Written by: Rick Remender
Art by: Leinil Francis Yu
Publisher: Marvel
So when are they going to rename this book to Avengers vs. X-Men for the two don’t seem to be doing much coexisting these days.
Axis #4 is the first act of the second part of Axis (that’s a mouthful), entitled: Inversion. Issue 4 is a sort of picking up the pieces collective for the characters we have encountered throughout this event. We see the X-Men and the Avengers clearly defining their lines in the sand for themselves and each other. One seems to wonder as to the reasoning for defining this book as an Avengers and X-Men title, as opposed to versus, for the two seem to be gearing up for war no longer against themselves, but each other. Regardless, this serves as some of the most interesting standings we have seen a majority of these characters (Iron Man, Storm, Havok, Captain America) in a long time. All these characters seem to be fully giving into their own respective idiosyncrasy and the book remains better for it. Instead of presenting these characters as conflicted, the advent of Scarlet Witch’s inversion spell declares clear, precise motivation for these characters and yes, while some seem to have their morality flipped, their driving forces are as precise and precisely written as ever.
Inversion is the perfect subheader for this issue for it highlights constantly shifting character dynamics present in every page. Instead of making these characters morality simply flip (good to evil), they are instead pushed to their greatest heights of ego and self actualization, present in the case of Iron Man, Carnage, Captain America and many others. For this reason alone, the series remains intriguing and interesting while the lack of a present villain at this moment seems rather glaring. Some don’t work as well as others, however. Kluh (Hulk’s inversion) is a rather obvious depiction of the character and seems slightly juvenile, but barely detracts from the story. Storm’s X-Men State of the Union address is incredibly compelling and rather scary for the revelations that it holds.
Yu’s pencils are an improvement over last issue. This issue remains less action focused and instead lets the intensity of the quieter moments brew between each panel and for this Yu’s art truly shines. Iron Man ego-warped self proclamation at a local sports game remains a highlight, especially captured in Daredevil’s look of pure disgust. Yu’s pencils also seem to point to the fact that their remains no clear heroes in this event, only sides to choose and sides to abuse. The X-Men and Avengers are not depicted as incredibly heroic, instead angry, frustrated, and determined individuals who have sworn allegiance to the arbitrariness of a group moniker.
Axis remains one of the most interesting events in recent memories due to it’s unpredictable nature. Here’s hoping the trend continues next issue.
