In the last issue Jason Aaron made it clear that the direction he was going with in the series would be based upon the future X-Men. We already know that Quire is supposed to grow up and become the Phoenix and we’ve had hints that Evan will grow up to embrace being Apocalypse. With some MORE time travelers coming back in time we learn that those two are the key to what they want. The Phoenix Corporation has Quire and their main body guard has beaten down Wolverine and Storm to try and teach them a lesson.
Only as badly beaten as Wolverine is, Storm is just angry. Much like a certain giant green behemoth, you won’t like the weather witch when she is angry and she rains down the pain. There is a reason she is often referred to as a Goddess and she lets her control over nature be shown in this issue. Sadly the Askani from the future runs off and lets them be. Now is the time for them to track down Quire, only our young CEO is already talking to him. What happens here is that he seems to be trying to turn him from the violence that he believes is the only thing that Wolverine can teach him. They go on an interesting trip through Quire’s mind that lets us know he really does just want Logan’s approval but that isn’t the main thing we’re looking at here. We’re looking at Quire being manipulated by someone who is clearly a master at what he does.
We have no idea if the Phoenix Quire we’ve met is due to the outcome of following Wolverine’s teaching or having left his teacher behind. What we do know is that they eventually are able to put a stop to this but while that is going on, the Askani attacks the school. All he wants is to get to Evan and kill him before he can become Apocalypse. Wolverine’s ‘X-Force’ had done this previously with the last Apocalypse so I don’t believe we’ll see them follow such an easy route to save the future.
Oh and now that Wolverine and Storm have Quire free? The young CEO lets loose his warrior nurses to stop them. I’m sure we’re about to get some very ninja styled moves unless Quire has a new trick up his sleeve to stop them all in their tracks.
As much as I’m enjoying a potential return of Apocalypse through Evan, I have a few bones to pick with this issue. In the first run of ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ by Jason Aaron you really could get behind the characters, the leads and the background characters. In this issue almost everyone in the background feels flat and lifeless. It takes away from the diversity that Aaron was able to pack into almost every issue. On top of that? I still feel that our young new Phoenix Corporation CEO is far too much like Kade Kilgore. If I had a complaining about Aaron’s run it was The Hellfire Club being run by kids as the main villains. I’m really feeling a throw back to that here and I didn’t enjoy it on the first run.
I’m curious with all of these new time travelers having shown up if any of them are related to the other time travelers that came back during the ‘Battle of the Atom’ event. Perhaps this is a plan hatched by the young Xavier wannabe?
WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN #3
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Mahmud Asrar
