johnkmccubbin91's Uncanny X-Men #13 - Battle of the Atom Chapter 8 review

    Avatar image for johnkmccubbin91

    Slightly Disappointing

    This review was originally posted on my website Imagination Centre (here).

    Battle of the Atom has on a whole been a very exciting story so far, as although it has had a few issues that were slightly disappointing, on a whole it's been very entertaining, with some amazing moments.

    Plot

    As Cyclops' X-Men and a group of X-Men from the future prepare to take the fight to the renegade X-Men team from the future they are stopped in their tracks.

    Review

    Though slightly disappointing this was a good issue, and Brian Michael Bendis did a great job of developing the story. I did however feel that there was too much going on for one issue, with too many sub-plots that didn't get enough development time, and cutting some would have probably made the others better. Bendis did however do a brilliant job of adding a lot of excitement and tension to this issue, though the many sub-plots did slightly take away from this. There was however some very interesting interactions, and the the development near the end was very interesting, making the last two chapters of this story look even more exciting.

    The artwork that Chris Bachalo has been producing on this series has been overall very good, as although I am not a fan of his work in general, it suits this series brilliantly. I did however once again dislike it, as bar the style continuing not to fit as well as the other artists do, it also didn't help with the storytelling, as the style would make the story feel even more muddled than it already did. I did however as usual like Bachalo's layouts, as although they were partly to blame for the muddled feel at times, they also managed to add a lot of depth and excitement throughout the rest of the issue. I also loved how Bachalo handled the action in this issue, as his art would make the sequences much more explosive and exciting.

    There would be two main fights/encounters in this issue, with one being Cyclops' team against Xavier Jr. Although this wasn't my favourite out of the two encounters, it was still very exciting at times, having a lot of tension throughout, also having a brilliant atmosphere to it. It was also very clever at times, as although most of the encounter was very predictable, there were a couple of points that were very interesting, showing that Xavier Jr. isn't a pushover. At the same time this clever development took away the amount of excitement that would be added if Cyclops' team was given a proper chance of fighting back.

    The other fight would see the future Deadpool and Molly Hayes go up against Magik and the future version of her brother Colossus, with them both having Soul Swords. This was a much more entertaining sequence, and I really enjoyed seeing the sibling team-up, even if one of them is from the future. I also felt that this sequence was a lot more exciting, having a much better tone and atmosphere, with the dialogue also being much better. On top of that the fight felt much more organic, and spontaneous than the other, with some of the actions feeling very sudden and suspenseful.

    Whilst all this is happening the future Jean Grey and Beast, along with Raze (who was revealed in X-Men #6 to be Wolverine's shape changing son from the future, who so far had been masquerading as a future version of Kitty Pryde) would get even closer to their goal of sending the younger X-Men back to their own timeline. Now I won't go into any detail as to what happens here, though anyone who followed the NYCC announcements can guess part of the development. The sequence was however very interesting and dramatic, and the developments were even more interesting, having me more excited for the final two chapters.

    Final Verdict

    Though not one of the better issues in the story so far, it was still exciting at times, and did a good job of developing the story as a whole. It did however have too much going on, and would have probably been better if some of the sub-plots were cut. There would also however be some very exciting moments, and the issue as a whole would have been much better if not for the amount going on. Due to all this I'd barely recommend it, and especially if you've been following the story so far, but otherwise wait for the trade.

    Rating: 7/10

    Other reviews for Uncanny X-Men #13 - Battle of the Atom Chapter 8

      This Event Needs To End Sooner 0

      I'm so done with this event.Seriously, it just needs to end. Why is there this necessity or urge to make up these big "blockbuster" events that flop around for 8 or 10 issues with little to no consequence?For those of you who haven't been following the series, like me, the Future X-Men are actually the Future Brotherhood of Mutants (surprise, surprise *eye-roll*), and no everyone has to fight each other.What makes this issue stand out is just how much the writers to pack into this one damned iss...

      1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

      Uncanny X-Men #13 Rating 0

      Cover & Solicit - 4/5Would I pick-up or buy the comic based on the solicit or cover alone?Are the alternate covers appealing?Does the solicit and cover portray what happens in the issue?Do I like the artist's style on the cover?Art, Colors & Inking - 4/5- Weighted DoubleDo I personally like this artist's style?Does the artist stay true to the characters appearance?If there are multiple artists do they blend well and not disturb the reading experience?Does the coloring/inking blend well w...

      1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

    This edit will also create new pages on Comic Vine for:

    Beware, you are proposing to add brand new pages to the wiki along with your edits. Make sure this is what you intended. This will likely increase the time it takes for your changes to go live.

    Comment and Save

    Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other Comic Vine users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll send you an email once approved.