You probably know the drill by now. Messiah Complex has been nothing if not remarkably consistent. Tight plotting, strong focus on certain characters, it’s all here, again. Though I find myself wishing certain parts of it would hurry up a little.

This being the X-Factor issue, I kind of expected us to get a tight focus on the X-Factor characters, especially Layla and Madrox-2 in the future they’re visiting, where mutants are huddled in internment camps and even mentioning the word gets you arrested by the government. Unfortunately, rather than any resolution, we just get another little chapter and the rest of the story, once again, is coming in another issue.

X-Factor readers who aren’t following the crossover are sure to be feeling a little bit annoyed by this issue, which sees the series hi-jacked by the rest of the X-Universe. Writer Peter David does manage to throw in some interesting tid-bits regarding the nature of Layla’s power, as well as a sequence where a mutant on the run from Predator-X contacts X-Factor for help in a nod to the usual premise of the title, but he’s well out of luck and most of the X-Factor cast doesn’t appear at all. This issue would’ve been a nice place to tie up the loose end of what Rictor’s doing now that his cover in the Purifiers is blown, for instance, even if just to show him being sent away.

Wolfsbane’s role in the X-Force team will also be of interested to X-Factor readers. They only get one scene, but it’s good to see people addressing Warpath’s history with Cable (in a previous version of the X-Force team) and showing Wolverine’s often-neglected leadership skills. Speaking of leadership, Cyclops finally proves that not only has he grown a pair, he’s grown several, by kicking Patrick Stewart (er, I mean, Xavier, as rendered in full TNG glory by artist Scott Eaton) out of HIS OWN MANSION, sick of the old man whining that it’s gotten all draughty and he can’t find his cardigans since the place was destroyed by sentinels. That subplot is going somewhere big, I can feel it, and at this point that’s what I’m most interested in.