their roots fighting for their rights. It made them nationalists and statements in the first few issues were at times cringe showing a belief of superiority. It took Professor X and Magneto’s visions and mashed them together for a chimera of a monster. While there were some good ideas and moments, overall, it took the X-Men in too far of an extreme direction. It was Utopia on steroids. All of that came crashing down and from the teases within X-Men #35 and the Free Comic Book Day issue, it looks like the X-Men are getting back to a more traditional take.
X-Men #35 wraps things up and moves things along as it gives us one final look at Krakoa and a battle with Apocalypse who isn’t taking what has happened too well. It’s a choppy story that feels like it’s an unnecessary fight, giving the X-Men one final battle of the old era. That choppy storytelling isn’t helped by the rotating artists who at times only take a page and foster a disjointed look along with a disjointed narrative. It feels like it’s almost too many cooks in the kitchen and the team didn’t know how to end things beyond… fight.
Chris Claremont gives us some family bonding time as Nightcrawler, Rogue, Mystique, and Destiny have a picnic and hash things out. While it’s nice to see this storyline continue, and not just dropped now lineage has been established, the dialogue is eye rolling at times where it feels like some things just repeat over and over. I had to pause and go back and reread pages to make sure that there wasn’t a mistake that’s how repetative the back and forth is.
The comic wraps up with a focus on Professor X who is now in custody but has his freedom too in a way. The comic as a whole teases his redemption but also what’s to come is the natural extension of his ideas. His children going off on their own. It teases the villainy of the character, the manipulative nature, but also that there’s reasons for his actions and he’s here to do good, though through at times evil means.
X-Men #35 will likely make fans of the era both happy and sad. There are some cheery moments and it reveals that Krakoa lives on and we might again see the island’s return in the future. It closes one door, leaves more opens, and begins whole new paths to take.
Story: Al Ewing, Gerry Duggan, Kieron Gillen, Chris Claremont
Art: Joshua Cassara, Phil Noto, Lucas Werneck, Leinil Francis Yu, Walter Simonson, Mark Brooks, John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, Jerome Opena, Luciano Vecchio, Stefano Caselli, Sara Pichelli, Salvador Larroca
Color: Romulo Fajardo Jr., Phil Noto, David Curiel, Laura Martin, Sonia Oback, Marcio Menyz, Matt Hollingsworth, Matthew Wilson, Guru-eFX
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Story: 7.0 Art: 7.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read
Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle
