I’ve been unsure of my feelings toward the Sins of Sinister event. It has been an intriguing experiment in comic book storytelling. Three sets of issues focused on three distinct eras, year 10, year 100, and finally, year 1,000. Sins of Sinister: Dominion #1 by Kieron Gillen, Paco Medina, and Lucas Werneck is the final issue to this eleven-part saga, and by god what an issue it is. Whatever my opinions on the rest of the event, you have to hand it to the creative team for nailing this issue in every conceivable way possible

Sins of Sinister: Dominion #1 opens with the final battle for the Moria engine, Sinister’s creation which allows him to create save points in time that he can infinitely reset to. Functionally this means he can save scum as you would in an RPG, trying over and over again to get the result you want. Earlier in the event the engine was stolen. It’s the MacGuffin at the heart of the event. So the final battle begins with various players all vying for control of the engine for their sinister ends.  

Gillen crafts a fun issue, One that comes with a whole heap of startling and exciting revelations and developments. It’s a real page-turner that will keep the reader on their toes. You can feel the scale of what is being played here. There is some epic utilization of various powers. Sins of Sinister: Dominion #1 honestly has dizzying implications for the future of the X line. So often events can feel like big nothing burgers where everything goes back to a status quo with nothing changed. Not here, we get a lot of change which offers exciting new avenues for the next chapter of the X-Men’s story. Wrapping up an event is never an easy thing to do, but here Gillen succeeds by leaps and bounds.

I was a little apprehensive of Paco Medina’s art at first. To me, it didn’t quite fit the grim dark tone established for the one-thousandth year of the sinister era. However, upon further reading, it all clicked. Medina’s art has a manic energy, which perfectly fits this desperate scramble at the end of time. It reflects the desperation and panic of our leading characters. Medina also delivers on the big bombastic moments befit of a riff on Warhammer 40k. 

Similarly, everyone else is doing an exceptional job, Lucas Werneck’s work is amazing as ever and helps tie the event in further with his work on Immortal X-Men. The coloring by Bryan Valenza and lettering by VC’s Clayton Cowles is dynamic and perfectly fits the tone and story of the issue, helping bridge the gap between the two artists.

I’m blown away by this issue. It’s Gillen and co at their very best, truly delivering an exciting installment in this ongoing narrative that will send shockwaves throughout the line. Personally, I can’t wait to see where these creatives take the story next!

Story: Kieron Gillen Art: Paco Medina, Lucas Werneck
Color: Bryan Valenza Letterer: Clayton Cowles Design: Tom Muller, Jay Bowen
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – Kindle

A thousand years of hell and damnation comes to end with the loudest scream in history and for the truly guilty, there is no escape. Can the future change the present, or will we just make all the same mistakes again? Either way, the present will have to live with the future’s sins. Sins of Sinister: Dominion wraps up the recent X-Men event and also sets up the upcoming “Fall of X” storyline.

Written by Kieron Gillen, Sins of Sinister: Dominion is an interesting issue in that it packs in a hell of a lot and does it in a way that doesn’t feel like things are cut short. Gillen does a solid job of not just delivering action in the future but also the impact in the present while also setting up the next storyline. This isn’t an issue that simply “blinks” at the end allowing other comics to deal with the fallout, a lot happens here. That’s both good and bad.

Much like the event as a whole, Sins of Sinister: Dominion feels a bit like it’s missing some key points and information, like a record skipping a bit. Ideas are tossed into the issue with little explanation and much like the rest of the event too. You just roll with the flow of it all, accepting what’s in front of you and taking things as they are. New characters are introduced, sure to be popular with readers, and major status-quo changes happen too. But, what’s truly nice is it isn’t a clean ending. Sinister’s machinations have an impact in the present and things aren’t “fixed” neatly. It’s all rather dirty a nice change in some ways from past events. Sinister has screwed over some key characters with his manipulation leaving their future in the unknown and in question. There’s no neat and clean ending here.

The art by Paco Medina and Lucas Werneck is nice. With color by Bryan Valenza and lettering by Clayton Cowles the art is packed with a lot of action. But, there’s also a clear difference between the two styles, one I like and one not as much. It’s a small distraction that was noticeable and some of the art just isn’t as strong as other points. But, there’s a sense of flair and style that has weaved its way through all of Sins of Sinister and this is no exception.

Sins of Sinister: Dominion wraps things up well but like the event itself feels like it needed more space to do so. Overall, the event was an interesting one skipping through time over three series bookended by two issues. It delivered pieces of the overall story, forcing readers to put the dots together. The finale doesn’t totally do that but definitely could have benefited from fleshing some aspects out a bit more than it does. If nothing else, it sets up what’s next to come, and that might be more interesting than the event itself.

Story: Kieron Gillen Art: Paco Medina, Lucas Werneck
Color: Bryan Valenza Letterer: Clayton Cowles Design: Tom Muller, Jay Bowen
Story: 7.0 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.15 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – Kindle