On to Chris Claremont's second storyline on Uncanny X-Men, and... well, god only knows where he's going with this.

I'm reminded uncomfortably of X-Treme X-Men.  That book started off with a solid enough premise: the X-Men set out to look for Destiny's diaries.  The X-Men then proceeded not to look for Destiny's diaries for the next year and a bit, after which they just gave up.  Uncanny X-Men began with everyone talking about their recent appointment as the XSE, an officially sanctioned police force.  Also a major talking point of the latter issues of X-Treme X-Men, this is surely a major status change for the team.

And thus far we've had... well, one issue where the XSE fought some technovillains with no apparent mutant connections, some stuff about an exploding teenager and distrust from the local authorities (fair enough), and then... nothing.  A three-issue fight with the Fury, and now a battle against Viper to rescue the Queen from Murderworld.  What's this comic about, exactly?  Are we ever getting back to this XSE thing?  Are we just leaving it on the shelf?  Surely, immediately after bringing in the idea, and straight after the relaunch, would be the time to do some stories about the XSE set-up?

Apparently not.  The story opens with a follow-up to the Fury story from the last few issues (or rather, the Fury first act, since it wasn't really a story so much as an extended fight).  Braddock Manor is magically reconstituted and a slightly odd-acting Brian and Meggan assure our heroes that everything is fine.  This is perfectly good so far as it goes.  And then we drop it entirely, in favour of Viper, Murderworld and the Queen.

I might feel better inclined towards this change of focus if I could summon up the faintest interest in people running around Murderworld looking for the Queen.  To get away with a plot like that, it needs to be funny.  This isn't.  Guest penciller Olivier Coipel indicates that he might have been able to do a fairly entertaining Murderworld in the traditional style, but apparently Murderworld is now just a replica of London (which kind of buggers the theme park gimmick), and we get some generic sewers and streets instead.

Coipel's art is almost good enough to forgive the absence of Alan Davis, but the lumpen isn't-this-wacky plot, the endless hammering of Sage and the unwillingness to follow through on any of the book's multiple directions have me climbing the walls in frustration.

Rating: C

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