Uncanny X-Force #23 (Spoilers)

[PSB]

I know that some X-Force fans haven't been very found of this arc's focus or art, but I dug it. Betsy went total badass at the end, too. Christmas is going to be really akward this year at Braddock Manor.

Thoughts?

[AdamC]

Like the other issues, I loved it.

[MetoxoTheLavaMan]

To me this was easily the strongest of the arc. I respect the art, but it's not my thing and will be glad to see a change. I loved how the end mirrored the first arc and the killing of baby pac.

[Phillies64]

I know I'm in the minority, but I liked this arc just as much if not better than the Dark Angel Saga. What an ending. Psylocke is becoming one of my favorite X characters. With Brian being on the Secret Avengers and Betsy on her X teams, I wonder if any of this will be carried over to AvX.

[AdamC]

I don't think I preferred this to the Dark Angel Saga, but it was no less entertaining.

[Phillies64]

[MadroxDupe42]

I actually think this arc pales in comparison to "Dark Angel Saga" and this issue only made that more clear.

"Dark Angel Saga" built clearly and deliberately from one issue to the next. Pretty much from the start, it was clear where the story had to go. Each issue flowed out of the previous one, built up the tension, raised the stakes, until all the pieces came together in a stunning conclusion.

Whereas the stakes in this arc started out very high, puttered around at that level for a few issues, and then the conclusion completely undermined it all in a way that was hard, if not impossible, to predict. Had there been any indication prior to this issue that the goat demon was a possessed future-Jamie? I suppose thematically it was foreshadowed by the poison that was going to erase Fantomex from every existing. But even with that foreshadowing, the ending still undercuts the entire story dramatically, since killing present-Jamie undid everything that happened. I was never really clear on (1) whether Betsy reverted to her Brit body or not, and (2) how extensively that poison effected Fantomex, and now I'm even more confused because I'm not sure if those events still "happened."

And finally, did Fantomex really just take his face skin, put it back on, and cover the whole mess with his mask? That can't be good.

[Phillies64]

[CIBAWAG]

All I know is compared to Fantomex, Deadpool must look like Brad Pitt. That shit was crazy.

[DarkKnightJared]

Eh...it wasn't BAD, it was a solid story, but between not knowing the Otherworld at all and the art, while looking good, sometimes blends together on the page, it felt really hard to read.

[Phillies64]

[MadroxDupe42]

[Phillies64]

[AdamC]

I think you're meant to take the time-travel/future/past stuff with a pinch of salt. Otherwise we'd have to write it all pretty much off, what with it theoretically not possible to travel backwards through time or space.

[CIBAWAG]

[Phillies64]

[MadroxDupe42]

OK, so there was quite a bit of thematic material in issue #20 that I had forgotten that connects to this ending. I still think the resolution undercuts the drama of the story and the actual mechanics of it were a big swerve, but I can see a little bit more of what Remender was trying to do with the story.

Also, I don't buy the whole notion that "Hey, it's time travel - it doesn't have to really make sense." There are time travel stories that have been done well.

Anyway - bring on Dr. Mind Bubble!

[pmaestro]

i don't remember much of the rest of this arc, because yeah, the muddy art didn't make for many memorable images. it was fun to look at as i read it, but that's because the art was very dreamlike, matching appropriately i think the Otherworld nonsense.

as far as the goat jamie not existing after he's killed, well, that's really john connor sending his friend back in time to father him, isn't it? i think it's best to say that Yes, since it exists outside of "our existence" it doesn't exist, therefore, go nuckin futs with the science-fantasy nonsense. otherworld is stupid, it doesn't exist within our universe, it doesn't follow our science, it's not logical and as much as the writers or fans might try to explain that it does, it's just not as "down to earth" explainable as luke cage drinking a beer with matt murdock in hell's kitchen. this IS just silly comics, so i think those silly non-explanation explanations are fine, and i hope we DON'T hear any more about it in the next issue.

as for this single issue? HOLY SMOKE, i loved it. again, i don't remember much of the arc, but apparently you don't need to, cause remender, unlike many idiots writing comics for kids, remembered to remind us of the relationships he was about to affect. that one flashback to the braddock children was all i needed to feel the weight of the ending. Fantastic! i love it reading a comic that makes me think WTF!?! did they really just...?! and yeah they did. sure, jaimie's a nobody, and i thought he'd been killed off before, oh well. that's not what's important. what is important, is that psylocked forced her brother to kill his brother! and that image of brian crying as he twists jaimie's neck!? oh man, wicked moment of the month! so good!

but yeah, wtf's up with fantomex now... i get that his mask might hold his face in place, but he's gon need a little help with that.

and nice work pointing out that psylocke is left holding the smoking gun where it was fantomex at the beginning, AND it was her own brother, so... he's definitely showing his influence over her huh. betsy and ... i forget... sitting in a tree

[DakenLeBeau]

I have enjoyed this arc, but the art was difficult for me to get on board with.


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[SaintValentine]

I have had the same problem with this arc, honestly, they say Otherworld or Omniverse and I just... huh, what was I talking about? Oh yeah, I just space out. If this arc could have been done anywhere but the Omniverse, I would have liked it better. The threats, both the Goat and the Skinless Man were also weak. When the Goat, whose name I still don't know, was first introduced I figured he was going to be a minor annoyance in the arc and to have him turn out to be a major threat was just not convincing. The only thing I remember from this arc is that Fantomex and Psylocke ran, Fantomex's face was cut off, and the other members were running around doing something with Meggan involved somehow. Honestly it's all a blur. The last few pages with Psylocke forcing Brian to snap Jamie's neck were a definite WTF moment, however that cannot overcome the fact that going into this issue I didn't want to read it because I knew I would have to go back to the Omniverse. I didn't have that big of a problem with the art. It wasn't anything amazing, but I still have seen a lot worse. All things considered I give this issue a 3 out of 5.