X-Men #2 continues to define what the venerable mutant team looks like in the post-Krakoa era with a new twist on mutant technology and an updated mission that calls back to the earliest days of the X-Men.
But there's a new twist on the classic X-Men formula that shows exactly how the Cyclops-led era of the X-Men can be different from when Xavier was in charge - possibly for the better.
Spoilers ahead for X-Men #2
X-Men #2 by writer Jed MacKay, artist Ryan Stegman, inker JP Mayer, colorists Marte Gracia and Fer Sifuente-Sujo, and letterer Clayton Cowles kicks off with the manifestation of an adult mutant (a rarity, as most mutants manifest their powers during adolescence) which seems to trigger a sudden alien invasion.
Detecting the activation of a new mutant Cyclops and his team dispatch into the field in their new jet the Marauder, which is equipped with all manner of technology meant to integrate with mutant powers (more on that soon). They head to San Francisco, with Cyclops reminding the team that the city once welcomed mutants back in the Utopia era, one of Cyclops' first attempts to help create a mutant nation.
As simple as it seems, this calls back to the earliest adventures of the X-Men in the '60s, when the team's adventures would often begin with Professor X sending them into the field to find a new mutant. That motif has been repeated throughout X-Men history, but it's indicative of the apparent back-to-basics type approach MacKay seems to be aiming for so far in the relaunched title, and it provides an easy backdrop to kick off the action in this issue.
The X-Men arrive to track the mutant down just as the alien invasion is starting, with hundreds of ships descending on San Francisco. Cyclops lands in the field, with Kid Omega using his psychic powers to interface with Cyke's visor to create a kind of telepathic HUD that provides Cerebro assisted tracking.
This is one of the coolest examples of the new version of mutant interfacing, combining revolutionary tech with advanced uses of mutant abilities - something that Cyclops' close ally Beast has been perfecting and integrating into their new ship.
Case-in-point, the Marauder's psychic interface, which allows Kid Omega to fire telepathic blasts out of the ship's onboard cannons to destroy the alien enemy ships while also piloting. And there's one more big bad weapon on board - a so-called "mass-driver" which can launch an invulnerable mutant (or in this case, mutant ally) out of a massive rail gun.
Juggernaut gets in, and the Marauder launches him at the alien mothership, bringing it down in one shot. But that's when things get weird, as Psylocke realizes that she can't use her psychic knife on the aliens who have emerged from their ships because they don't have minds of her own - and what's more, there's no wreckage from the destroyed ships.
The X-Men quickly surmise that the aliens are actually a manifestation of the newly emerging mutant's powers, and indeed he seems to have reality altering abilities that have led him to believe that he's been abducted by aliens while creating the alien fleet in response to his fears.
While a crowd of anti-mutant bullies starts to form, the X-Men try to calm the situation, but the new mutant suddenly disappears, much to everyone's astonishment. But it's all a trick, as Magik has actually teleported him away to the X-Men's new Alaska headquarters to offer him medical care and to help him control his powers - another classic X-Men concept.
Still, even Beast is left puzzled by how the new mutant's X-gene manifested in his adulthood rather than his youth, much like the villains they fought in the previous issue.
The question of how this is possible and the mission of helping the newly manifesting adult mutants seems to be a repeated motif for the new core X-Men title, and it's one of the freshest changes to the classic formula yet. Yes, the X-Men have long sought out newly activated mutants and helped them learn to control their powers. But there have been lingering questions of the morality behind Xavier sending the X-Men into battle as a bunch of young teenagers, which haven't really been allayed even into the Krakoa era.
It makes sense to focus on the concept of adult mutants suddenly being born, as this not only breaks up the classic formula just enough to provide room for some perspectives and character concepts that haven't been fully explored yet, but it also draws a line in the sand between Cyclops and the now disgraced Xavier.
I'm not personally expecting that the X-Men will never feature young mutants again, and I'm definitely not advocating that the concept of adolescent and young adult mutants be left behind. But I am excited to see how the X-Men address a newly emerging population of mutants with a whole different set of philosophical questions involved.
X-Men #3 goes on sale August 28.
Stay up to date on all the new X-Men comics Marvel has planned for release, including the entire 'From the Ashes' relaunch.
