When writing my review for Fall Of The House Of X #1 I said because of its name and position in the story of Krakoa it had huge boots to fill and invited a lot of comparisons to a much better book, the original House Of X. Rise Of The Powers Of X #1 by Kieron Gillen and R. B. Silva has similarly big boots to fill but in this case fits those boots much better than its sister series did. The original Powers Of X by Johnathan Hickman and the aforementioned R. B. Silva brought big ideas and fundamentally changed the fabric of the Marvel universe as we understand it. While Rise Of The Powers Of X doesn’t exactly go that far it still brings some brain melting twists that inverts your expectations on their head.
The story as it’s presented is this: ten years after the events of Fall Of The House Of X, Mutantkind has been reduced to a handful on a last ditch mission to stop the machines from ascending to Dominionhood. And that’s about all I can say without spoiling the issue. All that I will say is that this series is not what you think it’s going to be from the cover and premise. There are many appropriately epic moments, everything feels as climactic as you would expect and hope for it to be. This series is definitely a stealth continuation of Gillen’s Immortal X-Men, which has been a stellar book. Immortal X-Men brought big ideas that are absolutely carried over into this series and the two’s connections will become more evident to the reader as they get further into the issue.
In terms of art this series has a distinct advantage over Fall Of The House Of X. Fall Of The House Of X’s covers are by the original artist for House Of X, Pepe Larraz, he doesn’t do the interiors which instead are done by Lucas Werneck, who while a very talented artist, feels like an ill fit for a event book such as it. Rise Of The Powers Of X has the same artist as its predecessor, R. B. Silva. Silva’s style has definitely changed since the original Powers Of X, it’s not the most major change but something definitely feels different, the shading uses a lot more dots and the characters look a lot more 3D? It’s hard to put my finger on what’s exactly different but there is a noticeable change. That being said it still feels appropriate for this book, Silva does a great job of visualizing this future in a unique way that is reminiscent of Powers Of X’s dark futures. Special mention should also be given to colorist David Curiel who brings Silva’s pencils alive in vivid colors.
Rise Of The Powers Of X #1 does a great job of setting up this bold new title, it brings fresh ideas and feels appropriately epic for this climactic chapter of the Krakoan age, I can’t wait to read more.
Story: Kieron Gillen Art: R. B. Silva
Color: David Curiel Letterer: Clayton Cowles Design: Tom Muller and Jay Bowen
Story: 9.5 Art: 9.5 Overall: 10.0 Recommendation: Buy
Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle
Source: Graphic Policy
