Uncanny X-Men #353 - "Blackbirds"

Writer: Steve Seagle    Pencils: Chris Bachalo    Inks: Tim Townsend

   I'm still reeling from the effects of that blindingly awful artwork in 352. Here Fido, fetch! *tosses UXM 352 like a discus* Okay, after surviving the horrible busload of artists (was that fan art?) in last months Uncanny X-Men, I'm somewhat relieved to see that Chris Bachalo is doing the penciling on this ish. (At least I can tolerate him.) Okay, let me get down to business. The cover of this issue is pretty decent, it shows Rogue draining Wolvie's power and looking like she's possessed. Flipping through the first couple of pages I am impressed by what I see. Rogue, donning her old villainess uniform, is face-to-face with Wolverine and she drains his power. The art work is very crisp and it displays an entertaining fight sequence between the two. Rogue throws about some hint of Wolverine having a son which he never told her about. (I guess I can take that information and file that under dangler-in- the-making.) The fight abruptly ends with Rogue waking up from a dream. Damn! That's about as good as it gets for action in this ish. The rest is mainly character development and I'm not convinced that Seagle did a good job on that. And here's my evidence: 1. Psylocke jumping off a building and toying with Warren's emotions. 2. Rogue wanting to drain Joseph's memories. 3. Joseph instantly going crazy, threatening to kill someone. 4. Wolverine trying to kill Iceman because he threw a snowball at him. All of these are very questionable events. It seems like these X-Men have all just suddenly gone crazy. They're acting on whims and not considering the consequences. The rest of the ish shows the X-Men swimming, having fun and competing. Iceman hits Wolverine with a snowball and Wolverine comes close to killing him until Marrow makes a snide remark. (Damn, youÕd think Iceman stuck a bone dagger through his neck or something.) Wolverine takes a break from the group and rests. Then, Sauron drains his power away but Rogue is found at the crime scene. She claims she didn't do it and runs away when she thinks that Storm didn't believe her. (I find it kind of strange that Storm didn't trust Rogue, as long as she's known her, she's treating Rogue as if she were a newbie to the team.) Sauron comes flying in with the old "It's a plane! It's a bird! It's SAURON!" line. Ending the issue, Jean and Cyclops arrive at their Alaskan home and find it's driveway covered in tons of snow. Jean telekinetically removes it. THE END.

  Wolverine: He is swarming with different emotions. He is contemplating leaving the team because he can't keep his temper in check and doesn't feel that even his old friends can give him straight answers. He even loses his temper at something as silly as a snowball hitting him. I think he just needs some medication, psychiatric help and a little R & R to get back to his senses. Then again, every time he leaves and he eventually comes back finding the situation has changed with the X-Men. I think he should face up to his responsibilities as an X-Man and stop running away all the time just to find himself. He seems to be putting up barriers between him and the rest of the X-Men that just keep getting thicker and thicker.

  Storm: She was acting like the mother of the team. Consoling Rogue after she had her bad dream. Being a mediator between minor spats, et cetera, et cetera.

  Rogue: "Ah think ah lost mah marbles." She was very, very, very bimbotic, confused and defensive. She takes Storm's advice literally when she tells her to "touch the world." I don't know why she asked Joseph if she could touch him and see into his memories. She knows good and well that that is a violation of his privacy. Good grief!

  Psylocke: One word, BITCH! Better yet, two words, MANIPULATIVE BITCH! Toying with Warren like that. Jumping off that building just to scare him and make him catch her. The next time she pulls a stunt like that he should let her break her neck. Shame on her!

  Angel: He seemed to be in a dilemma. He was pondering which life he should live, a life as an X-Men or a life as Warren Worthington III. He seemed pretty aloof and distant, until Psylocke leaped off that building (that surely got his attention).

  Joseph: He seems to be letting the things of the world get to him. As he experiences more and more of how hateful this world is, he becomes more and more hateful like the world. I think that is where this instant insanity may be leading him.

  Iceman: Regular competitive, playful self.

  Cannonball: Just wanted to have fun and swim.

  Maggot: Still trying to hit on the women. Now, he's got his eyes on Storm. Checking her out in her bathing suit extra hard.

  Marrow: Still sitting back from afar with those snide little remarks. Boy is she getting on my nerves. She's currently staying in the basement and doesn't seem to want to come out.

  Bishop: Still sleeping in space.

  Deathbird: Confessing to a sleeping Bish how much she loves him and all that mushy crap. She seems to be very excited about ruling her realm with Bishop at her side. I wonder if she's gonna have that same bimbotic disease that seems to be plaguing all those women in X-Titles that fall in love.

  Jubilee: Same as Iceman. She was just being a kid at heart.

  Jean: Seemed a bit anxious to use her telekinetic powers to remove that snow. She's just a showoff!

  Cyclops: Typical boring self.

  The Good: I loved the fight between Rogue and Wolverine at the beginning. It had a lot of raw action and the artwork was excellent. Unfortunately it was a dream, but at least it was a damn good one.

  The Bad: Chris Bachalo was a bit inconsistent at times. I didn't like the way Storm looked, her hair with those two strands streaming down her face is a no-no. He should draw the hair the same way Pacheco did it. (What's with the instant hair style change?) Also, the way some of the characters were portrayed. Namely Psylocke, Rogue and Wolverine.

  The Ugly: Rogue's personality in this issue was just making me want to smack her. I just hate people that act stupid. You just wanna throttle them. Also, the return of that horrible villain Sauron. (A green dinosaur that hypnotizes people and drains their power, oh this is gonna be real interesting. *gags*)

Overall: 7 (out of 10)

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