Chain Reactions Credits: John Francis Moore (plot), Joe Casey (script), Joe Bennett (penciler), Jon Holdredge, Wellington Diaz, Scott Hanna, & Walden Wong (inks), Comicraft’s Emerson Miranda (letters), Monica Megerdoomian (colors)
Summary: Amiko rescues Wolverine from drowning in the dam, revealing that she’s been working against Shinobi Shaw all along. Baron Zemo arrives with the captive Synch and Leech, who join the fight with the remaining X-Men. Scarlet Witch is freed, but Magneto stays behind to fight Shinobi. As the dam collapses, Magneto’s legs are crushed by falling debris. He’s rescued by Wolverine, and is later able to comfort the wounded Scarlet Witch on her deathbed. As the team regroups in India, Wolverine submits Amiko for membership.
Continuity Notes: The Sentinels shown flying overhead on the opening splash page are Zero Tolerance models. Amiko reveals that Silver Samurai, who later became Emperor of Japan, arranged for her to fake her death to protect her from Wolverine’s enemies. Magneto’s crippling is used to justify him using a wheelchair in the original “Days of Future Past” arc.
Review: Man, this one went downhill fast. Apparently, Shinobi Shaw’s plan really has been to cause random chaos, which would apparently pave the way for his newly formed Council of the Chosen (the Inner Circle’s original name). So, he’s using Scarlet Witch’s powers to destroy the environment because he wants to rule over a devastated planet? These are motivations on the level of a Captain Planet villain. If the story played up the idea that he’s targeting the Sentinels, and perhaps the X-Men shouldn’t stop him, you have fertile ground for a story. Instead, we’re left with a generically crazy villain. And why would Amiko fight Wolverine, and poison him, if she was working against Shaw the entire time?
This really is a rush job, as if the four inkers weren’t an obvious clue. Charlotte Jones, who had a fairly lengthy introduction last issue, has just disappeared in-between issues. Previously, Baron Zemo offered Synch and Leech some type of deal if they revealed Wolverine’s location, but that entire plot point is just ignored this issue. I guess the idea is that Zemo has betrayed both the Sentinels and the X-Men to follow Shaw, but the execution is sloppy. It’s a shame the finale had to live down to the low expectations of blatant cash-grab comics. (“Let’s do a Days of Future Past mini...that’s also a Wolverine mini!”) I’d like to think this wasn’t the ending Moore had in mind when beginning the story, or perhaps something was lost between the scripting and penciling, because this is quite a letdown.
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