Uncanny X-Men #1 cover With the world once again against mutants, Xavier’s dream is fractured and uncertain, but perhaps the team of Uncanny X-Men #1 can fix that.

After the fall of Krakoa, every mutant has been taking the loss of their home differently. Some like Cyclops dove head-first back into their work, while others have struggled a bit more to find their footing. The likes of Rogue, Wolverine, Gambit, and Nightcrawler are in that latter category, and in Uncanny X-Men #1, we find them inching closer back to helping realize Xavier’s dream in a world that once again hates and fears them — arguably more than ever, now that the X-Mansion is being converted into a maximum security prison. Where do you go after every place you’ve ever called home is gone? That seems to be a guiding question of this story.

Having now read this after several other titles in the relaunch, I think adjectiveless X-Men and Uncanny are going to have the most work cut out for them insomuch as distinguishing their editorial identities. Part of what made the Krakoa era work so well was that each new series came with a clear mission statement and purpose in their insular world, an aspect I feel is more ambiguous here The author notes at the end state that Rogue and Cyclops will serve as analogues to Xavier and Magneto, respectively, in this new status quo, and that’s an intriguing proposal I suppose comes across in hindsight. Cyclops’ team is more purpose-led and operates out of a creepy old Orchis base, while Rogue & Co. take a more humanistic approach offering shelter to mutants with no place else to go on a homey Southern stead now that both Krakoa and the X-Mansion are gone. If the creators can really convey these tones moving forward then I think they’ll each hit their stride sooner than later.

In any event, Gail Simone’s script is quality work, and her reverence for the characters comes across without being overly cloying or deferential to past iterations of the team. For all the wringing about this new era being uninspired or disappointing compared to what preceded it, I actually think Simone’s new role as one of the overseers of From the Ashes is fairly unexpected in a good way. She hasn’t done much recent Marvel work compared to some of her colleagues here and thus brings a fresh perspective I’m interested in seeing more of. David Marquez’s visuals here are also fantastic, which isn’t necessarily a surprise but still a welcome thing. Every scene of the book is richly detailed —especially with Matthew Wilson’s colors— and he gets to do a lot in just this first issue: villains, actions, dragons(!), and expressive character moments are just the top of the list. It’s an overall package well worth checking out and deserving of the Uncanny name.