Magneto is dead. Not X-Men-dead. Dead-dead. With Krakoa in shambles and the X-Men destroyed, Storm must embark into the afterlife and succeed in resurrecting Magneto in order to save mutantkind.
The Resurrection of Magneto #1
Jay Bowen (Design), David Curiel (Colours), Al Ewing (Writer), Tom Muller (Design), VC’s Joe Sabino (Letters), Luciano Vecchio (Artist)
Marvel Comics
January 24, 2024
The Resurrection of Magneto #1 was not what I expected. With a title like that, I assumed we’d learn that Charles Xavier had secretly saved a backup of Magneto this whole time. Magneto would return, and Orchis, the evil organization killing the mutants, would be trembling in their boots.
However, this book is merely the start of the journey. And it’s Storm, not Xavier, who’s burdened with the task. That’s an unexpected, even subversive, choice, and I like it. Xavier has hardly proven himself trustworthy, whereas Storm has had the purest intentions on Krakoa and Arakko, aka Mars. We should all be so lucky as to have Storm leave the world of the living behind to rescue us.
But the premise of The Resurrection of Magneto #1 is confusing. Magneto wanted to be dead. He and Storm sacrificed their mutant ability to be resurrected when they joined the leadership of Arakko. Now, I realise that Magneto is a comic book character, but he had reasons for his choice. As fascinating as Magneto has been to read in the Krakoa era, isn’t it disingenuous to bring him back? When he died, the universe was in peril, but mutantkind was strong. Now, the universe is safer than ever, but mutants are being persecuted. Is this the world Magneto deserves to be resurrected into? And honestly, can’t a comic book character just stay dead and let their loved ones mourn them?
One of the greatest surprises for me in reading the Krakoa books has been Storm and Magneto’s friendship. They were on opposing sides for decades but on Krakoa, things changed. They had a united purpose and a shared vision of harmony for mutants and humans. Seeing Storm mourn her friend while still bravely leading the Arakki was just the kind of characterization a legendary character deserved.
Now, after an ominous dream, Storm is intent on saving her former foe in The Resurrection of Magneto #1. But does Magneto actually want to come back?
We’ll have to wait to see how all that plays out since this opening issue is primarily a Storm story. Her journey through the afterlife, rather than Magneto’s. It’s reminiscent of “Nightcrawler’s Inferno” in 1980’s X-Men Annual #4, but it’s not quite the same because we don’t get much of Storm in this issue. Is she in almost every panel? Yes. But doing what? The Resurrection of Magneto exemplifies one of my sticking points with Krakoa—nobody seems to know what to do with Storm. One of the greatest X-Men, and probably one of Marvel’s best characters, seldom has anything to do but parry words with the Arakki or get sidelined in X-Men stories. Some of my frustration comes from the fact that I just haven’t been able to gel with the Arakki. Their mythos needs constant explanation, and they’ve been largely kept separate from the Earth mutants and their adventures. Honestly, when Storm and Magneto went to Mars, I wondered if it was some kind of punishment, like when Iceman and Angel jumped from team to team because Marvel got bored of them during the late ‘70s and early ‘80s.
Storm is a multi-layered character. She was a child thief. She was a goddess. She fought the universe’s greatest villains and often won. She struggled with severe claustrophobia but never let that stop her in a fight. She is an Omega-level mutant and has magical ancestry. She led the X-Men even when she had no mutant powers. She led the Morlocks at a time when they hated the X-Men. Storm is compassionate and loving of a world that doesn’t love her and her people back. How has the Krakoa-era wasted such a character?
And The Resurrection of Magneto #1 does little different. Storm is out of her depth in the afterlife, and the souls she meets talk so dang much. Everything in this book is told to us. The whole point of a comic book is that you can read and see the story. The art is beautiful but it’s practically superfluous to the story. We don’t see Storm defeat her enemies—we read about it in the thought bubble. I’d expect this dichotomy in a ’70s comic. Not one in 2024.
As a result, Storm doesn’t get to have a grand adventure, like Nightcrawler. She’s talked at for the majority of the book. When she does get to fight, the reader is informed of the outcome in the text.
Luciano Vecchio’s art is so rich and detailed, whether it’s the bedroom Storm shares with her partner or the barren wastelands of the afterlife. His character work is gorgeous—no matter the character, the expressions are clear and precise. He skillfully balances the grotesquery of the monsters Storm faces, with the beauty of the divine beings she encounters. Every page is heightened by David Curiel’s extensive palette of colours. And yet, the text overwhelms this book. As much as I love the X-Men, it is so hard to find a way in if you take a break from reading. In that sense, Krakoa has been a boon for me and other readers. I had a starting point and as long as I kept reading all the books, I could curl up with the X-Men on the weekends and not feel lost.
But catching up with the Krakoa-era is not for the faint of heart. There are so many series and tie-ins. None of the stories conclude in a single series of books; you have to dip into at least three or four series or else you miss key events.
So, if you’re coming into The Resurrection of Magneto without prior knowledge of the Krakoa-era comics, particularly X-Men: Red, you’re going to have a hard time keeping up. The book does include a rundown of events up until now but they’re going to be meaningless words if you haven’t been following the series. I’ve been reading the X-comics and even I didn’t recognize a couple of the characters!
Of course, none of this changes the fact that I’m going to read the rest of this series. I have to if I want to know what’s happening with the X-Men. I can only hope that the series gets more exciting and less verbose. I also hope Storm gets to have an actual character arc and that Magneto’s inevitable resurrection is meaningful. If the story doesn’t get better, I will whine about it. But I’ll keep reading.
