Fallen Angels #4
Psylocke and X-23 get some answers in Fallen Angels #4, by writer Bryan Hill, artist Szymon Kudranski, colorist Frank D’Armata, and letterer Joe Sabino. Heroes and readers alike get some answers about the origins of Apoth and how Kwannon’s own sense of mercy made all of this possible.
Psylocke and X-23 find the children, but they are standing there eerily as if waiting for the heroes. X-23 doesn’t think they should approach them, surmising that Psylocke has been manipulated this whole time and that this is a trap, but Psylocke convinces her to come along. Elsewhere, Cable is being tortured by the being who took him last issue and decides to use him to send a message to Psylocke. Psylocke and X-23 approach the children. Psylocke starts to talk to the children and Apoth answers, explaining its origins- Kwannon had been sent to destroy it, and its creators, and it tricked her into thinking it was a child when really it was an advanced AI. Kwannon had mercy on it and left, and it was able to escape and begin learning. It decided that it was God, and its purpose was to evolve mankind into something new. Apoth spares the children and tells Psylocke to join it at the temple it will make of a city. It releases Cable, and once it’s all over, Psylocke begins seeing something that no one else can see- a floating, glowing man.
Hill has been using this book to explore who Kwannon is since the first issue. This chapter shows a thread consistent through all of his development of her- a sense of mercy. As much as the Hand tried to make her into their perfect assassin, they couldn’t take it from her. Especially for children, a feeling that was compounded after her own child was taken away from her. Kwannon has no problem killing adults, but children are her weakness. Apoth knows this and has used children throughout the story. Be they known or unknown to her, to move Psylocke around like a piece on a gameboard.
The very concept of Apoth and also fits very heavily into a theme that Hickman brought up in House Of X/Powers Of X- technology as humanity’s only hope against the mutants. Apoth wants to blend humans with technology to make them stronger, but also so it can control them. It thinks it’s God, and this is where it strays from the idea that Hickman used. Hickman presented the symbiosis of humanity and machine as a conscious decision made by humanity so they could stand against mutants. Apoth represents something completely different, something anathema to the idea of symbiosis- a machine consciousness that would ultimately take control of humanity for its own ends. Apoth says it wants to evolve mankind, but there is no benevolence to it- it just wants to have everything so it will never be alone again. This is a fascinating idea, and it works so well because Hill uses a child to say these lines.
The art by Kudranski and D’Armata is spooky and atmospheric, and it fits the story of a rogue intelligence and its twisted prophecies. Kudranski’s expressive pencils help sell the feeling, while D’Armata uses the darkness to give the whole thing an eerie feel.
Fallen Angels #4 gives a lot of answers and sets things to come up nicely. Hill is doing a great job of fleshing out Kwannon, and his presentation of a rogue AI that thinks it’s God fits with the overall themes of Hickman’s Dawn Of X, while also subverting them just enough. Kudranski and D’Armata work together to give the whole thing an eerie atmosphere that makes things work so much better. There’s a lot to love in this book.
Grade; B+
