Dark X-Men #1(of 3)

The way I understand it, this mini-series is going to feature several one-shot stories about the various Dark X-Men characters. Each story is going to have a different writer/art team, and I'll point out who is writing/drawing each story before getting into the stories themselves.

-First up is a Namor story written by Paul Cornell and pencilled by Leonard Kirk. Osborn confronts Namor in the shower, demanding to know why Namor has agreed to become a part of the Dark X-Men after the falling out the two of them had over the Atlantian terrorists attacking Los Angeles in a recent issue of Dark Avengers. Namor does his best to ignore Osborn, but Norman continues to push Namor's buttons, telling Namor that he had the Atlantian terrorists exterminated. Norman continues to talk(because that's his thing), explaining that he figures Namor is undergoing an identity crisis. Osborn reasons that Namor has returned because deep down Namor wants somebody to tell him what to do and when to do it. Namor finally has enough and attacks Osborn, smashing him into a wall. Osborn tells Namor that attacking him makes no sense since it was Namor who volunteered to join the Dark X-Men and that he can leave whenever he wants. Namor releases his hold on Osborn and Norman figures that Namor has finally realized that the Atlantians are a lost cause and that Namor is looking for a new cause to champion, mutantkind. Namor doesn't answer and Norman presses his advantage, telling Namor he is welcome to stay with the Dark X-Men as long as Namor agrees to follow Osborn's orders. Namor bristles at the thought of following the orders of a mere surface dweller, but finally agrees to give Osborn's "requests" "serious consideration" before leaving the shower room. Osborn smiles, believing that he now has the Namor problem under control. Am I the only one who was a little weirded out that this entire story took place in the shower while Namor wasn't wearing a thing?

-Next up is a tale of Mimic, brought to us by James Asmus(writer)and Jesse Delperdang(pencils). We get a quick refresher of who the Mimic is, a guy with bipolar disorder, who has the powers of the 5 original X-Men and can ape the powers of any mutant in his immediate proximity. Mimic is worried about his actions and that he may hurt people again, as he has in the past, but Norman Osborn assures him that he shouldn't worry because he is perfect. Awww, that Osborn is a swell guy!

-The final story is the reason I picked this comic up in the first place, a tale of Dark Beast. DB's story is written by Shane McCarthy while the art is done by Ibraim Roberson. Norman Osborn tracks Dark Beast down, finding Dr. McCoy experimenting on the corpse of a child in a decrepit warehouse. Osborn tries to insult DB, but DB turns it around, revealing that he knows all about Norman's experimentations and Goblin shenanigans. Osborn changes the subject and tells DB that he requires his help. DB tells Osborn to find another lackey, but Osborn sweetens the deal by telling DB that if he joins up with him he would be allowed the opportunity to experiment on Michael Pointer(Weapon Omega), a mutant. DB becomes excited at the possibility of experimenting on mutants again as opposed to regular humans. DB then begins to explain that he loves experimenting on others, but that he finds scientific experimentation on himself particularly thrilling. DB then says that he is Norman's biggest fan due to Norman's past transformations into the Green Goblin. DB then begins to goad Norman, asking him when he last wore his "true" face. Osborn finally stops DB and tells him that he has become a much more successful individual by casting his Green Goblin persona aside. Osborn once again asks DB if he'll join forces with him, but DB is still somewhat reluctant to stop his more monstrous scientific experiments. Osborn tells DB that he can still do whatever the hell he wants, as long as he preforms his more macabre actions in a discreet manner. Upon hearing this, DB happily joins up with Osborn, telling Osborn that as long they work together, he'll be happy to remind Osborn of who and what he truly is, since DB is Osborn's biggest fan.

All in all, this was a very good comic, much better then I thought it would be. The Mimic story was OK, the Namor story was good, but for me the Dark Beast story totally stole the show. I've always been a huge fan of DB, I loved his Age of Apocalypse appearances and I always tried to get my hands on any appearance he made in the mainstream Marvel Universe. Although I've always been a fan of DB, I have to admit that most of his post AOA appearances have left me feeling underwhelmed. DB is one of those characters I always thought could be SO much better than he was. That's why his appearance here really impressed me. Shane didn't portray DB as a simple lackey or nobody, he had DB actually stand up to Norman Osborn, which was a great thing to see. DB realized that he didn't need Osborn, on the contrary, Osborn needed HIS assistance, and DB was more than happy to continue to rub that in Norman's face. Besides the fact that DB was shown here as a strong, independent character, the banter between DB and Osborn was very well done. DB's incessant needling of Osborn was a nice change, since the past few months have seen Osborn doing the same thing to so many characters in the Marvel U. For a score, I'll give this comic a 9 out of 10. I enjoyed this comic way more than I thought I would, which is always a good thing!