X-Force #9
X-Force experiences nature’s wrath in X-Force #9, by writer Benjamin Percy, artist Joshua Cassara, colorist Dean White, and letterer Joe Caramagna. X-Force goes back to Terra Verde to investigate what’s happened to the country and find something terrible.
The mutants relax in the Green Lagoon, a giant bar on Krakoa. Beast comes to Wolverine, Domino, and Kid Omega and tells them he has a mission for them- they have to return to Terra Verde as the country has gone completely quiet. The three of them go to the gate and can’t get through. Wolverine stabs into the gate, revealing blood. Kid Omega blasts his way through, and they find the Terra Verde Presidential Palace choked with vegetation and dead bodies. In the distance, they see a temple that seems to be the epicenter of the whole thing and approach it. They lose contact with Beast as something comes out of the temple. On Krakoa, Beast recruits Black Tom to help out the away team.
The first few pages are kind of jarring in a weird way. Writers have been showing the mutants on Krakoa partying a lot, so that’s not the weird part. The weird part is the little character touches Benjamin Percy throws in, like Wolverine and Daken playing a game of spin the bottle that involves them popping their claws into their brains. As an aside, Daken playing nice with Wolverine is very strange and gives a little credence to the fan theory that something is messing with the minds of the mutants and changing them. Beyond that, there’s a scene where Jean talks about how being in X-Force has changed her and Black Tom going a bit mental about constantly being in contact with Krakoa. Domino and Sage talk about Domino’s resurrection and how she gave up her memories of what happened to her in South Korea.
Later in the issue, Wolverine and Domino talk about how she changed her memory. Wolverine is disappointed that she had her memory changed, but she comes back at him that she didn’t want to be like him. However, Wolverine’s point is that she wasn’t broken, to begin with. Trauma happens, and people have to learn to live with it. Krakoan resurrection is unnatural, to begin with, but what Domino did makes it even more unnatural. The whole Terra Verde situation is Beast’s fault, and he keeps the mission secret from Sage and Jean. X-Force’s members are already having trouble with what they’re being asked to do (well, except Wolverine), and this secret keeping within the team itself is going to bite them. Percy is doing a lot in this issue in the background of everything, and it’s a lot of fun.
Joshua Cassara’s art works very well in this chapter. The double-page splash of the Green Lagoon is a feast for the eyes, containing nearly all of the mutants of note on Krakoa. The scenes in Terra Verde have a nice horror vibe to them with the out of control vegetation that Cassara does a great job with. Dean White’s colors give the art texture that it makes it look that much better.
X-Force #9 does a lot of nice character work while also bringing some chickens home to roost from earlier issues. Percy does a lot of heavy lifting in this issue in the best possible way, moving the story along nicely, while also doing some great character work. Joshua Cassara and Dean White’s art looks great, adding to the whole thing. Life in the mutant CIA is tough for everyone, and this issue does a great job of illustrating that.
Grade: B
