HERE COMES CABLE! He’s come from the future with a handpicked team to put a stop to the alien decimation of Earth. But is it too little, too late for the surviving X-MEN…and all of humanity?! The new ALIEN QUEEN makes her terrifying presence known! Plus: The continuation of Chris Claremont’s flashback story featuring KITTY PRYDE versus the XENOMORPHS for the fate of the PHOENIX! Alien vs. X-Men #2 delivers another fantastic issue that’s full of surprises and building up the body count.

Written by Kieron Gillen, Alien vs. X-Men #2 brings in the calvary with a team from the future headed up by Cable. The comic hits a familiar formula as Cable drops how things play out and what the future looks like and why he and his team have come back to stop what happens. Yes, a lot of the comic is formulaic and been done many times before. But, Gillen gives us grisly details that really play into the combination of Xenomorphs and mutants. And, the comic delivers a twist at the end that’s unexpected and feels like a shock. It’s a fun horror comic that delivers the best of both the Alien franchise as well as the X-Men, taking great aspects from both.

The art by Geraldo Borges is solid. With color by Andrew Dalhouse and letters by Travis Lanham, the comic nails the dread and horror of the Alien franchise. Seeing the heroes struggle, Wolverine beaten down, Beast scared, it delivers the emotions and reactions you’d expect and each panel is packed with fear. The comic also does a fantastic job of continuing the franchise’s style in not focusing too much on the gore of it all. You see Chestbursters, you get the Facehuggers, but it never feels like it lingers on the blood and guts. Even Wolverine broken down by acid still feels tame. The visuals also nail down the chaos of what’s happening with the surviving X-Men trying to figure out what’s going on and moments spent showing what happened to the original team. It is perfect when it comes to the scares and tension visually.

There’s a back-up story written by Chris Claremont with art by David Messina, color by Rain Beredo, and letters by Lanham that focuses on Kitty Pryde and Ilyana Rasputin. That story is just ok relying on X-Men history and feeling a little disjointed in its storytelling. It’s ok overall but most likely really plays towards the hardcore fans.

Alien vs. X-Men #2 is a fantastic second issue that packs a punch and has no problem upping the body count. It’s a story that will kill off anyone that can move the story along. Everything is on the table here and that adds to the excitement and anticipation.

Story: Kieron Gillen, Chris Claremont Art: Geraldo Borges, David Messina
Color: Andrew Dalhouse, Rain Beredo Letters: Travis Lanham
Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle