X-Factor #3, Recap and Review, Spoilers Brought to You by Headshot TV!

[Dante Milton]

- We open with the preview pages, X-Factor quickly defeats the gang that ambushed them and are taken to Spiral’s studio for an interview.
- Spiral teases the identity of the dead mutant, but first a commercial break.
- Rachel invites Spiral’s assistant Ginny to Krakoa, she declines.
- Once back from the break, Spiral reveals the mystery mutant is Wind Dancer! Who seemingly allowed herself to be killed at the behest of her audience.
- X-Factor is then teleported by Spiral to the battle pits of the most popular livestreamer of Mojoverse to learn more about the whereabouts of Sofia’s body and her live autopsy.
- We cut back to the Boneyard, where Aurora and Daken have a flirty conversation, before Daken attempts to find out what Aurora was up to in Bellingham. Rather than answering, Aurora speeds away.
- Back in Mojoworld, X-Factor fight their way to the main platform of the battle pits where it is revealed that Shatterstar is the most popular live-streamer. Shattybuns seems relived to see them at first before playing up to the cameras. Sahtterstar then takes them to Sofia.
- Sofia’s body is being held by Arize at his Arize and Shine studio, on the way there Rachel confirms that she is blocked from Shatterstar’s mind but he isn’t acting like himself. We also get some details about Arize’s clone farms, where he produces what are essentially mindless cannon fodder.
- They arrive at where Sofia’s body is being kept, and after some mourning by David, Northstar takes the body and runs. Meanwhile, Lorna talks with Shatterstar and finds out that he can’t speak freely, she invites him to come back with X-Factor, be he says he can’t. Lorna promises to come back for him.
- Data page 1: intercepted transmissions from Shatterstar translated by Doug Ramsay that go into more detail about the Mojoverse cloning process, Sofia showing up in MV and dying, and show Shatterstar’s deteriorating mental state.
- Data page 2: Aurora gives a report about what she learned from watching Mojoverse tv, and some details about the other live streamers: Major Domo’s ASMR, Arize and Shine, and Adam X’s snuff film commentary channel.
- There is also a page about that blatant video game product tie in, which is I guess appropriate for an issue about the Mojoverse.

This issue was much more of an emotional gut punch than I was expecting. Poor Shatterstar! The Wind Dancer reveal was great. Are we supposed to know this Ginny character, she seems to have experience with the X-Men? The contrast between Mojoverse cloning and Krakoan resurrection was an interesting parallel. Good to see the Aurora mystery is an ongoing subplot. Baldeon’s art was kinetic and expressive, some aspects of his style still irk me though, and I didn’t care for the Spiral redesign.

[mugiwara]

It's an odd experience.
We get that "NXM kid comes back from limbo to be killed" monkey paw wish again, but for once, it's actullay a good thing.
Because resurrection are no for X-Gatekeepers only anymore and Williams obviously has a story for Winddancer.

[Luckystar.]

Ginny is Spiral's "adopted daughter" from Sam Humphries' Uncanny X-Force.

[Journey]

I have to admit this issue was kind of a lot just a bunch of wild **** going on I didn't hate it but I enjoyed the other 2 more they were easier to follow. I did enjoy the David moments we got which is weird cause I've never liked his character but his mouth is just really reckless in this series and I kind of fucks with it. Am I the only one who thought the "F**k Speedsters" line was seed planting? Not really feeling Aroura and Daken as a pairing but I did appreciate their scene it shows Daken has lairs which is usually own shown when Laura is around.

[The Big G]

Top 3 moments:
1. Wind Dancer reveal-some much implication. many memes.
2. Daken is a Pokemon
3. Adam X is a Mojoverse livestreamer

[Dthirds3]

So if daken is a pokemon, would that make laura of gabby his trainer ?

[Soulsword323]

The Wind Dancer reveal was nice. For some reason didn't expect her, but it was cool that Leah found a way to bring Sofia back into the mix.

[Will Evans]

And she’ll be resurrected as the wind wizard that she should be.

[MYCMTSC]

The Wind Dancer reveal was nice. For some reason didn't expect her, but it was cool that Leah found a way to bring Sofia back into the mix.

Yeah I’m a big fan but didn’t guess her despite all of the dancer hints lol.

[ChronoRogue]

The implication is that she was kidnapped right? I can't ever see Sofia ever going to Mojo world willingly.

[MYCMTSC]

The implication is that she was kidnapped right? I can't ever see Sofia ever going to Mojo world willingly.

The data page says, "A young mutant girl has arrived. I don't know how she learned of this place's obsessession with mutants and worry she came without full understanding what it entails". She is later described as being an active, even fanatical participant in the livestreaming process.

Even more curious:

"We have come to an agreement that we cannot allow Mojo to access or study her DNA under any circumstances. Even depowered she [TRANSMISSION UNRECOVERABLE] - and I am certain he would love nothing more than to add an X-gene into his catalog of cloneable horrors to endlessly replicate and subjugate."

[Uncanny X-Man]

3 issues in and I'm still enjoying this title, even though I'm not a fan of Mojoworld and wish it wasn't used so early in the book's life when its mission statement has barely been established.

Also, I'm not familiar with Leah's writing enough to know if worrying is warranted... but the dialogue and the return of so many secondary characters in the space of a few issues seem a bit too focused on fan-service. Again, I'm still enjoying X-Factor so no complaints so far, I just hope Leah can keep her narrative focused and deliver on her core cast without spreading her attention to too many characters.

[ChronoRogue]

The data page says, "A young mutant girl has arrived. I don't know how she learned of this place's obsessession with mutants and worry she came without full understanding what it entails". She is later described as being an active, even fanatical participant in the streaming process.

Even more curious:

"We have come to an agreement that we cannot allow Mojot o access or study her DNA under any circumstances. Even depowered she [TRANSMISSION UNRECOVERABLE] - and I am certain he would love nothing more than to add an X-gene into his catalog of cloneable horrors to replicate endless and subjugate."

That seems out of character for Sofia. Then again, she was in New Warriors with Jubilee because she was depowered...

[Ferro]

it was a smart reveal of who was the dead mutant and who sent the box

[Johnrevenge]

The Wind Dancer reveal was nice. For some reason didn't expect her, but it was cool that Leah found a way to bring Sofia back into the mix.

And then we need confirmation for Wallflower's return too.