Storm #1

[Cable]

Let's party like it's 1983!

Full Spoilers:

Spoiler: show

Storm leads the X-Men into battle against the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. She has directed them each to face specific foes and she flies about assisting them all. Wolverine takes out Blob and Avalanche, though he receives help from Kitty who is supposed to be disrupting Destiny. Colossus takes out Pyro, and Rogue defeats Mystique, but she lets her anger get the best of her and launches the villain into the sky. Nightcrawler then steps in to take out Destiny. With the enemy subdued, Storm demands to know what they were after. Mystique claims they were tracking a new mutant that needs help, but Wolverine claims Pyro spilled to him that they were actually hired to draw the X-Men into a fight. He then snatches a nearby robotic bat that he says must have recorded the encounter. Mystique destroys the device and claims the X-Men played right into their hands; the Brotherhood was only defeated because they pulled their punches to please the client. The villains then launch a last diversionary attack and flee. Storm is psionically contacted by Professor X, who tells her she can't always rely on his abilities to telepathically move bystanders out of the area but otherwise she did excellent and should proceed with a post-battle evaluation. She scolds Colossus for tunnel vision and not enough finesse, dresses down Rogue for her overkill attack and showboating, and then demands an explanation from Kitty for why she did not follow orders. Kitty says she improvised her own idea and then angrily says isn't that what Storm is about, making abrupt changes? Storm tells her she follows orders or she is out. Kitty outright says she doesn't trust Storm because Ororo is always changing who she is; Kitty brings up Storm's recent changes in behavior and appearance, her conflicting leadership of the Morlocks, and her wild jaunts with Yukio. Storm tells Kitty to grow up and Pryde storms off into the arms of Colossus. Storm tells everyone to take a break, Professor X will see to it that the damage to the area is fixed. Rogue questions why and Storm says Xavier believes they should be accountable for their actions. Rogue flies off rather than listen to a lecture. Wolverine then tells Storm that he thinks she went too tough on teenage Kitty, and besides the kid has a point that Storm's turn to the 'anarchy vibe' was pretty abrupt. She takes his advice into consideration and then asks how he is doing after what happened with Mariko. He says it wasn't meant to be as he takes a swig of his beer. He asks how she is and she says she misses Kenya. Wolverine says it never sat right with him how Xavier took her away from her people. She says she was too young to resist, but regardless being worshipped as a goddess only kept people away from her. She then goes for a swim but gets caught in a violent undertow and thoughts race through her mind about whether she overuses her power. She makes it out of the water, but then when she sees a wave about to hit a woman and a child she uses her powers to split the water. She then again wonders why she didn't just physically help them. Elsewhere on the beach a couple of bigots accost Nightcrawler but he leaves one of them embarrassed in the water. A girl tries to flirt with him but he politely declines her advances. Clouds then gather as Storm returns to the group. Kitty has some snide remarks about Storm's motorcycle but Ororo just drives off without a word. Kitty then asks Rogue to take her out on a rebellious night on the town. Rogue is reluctant because of how the group views her as a former villain, but Kitty convinces her. Meanwhile Storm ends up meeting a guy named Travis who is repairing his motorcycle on the side of the road. He turns out to be a climate scientist in town for an expo. He is showing off nanotech that he developed that is capable of various environmental solutions, like purifying air, seeding clouds, or absorbing toxic spills. He says he was out today analyzing some strange undertows that could indicate global oceanic problems. He then asks her if she is who he thinks she is. She confirms she is Storm. He questions her appearance and she says she no longer goes about costumed: mutants should be proud to be themselves. The two then ride their bikes together. Late that night Storm arrives back at the mansion and soon after so do Rogue and Kitty. Rogue is drunk and Kitty has changed her hair and gotten tattoos. Storm is furious and says Kitty must remove the ink. Kitty mocks her for disapproving of a fashion change, but Storm says it is about having identifying marks that make her vulnerable in public. Xavier orders Kitty and Rogue upstairs. Storm is not happy about him stepping on her authority but Wolverine tells her to drop it. Storm then notices on tv a story about a rogue wave and again has anxiety that it may be unintended consequences of her using her powers. We then go to Xavier and Kitty and she is telling him to read Storm's mind to figure out what is going on with her. He says that would be an invasion of privacy and she claims he does it all the time. He says he does so only when there are no other options. He calls her out for deliberately provoking Storm and then sends for Rogue to come in next. Storm drives to find Travis's houseboat. It is storming outside even though the weather was supposed to be clear. She frets about the effects of her powers and suddenly it begins hailing huge chunks of ice. Some nearby people recognize her and shout for her to stop doing this. A mysterious caped creature then swoops in and says he will help. He prevents the people from getting hit and they plead for him to stop Storm. Claiming to be the master of the sky, he comes at her. She shoots lightning at him but it is diverted into a nearby boat. As the vessel bursts into flames she can see the fear on people's faces. She leads the creature out to sea and whips up a whirlwind. The other being seems to turn the tables however as she ends up being the one caught in the vortex, and she plummets down into the ocean!

This is a fun nostalgia trip but you do have to reframe your mind to the writing of that time or it will be a bit jarring lol. Most notably Kitty Pryde being written like a child. That used to be her portrayal but she is never written that way anymore. I actually think overall there used to be more of a differentiation between character voices than there is now. Though of course this also comes with some cheesiness at times (Colossus defining a foreign word to his foe after he uses it? classic!). Personally I love these trips down memory lane. I know some aren't keen on minis like this because much of the dramatic tension is removed when you know it can't break too far from the storyline we already know. But I still think it has some value when you consider it in relation to last week's issue of X-Men. Storm is a character that is still going through a process of evolution to this day, and it is useful to look back at some of the past phases she has gone through and how it informs who she is now.