All-New X-Factor #2 – Review

By: Peter David (writer), Carmine Di Giandomenico (artist), Lee Loughridge (colorist)

The Story: Pietro finds himself dodging bullets, returning insults, and surrounded by people who want him dead, including the ones he’s there to save. So, really, a pretty average day for him.

The Review: Now that we’ve established our team and the questionable multi-national funding them, it’s time for this all-new X-Factor to take on their first mission. In classic Peter David style, the issue pokes all kinds of holes in our preconceived notions of the genre.

One of the most interesting elements of this mission is our antagonist, one Dr. Terrance Hoffman. Though we’re still reading comics awash in a sea of Silver Age nostalgia, it feels like a long time since we’ve had a fair share of old-fashioned ‘mad scientists’. Well Hoffman certainly fits the bill. He lacks some staying power, but he’s a charming opponent with some fascinating theories on mutation that just might come back into play. I can’t help but notice that all his talk of energy conversion contrasts cleanly with Gambit’s abilities.

Speaking of Gambit, he remains our lead character, though David does a good job of spreading the love between his three protagonists. David’s lack of experience in writing Remy is a little more apparent, now that he’s not stealing things left and right. His accent seems to pop in and out, and at times he seems a little too normal. He’s not quite the everyman that Madrox was and, funny as it is to hear he and Pietro argue about Star Wars, I’m not sure that it reads as a convincing Gambit. Polaris, on the other hand, suits David’s style wonderfully. She’s competent without being perfect and relatable without being unfocused.

It will be clear to anyone reading this issue why David’s Quicksilver has a reputation for being a scene-stealer. Pietro’s exactly the sort of character that’s fun to read about because you’d hate him so in real life. The script has a great handle on Pietro’s powers and way of thinking. Unfortunately this story has serious ties to some of Quicksilver’s more questionable recent history. It’s explained pretty well within the issue, but nice as it is that David found a way to make something out of those stories, my opinion has generally been that the less Marvel references its crazy, inbred, decade-long X-Men event conga the better.

The pacing of the issue also feels slightly off. The story begins and ends rather abruptly, with problems solved so quickly as to begin to devalue them. It feels like David doesn’t quite have the right balance of action, drama, and comedy yet, but though the formula isn’t perfect you will find all three in All-New X-Factor #2.

Carmine Di Giandomenico continues to bring a distinct and beautiful look to the series. Each panel has sleek, dramatic composition that suits the corporate bent of this title. Di Giandomenico knows how to make this look cool without becoming a parody and the resulting atmosphere is a great boon to the fledgling series.

Di Giandomenico does have problems with distance this issue. Often times, smaller figures and characters in the background lose a lot of detail and the script calls for a number of them. I hope that he will find a way to address this problem as the difference is really night and day. Larger panels and close-ups in this issue look fantastic, and the thought that Di Giandomenico brings to his panels is lovely, but it highlights the drops in quality as much as it obscures them.

Lee Loughridge’s colors remain a sight to see. Corporate superhero might bring to mind some gunmetal uniformity or the crisp white of a new apple product, but in a world full of dark, murky comics claiming to show us ‘realistic’ takes on gamma-powered heroes, All-New X-Factor stands out in a big way. The colors are bright and gorgeous, without ever feeling exaggerated. Loughridge still enjoys playing within a section of the color wheel, but the monochromatic pages from last issue seem to have passed.

The Conclusion: The strengths of this issue are oddly different from its predecessor and give the sense that David may not have the firm handle of the series that has come so naturally to him in past endeavors. Nevertheless, his penchant for humor and boundary-testing serve him well and Serval’s X-Factor completes its first mission with aplomb.

The art remains unique and beautiful, despite some issues with the details, and the story proves a solid melding of classic action, character-driven writing, and leveraged continuity. In short, the series works. This beta test shows that the new X-Factor has potential but, if it’s going to survive the marketplace, it still needs to show us why it’s here and what it does that the competition doesn’t.

Grade: B-

-Noah Sharma