Cyclops #3

By Greg Rucka, Russell Dauterman and Chris Sotomayor

There seems to be this common misconception that’s been going around that Wolverine is the only member of the X-Men capable of holding a solo title, or three. Marvel has tried to push other characters, like Cable and Gambit, who have had several solo series cancelled, but Cyclops and Storm are finally getting their chance to show they are just as cool as Wolverine, and so far it’s been good.

This teen version of Scott has found his sense of humor a lot earlier than adult Cyclops as Greg Rucka manages to show us while he writes a letter to his old pals at the Weapon-X base. Rucka writes Scott like a curious teenager, which works well in this series, as he is very time displaced. Corsair also comes off great this issue and Rucka gives us a very well thought out and reasonable explanation as to how he is still alive and what he’s been juicing on. This all leads to a very epic and well written part of the book where a father and son have a real conversation. That’s the great thing about Cyclops, Rucka doesn’t force anything, everything feels very natural. Greg did a phenomenal job this issue illustrating how an honest conversation can build trust and faith in one another. An excellent job by an excellent talent.

Russell Dauterman is going to be a star in this industry and he is growing up before our eyes. Everything about this issue screams perfection and it is all due to his amazing talent. There are times when Corsair looks like he was drawn by John Cassaday this issue. We are treated to a an awesome two page splash as Corsair remembers how he died, which is highlighted by several past images. Dauterman also gives us a sweet spaceship crash that has some off kilter panels, which just adds to the coolness of the page. The colors by Chris Sotomayer ‘s colors give Dauterman’s pencils more life as we are treated to a spectacle on every page. This truly was a great issue all around and the talent deserves tons of credit for a job well done.

For an issue that had barely an action, it kicked butt in every aspect. Rucka’s story and emotion was drawn beautifully by Dauterman. Everything clicked this issue and this is by far the best of the series so far. Next month will be hard to top, but if there is a team that can do it, it’s Rucka and Dauterman.