X-Men: Schism #1

Title: X-Men: Schism #1
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer(s): Jason Aaron
Artist(s): Carlos Pacheco
Inker(s): Cam Smith,
Colorist(s): Frank D’Armata
Letterer(s): Jared K. Fletcher
Cover Artist: Carlos Pacheco

Story/Concept: (7/10) The whole concept around this mini-series is a split between the X-Men unlike anything we have ever seen that will change the X-Men forever. Well that is all fine a good but isn’t this like 20^th X-Men life changing event in the past 5 years? Even with that being said for some reason I believe it this time and it has brought me back to an franchise that I have read in quite some time damn you Jason Aaron.

Writing: (7/10) The writing on this issue is solid by Jason Aaron I think for someone like myself that hadn’t read a lot of X-Men over the past few years. The wordiness I heard some complain about didn’t bother me at all because it served, as much needed setup I needed to sell me on this series and for that alone I think he was successful. It is very interesting the way Aaron painted the two main characters of this series, Wolverine the grizzled old war veteran that is starting to get tired of his old wild ways and Cyclops war hardened, angry and getting tired of the some what passive approach to the human mutant relations.

I see this being something similar to Professor X and Magneto’s friendship coming to an end, but not as drastic because I don’t think one will ever turn to the extreme that Magneto did by any means. I always likened the Xavier/Magneto rift to the Martin Luther King/Malcolm X disputes many years ago and what is so intriguing to me is Aaron choice to use Scott Summers as the Malcolm X and Logan playing more the Martin Luther King of this era of the mutant rights struggle. It is brilliant and I think the way he presents it through out this issue lets you fully understand how both players come to there breaking points that eventually cause the Schism not just between them but all of mutant kind.

Art: (7/10) Carlos Pacheco has been one of my favorite artists for quite some time, but for some reason it doesn’t quite look like his style but I know that it is his artwork. I know that I have mentioned this before but I think I pinpointed the source of the change in Pacheco’s artwork and that is the inking of his pencils. For many years Jesus Merino inked all of Carlos Pacheco artwork and it worked in concert with it not change it like I have seen with current inkers that he has worked with. Still good artwork but not the great work that we know Carlos for.

Cover: (6/10) Nothing special here that I can speak of just a standard comic cover.

Overall: (7/10) Though a somewhat slow start for an 5 issue mini-series, I definitely think this book is worth picking up and seeing where it comes out at the end I think this is one to watch.

Bottom Line: Good writing, artwork, and story telling worth picking up.

Comic Book Savant