Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
X-Men: Schism #5 of 5
Marvel Comics
Aaron, Kubert, Roslan & Keith
The latest big X-Men event wraps up with a fairly straightforward ending. What's interesting about this issue is just that though. We all knew the ending prior to reading this comic book, so Aaron's trick was to make it interesting in its execution and also believable. On the one hand the book definitely was entertaining but was it all believable (taken in context with super powers and kid super villains of course) in terms of creating a distinct division among the X-Men at the end? I don't think so. The exposed rift is there and has been there for a while but why would this particular event throw Wolverine and Cyclops into separate corners? I wasn't sold on this issue.
The book opens with Wolverine and Cyclops battling each other on the banks of Utopia as the monstrous Sentinel approaches their home. They are fighting each other because Cyclops wants the kids to fight the Sentinel and Wolverine wants them to run. This lines up with recent Wolverine actions, such as excluding X-23 from the current X-Force lineup. However, do they really fight each other to the extent that they leave the Sentinel alone to stand directly over them?
The actual fisticuffs occur when Wolverine emerges with a detonator to blow up the Island. At this point Cyclops attacks him. The problem here is twofold. How difficult is it for Wolverine to press his thumb down? If he's holding back then that never seemed apparent. And if he was waiting for people to clear out then why did he run and stand right next to Cyclops announcing his plan? Why not just yell his plan from a distance or even 20 feet? The other problem is the Sentinel is standing right over the two and barely gets off two blasts while they are rolling around on the ground. Why the hesitation? It makes for great drama but doesn't line up.
A similar problem is the artwork. Kubert breaks down the fight sequence to almost a panel per movement level. However, the detonator appears to change hands randomly between Wolverine's left and right hands and the artwork uses close-ups to the point where the reader needs to recognize the subtle differences in the character's gloves to be able to tell them apart. I struggled with these scenes greatly and was widely disappointed with the art during this crucial scene.
The issue moves quickly which is a refreshing difference from so many works. We don't have the long drawn decisions about which X-Men joins which team and why. It simply wraps up with some following Wolverine and some staying with Cyclops. The tone between Wolverine and Cyclops was pitch-perfect at the end which was also a highlight of the book. Overall, the pacing and entertainment value was there for this book.
One of the aspects of this book was that I needed to buy in to the "why" of the split and I just don't. I wasn't even that concerned with the believability of Wolverine being able to cut Cyclops in half whenever he wanted to but opts to not during the fight. But the decision to break apart the X-Men needed to be crystal clear and believable and it just wasn't. I liked this issue and series because I do think it was a long time coming but I don't see the split being natural and that falls squarely on the execution of this issue.
2 out of 5 Geek Goggles
