The Uncanny X-Men #36

Marvel Comics

Written by Gail Simone

Art by Luciano Vecchio

Colors by Matthew Wilson

Letters by Clayton Cowles

The Rundown: Monet and the team take on mutant traffickers while Rogue and Gambit fight for his soul.

Rogue and Gambit make their way to Northern Italy with Father Gabriel and the mysterious mutant priest Repent who takes the time to tell them his story and how he is connected to the world of the damned. As they make their way to a secret location to perform the exorcism on Remy, Repent reveals his power. A power that could give them the opening they need to remove the eye and the demon from Gambit, but Rogue will have to do something desperate if they have any chance of success.

At the same time, Monet leads the X-Men on a mission to liberate a group of kidnapped mutant children forced to fight to the death in front of rich humans. Monet and Wolverine take on the champion and both find it hard to hold back in the face of what they see and know. Jubilee infiltrates the base of operations to bring it down and Nightcrawler teams with Quicksilver to liberate the remaining kids. Unfortunately for the man running the operation, one of his victims returns to dispense justice of his own.

The Story: Simone brings this arc to a dark, intense and extremely satisfying conclusion on multiple levels. I loved seeing Logan go berserker for good reason and how M just allows it to happen because she is fighting her own internal battle with the concept of mercy. I love seeing the team deal with the reality of what they are facing and the horrors throughout. I love that the Gambit/Rogue storyline required them to trust in each other and that Rogue was willing to sacrifice a lot to save him. Both sides of the story work brilliantly and remind me of everything that I love about these characters and their world.

The Art: Vecchio delivers stunning art throughout the issue. I love the visual style of every character, but I also love the visual contrasts between both plots and how they blend seamlessly together.

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