There’s nothing better than a well done X-men comic. We’ve been lucky to see a lot of them lately and there’s no sign that that’s going to change any time soon.

Uncanny X-Men #523, like its predecessor, is no slouch in this arena. Watching Cyke’s driven dynamic leadership of the world’s mutants has been truly compelling. I’m vaguely terrified by Marvel ads that imply that Second Coming may mark its end.

Sadly it doesn’t follow up on the events of Uncanny #522, (Kitty Pryde’s interstellar rescue by Magneto), but that’s okay because it does follow up on Second Coming which was equally, if not more, awesome.

Sure Second Coming is packed with resurrected villains, but I’ve reached a point where resurrected characters are so much the norm that I hardly notice when it happens. Doesn’t matter what the excuse is (in some ways the less it’s touched upon the better).

“I thought you died.”

“Nope.”

Maybe it’s the fanboy equivalent of battered wife syndrome, but I actually kind of like it.

I’ve been consistently enjoying Cyclops’ reign, and this feeds right into that fun as he coordinates the retrieval of Cable and Hope between his very different teams.

Speaking of Cable and his plot pin adoptee, it’s refreshing to see the time-hopping filler end and see them reintegrate into the rest of the universe.

Matt Fraction’s characters are believable, and the dialogue feels very real. There’s just about a perfect match of action and compelling story movement to keep the book more than just a crossover tie-in. Everything that happens contributes to the overall arc, is understandable within the context of the issue, and makes causal sense.

I quite enjoy Terry Dodson’s art; the faces are distinct and consistent. I feel like I can look at Cable and Cyclops and see the relation.

Overall a good read. Second Coming is looking good. I’ll definitely be looking for the follow-up to this issue in New Mutants #12.

WRITER: Matt Fraction
PENCILS: Terry Dodson
PUBLISHER: Marvel Comics
COVER PRICE: $2.99
ON SALE: 04/07/10