Much as ‘Age of Apocalypse’ #14′ was the last issue of AOA and an X-Termination tie-in, so is this the last issue of X-Treme X-Men. Unlike ‘Age of Apocalypse’ this issue feels much more like a final issue even with the X-Termination event still ongoing and beautiful art to boot. While AOA was my preferred reading of the two series, I’m glad they were able to pull this one off as successfully as they did and it really felt like a cohesive melding of the books.
Greg Pak is able to take his portion of the crossover event and really make the characters and dialogue shine through the page. Usually I would feel that what is happening is far too rushed with so much going on so quickly, but even with a lot going on it all makes sense and doesn’t feel amiss from the feeling of both this series as well as the crossover.
With the Astonishing X-Men, X-Treme X-Men and Age of Apocalypse’s X-Men all going at trying to stop giant Celestial type creatures from destroying each of their universes you know somethings not going to go well.
On Earth 616 one of these monsters was able to destroy the Celestial that has long been asleep and it’s power has grown tenfold. Nothing seems to be able to stop it now and the only thing keeping it from tearing apart the Earth we know is Northstar flying around it at such speeds that nothing is getting through to it.
This isn’t a long term solution though and is only buying them time.
Back on the Age of Apocalypse Earth we see that Dark Beast had stolen the Apocalypse Seed in hopes to use it’s power for himself to stop these creatures. He quickly finds though that he is unable to control it. The creature is able to come in contact with it and it seems to blow it away. The power in the seed has the ability to fight off these creatures.
The two teams realize that they can’t fight a two front war and they need lure the first creature who traveled to Earth 616 back through the portal. He isn’t taking the bait so Kid Nightcrawler from X-Treme X-Men uses his powers and sacrifices his life to bring the creature back to the Age of Apocalypse.
As this is happening Dazzler uses her power and knocks the Apocalypse Seed away from Dark Beast and into Jean Grey’s hands right as the monster who it had knocked away appears behind her.
There isn’t much room left for this story but as the woman who was once Phoenix from Age of Apocalypse will soon have the power to once again nearly shape reality. It’s finally time to see what she can do with this power and bring a close to two of the better books Marvel has done recently.
Who will live? (All of Astonishing X-Men.) Who will die? (I’m not sure but at least a couple more from either the Age of Apocalypse and X-Treme X-Men.) Who will return to Earth 616 that didn’t come from there originally? We’ll all find out soon and I can’t wait to see how these events, spawned from the pages of X-Force, play out.
Writer: Greg Pak
