Sabretooth And The Exiles #4
The Exiles get closer to the General Contractor in Sabretooth and the Exiles #4, by writer Victor LaValle, artist Leonard Kirk, colorist Rain Beredo, and letterer Cory Petit. This is a brilliant penultimate issue, with a really cool last-page reveal.
The Exiles’ ship makes its way to Station Four. They discuss the dead Sabretooth, something that gives ‘Tooth an idea of who and what he’s dealing with. With the Wanderer full of kids, Nanny and Orphan-Maker make friends as the rest of the team plans for Station Four. The Creation and Dr. Barrington arrive to find Station Four sunk to the ocean and are pulled under before they can start their plan. Sabretooth tells the kids the truth about Krakoa, or at least his truth, and the team is surprised they’re listening to him. The ship is attacked by the water hand that grabbed the Creation and Barrington, but Sabretooth is teleported away from the ship, leaving the Exiles to deal with the horrors of Station Four. Sabretooth makes his way to the master manipulator behind it all, a familiar face from his past.
As far as penultimate issues go, this one knocks it out of the park in every way. For example, setting up the next issue’s plots. So, this issue starts with Station Four making a distress call and telling everyone that the children broke out of the Infernal Nursery. That’s ominous, and it’s picked up on later with the water hands and Third-Eye saying that trying to send an astral form in is like trying to get into a tornado. That’s the kind of set-up that intrigues readers like nothing else. Sabretooth holding an audience of children rapt with him talking about Krakoa is a great character moment. Sure, Victor Creed is a manipulative monster, but his grudge against Krakoa is justified. He may be trying to make the children into an army against Xavier, but he’s also speaking the truth.
Revealing the identity of the General Contractor makes the letters to Orchis in previous issues make sense. Each of these info pages has talked about the racist practices of the United States over the years and the GC using them as a blueprint for what he’s been trying to do. This character has always been terribly racist and using him makes perfect sense. Plus, it leads to a wonderful last page.
Kirk and Beredo are an amazing team, and this chapter keeps proving why. The dark, heavy lines don’t give the detail a chance to flag, and when it does, it’s supposed to. Beredo’s colors are excellent. There’s something about the way the comic is colored that gives readers an impression of blood. Kirk is a master of body language. His Sabretooth is a massive monster, but he’s been weakening throughout this book’s run. The art in this issue sells that perfectly. It’s little touches like this that make this book’s art so fantastic.
Sabretooth and the Exiles #4 is yet another blockbuster of a comic. LaValle, Kirk, Beredo, and Petit have been putting out the best book in the X-Men line for a while now, and this issue keeps that up. Everything about it is great.