Well, I did promise I'd write the X-Axis when I got back to Edinburgh - even if there is only one X-book out this week.  So here we go...

As I've said in the last few weeks, Marvel's big theme for March seems to be Cancelled Comics Cavalcade, as a horde of failed books are dredged up from limbo and shoved blinking into the daylight, where they will stumble around trying to get their bearings in time to avoid being smashed into smithereens by the oncoming truck of low sales.

The latest of these is Cable & Deadpool, which offers you two failed titles for the price of one.  Sort of a mutant version of Whizzer & Chips, then.  Cable, you'll recall, has already had two ongoing series axed.  Deadpool has only had one, although a strong case could be made that Agent X ought to count towards the total.  Anyway, this book was originally due out months ago, but was delayed until March to tie in with the other launches.  (Because, you know, Tsunami proved that nothing works better than taking a bunch of second-tier characters and chucking them on the market in a glut with no publicity.)  You might have thought that hanging on another couple of months and including the book in Reload would be a better idea, but then that's why Marvel's executives earn the big money - to think inside the box.

I don't generally spend much time talking about the covers, especially when they're largely unrelated to the content, but this one deserves mention for two reasons.  Firstly, Cable & Deadpool has one of the most boring logos I've ever laid eyes on.  This is why the X-Axis webpage is using interior art where the logo normally appears - that logo is just too dull for words.

Secondly, it's got Rob Liefeld art.  In an ever-changing and dangerous world, it is strangely comforting to know that some things are eternal.  Deadpool wisely crouches at the bottom of the page in order to minimise his presence.  Cable foolishly fills the page, and finds himself carrying a ridiculously big gun, three swords (er, since when does Cable use swords) and enough camping gear to survive in the wilderness for two years.  Some say Captain America is a boy scout, but does he carry a sleeping bag into battle?  No, he does not.  Rob Liefeld's Cable is a true believer in the motto, "Be Prepared."  His backpack contains everything from a portable gas stove to an original vinyl copy of "Sparky & His Magic Piano."  He is truly ready for anything.

Sadly, judging by his expression, none of this has been able to prevent an evil villain from shoving something spiky up his arse.  Still, no doubt Cable will be able to deal with the situation.

After all that, perhaps I should turn to the actual content, which is written by Fabian Nicieza and mercifully features art from Mark Brooks.  Albeit not for long, because Brooks is being reassigned to work on two other titles - Marvel Age Spider-Man and Amazing Fantasy.  Two books a month is a fairly crippling schedule for anyone, although of course Brooks is a member of the Udon studio and has back-up there to help him out.  Anyway, it means the art is falling by the wayside after issue #2, which is a shame, since it's really very nice.

Udon, of course, worked on Deadpool and Agent X under Gail Simone, and are already completely at home with that character's mild wackiness.  Naturally, their version of Cable is a lot more low key.  After all, that's presumably the idea of playing off Cable and Deadpool as a duo - Cable gets to be the voice of reason and long-suffering straight man.  (Which, by the way, is why that cover not only sucks, but misses the point.)

The obvious problem with building a series around Cable and Deadpool is that it's hard to imagine anything that would persuade the characters to remain together - they'd hate one another.  The biggest obstacle Nicieza faces is coming up with a plausible reason for it.  However, that lies in the future, because the plot hasn't got to that stage yet.  Instead, we're at the traditional "hero team-up" stage of both characters going after the same villainous plot for other reasons.  So far, that works, but in the long run much will depend on whether there's a plausible answer to this question.  Or, alternatively, whether they're only together because somebody noticed they were both Rob Liefeld characters whose books had recently been cancelled.

The tone of the story veers closer to recent Deadpool and Agent X work, albeit toned down to a point where Cable can fit in reasonably comfortably.  It helps that Deadpool gets most of the screen time here, and gets to keep making random jokes instead of advancing the plot.  There's a fairly entertaining oddball idea in the form of the One World Church, who have taken the idea of removing racial divisiveness to extreme length by attempting to remove their identities altogether, creating a harmony where everyone looks the same (the same being "light blue").  It's a nice enough idea which Deadpool can play off.

For the moment, and despite that godawful cover, this is fairly entertaining stuff, with rather nice art.  The big long term question is whether anyone's got a good logical reason to build an ongoing series around this duo rather than a one-off team-up - but it'll be a few issues before the book has to show its hand on that one.

Rating: B

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