{"id":6744,"date":"2021-06-03T22:18:50","date_gmt":"2021-06-03T21:18:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.housetoastonish.com\/?p=6744"},"modified":"2021-06-03T22:18:50","modified_gmt":"2021-06-03T21:18:50","slug":"x-force-20-annotations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.housetoastonish.com\/?p=6744","title":{"rendered":"X-Force #20 annotations"},"content":{"rendered":"

As always, this post contains spoilers, and page numbers go by the digital edition.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>X-FORCE vol 6 #20
\n“The Secret Garden”
\nby Benjamin Percy, Joshua Cassara & Guru-eFX<\/strong><\/p>\n

PAGE 1 \/ COVER.<\/strong> X-Force work security at the Hellfire Gala, which apparently means skintight tuxedos. Quentin has a psionic velvet rope. The invitation in the foreground is the same as the one shown as a data page in\u00a0Marauders<\/em> #21.<\/p>\n

PAGES 2-4.<\/strong>\u00a0Kid Omega greets guests.<\/em><\/p>\n

This is an expanded version of a scene from\u00a0Marauders<\/em> #21. In this version, Iron Man gets a bit more space in which to explain\u00a0why<\/em> he isn’t wearing the Krakoan flower or using their portal – basically, he knows a tracking device when he sees one, and he quite understandably doesn’t trust the Krakoans an inch. This being\u00a0X-Force<\/em>, the book will go on to confirm that he’s absolutely right.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Iron Man is a fairly logical choice to be the superhero who pointedly refuses to play along – he’s a scientist, he’s hyper-intelligent, and he’s stroppier than Reed Richards. But it might also be significant that Krakoa has always been about organic tech as an alternative to human technology (presumably because of fears of AI). Iron Man is perhaps the least Krakoan superhero imaginable.<\/p>\n

Clearly visible among the guests on page one are some of the other Avengers (Hulk, Ghost Rider and Captain Marvel) plus the Thing; others are too sketchy to identify, and there are a whole bunch of people in generic white dresses who could be anyone.<\/p>\n

PAGES 5-6.<\/strong> Sage checks in on Wolverine.<\/em><\/p>\n

Wolverine is taking delivery of a pile of “logic diamonds” from the Shi’ar. This is presumably the gift that Emma was offered in\u00a0Marauders<\/em> #21 by a Shi’ar dignitary, which she didn’t remember asking for – it all sounds as if this is heading somewhere.<\/p>\n

Logic diamonds are used as data storage for Cerebro, as first mentioned in\u00a0Powers of X\u00a0<\/em>#5. As Forge pointed out in that issue, the memory demands of Cerebro exceed anything that could be done with Earth technology. Apparently, Christian Frost is going to take these things to “the cradles” – i.e., to Cerebro.<\/p>\n

So a bunch of Shi’ar logic diamonds of dubious provenance are about to be connected to Cerebro, from the sound of it. That sounds like it’ll end well.<\/p>\n

PAGES 7-8.<\/strong>\u00a0Domino encounters the Terra Verde diplomats.<\/em><\/p>\n

These guys are basically mind-controlled zombies, and we can see part of the “telefloronic” Terra Verden technology on them in close-up.<\/p>\n

This picks up on the storyline from issues #6, #9 and #10. In short, Terra Verde had a rival version of organic technology, which didn’t quite work. Nonetheless, the Beast decided that it was a threat to Krakoan dominance, and needed to be got rid of. If they got it to work, it would provide a non-mutant alternative to Krakoa’s medicine supplies, and destroy Krakoa’s leverage. Unfortunately, Beast’s attempts to manipulate the technology for its own end went badly wrong, and led to the telefloronics running wild and taking over the whole country. (From the sound of it, they thoughtfully stopped at the border, which is nice.)<\/p>\n

Issue #10 ended with X-Force defeating the telefloronics, and Jean saying that “Maybe they [the people of Terra Verde] can be free now, though something tells me Beast would prefer to make the nation into an extended republic of Krakoa. But that’s out of my hands now.”<\/p>\n

Evidently, Beast has done exactly that and essentially annexed the country. This is straining credibility even on the current moral framework for the Beast, and that’s even before you bear in mind that Sage is involved. The previous arc did leave it open as to how badly damaged the Terra Verde people were, so I suppose you might make a case that they\u00a0couldn’t<\/em> be fully restored, but if that’s the idea, it’s not an argument that Beast makes in this issue.<\/p>\n

PAGE 9.<\/strong>\u00a0Domino enters the main hall.<\/em><\/p>\n

To be honest, this doesn’t actually look all that busy for a reception…? At any rate, among the recognisable characters (and ignoring some Madrox duplicates serving as waiters) are:<\/p>\n