Resurrection of Magneto #3 - Review/Spoilers

[JB]

By far my shortest summary because it's just not possible to cover the layers Ewing gifts us. But it's a fantastic issue that deserves to be discussed with art that deserves to be shown off. So here goes nothing!

We open with the preview pages as Storm is confronted by several anti-Phoenix beings all conjured up by the Shadow King. She starts to fight them as Max is confronted by Charles, form taken by the Shadow King. As they talk Max tells "Charles" to stop calling him Erik. "Charles" says that he met him as Erik and now he's going by Max which is his attempt to drop all his masks. But Charles says there is one more mask and asks Max what the name in his heart is. Max answers Magneto. Charles morphs into red costume evil Magneto. He shouts pro-mutant/anti-human rhetoric, Magneto's own words, forcing Magneto to face this side of himself.

The First Fallen notes how beautiful Storm is, how perfect she is. He tells her to never change and tries to freeze her like a statue but she breaks free. She says she will not be caged by him or anyone. Annihilation then appears and puts itself on Storm's face. It calls Storm out for being addicted to responsibility, flitting from one to another like a butterfly, like a magician spinning plates. Annihilation asks if the world can go on without Storm, if even if ever fought if she isn't around. The Shadow King comes to Storm as Charles and she tells him to stop insulting everyone he pretends to be and just show up as himself. He morphs into the Adversary and continues mocking her.

Magneto continues to face his red costume self and ultimately tells red that he's no longer just about protecting mutants, he has evolved to wanting to protect all that are hated and feared. This is super simplified but the conversation is much deeper.

Storm continues to smartly combat everything the Shadow King says to her until he finally takes his own form. He taunts her saying she's the only one that can save the world, that can save her people, the perfect Goddess who never fails. She and she alone. She realizes this is his last trap, trying to get her to fight him alone. She charges up, realizing what she needs to do, and puts out her right hand.



The Shadow King is gone and Storm starts falling after the intensity of the blast. Magneto catches her but she's weak, dying. Her narration tells her that she now knows that her Cosmos' mission is now fulfilled as is her own. She's slipping away as she tells Magneto to turn his key once more and return to the real world where he is needed. But Magneto refuses for it to end this way!





Storm awakens in the real world. The glowing hands belong to Taaia and it appears she, with Blue Marvel next to her, has revived Storm. We of course know it was Magneto. She sits up and tells Adam to look. A skeletal figure approaches from inside the gate. "The gate screams as matter is torn from the energy beyond, spinning flesh, bone and blood - new and yet somehow the original." Newly formed feet touch the floor as the figure steps out of the portal.

[JB]

He's back!

Tremendous issue. Magneto essentially comes to realize that to be a true hero he must be a hero for all, not just mutantkind. He has taken accountability for all he has done and is ready to start anew. Seeing him use his powers to bring Storm back from the brink of death was a beautiful full circle moment of poetry.

[Saturius]

Always love an "Ultimate Intimacy" moment. As usual, it seems redundant to say this was exquisite. Losing Ewing will be a huge loss to the X-Line.

Very curious what the next issue will entail since both are back in the land of the living already.

[Frontier]

I'm kind of curious how much this will inform Mackay's Magneto headlining Scott's X-Men team in a Xavier role, especially when he goes from looking like he's in his 20's to looking like Ian Mckellan.

[Uncanny X-Man]

This was another superb issue. This week Gillen and Ewing really slayed, as they always do really. Ewing proved once again a master of continuity but not just for continuity sake, but to propel his stories and characters forward. His take on both Ororo and Max is simply flawless and the ending was just perfect.

I wonder if Mags surrendering part of his energy to revive Ororo could be the reason why he needs a hover chair in the MacKay/Stegman X-Men? Perhaps he'll be weaker than he was before dying? Either way, I'm looking forward to a satisfying conclusion next month.

[davetvs]

I said this in the Storm thread but this is arguably the single greatest X-Men issue of all time 100/10. I'm now shipping Storm/Magneto.

[Master of Sound]

We're the evil being named? I did recognize Adversary, Annihilation and Shadowking. Who were the others, or were they not named?

[ermac]

Loved the debate between them. Shadow King is an awesome concept when written well.

The art was really, really great. I wasn't aware Vecchio could pull off this kind of issue.

[Saturius]

We're the evil being named? I did recognize Adversary, Annihilation and Shadowking. Who were the others, or were they not named?

Only the First Fallen got named besides the ones you mentioned. But both characters make a point to consistently say that the Shadow King is the singular entity posing as the other villains. The issue leaves it ambiguous if that's 100% true or not though.

[ExodusCloak]

Goblyn Force and Bete Noir are the others

Left to right were Bete Noir, Adversary, Annihilation and Shadow King, First Fallen and the Goblin Force.

[Kingdom X]

I said this in the Storm thread but this is arguably the single greatest X-Men issue of all time 100/10. I'm now shipping Storm/Magneto.

No seriously... I like Craig for a Clark/Lois dynamic but this is giving POWER couple.

Also I know some folks (myself included) have been a bit disappointed that Ewing never got the keys to really steer the ship of the X-line. But these lines will sit with me for a long time, "Just to be in the world... it can hurt so much... this world of hate and fear. But it is still our world. All of us." I feel as though Ewing made his definitive statement as an X-writer and I'm so glad we got to experience the highs of his work.

[davetvs]

No seriously... I like Craig for a Clark/Lois dynamic but this is giving POWER couple.

Also I now some folks (myself included) have been a bit disappointed that Ewing never got the keys to really steer the ship of the X-line. But these lines will sit with me for a long time, "Just to be in the world... it can hurt so much... this world of hate and fear. But it is still our world. All of us." I feel as though Ewing made his definitive statement as an X-writer and I'm so glad we got to experience the highs of his work.

At this point, Ewing for me is the standard against which all other X-Writers will be judged. The fact that between SWORD, X-Men Red, and Resurrection of Magneto, his contributions to the franchise are so substantive even though he never wrote the flagship is such a feat and proves Hickman's original plans were the right direction for the line. This has been incredible work.

[jwatson]

this was just so good. i mean there really isn't much else to add. Ewing just knows what he is doing. I'm glad he got to write x-men in some capacity because i been following him and watching him be undervalued for so long with his many contributions to the marvel line.

[Uncanny X-Man]

I said this in the Storm thread but this is arguably the single greatest X-Men issue of all time 100/10. I'm now shipping Storm/Magneto.

It's funny, between the subtext in Resurrection of Magneto and talks of how Xavier loved him in X-Men '97, I'm now shipping Charles and Magneto. I mean they're hardly just coded now, it's basically right there on the page and on the screen.

[davetvs]

It's funny, between the subtext in Resurrection of Magneto and talks of how Xavier loved him in X-Men '97, I'm now shipping Charles and Magneto. I mean they're hardly just coded now, it's basically right there on the page and on the screen.

Oh I'm shipping X-Men '97 Charles and Magneto as well. 616 Magneto with Storm.