Review by Karl Verhoven

Many years ago Jean Grey died tragically, and Louise Simonson was the leading writer on her return several years later, after which she wrote the character for several years in X-Factor. She’s someone who knows Jean’s personality and picks her up again on the verge of death. The circumstances were seen in Hellfire Gala: Fall of X, but this isn’t so much about imminent demise than a crowd pleasing trawl through Jean’s past as reflected in a twisted mirror.

Although it’s not necessary to know, Simonson is reflecting the whole ethos of the X-Men since House of X/Powers of X by looking at how alternate versions of the future might play out. She begins with the point where the trainee X-Men at the start of their careers return from their own spell in the future and investigates the steps Jean takes in attempting to avoid the tragedies they’ve learned about. In one sense it’s recycling a regular X-Men plot asking how much bad is permissible in serving the greater good, but there’s a pull toward tragedy.

It’s a schizoid performance from Bernard Chang on the art. Some pages memorably recycle great X-Men moments of the past, or variations of them, while others are resolutely ordinary, telling the story via head and shoulder views at close quarters. When he’s good he’s good, often on montage pages, but this isn’t an artist willing to put in the consistent effort he did in younger days.

Simonson has a clever revelation to tie together this selection of alternate scenarios featuring the first appearance of the Phoenix, a confrontation with her clone Madelyne Pryor, and the manifestation of several other alternates. “Maybe it wasn’t all up to me” is a key statement beginning a healing process enabling Jean to move forward. The enigmatic ending is also good, leaving the character for someone else to pick up and direct as they will.

Flames of Fear is dressed in the livery of recent X-Men graphic novels, but because it dwells largely on pivotal moments from the past, this is recommended to X-Men fans who like the character, but who’ve not connected with the world built since 2019.