Children of the Atom #6
Gimmick reveals her secret, and the team has to deal with it in Children Of The Atom #6, by writer Vita Ayala, artist Paco Medina, inker Walden Wong, colorist David Curiel, and letterer Travis Lanham. In this final issue, Ayala and company close things in a beautiful yet bittersweet fashion.
Gimmick reveals that she's a mutant and things get pretty heated between her and Cyclops-Lass. Later, she goes to the Hellfire Gala, shown around by Storm and then Eyeboy, getting ready for her new life. After the Gala, she talks to her parent and reveals her status as a mutant, and despite her father having said some negative things about mutants, they accept her regardless. The team fight Hordeculture at a Krakoa Flower Expo, and Gimmick joins them, helping to save the day. The next day, Gimmick and the team talk again, and she and Cyclops-Lass reveal their feelings for each other. The whole thing ends with the team escorting her to the Krakoan gate and Eyeboy meeting her on the other side.
This is a marvelous issue, and the fact that it's the last one is very, very sad. Ayala does everything they can to set the characters up for the future- ironing their relationship statuses, who they are, all of the little housekeeping that one would do at the end of an opening arc. Unfortunately, this is the end for now, and that's very sad. "Children of the Atom" came out of nowhere and has been extraordinary, and that's what made it so great Ayala took what looked like a so-so concept- a new team of "mutants" with familiar powers and made it special. They went that extra mile and made it memorable by focusing on the characters more than anything. There are plenty of stories left to tell with this new team of heroes, and hopefully, Ayala will get a chance to.
Everything about the issue- from the opening argument to the Hellfire Gala stuff to Gimmick coming out to her parents to the reconciliation is pitch-perfect. Ayala hits all the right notes with each and every scene. This is an emotional, compelling chapter, and it has a great little fight scene in the middle. It's just a legitimately great read, and that makes it all the more sad that it's the end for now. Saying this was one of the best X-Men books of this run isn't a stretch, and this issue does a fantastic job of closing everything out.
Medina's art is terrific, as usual. It's great that one artist got to do the whole book, and Medina was perfect for it. He's able to capture everything Ayala needs him to and makes it look great. This book has it all, and Medina's art goes out of its way to capture it. The emotional moments pack that much more of a punch and the fight scene is excellent. Also, special shout-outs to inker Wong and colorist Curiel. Without their contributions, the art wouldn't be as impressive as it is.
Children of the Atom #6 is a perfect ending to a great book. The only bad thing about it is that it is the last issue. Ayala and company have created something exceptional with this book, and it's a shame to see it go. It's been an achievement its entire run, and if readers are lucky, it'll come back.
