A.X.E. Judgment Day Omega
The Eternals make their lives in the new world in A.X.E.: Judgment Day Omega, by writer Kieron Gillen, artist Guiu Vilanova, colorist Andres Mossa, and letterer Travis Lanham. Much like the kick-off for this event, Gillen takes it back to the Eternals for this issue as they deal with the changes to their world.
The issue follows the various Eternals as they deal with the consequences of their actions. Zuras is made Prime Eternal again, Ajak Celestialia creates her new religion, Ikaris deals with his grief with Tommy’s mother, the Hex Syne the Memotaur visits a human, Phastos has a message for Krakoa, and so much more. It ends with the Eternals moving among the mortals of the world, doing what they always should have done: protecting humanity.
It’s been about seven months since Gillen wrote a chapter of Eternals, and this is a reminder of why it was the best Marvel book when it was being published. The Machine’s narration is pitch-perfect as always, capturing what’s going on with each Eternal. The two best parts involve Ikaris and Syne.
In Eternals, Ikaris was the prime mover of the rebellion, as it were, when they found out that humans lost their lives to bring Eternals back. Seeing him visit Claire, Tommy’s mom from the beginning of the series, and them mourning together is perfect. It’s easy to see the Eternals as all-powerful and more than human. Ikaris, though, has always been the Eternal most about protecting humanity. For him, human lives are sacred, so these moments are completely in character. The part with Syne, asking a woman named Claire about her poetry and her zine, is wonderful because throughout Judgment Day, the Hex were inhuman machines of destruction. Seeing Syne actually show a human side is amazing. If there’s any problem with this book, it’s that there is no Eternals comic to pick up what Gillen lays down in this issue.
Vilanova worked with Gillen on Eternals a few times, so he’s great at working with the writer. His style works beautifully. The character acting is key to the pencils in this comic. There are no big action scenes, so Vilanova has to go another way with the art. He’s painstaking with his detail and linework, but the character acting is what truly sells it. Mossa’s colors do a lot of work throughout. The colors pop when they need to and are subdued when they should be. It helps express the emotion that this issue pumps out.
A.X.E.: Judgment Day Omega is an excellent coda to the best Marvel event since Secret Wars. Gillen does brilliant work with the Eternals, and it would be great if he was doing another series. Vilanova and Mossa are perfect for the art, and Lanham’s letters really help sell the dialogue and the emotion. This book is fantastic, and that’s all there is to it.