Bringing the Summers Family Together in 'X-Men' #2

Warning! This article contains spoilers for today's X-MEN #2, so read on at your own risk, True Believers!

X-FORCE #1 shook the X-Men to their foundations when Charles Xavier was assassinated. However, writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Leinil Francis Yu sent the team into an entirely new crisis in today's X-MEN #2.

Unfortunately, Xavier is still dead and Doug Ramsey is off in another galaxy in NEW MUTANTS #1. That left no one on the island who could really speak to Krakoa, the sentient island that now holds most of the world’s mutants upon it. This is a problem because Krakoa is jetting towards another island that has mysteriously appeared an ocean away.

Readers of POWERS OF X #4 may recall that Hickman set up this mythology when Krakoa shared its origin with Doug.  A long time ago, Krakoa was known as Okkara and it was twice as big as it is now. However, an invasion of monsters (or demons) from another world split the land and nearly overran the Earth. Only the power of Apocalypse and his first Horsemen saved the world. But Krakoa and Arakko were split into two forever. Or at least that’s what the twin islands believed.

X-MEN #2 changed the game by reuniting Krakoa and Arakko into a single island. And unlike Krakoa, Arakko is crawling with monsters and secrets. It’s also the home of the Summoner, a lone protector of Arakko who claims to be the son of War. Apocalypse greets the Summoner as if he is family, and he even demonstrated uncharacteristic affection for him...

Family was at the heart of this issue, as Cyclops took his daughter, Rachel Summers, and his son, Nathan Christopher Summers (AKA Cable) with him on a mission to Arakko. This followed the Summers family dinner on the moon last issue. The most striking aspect of this story is the way that the Summers children deferred to Cyclops as their father. This is also the first time that Cable and Rachel have been close to the same age. When Cable’s older incarnation was around, he had a different dynamic with his sister. Now, they’re more like siblings with a friendly rivalry.

It’s also worth noting that the Summers clan doesn’t seem particularly distraught about the death of Xavier. Instead, Cyclops floats the idea of taking his kids on a beach vacation to a world in Shi'ar space. But given the problems they’re facing on Earth, that seems like a remote possibility. Cable also proved to be more impulsive than his older counterpart by attempting to trick the Summoner into blowing himself up. It worked, but the Summoner turned out to be nearly invulnerable. Fortunately, he was only angry for a short period of time.

The ending of the issue suggests that the enemy that Apocalypse and his Horsemen faced millenia ago is going to return. Additionally, the Summoner indicates that the Horsemen remain in the other realm and they are losing their ability to hold the monsters back. This may become an X-Men problem sooner rather than later. There have also been a few hints from Sinister that INFERNO may come back to haunt the X-Men. Could these monsters actually be demons from Limbo? If so, who's leading them now? If not, what are their true origins? 

The answers are coming in the Dawn of X.

Read X-MEN #2 in full at your local comic shop today! Then continue the Dawn of X by pre-ordering MARAUDERS #4!