Review: Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men- The Black Vortex

December 21, 2018 ComicBookWire

Quick Summary

Pros: There are fun moments of action throughout the book. The narrative in the book’s second half is interesting and has a few solid twists.

Cons: The book’s first half has a chaotic narrative and a number of contradictions. The central theme of the event is mismanaged and does not come across in the intended fashion. The inconsistent nature of the artwork makes the inconsistent nature of the narrative more noticeable.

Overall: This is a book with more negatives than positives. From the beginning, the narrative is full of problems, as it isn’t that enjoyable to follow and is further hampered by contradictions. As the volume continues, these problems becomes less pronounced but problems with the book’s overall theme become more pronounced. The only real positives here come from a few fun moments of action and a few compelling twists in the book’s second half. If fans are willing to read a book for these positives, they may enjoy this event. However if they are looking for something more, they should look elsewhere.

Story

Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex is a troubled crossover event that struggles to find its footing for the majority of the read. The book’s first half has a poorly structured narrative, lacks focus when it comes to characters, and even contains a number of contradictions. The book also massively stumbles when it comes to the book’s theme, which goes in one direction based on narration but goes in the opposite direction based on actions. The book’s second half reads better and has its share of fun moments, yet not quite enough to make up for the mistakes in the first half. Overall, this event may be good for a few brief moments of entertaining action, not for a compelling and well-structured narrative.

(spoilers start here)

The first half of The Black Vortex is plagued with problems. First off, the narrative is chaotic and all over the place. Characters are immediately broken up into groups and various groups either end up fighting one another or are sent off to participate in different activities. Keeping track of what is going on becomes a nuisance and takes away from the experience. This fractured narrative also leaves little time for individual characters to shine, meaning a few heroes end up hogging the majority of the spotlight.

This portion of the book is also where the bulk of the narrative’s contradictions are found. Readers following along with the plot in The Black Vortex will see Star-Lord and Kitty Pryde fighting in one chapter and then harmlessly flirting in the next chapter. A similar problem happens in regards to Star-Lord’s feelings about the Black Vortex, as he often seems to change his mind regarding how it should be used. These contradictions and inconsistencies further harm an already struggling narrative. Underneath these problems, there are some fun moments of action and some charming character interactions but these are often hidden by the problems.

Luckily, the book’s second half is a bit better and is able to make up for some of the mistakes in the first half. The narrative here is more streamlined and straightforward. This uncomplicates things and allows the reader to simply sit back and enjoy the show. Plus, Kitty’s near-sacrifice and Star-Lord’s proposal both are well-written moments that are fun to see play out. There are still some problems with the consistency of the writing and portrayal of the characters but, overall, this portion of the narrative is much better.

The entire volume also dramatically misses the mark when it comes to theme. The narration and dialogue in The Black Vortex constantly refers to the Vortex in a negative fashion. Characters call it a cheap way to increase power and are often portrayed as triumphant when they are able to resist its influence. However, almost every one of the book’s heroic victories happen when a character succumbs to the Vortex and uses their power against the villains. This happens three times and in each case the mixed signals regarding the book’s theme intensify. By the conclusion of the event, which again sees a hero save the day after using the Black Vortex, I was completely unconvinced as to the morality of using this apparently evil object. Stumbling over such a major element of this book dramatically affects the reading process and lowers the quality of this work as a whole.

(spoilers end here)

Art

The artwork in The Black Vortex features work from a variety of different artists, leading to a variety of different visual qualities. Some chapters, like those from Andrea Sorrentino and Paco Medina, look nice and present unique cosmic visuals. However, other chapters, like the opening chapter from Ed McGuinness, do not look as nice and offer little to the overall visual appeal of the collection.

The one problem that is persistent throughout the read is how dramatically inconsistent the artwork ends up being. There is nothing wrong with switching up visual styles in every chapter of a book; in some cases it can lead to a more unique reading experiences. However, the way it is handled here offers nothing unique and simply makes an already inconsistent read seem even more inconsistent. Going from Andrea Sorrentino’s dark and gritty visuals to Mike Mayhew’s lighthearted visuals is jarring, despite the fact that both artists do a solid job in their respective chapters. The contrast is simply too great between some chapters and leads to a weakened visual appeal.

Continuity

Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex is a crossover event that continues story elements from a number of different comic series. Specifically, this event continues story elements from the opening chapters of Legendary Star-Lord Vol. 2: Rise of the Black Vortex (Review), the opening chapter of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 5: Through the Looking Glass (Review), the opening chapter of All-New X-Men Volume 7: The Utopians, the end of Nova Vol. 5: Axis, the closing chapters of Cyclops Vol. 2: A Pirate’s Life for Me, and the opening chapters of Captain Marvel: Earth’s Mightiest Hero Vol. 4.

The fallout from this storyline is mostly felt in comics related to Star-Lord, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the X-Men. Specifically, fallout is seen in the final chapter of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 5: Through the Looking Glass (Review), the final chapters of All-New X-Men Volume 7: The Utopians, and the final chapter of Legendary Star-Lord Vol. 2: Rise of the Black Vortex (Review).

This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:

Hank McCoy’s decision to bring the X-Men of the past into the present is referenced a number of times. This action took place in All New X-Men Vol. 1: Yesterday’s X-Men.
Thane’s recent struggles and aspects of his current situation are explained in Thanos: A God Up There Listening.
The young Cyclops’s decision to leave the X-Men happened at the conclusion of The Trial of Jean Grey. Meanwhile, his adventures with his father are detailed in Cyclops Vol. 1: Starstruck and Cyclops Vol. 2: A Pirate’s Life for Me.
References are made to Thane’s use of the living death in previous stories. The most significant example of this occurred at the conclusion of the Infinity (Review) event.
At one point, Star-Lord mentions seeing a massively destructive event on Hala. This is likely a reference to the Phalanx invasion at the very beginning of Annihilation: Conquest Book 1 (Review).
Nova mentions having the Ultimate Nullifier in his possession at one point in time. This was in Nova Vol. 1: Origin (Review).
Cyclops mentions his future counterpart being overwhelmed by power. This happened in the Avengers vs. X-Men event.
A reference is made to Captain Marvel’s previous encounter with J’son. This happened in Captain Marvel: Earth’s Mightiest Hero Vol. 3.