This week we take a look at the Marvel universe’s largest party with X-MEN: THE HELLFIRE MURDER. Meanwhile in the rapid rundown, we check in with the latest Spider-Man miniseries, SPIDER-MAN: LONG WAY HOME #2.
X-MEN: THE HELLFIRE MURDER
Writers: Saladin Ahmed, Gail Simone, Erica Shultz, Jed MacKay, and Eve L. Ewing
Artists: Joëlle Jones, Luciano Vecchio, Aaron Kuder, Tony S. Daniel, Federica Mancin, Cory Smith
Inkers: Mark Morales, Oren Junior
Colorist: Fer Sifuentes-Sujo
Letterer: VC’s Ariana Maher
The annual X-Men Hellfire Gala has returned but this time with a murder. Actually, that’s not that unusual considering that it is almost always the norm for these events and it being a locked room murder isn’t that unusual either! Nonetheless, X-MEN: THE HELLFIRE MURDER is a solid entry in the series of Hellfire galas and felt more akin to the original format than last year’s Hellfire Vigil.
As you can tell from the credits listing this book is done via committee with each writer being responsible for their respective cast of characters. This jam issue largely well as you can’t really see or feel the seams between writers or artist (more on that later). The central plot concerns itself with Sebastian Shaw hosting his own gala in a pitch to “save” mutantkind. It goes as well as one expects and it leaves Wolverine and Jubilee playing detective as they try to figure out who murdered Sebastian Shaw. Along the way, we touch base on the various X-books and plot lines running throughout the company.
Saladin Ahmed takes the lion share of the issues as he handles the Wolverine centered pages and I rather liked his portrayal of Logan as a detective and the relationship between him and Jubliee. Ahmed does a solid job presenting Jubliee less like Wolverine’s sidekick and more of an equal. Honestly, my favorite bits of the issue were all of the various relationships explored by the writers. Be it the obvious Rogue and Gambit by Gail Simone, the intriguing murder-flirt between Cyclops and Psylocke by Jed MacKay, and the brief reignition of Emma and Namor’s flame by Eve L. Ewing. The beauty of the Gala is that it allows for the various X-books to cross over in a much more intimate setting and provides these much more character focused bits. The mystery itself by Ahmed is well constructed and lays groundwork for future plotlines, likely in Wolverine, as it deals with the various conspiracies at hand. The 3K plotline and build up to DNX is also a key plot point because we must keep the momentum going.
The art by Joëlle Jones, Luciano Vecchio, Aaron Kuder, Tony S. Daniel, Federica Mancin, Cory Smith, Mark Morales, and Oren Junior is well executed overall. The pages done by Jones are some of my favorites as it gives the comic a bit of a moody feel to help set the stage of the murder mystery. Overall, all of the various styles complement each other quite well and allow for the book to flow with a consistent visual narrative. The colors by Fer Sifuentes-Sujo really help solidify the consistency and give the book a welcome bit of continuity despite being a 50 page jam issue. The costume designs for the gala are always a big draw for these stories, and I can say this year’s designs by Vecchio are quite interesting. Narratively, they are explained to be crafted by Shaw’s nanobots based on what they wearer, but they all are visually distinct. The only one I think looks goofy is Joesph’s weird looking Onslaught inspired costume, but Joesph is a dollar store magneto, so this isn’t too surprising.
I found this year’s Hellfire Mystery to be a deeply enjoyable jump into the X-Men that doesn’t require the reader to be deeply familiar with all the comings and goings of the X-line. It helps set out some future plot points all while giving readers a nice light crossover to check out.
Final Verdict: Buy It
Rapid Rundown
- SPIDER-MAN: LONG WAY HOME #2
- Why is this book called Spider-Man: Long Way Home? Spider-man has been in a grand total of 6 pages the last couple issues. This comic is very much a Hulk and Punisher story set in the past. It’s well done, mind you. I like how the pre-Punisher Frank Castle is characterized throughout and writer Jonathan Hickman creates a weirdly dark and menacing Bruce Banner/Hulk. Adam Kubert continues doing his excellent work on this issue. He plays around with the vertical two-page spread towards the end of the issue that helps give the Hulk scenes a grander sense of scale. So far, I am enjoying the series, but I am still puzzled by Spider-Man’s involvement beyond the sales boost. Hard to imagine a world where the Hulk needed a Spider-man title credit to get a sales boost but here we are.
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