New Mutants #9
The team goes looking for a new mutant in enemy territory in The New Mutants #9, by writer Ed Brisson, artist Flaviano, colorist Carlos Lopez, and letterer Travis Lanham. With her powers going haywire, can the team figure out how to defuse a delicate situation?
In the city of Peshyy Misto, Carnelia, a former Soviet republic, a young mutant’s power awaken with horrific results. On Krakoa, the spaceborne team of New Mutants gets caught up on events while they were gone before heading out on a mission. At the Summers house on the moon, Cyclops questions Magik about the New Mutants, especially the happenings with the Earth team in Nebraska, and she brushes off his concerns. In Carnelia, the situation with the young mutant gets worse. Boom Boom, Magma, Karma, Mirage, and Chamber head off to Carnelia. Doug Ramsay uses Mondo to interface with Krakoa to test a theory. The team arrives at Carnelia, where they encounter a mysterious anomaly caused by the mutant. Karma tries to take control of her and shut down her power, but something terrible happens to her. Chamber tries to help, but the two of them are sucked into the anomaly, and Magma follows. Mirage calls Doug on Krakoa, and Ramsay, Armor, and Mondo go to a very unlikely source for help.
Brisson does a nice balancing act in this issue. The opening scenes have a nice eerie feel, as the readers get a glimpse of the new mutant and her powers. There’s something very unsettling about the thing- snowy night, the way the “camera” of the panels pull in, and finally the reveal. It gives the whole scene a nice horror vibe. Then, readers are thrown to Krakoa and get to see the Boom Boom complaining to the returning space team about being left behind. This vibe has changed completely, but it’s not jarring. The transition from snowy night to sunny tropical day keys the reader in on the change. It’s a very subtle effect, and it works wonderfully. From there, it’s to the moon, with Magik and Cyclops. Magik is very cold, which fits into the surrounding- the moon. Again, the whole thing is super subtle, but it’s there. Brisson is a master of those little transitions in tone, and he keeps it up throughout the book.
The scenes that deal with the young mutant are some of the best of the issue. Brisson keeps it very vague what her powers are and how they work, and it plays into the horror movie vibe he’s cultivated. The team’s telepaths, Karma and Chamber, get taken out of the mix early, leaving the rest of them to struggle with what to do next. Doug Ramsay goes to an old enemy of the team for help, and it sets up the next issue with the question- what is going on in the young mutant’s anomaly, and why do they need an enemy’s help?
The art by Flaviavo does a much better job of getting across the horror vibe that Brisson goes for in part of the issue. His cartoony artworks for a lot of the book, but it doesn’t seem like it should work for the darker parts of the issue. However, he captures the eerieness of the Carnelia scenes wonderfully. His illustration of the young mutant’s power is great, giving it a mysterious frightening edge.
New Mutants #9 shifts tone a lot, but it never feels jarring to the reader. Brisson is great at this. He sets up a lot of stuff in this issue, from interpersonal problems within the team to Magik dismissing Cyclops, to Doug experimenting with Krakoa. There’s so much going on in this one, but it doesn’t feel overstuffed. Flaviano’s art is very good, and it even works in places where it doesn’t seem like it should. While not as fun as the Hickman written issue of this book, this issue is pretty great.
Grade: B+
