Polybagged and distributed with “playing cards,” X-Force #1 was designed and promoted as an event.
As an actual comic book, though, it’s just meh. The new team, led by Cable and joined by Feral, Boom Boom, Cannonball, Warpath, Domino, and Shatterstar, go after bad guys before the bad guys go after X-Force. That’s basically the whole premise.
In this issue, they trash the Mutant Liberation Front. Here’s Shatterstar vs Reaper:
And Feral vs Wildside.
If you like that kind of art, this is for you.
X-Force is trying to capture Stryfe–Cable’s very interested in Stryfe as a target, not just because he leads the MLF.
With Thumbelina as his second. And not just because he looks ridiculous.
It’s because, and we as readers don’t know this yet, he’s Nathan’s clone. I think. We do learn, through a flashback, that Stryfe led a team where Cable’s son, Tyler, was killed. It gets extremely confusing because all of this happened in the future, and Tyler comes back to our time as “Tolliver,” who hires Deadpool to go up against Cable.
Before X-Force can capture them, Unit Zero creates a portal.
When he learns of their existence, the ridiculously overmuscled SHIELD Commander G. W. Bridge, in his first appearance, vows to bring X-Force to justice.
Yes, GW Bridge. His full name: George Washington Bridge. No joke.
Maybe that’s why he just wants to be called “George.” At the end of the issue, he calls for “Weapon X.” We don’t know what he’s talking about yet.
There’s also a set-up for the next story, with Black Tom kidnapping Sunspot and Gideon.
Gideon and Sunspot are media partners.
It’s interesting to see Roberto being mentored by someone in the ways of business and mutant-powers.
It’s a rare Black Tom appearance without Juggernaut.