Review: Wolverine and the X-Men #24

It’s important for every series – comic or television – to occasionally take a breather to stop and reflect on the insanity of the last few months. When it’s a series like Wolverine and the X-Men, where the characters have been attacked multiple times by psychotic billionaire tweens, the Brood, an alien professor, Frankenstein’s monster, and former teammates possessed by a cosmic entity – all in just the past year of real time –  a breather is definitely earned.

A majority of the school staff takes a night off, and we see neither them nor the students for more than a panel or two. Instead, our attention is focused on Kitty and Iceman’s first date. After months of flirting and the occasional kiss, they’ve finally got a chance to eat a nice meal together. Unfortunately, dating has never been the forté of any of the X-Men, so things are understandably awkward. What ensues, however, is a charming montage of scenes where the two travel around the world performing good deeds for those in need.

Back on campus, Quentin Quire talks to (and hopes to seduce) Young Jean Grey, but it’s actually quite nice. As she puts it, it’s “refreshing to have someone here look at me like a real person.” There’s a brief sequence between Beast and girlfriend Agent Brand, some Hellfire foreshadowing, and Wolverine catching up with Storm. Ororo is understandably upset over her husband annulling their marriage in the heat of battle and finds a full-power Danger Room session with her oldest friend exactly what she needs. Ultimately, she makes three important changes in her life. 1) Taking over as Headmistress while Kitty mentors The Originals, 2) Let’s just say the cover isn’t a fake-out, and 3) The return of her badass 80s mohawk.

For those who don’t know, Storm was de-powered for a significant period of time, during which she not only managed to defeat Cyclops in a duel to lead the X-Men, but rocked a mohawk and a lot of leather. She more or less abandoned her warm, Mother Earth persona, and became – in a word – awesome. Yes, it was Darker and Grittier, but it really worked. It’s exciting to see this incarnation of Storm return.

The rest of the issue was really quite nice. Colossus and Kitty have been a favorite – though generally star-crossed – couple for 30+ years, and it’s hard to see them on the outs. But Bobby/Iceman is a great character when handled right, and Kitty seems like the girl to bring out the best in him – and he the fun in her. The Quentin/Jean interaction was legitimately sweet. Wolverine and Ororo have always had great chemistry and it’s nice to see that acknowledged again. Other nice touches include: the ending, the scene between T’challa and Ororo, and Rachel’s recurring role as The (loud) Voice of Reason.

Ultimately, this was an excellent breather issue that sets up some future story lines while taking time to re-center and focus on the characters rather than plot or action. It was rather “talky” but never felt laborious, trite, or melodramatic. As always, a fantastic issue from a fantastic series.