Champions #12: Cyclops Cuts Loose!

I know this one came out in September and I’m behind, but I’m trying to catch up!

The Cover

Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado put together this issue’s cover, and it did draw me in.  For a character I’ve hated for years, Cyclops can sure be the centerpiece for a great cover.  Even more so now that he doesn’t suck like he did in the 90’s.  It’s a reddish tinged view of him using his optic blasts, and looks great.  It speaks to conflict within the issue, and with the look on Slim’s face, you get the impression it’s something serious.  It also made me think of an old X-Men issue I picked up from the bargain bin years ago.  X-Men 44.  I can’t remember the story in that issue, but this cover brought it to mind.  I know Cyclops is a hell of a lot more likeable than he was twenty years ago, and that’s a good thing.

The Art

Ramos also serves as the artist throughout this book, and like his previous work in the series it looks good.  The art isn’t overly realistic, but hey, it’s a comic book, and a lighter toned one at that, it doesn’t need to be.  There is also a lot of colour throughout the issue, and lots of good contrast to bring it out, especially on the first page of the issue, which looks gorgeous:

I like the look of this book!

The Story

This issue begins with the team enjoying a karaoke night, and Cyclops of course is sitting on the sidelines, being perpetually afraid to have fun.  They are soon interrupted to go and confront the Psycho-Man(whom I last saw in a story arc in Cable #37-39 if I recall correctly).  Cyclops disarms him by using his optic beam to blast his emotional control box to pieces, and the villain escapes.

Cyclops gets some feedback from the emotional control device, and is all over the place behaviour-wise for the rest of the issue.  He goes from angry, to immature teenager, to morose as the issue continues, and also opens up on why he is so afraid to cut loose to his teammates.  I know he’s done this numerous times over the years with numerous teams, but I felt it resonated here better than a lot of other times I’ve read it in the past.

The team then confronts Psycho-Man one last time, and Cyclops, still under the effects of the feedback from the previous encounter, almost kills the guy.  His teammates however step in and prevent this, knowing that this isn’t the ‘real’ Scott Summers, and the villain is defeated, no one crosses a line, and all ends safe and sound.

All said and done this was a really good issue, and I continue to enjoy the issues of this series that I pick up.  The next issue is a cross-over with the Avengers, and if I pick it up a review will eventually appear here!