X-23 #1 is a fantastic issue from start to finish. Tamaki does Laura justice with some truly amazing writing. Juann Cabal adds some stunning visuals which are sure to please. Don't sleep on this book! Read Full Review

X-23 #1 is a promising start to a new adventure for the former Wolverine, establishing her place within the world of the X-Men while still setting her apart and defining her. Heres hoping that this great new series finds an audience, and that the continuing story isnt sidelined by any continuing larger drama of the X-Men line. Read Full Review

X-23 is a book for anyone and everyone. Mariko Tamaki turned in a great and funny script that really captures the youth of Laura and Gabby. The pencils and colors made the issue an even better read because they leap out of the book and grab your attention. This is a very promising start to a new series for a great character. Read Full Review

X-23 is in really good hands with the new creative team, who debut with a very strong and fun first issue. There is some room for improvement going forward, and I'm confident this team can pull it off. Read Full Review

I've enjoyed X-23's adventures over the years but she's never been a character I've cared about. Tamaki in one issue has me beginning to care about her. There's a focus on character as well as the action and together it creates a comic that's a wonderful read and fantastic debut. Read Full Review

A strong intro issue that establishes the main characters and the general premise of the book. Read Full Review

X-23 #1 is a strong debut for Laura and Gabby carving out their own path. Where Wolverine and others have slacked off fighting back the manipulation of mutant genes, this series now addresses that problem again with greater importance. Everything about X-23 and Honey Badger was fun, be it their personality or love for doing what they do best. Read Full Review

This is definitely a good jumping on point for new readers to Laura and Gabby, and the pieces have been set up for a pretty good story. However, the one thing I really wanted to know going into this was why Laura is back to being known as X-23 when much of her recent history has been about leaving that name behind. Read Full Review

X-23 channels the appeal of All-new Wolverine rather than trying to be drastically different. Read Full Review

Final Verdict: 8.0 " Awkward title aside, this is a strong start to the continuing adventures of Laura and Gabby as the creative team mine new areas of emphasis in the characters. Read Full Review

I'd like to see Lara go the distance again as she did in her All-New Wolverine book. However, it's too early to tell. Usually with a new series, longevity is determined by the 5th or 6th issue solicitation orders from Diamond. Usually by then, Marvel and DC decide if a new series is worth pursuing. More than enough time for a comic to pick up with the reader market. The book is indeed worth your time and hard-earned coin. Read Full Review

This is without a doubt one of the strongest debuts I have seen from Marvel following 'A Fresh Start.' Read Full Review

The proverbial great-jumping-on-point, with a lot of fun Laura/Gabby moments and an intriguing new mission. Read Full Review

X-23 #1 is a great starting point for X-Men fans to get into Laura Kinney's ongoing adventures. Mariko Tamaki did a great job building off the momentum Tom Taylor created for Laura's character over in All-New Wolverine for this new series. The integration of the X-Men and Alchemax was seamlessly handled as Tamaki built a story that fans can instantly invest in. If you are an X-Men fan I highly recommend checking X-23 out. Read Full Review

Mariko Tamaki and Juann Cabal show they're more than capable of continuing to build on what Tom Taylor accomplished. X-23 starts off as a perfect compliment to and evolution of All-New Wolverine. This issue should satisfy Laura's fans, X-Men fans, and newcomers to the character. Read Full Review

I guess we'll see if Tamaki can carry the series as well as Thompson did with All-New Wolverine, it had left a lot skeptical. Cabal continues to have strong and awesome art. I think it has great potential to be as awesome as ANW was and we can look forward to great villains. Read Full Review

In the end, it's just business as usual. X-23 #1 is a solid issue. I wish the were more behind the start of a new series but continuing the same kind of storytelling we got in All-New Wolverine isn't bad either. Also, without spoiling too much, the villains for this first arc are an excellent choice. They play well thematically to Laura's story and I can't wait to see more as they come head to head with Laura and Gabby. Read Full Review

With a new creative team and story, X-23 #1 brings the characters we know into another fantastic issue for Marvel's "Fresh Start" realunch. Read Full Review

My big question remains why Laura would take back the X-23 name after so directly rejecting it in the last book. It's not by any means a flaw of the book itself, but it's definitely an issue we're seeing within Marvel of hammering the Reset Button so liberally. Combined with the fact we never got to see the moment Laura decided to become Wolverine, it only emphasizes the sense that her stint was simply filler, and that they never intended to take her seriously in the role.

I Love wolverine and the wolverine family so i always read anything that has to do with them. this is a great start to this volume i love honey badger in this she cracks me up and i thought the story with the cuckoos was very interesting

X-23 is part of Marvel’s Fresh Start initiative and the best relaunch issue thus far. This features a new creative team: Mariko Tamaki, Juann Cabal and Nolan Woodard. Tamaki is also writing Hunt for Wolverine: The Claws of a Killer.

This could have been a simple plot. Laura and Gabby are trying to keep what happened to them from happening to anyone else. The first part of the comic focuses on a fight with some baddies that possess mutant DNA. Luckily the comic gets more complex and unsettling. A plot involving the Stepford Cuckoos unfolds, weaving through narratives of birthdays.

Tamaki writes both Laura and Gabby true to the characters we saw in All-New Wolverine. Their sisterly love and interactions are evident. Gabby is annoying as always, eager and childlike while Laura is firm, but warm-hearted. The two share lunch together or a bed before Gabby falls asleep.

X-23 kicks off with a 18 page panel of Laura reflecting on her origins. The fragmented layout reflects the way she narrates her story in segments of births and deaths, a central theme of this issue. Next is a full page spread of Laura and Gabby soaring through the sky, broken glass and bullets hitting them. It’s clear from the first two pages that the art and coloring of this book is going to be amazing. And it is throughout. Artist Jaunn Cabal pays excellent attention to the details. Strands of hair, soles of shoes, the movement of broken glass, and blood are all illustrated. The details don't miss the server wearing a branded t-shirt that says XXIII.

Norwood’s coloring is fantastic AF as well. He does a fantastic job with the Stepford Cuckoos. They have a porcelain and glassy appearance that makes them look creepy in school. Also it’s dope that you can tell they’re wearing leather pants for their uniform. There’s enough cool little details to play I SPY: try and find a copy of Tamaki’s novel or a Wolverine phone! Cabal draws the more disturbing scenes with the Cuckoos in a creepy way.

There’s humor in the issue that isn’t overdone. This is a well rounded comic. The different narratives balance a type of body horror, action, and slice-of-life scenes.

The only thing lacking is the length of the initial fight scene. It it felt =a little too long, but the art was great so it didn't feel too burdensome. X-23 is a great start to this new series.

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Laura and Gabby are back in action with a clone-centric story that has a big role for the Stepford Cuckoos. Quality characterization, an intriguing plot, and some pretty gorgeous art all conspire to make this great. In the minus column, there are a few moments of stiffness in the big action scene, but they are more than made up for by exceptional character art throughout.

I am very happy with this fresh Start. Tamaki still remains true to the tone that brought success to Tom Taylor's run. My hope is that they can keep in strong contact about the ongoing story because Taylor continues to write my favorite Marvel team book in X-men Red and that book still uses Laura and Honey Badger quite well and keeping continuity would be nice. Mariko Tamaki is setting up an interesting story with the Stepford Cuckoos and I felt a little horror influence in the story.

I have been such a fan of X-23 and honestly, I have yet to read a story around this character that didn't like. Each Run with her has been good to great and I think that is a testament to how well thought and round a character that she is. Tamaki and Cabal (Which sounds like an action movie) really understand the history of the material they are working with. I personally didn't need Logan to return from the dead. I felt covered. Fans have seen Laura grow over years. Each writer thoughtfully built on the last. Laura grew up and became more than a killer. Logan was given a good story and a good death. I can understand why many are happy he is coming back and why many are happy with the return of FF and Galaticus and Silver Surfer as a duo again. For me I like moving forward and giving characters a real ending.

X-23 I hope has a long run and I am fine with the title, but like so many who loved Laura's story I really hope that even if the book keeps the same title (I think probably should) that Laura gets a codename we can all stick with.

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I thought I was gonna miss Laura's ternure as Wolvie, but this book has made me feel that she hasn't gone anywhere

going in with much dread... I've never liked any X-Men, and HATED Wolverine... but omg Tom Taylor made me LOVE Laura as Wolverine, and Gabby is the best ever. that book was fabulous and if it had continued I could see the Laura/Gabby team becoming my favorite book. easy. now.. back to her old name that I never read her as, and a new creative team... of course it seems to me like they are making a change that can't possibly be anything other that poop. here goes.

cover: not bad. not what I'm used to. ok...

interior art: ugh. this is going to be one of those "pastel color books?" groan. it seems like they do that when you're not supposed to take a book seriously or they just don't care enough to do real art. I'm sad already. but I love the characters! ok let's read it now...

first page does a great job giving an overview of the character. then a nice action scene. I really dislike the art. besides being the pastel thing.. I just can't quite make out what is going on from panel to panel.

and Gabby is still the best. "he smells like a band-aid" LOL

and tho I really wish it was better art, the art around the Gabby vs Band-Aid guy isn't bad at all. and the writing is good, making my enjoyment distract me from the art.

the art gets MUCH better around where she meets Beast. and they meet the Stepford Cukoos and that's strange. they celebrate today as their birthday, which makes it worth mentioning that at the start it said that this was Laura's birthday too. she doesn't talk about it so Gabby doesn't know....

and.. wow. we get to the meat of the story. I hate that they're gonna be against the cuckoos because I want to like them, but... any enemy of Laura and Gabby is by definition a bad guy :)

anyway... Laura's mission is to track down everyone dealing with her clone blood and put an end to it. now she's tracking a scientist that is missing. turns out the Cuckoos have her and are using her to try and remake the two of them that died. and it isn't going so great, and now they're using X-23 blood? so this will bring them into conflict. also the two dead ones are back, but very old and dying again and one of them secretly decides to kill the other of them to try and survive.

I'm in!
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I loved All New Wolverine but Cabal wasn't a good fit in it. So I decide to try this story with some huge brakes.
But I find Cabal more interesting there. The expression he give Gabby made my heart melting.
I was also interested by Tamaki approach. This true their is some major link between Laura & the Cuckoos. And it's nice to underline this.
I'm not a fan of Sophie & Esme return even if that give motive & something interesting. I hope all the Cuckoos will not turn chased at the end. Only Esme (Like always) seem the dark one.

Cover - Not a bad cover, not a very good too. Too random & not in link. 1/2
Writing - Well done because going after Tyler wasn't easy (Even Tyler didn't convince me with his use of both character in X-Men red). I'm very hooked. 3/3
Arts - Like I said Cabal was better. Not perfect. Or in fact not sometime the kind of art I like (More close to Cassaday or Quitely). 2.5/3
Feeling - I will follow it with interest. 2/2 more

Good start by Tamaki. I'm hoping we get to explore more about what happened to get us here. I love the X involvement here and i'm on board. Cabal's art is spot on and fits the book well. The intro pages alone are worth it. Woodard's colors are just perfect on Cabal's art and set the tone throughout.

This is pretty good, there were some really good moments, and some things I'm not so sure about. Not big into the Cuckoos being here, but maybe they'll make it work.

Bringing Honey Bagder into this book almost ruins it. I'm not sure if this decision was Tamaki's or if it was mandated by editorial, but it drags down what otherwise would have been a pretty good book. X-23 was always written as a very dark, borderline sociopathic character for a decade before Brian Michael Bendis decided to denude her of any personality in his All New X-Men. Tom Taylor doubled down on this terrible development by creating Honey Badger, a character who seemingly exists simply for Laura to have inane conversations with her. Mariko Tamaki should do herself a favor and kill off Honey Badger ASAP.

Otherwise, the art was pretty great. I also liked how the Stepford Cuckoos have returned to being more or less identical. Another Bendis sin was when he tried to give the three remaining Cuckoos individual looks and personalities. But by making them distinct from each other, he removed the thing that made them different from all the other students, and that made them boring. I hate Bendis so much. Kudos to Tamaki for going full Cuckoo. more

I honestly don't see the buzz for this issue. The art was certainly great, but the story was bland and uninteresting. If you like listening to X-23 and Honey Badger banter for 20 pages, then this is the issue for you. It has a really good story going for the Stepford Cuckoos, but I was already too bored and too done with the issue to care about that. X-23's internal monologue was also very good but suffered from the same problem as the Cuckoos. But, hey, at least the art was great.

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• duBEARck

daddyT - Jul 14, 2018

heh :) we are the opposite. the art is going to have to grow on me, but the story was great for me. then again, I fell in love with the characters during Tom Taylor's run. I was really dreading "losing them" in this run. to each his own I guess.

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