Comics: All New X-men #7

Focusing once again (this time basically entirely) on Cyclops from the past, this issue finds him having his first run in with classic villainess Mystique. 

Rather than engage him in combat and get her arse handed to her, Mystique decides to play the long con and turn Cyclops against Wolverine and his school. She also hopes to turn him against his present day self, sparking off the X-men civil war Storm predicted a few issues ago.These scenes work quite well with Mystique attempting to push Scott, at one point shapeshifting in to him to ham the point home of what he should do. It honestly doesn’t feel much like Scott needs this push however. Wolverine has been dogging him since day one and everyone at the school sees him as the villain his future self has become. He’s also already shown disdain with present day Cyclops’ actions, confronting him head on a few issues ago. This makes it seem like a bit of waste of an issue.

The other part of the plot centers on what Scott discovers when he goes to his old safety deposit box, an invitation to his and Jean’s wedding. It’s nice that Scott has finally discovered this bit of his future and he seems a bit pissed that Jean didn’t tell him. There isn’t much else to this subplot though there are some great scenes between young Iceman and Kitty around it.

David Marquez continues to bring strong artwork to the series. His Cyclops looks significantly younger than the main one, helping him stand out in scenes where Mystique shapeshifts in to him. One rather strange move is not showing her transformation in to older Scott, it actually appears that he has shown up. It’s very confusing and throws you out of the story a bit as you have to try and figure out what’s occurred. 

A interesting character study, that unfortunately feels a little irrelevant.