Cable #35Issue(s): Cable #35 Review/plot: Anyway, in Uncanny X-Men #336 made it seem like Cable was Apocalypse's ace-in-the-hole now that he and the Watcher decided that they needed to do something about Onslaught. So he shows up here now (and i'll note that he's not sporting his AoA look this time). Loeb has been making it clear that Cable was actually meant to be a weapon against Apocalypse, so i was surprised when the Watcher implied that he was somehow an asset for Apocalypse to use. And indeed it turns out that Apocalypse has a plan that Cable might theoretically be able to execute, but it's not like Cable was especially designed by Apocalypse to do it or anything (for example, if Apocalypse had gone to Archangel or Caliban, i could see where this was going). Apocalypse's plan is to separate Franklin Richards from Onslaught, and in fact his secret idea is to kill Franklin, and that's definitely not something the Watcher would have approved of. Cable isn't fond of the idea of working with Apocalypse, but Invisible Woman says from the experience of working with Dr. Doom a few times that it may be worth it. So he agrees, and they go to the Astral Plane. Apocalypse offers to cure Cable's techno-virus, but Cable declines. I like Ian Churchill's big blocky Apocalypse. When it does come time to kill Franklin (note that it's Apocalypse himself who's doing it, so what did he need Cable for?), it turns out that the Invisible Woman has been shadowing them, and she stops him. Apocalypse teleports away. Cable and Sue are unable to rescue Franklin properly. Which is too bad, because a good way to make these tie-ins feel more meaningful would be to have the heroes dismantling parts of Onslaught's arsenal - freeing Franklin and X-Man, stealing back the Cyttorak Gem, removing the Magneto persona. Or if not actually doing those things, finding a way to do them which could be executed in the finale. Instead, we're left with the idea that these events have given Franklin "hope" and then Watcher lectures Apocalypse about trying to do the mission that it sure seemed like he sent him on in the first place. The bungled hand-off from Uncanny X-Men #336 isn't Jeph Loeb's fault, and i guess he's doing the best he can given that he's not actually able to move the story forward at all. I am surprised to say that i do enjoy his writing here, and i especially like Ian Churchill's art. Going back and filling in this run of Cable would be on the top of my list if i were to go back into adding to my collection (no plans for that, though). Quality Rating: C+ Chronological Placement Considerations: Continues from Uncanny X-Men #336. At the end we're pointed to X-Man #19 and X-Men #55 for what's next, but see my prior notes on the X-Man story. It does seem like X-Man was meant to happen later, and i'll note that Onslaught is back in his older armor/look despite this definitely taking place after Uncanny X-Men #336. So it seems that's not a placement factor. I'm still not sure it really matters on a granular level (it would be different if having X-Man's capture actually meant something to Onslaught). Takes place at the same time as X-Force #58. References:
Crossover: Onslaught Continuity Insert? N My Reprint: N/A Inbound References (2): showCharacters Appearing: Apocalypse, Cable (Adult), Franklin Richards, Invisible Woman, Onslaught, Uatu the Watcher Comments are now closed. |
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