Immortal X-Men #18 - Review/Spoilers

[Devaishwarya]

That's the most interesting part for me because it's not a physical foe but rather an AI which has now reached Dominion. I'm wondering if this is a matter of going back in time and preventing it from coming online, but without the Dominion itself noticing? Destiny was forced to stay quiet about it because it was always watching her. I think in Rise we'll see Xavier recruit Rachel and the Dead X-Men team for their time-traveling journey. Considering Destiny was able to speak more freely about it in the WHR, perhaps Rachel can identify other pockets (?) where they can execute their tasks.

Also, it's been said the Phoenix (and Galactus) can defeat a Dominion so they'll need to get Jean up and running again.

Was it Destiny who saw a team going up against a Dominion with someone (Hope?) brandishing a Phoenix Sword?

I know it's way too simple so it's virtually an impossibility that it will be on paper but I see Jean resurrecting in WPotC mode and just resetting the timeline...burning away what doesn't work and tweaking what does.

[JB]

I think the thing with Gillen is the sum is greater than the parts; I think the "thank you as fuel" power is a wee lame as others mentioned, and I liked the simplicity of all unearthly all-white space actually being paper (like it would be in real life), but in how the whole thing comes together, and how that was clearly planned from day one, is impressive, masterful, still a little surprising how far it seems to stray from the story's beginning even if inevitable we winded up there.

I agree with a lot of this.

Dialogue and character focus are important to me but I find that as the years pass and I think about past runs/events, I tend to forget things like quotes/voices and remember the wider conception of the story. I was often bored when the Quiet Council members were sitting at tables going back and forth. But I'll forget about all of that in time. Instead when I look back on Immortal X-Men I'm going to remember this grand Sinister story that was smartly planned from issue #1. Destiny knowing the truth this whole time but also knowing she's in danger should she acknowledge its existence. She walked a tightrope this whole time. Meanwhile we were led to believe the four Sinisters were in a race to reach Dominion and one of them would be the winner, only to learn they've essentially been sucked into an AI and born now is a Sinister unlike any of the others because it is ALL of them. It's wild, y'all. LOL!

[JB]

Was it Destiny who saw a team going up against a Dominion with someone (Hope?) brandishing a Phoenix Sword?

I know it's way too simple so it's virtually an impossibility that it will be on paper but I see Jean resurrecting in WPotC mode and just resetting the timeline...burning away what doesn't work and tweaking what does.

As soon as I saw the "crown" symbol for Enigma, I thought of White Phoenix of the Crown. I think it's/she's returning.

Hmm is it this page?

[Keno]

Why people dislike his work is beyond me.

Welp let's look at this pov

Major villain of this grand storytelling: Sinister all the way up and above
Scapegoat of this story: Xavier and Jean. Jean will perhaps make grand entrance towards the end of this 20000 issues of Dominion for one or two issues. Xavier is so Sinister right now that idc how you try to rational there is still Xavier underneath. Its not.
Monologues is all over the place: Gillen himself because useless as well as fan service all the way to the top

[Keno]

I'd say it depends on what you call execution. It's usually written well and presented well.

I think the problem is more fundamental.

Who are the protagonists of this story? I'd expect them to be the QC, but I can't make the case that they are.

I guess those were supposed to be the protagonists, but they don't have enough agency to fulfill the role in practice. Things are happening to them and they react to it, but they're not the ones who set anything in motion or resolve anything. They're just watching the characters who are supposed to be the antagonists upping each other.

That doesn't make a story compelling to me. Perhaps that's also why you find it boring?

Only Gillens favorites are Quite Council in his eyes

[Devaishwarya]

As soon as I saw the "crown" symbol for Enigma, I thought of White Phoenix of the Crown. I think it's/she's returning.

Hmm is it this page?

Yupp, Sibz. I can't recall if it was a vision of something to come or something that happened before.

[charliehustle415]

I like most of what he writes (except Uber) but he does tend to wallow in the emo/shoegazing side of things.




Sinister-Prime's monolog about how stories have no value until they've been stripped of everything that made them unique is one of the coldest things I've ever read. It's an observation that can be applied to anything, from how corporate comics won't let profitable characters stay dead to how Disney shamelessly pumps out re-makes of beloved animated features. Every part of the corpse gets used. That is good writing. He should have saved it for one of his creator-owned books.

it's been done in multiple stories through different mediums, I mean this is no different then Campbell's thesis - he literally stripped back western storytelling to it's basic components and states that nearly every western story is the same story.

again it's amazing to someone who isn't that well read (not saying that you are)

[king of hybrids]

So if I’m guessing right, Enigma is the result of five timelines working out in its favor.

Four for each of the main decks to reach the threshold and provide part of the algorithm, and another timeline for the mutants to kill off the other Dominions and Strongholds (that might otherwise challenge it) allowing it to assimilate their now freed up processing power (which probably explains why it’s beyond even the Living Tribunal or ToAA’s ability to contain.

The big question is, considering Enigma showed up in a Defenders book, whether this is going to be another ‘everyone else dies, only mutants can stop it’ threat or an ‘all hands on deck!’ Summer event that all of marvel must fight?

[JB]

Yupp, Sibz. I can't recall if it was a vision of something to come or something that happened before.

I just double checked and it's from Inferno #3 when Omega Sentinel is telling Nimrod about how the mutants always win. So perhaps it's a clue of how they may be able to defeat the Dominion.

That's also when we see Apocalypse and his family defeat the Children of the Vault. And there's stuff about the Trickster Titan, the one who sent Omega back in time, but I need to reread more carefully to grasp that part of it.

[JB]

I like most of what he writes (except Uber) but he does tend to wallow in the emo/shoegazing side of things.

Sinister-Prime's monolog about how stories have no value until they've been stripped of everything that made them unique is one of the coldest things I've ever read. It's an observation that can be applied to anything, from how corporate comics won't let profitable characters stay dead to how Disney shamelessly pumps out re-makes of beloved animated features. Every part of the corpse gets used. That is good writing. He should have saved it for one of his creator-owned books.

Especially now with everything we're seeing with AI. News sites using AI to write articles rather than people, etc.

[Devaishwarya]

I just double checked and it's from Inferno #3 when Omega Sentinel is telling Nimrod about how the mutants always win. So perhaps it's a clue of how they may be able to defeat the Dominion.

That's also when we see Apocalypse and his family defeat the Children of the Vault. And there's stuff about the Trickster Titan, the one who sent Omega back in time, but I need to reread more carefully to grasp that part of it.

Ahh! Thank you.

Just so allyuh know...

My Sibz is awesome.

[JB]

Ahh! Thank you.

Just so allyuh know...

My Sibz is awesome.

Love ya, Sibz.

Now I'm wondering how Moira/Omega/Nimrod will fit into all of this in Rise. Will they try to break bread with this amped up Enigma Sinister AI? Hmm.

[Master of Sound]

Honestly, I feel stupid, as I still do not understand the Dominion concept at all.

Can someone explain it in simple words?

[Odd Rödney]

Now I'm wondering how Moira/Omega/Nimrod will fit into all of this in Rise. Will they try to break bread with this amped up Enigma Sinister AI? Hmm.

They certainly have to be used in some aspect of this big conclusion. I think it is kind of a binary choice: they'll either try to "break bread" as you said, or they'll be forced to "team-up" with the mutants when they realize it could destroy them too. Now that I've said that it occurs to me that Moira/Omega/Nimrod could find themselves at war on two fronts, refusing to ally with either the mutants or Enigma Sinister.

Either way, I'm here for it, sounds exciting.

[Proxy]

The Destiny and Mother Righteous stuff is delightful.
This reminds me, at the end of Legion of X Mother Righteous makes one of her offers to Kurt (who is made a monster by Margali’s spell). But then we see him again, in both The Sins of Sinister: Nightcrawlers and in Sons of X, he’s still a monster. So he couldn’t have taken her up on her offer? Is he in her debt?

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No I don’t think Kurt took her up on the offer, nor is he ever seen thanking her. This could be one of the reasons Legion is hiding in his soul/hope now.