X-Men Red #16 - Review/Recap Spoilers

[JB]

Out in space a space shuttle emerges from a warp, piloted by Craig of NASA and Dr. Corbeau. They're ferrying mercenaries to the war on Arakko and onboard are Weaponless Szen, Prince of Power, and Blackjack O'Hare. Along for the ride are Loolo and her little brother Kobb. Prince of Power awkwardly talks to the children trying to sound relatable as his planet also suffered its own annihilation. Except it was at his hands and anyway his attempt to talk to them falls flat. Zsen asks if Blackjack has something for her to paint on and he hands her a paper pad and marker. Her mutant power is to draw the truth as we know and she hands little Kobb her drawing, saying she hopes it helps and is useful in his fight. His eyes grow wide with surprise as he looks at it and a single tear streams down his face. He thanks her and Loolo is pleasantly surprised because this is the first time he's spoken in months.

Craig appears, disappointed that he missed Kobb speaking, and informs them that instead of going to Arakko they have to go to the Keep station. Peepers has informed them that Port Prometheus, their destination, is gone. We get the preview page of the heartbreaking scene of War looking over the burning Port. The Red Lagoon is on fire, residents like the gun shop owner are on fire or dead, and Amenthi daemons are flying all around. Famine however feels the fire is too good for what he calls small salesmen of meager stock, traders and diplomats. He says he will correct War's error.

The last preview page is of Kobak and Syzya. Kobak is in what looks to be the Brotherhood's meeting room in the back of the Red Lagoon. He calls out for Lodus and Fisher King when Syzya teleports in. He's the only one inside alive since the fire cannot burn his skin. Syzya tells him that Fisher King is with Sunsport and Lodus is outside already fighting. She opens a panel and presses a button which reveals the Uranos trigger.

Data page explaining how the Great Ring went about discussing the Uranos weapon, whether to use it, how, etc. It was decided that the Night Seats would keep it to avoid it being used frivolously by any in the Great Ring. We learn that it cannot simply be activated with the press of a button but it must also be thought activated, a thought that was a full understanding of what activation meant.

While holding the trigger Syzya can see and hear Uranos who is sitting on his throne. (With a dead Druig off to the side.) He tells her that she holds Uranos the Eternal and all of his death weapons in her hands. He says the hour will begin if she only asks. He's smirking and she hesitates. She doesn't pull the trigger and she and Kobak teleport away. Outside Roberto is flying while holding Fisher King as they survey the destruction. Roberto is hard on himself, saying he was too cocky and should have planned for the Horsemen's arrival. Fisher King says Storm is somewhere out there in the smoke and he doesn't know where Khora is. He tells Roberto that they need to focus and save whoever they can. Roberto says it won't be enough and that every death is on him.

Nova is working on controlling the fires while rescuing innocents when Famine conjures a huge water Kaiju. He's a hydrokinetic, that's how he's able to "drain" his victims, by draining their world. But in this instance he creates a massive flood that washes over the Port, putting out War's fires and drowning victims. As he boasts and talks smack, he's fried by a massive lightning bolt and falls to the ground. Storm lowers down saying there will be no mercy.





She just took out two ancient, omega-level mutants that have survived thousands of years of war, in seconds. She turns and Death is before her with his scythe. He confirms that his siblings are down but not dead as he can their sparks still flickering. He says Storm cannot fool him, that there is still mercy in her.

Death: I challenge you, beauty. The Storm against the End, at our full strength. Our last dance.

Pestilence is off to the side pulling back one of her poison arrows in her bow. Storm says to Death that with her people dead and dying, children dying, does he think his rules can still apply. He hesitates and says they have to, otherwise what was all of this, this war, for. Pestilence says rules are made by the winners and she let's fly her arrow directly at Storm. Nova suddenly appears and flies in front of Storm taking the arrow to the chest. I love him!! Pestilence's plague starts to overtake Nova as he struggles to speak. Storm reaches for Nova saying she'll fly him out of there but Death pulls her hand away saying the plague spreads by touch and kills by pain and that only he can survive it.

He turns to his sister and says she interfered. Pestilence tells her little brother to grow up and that he would have lost to Storm, again, out of his misplaced puppy love. She smiles, showing her nasty ass teeth, and says their customs and traditions exist to only serve them, not their enemy such as Storm. She says they destroy their enemies, no matter who they are. Death removes his headpiece. "... Yes. No matter how they are. Goodbye, my sister." He gives her his glare of death and she quickly and soooo satisfyingly disintegrates into dust. That's my boy!!

Putting his headpiece back on he tells Storm that his sister's interference was a challenge of insult and that she said such things meant nothing. "She was wrong. She has to be." Syzya teleports in and Storm immediately asks her how the evacuation is going. She replies that some got out and thankfully Genesis is taking prisoners (that can hopefully be rescued). The remaining fighters are falling back to the Morrowlands. She then hands Storm the Uranos trigger. She says it has to be Storm. She's the Seat of Loss and Syzya doesn't want to listen to Uranos anymore. Storm holds it and Uranos greets her in her mind. He tells her to release him and within his hour of freedom he will end the war by ending every single life on the planet that is not of her faction. The choice is hers. He tells her to choose as she looks up and watches a swarm of flying daemons fly overhead.

Final data page describing how Port Prometheus is gone and Ororo's people are in retreat with many already dead. With a single thought she could turn the tide with Uranos, who will kill and kill until once again the Living Island was a comatose field of spilled blood and bones. If Genesis and Annihilation won, Arakko would become a prison planet and a collection of pawns to be used for theirs and Orchis' war games. She would never let that happen so her final choice was this:



I got chills! Will she do it herself, vanquish Genesis' forces across the planet? We'll find out next issue. But first...

The final pages have us at the Autumn Lands where Magneto's palace once was. The landscape looks that of a volcano, blackened with rivers of lava. Lifeless. Until we see a plant break through the ground's lava rock, growing tall and rounding into a circle. It's an Okkara gate and we see a large foot step through it.

"Dead, lifeless rock - but with a sun caged below it. Imprisoned, abandoned. A useful ingredient. And with the Storm coming to meet us - for where else can she turn? Yes. Here.“

[JB]

Oof!

[Viteh]

If I'm understanding that last line correctly, it sounds like Apocalypse believes Storm will go free Vulcan? And that's why he knows she'll show up there?

[IN-a-Synch]

If I'm understanding that last line correctly, it sounds like Apocalypse believes Storm will go free Vulcan? And that's why he knows she'll show up there?

I think you are right

Is that Ozymandias in the background.

I think this is what that Xmen title will be, And Apaccy lead team.

[BobbysWorld]

Lots to talk about but don't have time to get into all of it, but I'm veeeeery interested in the final page, and seeing how all of this pays off. Lots of things that have been put in motion a long time ago are finally coming home to roost. Vulcan having a part to play in Apocalypse/Revelation's spell or ritual, it sounds like.....and I'm very curious as to who the hooded figure behind Big A is. My money's on Absolom Mercator....we know he and Apocalypse made some kind of deal in the past and the latter trusted him to safeguard the Siege Perilous until Betsy and the others came for it....and his powerset is very much suited to a task such as 'remaking the world' - plus he's been living in Otherworld for years so is likely to be very informed on things like mutant magic and rituals, etc. Plus, there's something symbolic about the fact that he was the literal only Earthborn/Krakoan omega mutant to play no role in shaping Mars into Arakko in the first place (as even Legion lent his own additions after the fact, and of course was crucial in Judgment Day) while the Arakkii omegas have all been of course relevant to shaping the culture of the place, and now Genesis and her kids have arrived on the mutant planet and made their own marks upon it, and now here comes Revelation, promising big changes....and perhaps bringing with him the final remaining omega level mutant, the lone holdout, the only one yet to play a part in making this planet into a mutant homeland...perhaps ready to bring things full circle and render what's actually been a work in progress all along into its final, completed form? Maybe even reuniting 'what should never have been split asunder' in the first place, ie bringing Krakoa and Arakko onto the same planet and segueing the Krakoan Age into the Okkaran Age? Idk, just spitballing.

(And honestly wouldn't have been my preferred direction as I like Krakoa and Arakko being on separate planets and with their own distinct identities but I could see this being where things are going, and I definitely still think moving to a new Okkara status quo is infinitely preferable to moving back to a pre-Krakoa status quo). But we'll see soon enough.

[JB]

Lots to talk about but don't have time to get into all of it, but I'm veeeeery interested in the final page, and seeing how all of this pays off. Lots of things that have been put in motion a long time ago are finally coming home to roost. Vulcan having a part to play in Apocalypse/Revelation's spell or ritual, it sounds like.....and I'm very curious as to who the hooded figure behind Big A is. My money's on Absolom Mercator....we know he and Apocalypse made some kind of deal in the past and the latter trusted him to safeguard the Siege Perilous until Betsy and the others came for it....and his powerset is very much suited to a task such as 'remaking the world' - plus he's been living in Otherworld for years so is likely to be very informed on things like mutant magic and rituals, etc. Plus, there's something symbolic about the fact that he was the literal only Earthborn/Krakoan omega mutant to play no role in shaping Mars into Arakko in the first place (as even Legion lent his own additions after the fact, and of course was crucial in Judgment Day) while the Arakkii omegas have all been of course relevant to shaping the culture of the place, and now Genesis and her kids have arrived on the mutant planet and made their own marks upon it, and now here comes Revelation, promising big changes....and perhaps bringing with him the final remaining omega level mutant, the lone holdout, the only one yet to play a part in making this planet into a mutant homeland...perhaps ready to bring things full circle and render what's actually been a work in progress all along into its final, completed form? Maybe even reuniting 'what should never have been split asunder' in the first place, ie bringing Krakoa and Arakko onto the same planet and segueing the Krakoan Age into the Okkaran Age? Idk, just spitballing.

(And honestly wouldn't have been my preferred direction as I like Krakoa and Arakko being on separate planets and with their own distinct identities but I could see this being where things are going, and I definitely still think moving to a new Okkara status quo is infinitely preferable to moving back to a pre-Krakoa status quo). But we'll see soon enough.

You just blew my mind. If that’s Mercator I’m gonna need y’all to resurrect me.

[Kingdom X]

Lots to talk about but don't have time to get into all of it, but I'm veeeeery interested in the final page, and seeing how all of this pays off. Lots of things that have been put in motion a long time ago are finally coming home to roost. Vulcan having a part to play in Apocalypse/Revelation's spell or ritual, it sounds like.....and I'm very curious as to who the hooded figure behind Big A is. My money's on Absolom Mercator....we know he and Apocalypse made some kind of deal in the past and the latter trusted him to safeguard the Siege Perilous until Betsy and the others came for it....and his powerset is very much suited to a task such as 'remaking the world' - plus he's been living in Otherworld for years so is likely to be very informed on things like mutant magic and rituals, etc. Plus, there's something symbolic about the fact that he was the literal only Earthborn/Krakoan omega mutant to play no role in shaping Mars into Arakko in the first place (as even Legion lent his own additions after the fact, and of course was crucial in Judgment Day) while the Arakkii omegas have all been of course relevant to shaping the culture of the place, and now Genesis and her kids have arrived on the mutant planet and made their own marks upon it, and now here comes Revelation, promising big changes....and perhaps bringing with him the final remaining omega level mutant, the lone holdout, the only one yet to play a part in making this planet into a mutant homeland...perhaps ready to bring things full circle and render what's actually been a work in progress all along into its final, completed form? Maybe even reuniting 'what should never have been split asunder' in the first place, ie bringing Krakoa and Arakko onto the same planet and segueing the Krakoan Age into the Okkaran Age? Idk, just spitballing.

(And honestly wouldn't have been my preferred direction as I like Krakoa and Arakko being on separate planets and with their own distinct identities but I could see this being where things are going, and I definitely still think moving to a new Okkara status quo is infinitely preferable to moving back to a pre-Krakoa status quo). But we'll see soon enough.

BobbysWorld having the same crackpot theory as me for the future of the books is all I’ve needed.

and thanks Jbenito for the timely and detailed recap/ review! As per usual this book served and it’s only a shame that Ewing hasn’t been given the keys to lead the franchise, even if it’s just for the final phase of this current era.

[RAWRlrus]

Hot take, but I don't get how people can complain about Duggan's writing being Kate centric but not say anything about Ewing being equally or more Storm centric. Bringing Nova in just to die, having her fight the Horsemen, the whole Uranos could do it or Storm could do it herself. If that last one happens it will be super dissapointing.

[Kitty&Piotr<3]

Daaaaamn, 'Ro!

BobbysWorld having the same crackpot theory as me for the future of the books is all I’ve needed.

and thanks Jbenito for the timely and detailed recap/ review! As per usual this book served and it’s only a shame that Ewing hasn’t been given the keys to lead the franchise, even if it’s just for the final phase of this current era.

We were supposed to get Mutant Planet under Remender close to 10 years ago now, so this feels especially plausible.

That time-travel O5 story was reportedly hanging around the X-office for years before someone did it.

[JB]

Hot take, but I don't get how people can complain about Duggan's writing being Kate centric but not say anything about Ewing being equally or more Storm centric. Bringing Nova in just to die, having her fight the Horsemen, the whole Uranos could do it or Storm could do it herself. If that last one happens it will be super dissapointing.

I think the main difference is that Storm has been the sole very big name in this book since Magneto’s death. Even so, Fisher King has had great character exploration and last issue that mostly focused on him was fantastic imo. Jon Ironfire has also been given a lot of meat to his story. Now Apocalypse has entered the scene so expect a lot of attention on him.

To be clear, I personally don’t mind the focus on Kate because it’s the most I’ve enjoyed her this era. What Duggan is doing with her is awesome. I just wish Synch and Talon, the current leaders, would get more to do than study schematics and give orders from the sewers.

[BobbysWorld]

Yeah, the difference is as much as people complain about Storm having too much focus or being a Mary Sue, Ewing's somehow managed to also simultaneously make people care about/generate tons of fans for a literal dozen brand new characters besides her, when gaining fans or traction for even a SINGLE new character in a franchise already as crowded as X-Men is a considered an uphill battle.

People complaining about Storm: Ewing makes the entire book about her!

People enjoying the book: If anything happens to Lactuca, Sobunar, Kobak, Khora, Loolo, Ironfire, Craig or a half dozen other characters that had at most ONE appearance in a book other than this one or its direct precursor, I'm killing everyone in this room!

But sure, Ewing definitely has only focused on Storm or given people reason to care about her and nobody else. As evidenced by the fact that.....clearly, people only care about Storm, unless they were somehow preexisting fans of characters Ewing literally introduced in this book and that have never shown up anywhere else.

[Viteh]

Hot take, but I don't get how people can complain about Duggan's writing being Kate centric but not say anything about Ewing being equally or more Storm centric. Bringing Nova in just to die, having her fight the Horsemen, the whole Uranos could do it or Storm could do it herself. If that last one happens it will be super dissapointing.

I think the issue with Kate is that she's in the flagship title, so there is an expectation for it to be more team-focused.

Having said that, I do think X-Men Red has become a Storm solo in all but name ever since Magneto died and Cable was shipped off to a mini. Storm can definitely carry a book, like she's doing here, but it would have been cool if some of the other Omegas in Storm's side would have done something this issue.

[Hakka84]

I'm not following this title, but the pages shared look... awesome. Both in art and content. This Ororo is... wow.
It must be good to be a rabid Storm's fan! *jealous Hakka*

So, to recap. Of the four horsemen, only Famine is dead?

[RAWRlrus]

Yeah, the difference is as much as people complain about Storm having too much focus or being a Mary Sue, Ewing's somehow managed to also simultaneously make people care about/generate tons of fans for a literal dozen brand new characters besides her, when gaining fans or traction for even a SINGLE new character in a franchise already as crowded as X-Men is a considered an uphill battle.

People complaining about Storm: Ewing makes the entire book about her!

People enjoying the book: If anything happens to Lactuca, Sobunar, Kobak, Khora, Loolo, Ironfire, Craig or a half dozen other characters that had at most ONE appearance in a book other than this one or its direct precursor, I'm killing everyone in this room!

But sure, Ewing definitely has only focused on Storm or given people reason to care about her and nobody else. As evidenced by the fact that.....clearly, people only care about Storm, unless they were somehow preexisting fans of characters Ewing literally introduced in this book and that have never shown up anywhere else.

taht
I think you can, with the exception of the new characters, make the same argument about Duggan writing Kate. I'm more in agreement with Jbenito that I generally don't mind the focus either has gotten but this issue was disappointing IMO. The horsemen have been teased too much for it to jus be Storm bodying them without anyone else. Nova coming back just to die for Storm, the whole Uranos isn't actually needed thing, Storm can just do it herself.

[BobbysWorld]

taht
I think you can, with the exception of the new characters, make the same argument about Duggan writing Kate. I'm more in agreement with Jbenito that I generally don't mind the focus either has gotten but this issue was disappointing IMO. The horsemen have been teased too much for it to jus be Storm bodying them without anyone else. Nova coming back just to die for Storm, the whole Uranos isn't actually needed thing, Storm can just do it herself.

Fair enough. I’d just also say I think a big part is that the criticism of Duggan’s Kate focus is partly born of years of fans seeing high profile faves used to market Duggan’s books only to get ignored in favor of just one or two focal characters like Kate. As jbenito said, nobody’s specifically disappointed by the sidelining of established characters being used to get ppl to pick up XMen Red only to see the book only utilize one of them, Storm. She IS the only established character being used to promote the book, other than Roberto. But Duggan’s established a trend of loading his casts up with Storm, Iceman and Bishop only to only write about Kate and Emma, then the Year One cast where half of them got maybe a single issue of focus, then the Year Two cast where once again most of them barely did anything….thus the criticism has built up over time. Versus this where like….yes Ororo is getting more page time than anyone else but it’s not like Ewing brought in a bunch of A list mutants to be part of the Great Ring in order to get readers to try the book but then inexplicably sidelines them just to make it the Storm show.