Robb Ghag reviews Wolverine and the X-Men Annual #1…
“The Avengers find an unlikely ally against the forces of the Builders-KID GLADIATOR! What has the prince of the Shi’Ar Empire been up to since he left the Jean Grey School?“
Over the past few months the Infinity storyline throughout the Marvel Universe has crossed over into many titles. The storyline itself has been amazing, but during many of the side plots, it didn’t feel to push the actual storyline forward.
Cut to Wolverine and the X-Men Annual #1. While Jason Aaron has been doing amazing stuff with this title, this story seemed a bit forced, just in order to accentuate the “Infinity” crossover.
Having said that this one off story is actually a pretty great read. It delves into the life of Kid Gladiator, and how he ascends the ranks of the Imperial Guard, and joins his father battling Thanos’ armada and the Builders.
Not knowing a great deal about Kubark (aka “Kid Gladiator”) this story was a great glimpse into his backstory, but mainly his relationship to the Shiar Empire and his father, the Emperor.
The artwork was great and as far as the sci-fi aspect of intergalactic battles go, it pays off visually. Great artwork all around by Nick Bradshaw.
Despite the fact that this was an Infinity crossover book, I think it would have played off equally as well if it was simply the Shiar battling some other worldly villains. Still, not a bad companion piece for those collecting Infinity books, and Wolverine and the X-Men issues.
Robb Ghag works for an Arts & Entertainment Brokerage in Toronto Canada. An Animation and Film school graduate, he specializes in Risk Management of Animation and VFX studios throughout North America.
Originally published December 5, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
