X-Force #18
The answer of who is stalking X-Force is revealed in X-Force #18 by writer Benjamin Percy, artist Garry Brown, colorist GURU-eFX and letterer Joe Caramagna. Percy and company layout an interesting story, answering the question of what’s been coming after the team, even if the art isn’t up to snuff.
Black Tom, Sage, and Marvel Girl are all attacked by some kind of terrible psychic entity, trying to get inside of them. Kid Omega and Phoebe Cuckoo return to the Pointe to find Beast stroked out and Sage watching over him. The two telepaths go into his mind and find out what happened to him- the same psychic creature that’s been stalking the team tried to get him to reveal Krakoa’s secrets. Sage kills him to make sure he can’t compromise things more. With Phoebe’s help, Kid Omega goes into the Astral Plane to confront the attacker.
The reveal of who and what exactly is stalking the team is revealed, and it’s a doozy. All of the clues readers have been given up to this point are correct, but it’s the how of the whole thing that is interesting, and it plays into something that Percy has been building up since the book began- the threat of XENO. XENO has already used Domino after killing her, and now they’ve done so to another, only this time it’s far more dangerous because of the nature of the mutant’s powers.
One of X-Force’s greatest strengths has been Percy’s playing the long game with the book. In a day and age when comics are written for the trades, each story a five to six issue nugget with a bit of a hook for the next story, the kind of long-form story Percy is telling, using short story arcs that are a near-perfect mix of action, plot, and character development, is a breath of air. If anything, his style on X-Force feels a lot like Claremont’s own style on Uncanny X-Men back in the day- short story arcs that add up to something in the long run while shining a light on the characters and who they are. Much like Wolverine, where his writing style is reminiscent of Larry Hama’s work on that book in the ‘90s, Percy is taking cues from the best of the best, using storytelling styles that go against the nature of the modern comic business and its paying dividends.
Brown’s art is good, but there are places where it works and places where it doesn’t. What really saves it is GURU-eFX’s colors. He gives the pencils the same lush colors he gives to Cassara and the other artists in the book. It helps make up for the pencils’ weaknesses in place and even makes them look better in places.
X-Force #18 is yet another example of why this book is one of the best X-Men books on the market. Percy is using a Claremont-like storytelling style in this book, and it’s paying off, using elements from earlier stories to build new ones and using each story to talk about who the characters are. Brown’s art isn’t great, but it works well enough with GURU-eFX’s colors, making them look even better. X-Force #18 is another brick in the wall Percy and company are building with this book, and it’s great.
