Inferno was one of the first releases under the Secret Wars banner, and while it might have been overshadowed by some other titles by this point into what is becoming a pretty big crossover, it still has its fans.  The first issue was received pretty well, despite the fact that the readers didn’t exactly know what they were getting into with the series.  The series was inspired by the original crossover, and featured Colossus as he ventured into a demon infested New York City while he tries to rescue his sister, Magik, who was captured there by demons and who seemed happy enough to stay that way.  Occurring on the anniversary of her abduction, Colossus leads a strike team into the city to free her, but not yet having succeeded he launches one last mission despite the protests of Scott Summers.

If there are any armchair generals that have been following along with the plot, then they would know that letting your enemy know the general timing of an attack is a bad idea, and that is the case here.  After all it is easier to defend than attack, and Magik is more than aware of that as she has successfully manipulated the situation over the course of the first two issues.  At the end of the last issue she managed to both imprison and corrupt Nightcrawler, and he now becomes her teleporting demon-mount.  With no place that she can’t go, she is now under less restrictions and launches a full-on assault on the X-Men, hoping to defeat them once and for all.

The interesting part about this series is that there are a lot more question marks than usual for its resolution.  As has been shown elsewhere in the Marvel Universe, there are less restrictions across the board on wiping characters off the roster.  Numerous big names have already died in various tie-ins across the Secret crossover, though of course there are several versions of each character.  This adds to the tension here, as readers are used to the heroes usually winning, but that might not be the case here at all.  As it stands the odds are against the heroes, and it makes this easier to enjoy.  It continues its solid performance as a less noteworthy but equally good entry into the Secret Wars world.

Story: Dennis Hopeless  Art: Javier Garron 
Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5  Overall: 8.5  Recommendation: Buy