We have heard them mentioned and hinted at all along now; the Evil Mutants.  Just like they are some kind of mysterious and yet unseen threat as a group, but in this issue, right from the cover, we are promised them, with the words “At Last!! The X-Men come face-to-face with “The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants””.  THen to top it off, right at the center of the 5 evil mutants on the cover is one we have seen before, Magneto from X-Men #1.

But is this threat, bout to be everything that has been hinted at? or will this issue  fall short of all our hopes for the Evil Mutants, read on to see what I think.

Story

as far as stories and evil plots go, I feel this one is well written and executed, not so much for anything it does for the X-men but for how it introduces and lets us get to know there new advisories.

This is among the first comics I have reviewed, where we see that not all the bad guys lack morals completely.  While I am sure many  know Magneto will develop into being much more in the years to come, in this story, we see it the first signs of that, as well as general discontent with Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch in serving him.

This to me, seeks volumes for the depth of the comic, and is a small first step for the depth’s that will come in the months and years to follow.

Artwork

Sadly, as much as I love Jacks work, I do not feel his work on this issue, lived up to all that I would have hoped,  the characters all came out quite well, but he took a lot more short cuts on the background and detail then he normally does, leaving some pages lacking any significant level of background detail. All that said, it is still sufficient to get the point of the story accosted, even if I did expect better.

Originality & Continuity

Where I do feel that this offers lots of great character’s and even an original idea. I do not feel it served continuity as well as it could have. Almost, but not quite ignoring the history between Magneto and the X-men, and the events that have transpired from then until now. Questions like was the brotherhood created after that epic battle, or before? remain, unaddressed even at the end of this tale.

Characters & Development

As you will see below, this issue offers A lot for character and development, and in quite unexpected ways that I feel was well ahead of its time.

The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants

It is in these pages that we are introduced to the original brotherhood of evil mutants; its membership being Toad, Mastermind, Scarlet Witch, and Quick Silver and lead by Magneto.

This story, gives us a chance to meet, and even get to know this team, apart from their battle against the X-men, with a dinner scene. Giving each of them their own personality and uniqueness that lackeys rarely get.

Quicksilver and Scarlet witch

These two, seem to be given the most, making me wonder if a bit of their future was planed out, or if it is the definition, and motives behind these two that lead to their later heroics. In ether case, their service to Magneto is based on him saving Scarlet Witch’s life, and Quicksilver is their for as long as she is.

Then in this story, Quicksilver shows a sign of good at the end, showing that no matter what, there are things he just can’t let Magneto get away with.

Magneto and Professor X

The signs of their prior friendship is still far from spelled out, but in this issue, the two leaders have a meeting of the minds before any of the action takes place.  In this meeting, we get the first hints that Magneto does not want to harm the X-men, and that him and the professor stand by two different principals for mutant kind.   We are still a long way from Magneto being the Anti-Hero or Anti-Villain that he will become, but this is a strong first step.