Title Page
Synopsis: In the Bronx, an old Steve Rogers checks his mail, looks at some local mutant children, then heads out on his way. In Hartford, Connecticut, Scott Summers greets his awakening love, Emma Frost. She says she has to meet with ‘the little Richards boy’ whose ‘astronaut parents’ died. In Los Angeles, Alison Blaire welcomes Simon Williams onto her talk show. Alison asks what is going on between him and Carol Danvers, who he says is just a really good friend. Danvers in elsewhere, stopping two escaping criminals – one being Remy LeBeau, who is taken out on the side of a Sentinel head statue. In Cincinnati, Ohio, Kitty Pryde is teaching a class of mutant children. In Hell’s Kitchen, Detective Sam Wilson asks Luke Cage for information on the savage beating that put the Kingpin into a coma.
In the office of psychologist Steven Strange, a man named Robert tells about a wall of black appearing above him and vanishing suddenly. Strange doesn’t seem the least interested in this development. In Russia, an armored Piotr Rasputin pulls a massive plow behind him. In a Chicago lab, Henry Pym tries to explain to Henry McCoy his reasoning for trying to isolate the mutant gene, but he is repeatedly shot down, being told that their boss, Tony Stark, will never allow it. McCoy tells him that he sees that Pym is trying to do this to prevent human extinction, but still cannot support the idea.
In Paris, Ororo Munroe is indifferent about her dress designed by Janet Van Dyne. Elsewhere, James Howlett is awakened by a nightmare to find a redhead in his bed. He pops his claws, causing the redhead to shape shift back into Raven Darkholme. Howlett runs out of the room to find himself amongst a flying armada, all carrying the symbol of the House of Magnus.
Review: There’s nothing really to say about this issue. It’s nothing but setting the stage for the House of M world…basically a mutant-dominated world. Think of Magneto’s dream succeeding without mass destruction of the human race. For those not familiar with the real names of Marvel characters, the characters in this issue, in the order I wrote them in the synopsis, are Captain America, Cyclops, Emma Frost, Dazzler, Wonder Man, Ms. Marvel (Warbird), Gambit, Shadowcat, the Falcon, Luke Cage, Dr. Strange, Sentry, Colossus, Giant-Man (or Yellowjacket), Beast, Iron Man, Storm, Wasp, Wolverine and Mystique. It’s a lot to jam in a single issue, but at least it doesn’t overlap with the other House of M spin-offs (by showing Spider-Man, Hulk or the Fantastic Four).
It really looks to be a story that as long as you pick up this main book, you’re getting what you absolutely need to be getting…and the others are just to keep tabs on your favorite characters. I noticed some people unhappy with the treatment of Gambit this issue, but as one would remember from Uncanny X-Men #350, Magneto does not like Gambit, and would certainly not give him a prestigious role in his new world. Wolverine seems to sense something’s amiss, but we’re not given enough to know what he knows or doesn’t know. Just enough to keep the plot strand interesting.
The art from Oliver Coipel once again gives the book a fantastic look. All the characters are noticeable (except for the Robert in Strange’s office, who I am obviously unsure of) and the book just looks good…which is a good thing for a major event. An artist like Chris Bachalo would have taken away from this story, but Coipel keeps it going and makes it look good in the process. Even better, the next issue’s just two weeks away to give more of a push to the story!