New X-Men #28

New X-Men #28
A pretty good issue. I'm still not okay with all the death though, seriously, haven't enough died already? It seems that Emma Frost agrees, as she makes that exact same point to Carol Danvers who comes to the mansion to encourage her to register everyone. One by one, she goes over the tragedies that the X-Men have faced in recent weeks, asks why the Avengers weren't there to help, and points out that if everyone knows where to find each and every mutant, then how will that make them any safer? And she compares the tragedy in Stamford to that which occurred at the mansion when Stryker blew up the bus, killing forty-two students. A very valid point. Why should Stamford be more important? Why the national outcry over that, but not over what happened at the institute? Obviously, it's because the world still doesn't care about mutants, despite all their protestations to the contrary. And throwaway dialogue in this issue bears that theory out. Medical and forensic examiners are shown making anti-mutant comments within earshot of some of the students, without caring about the work they were called in to do. It's a very chilling reminder of the state of affairs within the mutant world in the Marvel U, one that has been pushed to the sidelines of late by the whole "Civil War" business. (This issue is not labelled as a Civil War crossover, and it does stand on its own very well, but the themes herein definitely tie in to the Civil War event.)
The remaining students are really pulling together and functioning as a team, or at least as friends. Julian is really taking charge, and has sublimated his ego sufficiently, to the point where he actually begins to resemble a true team leader (even though he isn't). And everyone accepts David as he is, even though he's been depowered. He's still one of the smartest people at the institute, and is acknowledged as such by the kids.
The subplot with Nimrod and Forge is not given very much play, and really doesn't affect the plot of this issue very much. It's not about that. It's about Laurie's, Max's, and Josh's death, Elixir's transformation, Cannonball's near death, and the survivor's guilt that the remaining students are experiencing. There's even a scene in which Emma, once alone, collapses on the floor and cries. Very poignant stuff. And it rings true.
A VERY GOOD issue. There isn't even the obligatory fight scene in this issue - no overt instances of anyone using their powers at all, except for Emma Frost, and she's pretty much always using them. And if you can make that work, then you've put together a very fine issue. Every once in a while it's useful to take a step back and focus on what makes the characters work, and the authors do that very well in this issue.
And I, for one, am glad that Stryker is dead. His hypocrisy always annoyed me.