Review by Ian Keogh

This volume features the first half of an extended story titled ‘The Beast Agenda’. Readers of other X-Men related titles know the Beast’s views and methods have become increasingly callous as he seems to have lost his conscience. That’s very apparent in the way he manipulates Wolverine, first luring him into a life-threatening situation, then killing him. As per mutant priorities, Wolverine is immediately resurrected in Krakoa, with Beast present.

Benjamin Percy’s mutant works aren’t using text pages as heavily as in earlier collections, but a problem with his writing is occasions when what’s happened isn’t clarified until one of those text page inserts. It happened in X Lives of Wolverine, and in this instance a recap page details why Beast appears to control Wolverine, when this wasn’t apparent from the story content.

Juan José Ryp is new to the X-Men titles, but draws this entire story with some skill and effort. He’s not going to let anyone down when it comes to detail, but his people can be stiff, and expressions copied from visual sources can look fake. These aren’t constant problems, but when you hit one it’s difficult noticing anything else on the page.

Percy’s stories all involve the darker side of mutant life, but ‘The Beast Agenda’ is even grim by his standards. It’ll all come out in the wash somewhere, but there’s little rationalisation for the Beast’s abhorrent change of personality, which is just presented as it is, and so far that’s just too convenient. Maybe the conclusion in Vol. 6 will offer clarity. By the end here we’ve been through death, rebirth, reconfiguration and retribution, but some mysteries still need clearing up.