Magneto’s back, and there’s going to trouble. There has not been much in the way of individual Magneto stories recently. He’s spent much of his time either playing back up for Cyclops or running around attempting to make up for past sins. Magneto, the new series for Marvel Now, is all about the master of metal and his rather urgent need for vengeance.
Writer Cullen Bunn, who has been truly impressive with The Sixth Gun, Deadpool Kills The Marvel Universe, and his Oni Press title The Damned, is in top form here. Everything surrounding this opening issue is a mystery. When does this take place? Who is he after? What does all this mean for the X-Men Universe? Bunn allows those questions to stir as he sets up what is a chilling first book.
All comic creators should refer to the opening sequence of Magneto as the perfect way to start a book. A simple scene. A barista in a coffee shop being interviewed by police about a murder. The way Bunn frames the scene is minimal, both in visuals and with the words he uses. Still, it paints a perfect picture as to how vicious Magneto is, and how violent his pound of flesh can be.
Most of Magneto #1 is his inner dialogue. On the run for some reason, Magneto has been using bits and pieces of information to seek out his target. The victim from the coffee shop was a doctor who had contributed to some of the more violent and fringe anti-mutant groups. Driven by the deaths this doctor and his money have caused, Magneto calmly snaps his fingers, rips the man’s fillings from his teeth, and then “replaces” them in a chilling way.
Bunn is no stranger to action. The first two thirds of Magneto might be all about setting the scene, but the last third is the pay off. On another mission of revenge, Magneto sets down on a small town sheriff’s office to assassinate a vagrant who admitted to three mutant murders before turning himself in. The boy turns out to be more than Magneto bargained for, and even manages to expand whatever mission Magneto is on. Bunn shows just enough to keep it interesting, but keeps enough in the shadows to keep us guessing.
Gabriel Hernandez Walta is an excellent choice for this kind of book. Walta loves to use dark shading to communicate mood, and often his character faces are scarred and sunken, with an air of reality that makes them more human. There is also a surreal aspect to everything, the backgrounds especially. Until Magneto unleashes at the police station, Walta focuses everything on him, giving the entire story a visual power that works so well with Bunn’s words.
With so many of the X-Men titles being about intergalactic or world-ending situations, it’s nice to see a street level story for once. Especially when it kicks as much ass as this one did.
(4.5 Story, 4.5 Art)
