Despite my best efforts to cut down my workload, every so often the comics industry persists in giving me a week like this one.  Five X-books, four of which are completing storylines.  And four issue #1s, all of them potentially quite interesting.  It's at this point that I usually look at the pile of comics, look at the clock, and whimper slightly.

But let's get to work.  Civil War: X-Men is, notionally, the X-Men's contribution to Civil War.  In reality, the link is absurdly contrived.  This story has nothing whatsoever to do with the Superhuman Registration Act.  The plot involves the 198 escaping from the grounds of the Xavier Institute, and Bishop agreeing to help the government hunt them down, while the other X-Men try to protect them.  So, yes, there's an internal conflict element to the plot - but it's a different civil war altogether.  Cameo appearances by Iron Man and Captain America only partially disguise this, since they could have been completely excised without materially altering the story.

In substance, this is really a sequel to David Hine's earlier X-Men: The 198 miniseries.  In fact, surprisingly, it turns out to be quite important to the overall O*N*E storyline, which the writers of the monthly X-books have been studiously ignoring as best they can, ever since it was imposed on them a year ago.  With this series, somewhat out of the blue, the "prison camp" theme is simply lifted, and from now on the Institute will be a haven where mutants can come and go as they please. 

At least in theory, this is a major plot development which surely ought to have been given more prominence - but then, as I say, even the core X-books can't be bothered actually doing anything with the O*N*E, so they might as well sweep it aside here.  Besides, thanks to the wholly misleading Civil War banner, this book is actually outselling X-Men and Uncanny anyway.

So much for the overall agenda.  What about the story?  Well, it's serviceable, and it does provide some kind of payoff for the potentially interesting idea of Bishop siding with the O*N*E and against civil liberties.  The X-books haven't really developed that idea as clearly as they might have done, and I see that a lot of readers have rejected the idea as absurd mainly due to the presence of the Sentinels, who were his oppressors when he was a kiddie in a dystopian future.  They're certainly a thematic problem which required to be properly addressed.  But Bishop was first introduced as a shoot first, ask questions later paramilitary whose idea of due process was to make sure the death certificates were completed in triplicate.  While it's a throwback to an earlier take on the character, the idea of him taking the "security at any cost" line, and identifying with the military careerists in O*N*E, is reasonably credible.  Much more could have been done with it.

Aside from that, it's fairly uninspired.  There's a token fight between the factions and a thoroughly contrived peril in the final act.  General Lazer is used as the main villain but, after months of appearances, he's still a generic anti-mutant bigot without any personality to call his own.  Visually, Yanick Paquette's work is perfectly solid and competent, and conveys the action well enough, but it lacks indivduality.

Ultimately, it's okay, but not much more than that.  There are some interesting ideas, not fully explored.  There's also a thunderously dull villain and a nailed-on crossover gimmick.  Aside from its impact on the X-Men's status quo, it's largely forgettable.

Rating: B-

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