The X-Men’s latest storyline, “The Age of Revelation,” jumps forward ten years into the future. In this future, a character formerly known as Doug Ramsey, now calling himself Revelation, controls much of the United States, and a deadly virus is spreading. The X-Men are essentially the last heroes standing, struggling to liberate the areas under Revelation’s control and protect the rest of the world. The first issue, *Unbreakable X-Men* #1, focuses on the *Uncanny X-Men* team during this bleak future. While the story starts with a promising setup, it doesn’t quite deliver on its potential, as the writer doesn’t fully explore the possibilities of “The Age of Revelation.”
Gail Simone’s run on *Uncanny X-Men* has been a standout, largely due to her skill at capturing the dramatic, character-focused side of X-Men stories. This issue starts with a genuinely moving moment that’s best experienced firsthand. Simone excels at portraying Gambit’s grief throughout, and that’s the strongest part of the writing. Beyond that, however, this issue doesn’t offer much. It references past storylines, including the highly-regarded “Dark Artery” arc, but feels overly reliant on the book’s history instead of forging a fresh path forward.
A major weakness of “The Age of Revelation” so far is that *Unbreakable X-Men* doesn’t fully utilize its fresh start. The story doesn’t clearly establish who these future X-Men are – are they the same team we know, and what role do they play in the fight against Revelation and within the larger superhero world? Instead, the story feels more like a continuation of “Dark Artery,” featuring Galactus. While that’s a good story on its own, readers unfamiliar with *Uncanny* and new to “The Age of Revelation” will likely miss the significance of the “Dark Artery” plot and struggle to understand why this book matters.
Rating: 3.0 out of 5.0
Pros | Cons |
The art by Lucas Werneck is beautiful | Doesn’t take advantage of “The Age of Revelation”‘s blank slate |
The book hits the right emotional beats | The story so far is a little too opaque to be interesting |
Barely introduces any of the issue’s new characters |
Artist Lucas Werneck Is One of Marvel’s Finest and This Issue Proves It
From the start, *Uncanny X-Men* has been the most visually impressive of the recent X-Men titles, and *Unbreakable X-Men* #1 maintains that standard. Artist Lucas Werneck, who has been drawing the X-Men since the Krakoa Era, delivers beautiful artwork throughout the issue. The story opens with a dynamic battle between Galactus and the team in the rain – a truly exciting scene. My only slight disappointment with the art is that Werneck didn’t update the character designs. While everyone looks fantastic, it would have been great to see him put his creative stamp on their appearances, especially considering his history of designing memorable costumes. It’s not a flaw, just a minor letdown.
While Werneck’s artwork isn’t perfect, its flaws are noticeable in this issue. The action scenes lack a strong sense of movement, feeling more like still images than dynamic fights. However, Werneck’s detailed and precise linework is excellent, minimizing the impact of this issue. Overall, the comic features many beautiful panels that effectively compensate for a weaker storyline.
“The Age of Revelation” feels like a retread of familiar X-Men storylines from the past half-century. While *Unbreakable X-Men* #1 could have taken the story in a new direction, it unfortunately doesn’t offer much that’s surprising. The writer, Simone, seems to have continued the previous narrative rather than using this new arc as a fresh start. Normally, consistency would be positive, but it doesn’t quite work here. The comic is perfectly okay, but it lacks the spark needed to make it stand out.
Unbreakable X-Men #1 is on sale now.
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2025-10-15 14:13