X-Corp #4
X-Corp makes some big moves to get revenge but bites off more than they can chew in X-Corp #4, by writer Tini Howard, artist Alberto Foche, colorist Sunny Gho, and letterer Clayton Cowles. This issue starts out pretty well then goes back to being a mediocre corporate espionage book before a big ending that kind of doesn't make much sense.
Mastermind and Selene are able to pull X-Corp's fat out of the fire, with Mastermind making everyone think the Ionospheric Bandwidth Generator worked long enough for Madrox and company to actually get it working. At the same time, Selene saves Monet and punishes Sara St. John. Monet outlines an aggressive plan to take over Noblesse at a board meeting, and after the vote, she reveals that she and Selene already did it. This makes Warren angry, and he has a meeting with her in the executive lounge- which doubles as a Danger Room- to have a fight to work things out. Kol, St. John, and the Fenris twins storm X-Corp headquarters and take out an important member of the group, possibly the most important.
X-Corp almost seemed like it was a better book than it's been so far for a few pages. Mastermind and Selene, having bought their own ticket to Technology TALKS, come in and save the day just as two people who were formerly villains would, using their powers to trick and torture, getting the job done. Then, everything went back to normal. So much of the X-Men books have been about doing something different, and one can't dispute that Howard is doing something different with this book. Still, the problem is that corporate intrigue the comic isn't super interesting. Sure, Selene and Monet using their powers and money to get control of Noblesse is definitely something they would do, but is it fun to read about? And how should readers feel that they did it unilaterally? What kind of successful corporation is run by people who would do that sort of thing?
The same question is raised by Warren and Monet's fight- what kind of successful corporation has its top two literally fighting it out? Warren says this was how they grew up, and humans wouldn't understand it, but it's also kind of asinine. At one point, Monet even brings up that she's going to betray him, and it's just so bad. These two are supposed to work together, and this is what happens the first time things go wrong? This kind of thing goes beyond just building drama- it takes a book that already has a shaky premise and makes it that much shakier. It's mildly interesting, but that's it. Other than that, it's just bad business, but that's par for the course for this book- the whole thing is bad business. Also, Kol thinking that him and the Fenris twins could attack a place that had Monet, Archangel, Selene, and Mastermind on it and somehow win is… well, it makes as much sense as businesses using data services run by a government that literally just unilaterally declared themselves the capital of the solar system. So, zero sense.
Foche's art is still just okay. Some pages are better than others, and Gho's colors do a great job of making everything look good, but the art just isn't special enough to make a difference. It's fine, and there's nothing structurally wrong with it; it's just kind of there.
X-Corp #4 has a glimmer at the beginning of being a good comic and then spends the rest of the issue torpedoing the book's premise. The ending makes no sense, and while it's a good cliffhanger, why should anyone care if the whole thing doesn't make sense? The art is okay but nothing special. X-Corp is a different kind of X-Men book. That doesn't mean it's any good.