The X-Men and Sublime go after his sister Arkea, who has the power to possess machinery the way that Sublime possesses organic beings.  Meanwhile, Kitty Pryde and her students are trapped with a bomb in the Danger Room, where they are attacked by DR generated clones of Omega Sentinel, the comatose host body that Arkea has taken over.  The X-Men are startled to discover that Arkea can manipulate humans with cybernetic implants (like Jubilee’s newly adopted baby).

The art by Olivier Coipel is simply stunning as usual.  The storytelling and drama are fantastic, but his true strength is his ability to draw the prettiest damn people in comics!  It’s like the Calvin Klein ad of comic books.  Seriously, Storm is throwing shade in every panel she’s in.  She could cut glass with her cheek bones!  And the facial expressions are priceless, especially those by Jubilee’s baby Shogo.  (Speaking of throwing shade…)

The plot wound up being not the most complex.  The climax felt a tiny bit rushed and the scenes at the school with Kitty and her students wasn’t as  gripping as I assume the writer, Brian Wood, intended.  But the heroes’ agony over battling a foe who has possessed their friend, Karima Shapandar, is evident as the X-Men go to confront their enemy.  And the dialogue is sharp and fun, even the non-dialogue by trainee Primal.

So while I didn’t consider this issue 100% gripping, it’s still one of the most satisfying reads on stands now.  The characters have a long history and that oozes out of every panel and every line of dialogue.  The art is hard to beat.  If anyone thinks “girls” can’t headline a comic book, they seriously need to pick this book up.

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X-MEN #3
Written by Brian Wood
Art and Cover by Olivier Coipel