Where has this been?
Huzzah! A pretty good issue, at last. It has its flaws, true: Thomas has the X-Men announce what they are doing, as if the artwork of Neal Adams doesn't communicate it effectively (which it does); Angel refers to himself as the "Avenging Angel," which was what he called himself for less than a week several years ago; and Magneto is a robot (and supposedly was back in the Steranko-lead Magneto/Lorna mini-series) and Mesmero looks like the Green Goblin. Neal Adams's artwork and layout do a fantastic job again of overcoming these annoyances, creating a fast-paced 20-page issue that seems shorter than the 15-pagers we've endured lately. Thankfully, it appears the "origins of X-Men" b-story days are gone. Havok has his goofy triple-pronged helmet, and apparently Larry Trask gave Alex the name (I didn't know that), but it's nice that Roy Thomas is finally taking the character somewhere. I'm glad the Alex/Lorna relationship began immediately (in a way), though Bobby still thinks she is his girlfriend. The Living Pharaoh/Monolith is still hanging around, but no one seems to know why (not even Mr. Thomas). Thomas's Sentinels are rather chatty, as if they have distinct personalities, but that might not be so bad. On the plus side again, the media narration is remarkable, especially a decade or more before God Loves, Man Kills and The Dark Knight Returns. Banshee makes a rather feeble cameo, but it was nice to see him again, finally. The dramatic reveal at the cliffhanger is not totally unexpected, but Thomas, Neal, and Co. make it impressive anyway. Nicely done, team. The series has improved drastically in only a few issues. Huzzah again!
