Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here… It has been a very long couple of weeks but nearly done. For my final review for the week we have ‘New Mutants’.  Hope you enjoy it.

New Mutants #5 (details)
Writer: Zeb Wells
Penciler: Zachary Baldus

NOTE: Wolverine does not appear in this issue.

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with H.A.M.M.E.R. sending some missiles to take out an unidentified E.T. Unfortunately it is Warlock who infects them with the Techno-organic virus and they refuse to detonate.

We cut to a scene with Scott and Dani in Brightwind’s new stable. Cyclops commends Moonstar on taking out Ares and offers to help if Hela demands payment. He then requests her to go back to teaching. Dani wants to stay with Sam’s new team but Scott has to tell her that Cannonball did not put her on the roster.

Illyana has just gotten done with her debriefing by Dr. Kavita Rao of the Science Team who calls Shan in next. She tells Karma that Magik’s destroying five personalities of Haller’s will resulted in consequences and asks for Shan’s take on what happened. Karma is worried about Marci, the child personality trapped in Legion’s mind. Roa tells her that they are terra-forming Haller’s mind to try and fix him.

A jump to the lab shows the Science Team mapping Legion’s mind and locking up all the personalities. Rogue is using her power to siphon off excess energy and keep him contained. The Science Team explains the gist of the mechanics to Amara, Sam and Roberto though Sunspot is only interested in hitting on Rogue. Magma pulls him out before he embarrasses himself throughly and Sam gets called to the Danger Room by Dani.

Returning to the interview, Shan relates how she figured out that Marci was killed by Legion. It was the only way she could have gotten into Haller’s mind without Karma’s powers acting as a link.

In the training center Moonstar hits Sam again but he refuses to fight back. She argues that she saved his life but Sam counters with her disobeying orders. She plays the friendship card and asks if he would die for her. When he says yes then she argues she should have the same choice. They shake and she hits him again. But this time he fights back and punches her straight in the face. He takes her feather and offers to buy her a couple of beers as a peace-making gesture.

Back to the debrief and we have gotten to the heart of the matter. Kavita asks about finding the personality that killed Marci, and Shan agrees that they confronted it. Rao says Illyana confessed to killing that personality in anger but we see from Shan’s memory that she did it herself with Illyana’s Soulsword. But Karma does not admit it allowing Magik’s statement to stand.

In the end we see Warlock arriving at the destroyed mansion and finding a picture of the old New Mutants. He drops it in shock when he sees Doug Ramsey’s grave is empty.

MY TAKE: I want to start out by saying I am still loving this series. This is a cleanup and transition issue so there is not much story but what it loses in plot it more then makes up in characterization and interactions.

The best part of the issue was Sam and Dani working out their differences. Moonstar’s use of emotion and tough love are well done but I had to applaud when Sam fought back. His nice guy personality gets overused sometimes and it was good to see him reach the point where he would not take it any more.

Another highlight was Shan’s interview. She is an interesting character that does not get enough screen time or development and it was nice to see her taking the forefront. Even though she was barely there, Illyana’s presence was felt throughout the sequence. I enjoyed seeing her influence as both a good friend and as a corrupting bad girl. Her amoral personality tends to be glossed over but glad we are not seeing that here.

The weakest scene was the Science Team and Haller. Although Wells does very well with the New Mutants he seems to be a bit off with some of the other characters in this issue. Also, Roberto’s flirting was very heavy handed and not like the smooth approach he normally has. He is not a bad choice for comedic relief but this scene did not quite click.

Also I was not a big fan of the art change. This style made everything look faded and in some cases features had to be over exaggerated to make up for the lack of inking. The overall effect made me think of a child’s crayon drawing.

In the end this was another spectacular issue of a amazing series with a few minor nitpicks. I am definitely looking forward to the next issue when we see Warlock returning to the fold and possibly Doug Ramsey as well. I am just glad that this was apparently a one-issue fill in for the artist since I do not feel it was a very good fit for a super hero title.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again next time.