Chapters 15-19
Written by Ann Nocenti
Summary:
Longshot escapes his cell and spies on Mojo. Phoenix telepathically
convinces Mojo that he’s having a hallucinatory conversation with
Longshot. Mojo declares that he will steal Longshot's martyrdom from
him. Later, Phoenix is thrown into a neutralizing cell after she
resists Mojo. Ricochet Rita tells Wolverine that Bone’s son was
responsible for him going to prison. Rogue meets with Longshot and
grants him his request of a last kiss. She absorbs his memories and
learns of the planned revolt. Longshot slips Rogue a chip, a universal
key for the mutant ward. She meets with Gambit and gives him the
information. Spiral later shows Gambit a computer-generated film of
Rogue and Longshot's “affair.” Furious, Gambit reveals Longshot’s plan
to Spiral. Meanwhile, Storm and Beast realize that Phoenix and Gambit
are also inside UltraMax.
Continuity Notes:
Beast has borrowed a Quinjet from the Avengers and modified it for
space travel. Why the Blackbird couldn’t be modified, as we’ve seen in
previous issues of the comics, I don’t know. Beast suggests a bluff to
Storm -- their modified Quinjet will knock UltraMax out of orbit unless
their friends are released.
Review:
Everyone’s still getting into place for the finale, with a few decent
twists thrown in. DJ Bone might not have such a pure motive for seeing
his son again, as Rita claims he actually wants revenge on Miles for
ratting him out for those “funny cigarettes.” Gambit is cast as a
potential traitor once again, which uses the past continuity already
discussed in the novel very well. Mojo also has an interesting change
in motivation, as he now realizes that Longshot is more valuable to him
alive than dead, and isn’t about to let him die and spark a true
revolution. Mojo is often an insufferable character, but reading
Nocenti’s interpretation gives a better idea of what she had in mind for
the villain. His exchanges with Phoenix during this section are a lot
of fun, as Mojo postulates that they’re both mind manipulators, he’s
just working on a larger scale. By controlling the culture, he’ll
rewrite history and remake the world in his image. A fairly standard
supervillain motivation, but with an insane means of execution.
Nocenti
also takes care to give each character his or her own moment. Even if
the plot doesn’t leave any obvious part for Storm to play, Nocenti
connects Storm’s kinship with nature to Spiral’s aberrant teleportation
doorway throughout the novel. Storm can sense that something’s just
wrong with the environment, giving Nocenti an excuse to write several
lyrical pieces describing how exactly Storm sees the world. She also
revives Storm’s claustrophobia in a creative sequence set during her
ride to UltraMax with Beast. (Beast, meanwhile, discusses new theories
about black holes during the trip.)
Unfortunately,
Nocenti isn’t done with the lectures just yet. Now it’s Ricochet
Rita’s turn to give a multi-page screed against the American penal
system. Nocenti is still rather vague about what exactly should be done
to make prison “better,” without fundamentally changing what a prison
has to be. According to Rita, it’s inhumane to even ask someone to have
a cellmate, as it’s a terrible violation of privacy. Um, sure… Rita
is also now an avowed Marxist revolutionary, which elicits the only real
counter-argument from Wolverine in the novel, even as Nocenti makes it
clear that Rita and Wolverine are innately attracted to one another.
All things considered, I would rather not read references to Mumia
Abu-Jamal in my X-Men stories, thanks.
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