The X-Men face off against the superpowered Brood Gang!
Originally Published September 1988
We begin with the X-Men in a tight spot.
They had been tracking human-turned-Brood-host Harry Palmer down through Denver, but the alien-powered paramedic managed to keep giving out heroes the slip. When they finally manage to corner him in an alley, he reveals he, in fact, has a great deal of assistance in the form of his fellow Brood transformees.
Oh, and one other thing...
Since Harry has specifically been inducting mutants into Broodkind, his new friends all also happen to have mutant powers! Talk about a real thick pickle!
In honor of the fact that these All New All Different Brood are also mutants (Brootants?) they've even elected to give themselves catchy, trademarkable codenames, in case Toy Biz ever wants to go ahead and release them as a line of action figures. There's Brickbat, who hits like one; Tension, whose grasp cannot be escaped, and Temptress, who overwhelms you with her sexy mutant mind-control pheromones.
Lord protect us from the Sexy Mutant Brood Lady.
Naturally, the X-Men do not fare great against these unexpected opponents, with Storm being so shooken by Temptress' powers that she has to fly away to get some air. Havok, ever conscientious about the fact that he wields the power of an exploding star, is reluctant to express himself upon these alien monsters, who may still have a human nature somewhere within.
Things go from bad to worse when Rogue accidentally makes skin-to-exoskeleton contact with Temptress, whose Broodly nature overwhelms her and causes her to join the other team, using her sexy-smelly powers to lure Psylocke over as well.
With Wolverine at their mercy, they prepare to inject him with their special Brood Juice to make him one of them.
In the midst of all this action, we cut away down to the famous Red Rocks amphitheater, where preparations are being made for a massive service hosted by a locally-famed and renowned Reverend named William Conover.
Despite religious hypocrisies occasionally being fodder for the X-Men's message, and literally having "Con" in his name, Reverend Bill seems like a pretty chill dude, staring up at the majesty of the sky, comforting his arthritis-stricken partner Hannah, and suggesting that humankind's place is to embrace the rise of mutants among them, not to fear or combat them.
Back in the city, the local news is on the scene to get coverage while Colossus has it out with Brickbat all over the Derelict Building District. Strangely, they find, while they can absolutely get footage of the alien monster, they can't seem to capture any visual on the big metal guy he's fighting!
Now, this would be the effect of Roma's enchantment, but at a time like this it seems awkward and conspicuous rather than subtle and evasive.
Up in the sky, Storm is being pursued by the mutant Brood baddie known as Dive-Bomber, whose power is that he has wings... which is kind of a sad power because actually all of the Brood should have wings, they're flying insect aliens.
D.B. dismantles a plane in mid-flight to give Storm something to tie her up. Naturally, she turns her focus to this, sending a heavy wind to ease its descent and a monsoon rain to douse the flames...
Which provides the necessary opening for Divey to get the drop on Storm.
Elsewhere, in a bucolic dreamscape, fair young Madelyne Pryor soars the skies.
Yes, it would seem that here, our favourite normal has it all -- freedom, joy, a husband who loves her and a chubby-cheeked son. Of course, we know this is not reality...
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| See, that's why it's important not to fall asleep while watching TV. |
Gateway, who as a card-carrying Aborigine has abilities to pass freely between the realm of the waking and the Dreamtime, enters the dream. Madelyne and Cyclops object, and the husband blasts the interloper into oblivion, only for Gateway's figure to give way to a strange figure...
Cruelly, Cyclops declares that everything that Maddie has -- from her red hair to her mouth to her very son -- is actually meant for the "original," and it's time to return it all.
Having "restored" Jean, they take their leave with baby Nathan in tow, leaving Madelyne a helpless, mouthless mannequin.
Back in Denver, Dive-Bomber arrives with Storm in tow, and leader Harry announces his intention to implant her with a Queen Egg. Alex, who had been struggling heretofore with the likely consequences of unleashing his phenomenal POWER on the Brood, gives DB a good SHZAMming. Simultaneously, Colossus emerges victorious from his slugfest with Brickbat, so that's two for the good guys.
This puts the Broodgang, who had previously been doing very well, on the back foot, so they make a hasty getaway.
Left to regroup, Havok, Storm and Colossus watch Dive-Bomber revert to his human form as he lies dead. Softie Alex weeps for the man he killed. Storm, however, is quick to point out that that man died the moment he was converted to a Brood hunter, and that killing him may have spared many others from sharing the fate.
To be continued!
Further Thoughts:
As the cover indicates, Uncanny X-Men began running biweekly for a spell in the fall of 1988. The book was becoming such a juggernaut (so to speak) that the regular monthly schedule simply could not contain it. There was simply too much money to be made by increasing the amount of X-Men product out there, and things will only be snowballing from there.
This comic is all action, all excitement. It puts our heroes in a difficult spot against a seemingly unbeatable foe and just keeps upping the ante. It's one where, as a reader, I'm really excited to see where it goes and how the X-Men may manage to put these Brood away for good. Alex, always fearful of his own powers more than any superhero seemingly ever has been, made a great focal point, but didn't need to be overemphasized to really hammer the issue home.
But the real killer moment is Madelyne's dream sequence, a gorgeous and harrowing depiction of her hopes and fears regarding her life, Cyclops, and the future. In only a few pages and panels, Claremont and Silvestri elevate this comic issue about superheroes fighting alien bugs into a high art examination of one woman's doubts and anxieties. This is doing important thematic (and plot) groundwork for what is to come in the next several months of X-Men comics and making lemonade out of the sour lemons we were handed when Cyclops was made to leave Maddie in the first place, two and a half years earlier.
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