Review: ‘X-Terminators’ #1 Is The Best Kind of Bull$#!+

Look, we’ve known about this series for a very long time. Now we finally get to see it, and let me tell you- X-Terminators is the best kind of comics bull$#!+.

Coming from Leah Williams, Carlos Gomez, Bryan Valenza, and Travis Lanham, this book is a gleefully transgressive debut, and it’s absolutely a book worth picking up.

Dazzler is going through a rough breakup. Thankfully, Jubilee and Boom Boom have just the cure for heartbreak, a Karaoke Night! Unfortunately for this mutant trio, Alison’s newly former boyfriend has a secret- he’s a vampire out for revenge!

Sometimes you just need a silly, over the top, violent comic book, and that’s exactly what this is. It’s full of gross out gags, bleeped out profanity and exaggerated action. Williams just makes this story a massive crack-up and I absolutely love what she does here. It’s crude and gross, but it’s also based strongly on its characters. If Williams didn’t get these three (joined by an unsurprising fourth on the last page), this wouldn’t have worked. It doesn’t have the gut punches that her work is often known for, but it has just as much depth.

Gomez just has an absolute blast drawing it. Each character is completely different in their presence on the page, from their body language, or their clothing, to their body types. He understands who they are in physicality just like Williams does in personality. His action work is great too. He has a fantastic sense for action too. After the team’s kidnapping, each of the trio wake up in a unique death trap, and he lays out each page differently, framing the action in the best way to depict that particular death trap.

Valenza’s colors are bright and a little more flat, which fits the over the top tone of the story. He uses a lot of bright red, which makes the story pop. Lanham’s letters tell the story from Williams’ script, but he’s also able to integrate it into the art. It makes the dialogue feel like a stronger part of the storytelling.

I just had a blast with this one. It’s one of those comics that keeps a smile on your face the whole damn time.

X-Terminators #1 is available now from Marvel Comics.