From his exile in space, the shadow of the mutant called Apocalypse looms over all life on the pale blue dot from whence he hailed. Once dedicated to ensuring the strongest and fittest mutants would inherit the Earth, now Apocalypse’s attentions have turned to a new deadly undertaking – for which he will need the unique abilities of…JUBILEE and WOLVERINE! Tomb of Apocalypse #1 is an interesting start that drops Jubilee and Wolverine into unfamiliar territory where they need to help Apocalypse stop robbers.

Apocalypse has loomed large over the mutant side of the Marvel Universe for a few years now. He was a key figure in the Krakoan age of the X-Men and has since been laying low on Mars. He also was the main baddie in the recent season of the X-Men animated series. Apocalypse’s shadow looms over the X-Universe either directly or indirectly guiding the direction of the stories. Tomb of Apocalypse #1 feels like it might lead in and tie into some of the bigger picture stories that are going on but at the same time, keeps things focused. Jubilee and Wolverine are recruited to protect one of Apocalypse’s tombs from robbers. Inside is his technology that if it would up in the wrong hands, would be devastating. The villains, so far, are pretty low stakes, but the story’s first issue gives off a funhouse of death vibe where the villains are expendable, numerous, and not really the point. Writer Ashley Allen delivers an opening issue that’s easy to get into no matter how much you’ve followed the X comics and so far kept it focused without distractions.

The art by Domenico Carbone is pretty solid. With color by Fer Sifuentes-Sujo and lettering by Joe Sabino, the comic has some cool aspects like the beacon in the beginning and some of the action. There’s quite a few panels that really pop and excite, particularly as Wolverine shows why he’s the best at what he can do and Jubilee decides to light up the battlefield. The downside is at times some of the action feels a little scrambled with the tomb collapsing while fighting is going on inside. It could be better in print but digitally, things weren’t quite clear, though aspects still remained interesting.

Tomb of Apocalypse #1 is an interesting debut. While the first issue keeps things simple and “low stakes” compared to everything else going on, you can’t help but wonder what it might tie in to. For characters and stories that at times feel impenetrable, the issue makes it easy to do so without needing much knowledge about the long history of characters or current storylines. Overall, it feels like an nice and easy dive into the X world that has potential for tying into the bigger picture.

Story: Ashley Allen Art: Domenico Carbone
Color: Fer Sifuentes-Sujo Letterer: Joe Sabino
Story: 7.5 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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