Reviewer: Kevin S. Mahoney
Title: World Tour 2099 Conclusion
Written by: Tony Bedard
Penciled by: Jim Calafiore
Inked by: Mark McKenna
Colored by: Tom Chu
Lettered by: Dave Sharpe
Editor: Mike Marts
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Exiles has been hopping from reality to reality for its entire run. The big difference between the majority of the series and the current mega-arc is that the team is now hopping from known reality to known reality. The team visited the “normal” Marvel Universe for an arc. They returned to it, only to find the House of M in power. From there, they visited that 1980’s relic, the New Universe. This issue mark the end of their time in the future universe of 2099.
Fans of the 2099 imprint ought to be glad to see their old friends, if only for a brief period. The corporate rule of the period is well in evidence. The major financial players all get face time, as does the lynchpin of the imprint, Spider-Man 2099. The unique slang dialogue returns but doesn’t overpower the proceedings.
The setting buffets the proceedings in this installment without overshadowing the ongoing plot of containing and defeating Proteus. Kevin MacTaggert has taken the most powerful host of the reality, and Hulk 2099’s strength combined with Proteus’ reality-warping powers certainly causes the Exiles an appropriate amount of grief. The inclusion of Longshot (of Mojoverse fame) and Miguel O’Hara to the Exiles squad certainly makes for a more diverse team.
The removal of Spider-Man 2099 from his reality in what appears to be a very early stage of the imprint could cause serious continuity headaches further down the line, if Miguel O’Hara is not somehow returned before his abduction ever takes place. It’s either a head scratcher that will work itself out, or a violation of an extinct continuity. It certainly makes the next leg of the world tour, as well as its eventual resolution, more interesting.
The art in this issue meets reader expectation for a great book, and certainly exceeds the B-list status that Exiles has been saddled with for much of its existence. Calafiore’s pencils are always a treat, as his level of detail and sheer ability to realistically display the fantastic (like a vomiting office building) make any action sequence remarkable.
Chu’s colors compliment the fantastic vistas pencilled by Calafiore, making this future of the Marvel Universe a suitably energetic place. Sharpe’s lettering seems adequate to the task, if a bit heavy on the sound effects. There is plenty of action in this issue, the onomatopoeias seem extraneous in certain places.
The World Tour arc of Exiles certainly seems content to cavort in each reality with little change to the status quo, other than the death of Mimic. Proteus certainly is a formidable opponent, but one could hope that either the Exiles would have effected the visited realities more strongly, or those realities would have created more turmoil within the team. The ongoing death of Mimic (whose memories and feelings are still influencing Proteus) seems the only internal strife in the book right now. That seems a waste, what with so many rich and conflicting characters to draw upon in the imprints the Exiles are and will be visiting.
