Rating: 2.0/10 (Horrible piece of crap)
"Whose Power?"
Writer: Louise Simonson
Artist: Jon Bogdanove
Inker: Al Gordon
Every so often you come across a story in a great arc that just completely sucks ass! This is that story. But before we get into my complaints, let me give you the synoposis.
The story opens with the Power Pack children watching TV. Mostly, it's just some normal horsing around except when the parents are out of the room, it's horsing around with super powers. They're lucky no one got killed. Someone should have called DCFS on those kids long ago. But I digress. They are put to bed and Franklin Richards is having a sleepover. In the middle of the night, Franklin has one of his "dreams". He projects an image of Leech holding a fallen Caliban. The other boys see this and quickly wake the girls and Franklin. They all put on their magic costumes and head outside and into the sewers. Because nothing says "good parenting" like allowing your 8 year old and younger kids to take a field trip.
Once down in the sewers, they find dead bodies all around. 20 years later they grow up into drug addicts and serial killers.
Sorry.
Elsewhere we are treated to Scalphunter shooting everyone he can see, barely missing Leech and Caliban. The Pack kids continue looking for their Morlock friends when Sabretooth drops in from the ceiling. Katie Power thinks he's Wolverine at first but the kids scatter before the most vicious killer in Marvel comics can even lay a claw on them. Alex Power ("Destroyer") is grabbed before he can zap Sabretooth and Jack uses his gravity powers to slam into the Marauder. Destroyer then uses his power to collapse the tunnel between the kids and Sabretooth. The kids run before he can claw his way through to them. During their trek, they come across a bloody Wolverine. He mentions tracking Sabretooth (never mind that he didn't know 'Tooth was even in the tunnels until a bit later). He then tells the kids to head back to the surface and he then moves on.
Of course these children don't listen to their parents or even common sense, like they're going to listen to Wolverine. They head on, coming across Annalee and her children, dead (again...the children lived... I don't think Simonson really read any of the X-Men issues). Elsewhere, we see X-Factor arriving at their complex with a heard of Morlocks. The four of them (Angel is somewhere in the tunnel) decide to head back to try to find Angel and Artie (of course, we are expected to forget that Cyclops, Beast, and Iceman were all too injured to walk).
The Pack kids finally come across Leech and Caliban. They arrive moments before three Marauders show up: Harpoon, Arclight, and Scrambler. Harpoon throws the opening salvo, missing the kids. Arclight shakes them up with some ground quakes. Scrambler takes out Katie by grabbing her and slamming her into Jack. Julie goes after Arclight, condensing herself into a small, dense form. Arclight smacks her away, but the blow actually breaks Arclight's hand. Destroyern absorbs one of Harpoon's spears and hurls an energy ball at the ceiling, hoping to bury the Marauders. He misses. Jack smashes into Scrambler and then when Arclight attacks, he realizes that his power is so much more useful than just flying and he focuses his power into a fist and knocks Arclight out. Before Harpoon and jump in, an optic blast scares them off. Cyclops and X-Factor show up. Iceman and Beast start to head back to the mansion with Caliban and Leech. This time, the Pack kids listen and agree to head up. Just as the sun is coming up. I don't know about you, but my kids would be cranky as hell at this point.
You may not be able to tell, but I really, really hate this issue. The only reason I don't give it a 1/10 rating (I don't believe in a "zero" rating) is because of the arc it is part of. First of all, the idea of kids, the oldest of whom is 8, fighting super battles is absolutely ridiculous. Kids have virtually no sense of responsibility and often go overboard with things. They have trouble knowing when enough is enough. Throw powers into the mix and you have a deadly combination.
The story has so many continuity issues, it's not even funny. new Mutants #46 had one issue (the whole Illyana/Nightcrawler part) but this one just throws it again and again. I also can't stand how weak the Marauders appear in this issue. Sabretooth is bested by children and Arclight is taken down with one punch, even after she went toe to toe with Colossus. Scrambler also disrupts powers with a touch and yet when Jack struck him it did nothing to Jack.
And then there's the art. Jon Bogdanove is, without a doubt, one of the industry's worst artists to ever get his own book. His faces are distorted, there's very little detail in his art, and everybody looks like they've got a mouthful of walnuts. He should never have been an artist. Simple as that.
This issue was one of the last I ever collected of this story arc. Despite how bad it is, I remember it being somewhat difficult to find, probably because of the low print run. If I could have avoided it, I would have. But it's still part of the story and if you pick up the next chapter, you'll be lost without reading this.
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