X-Men Black: Magneto Review

Writer: Chris Claremont / Artist: Dalabor Talajic / Marvel Comics Reading the first half of X-Men Black: Magneto; I’ve come to the conclusion that if a comic book has a social parallel that fits well while simultaneously lacking any subtlety, it means the society is outrageous. This comic seems like a window through which we get the perspective of what someone growing up in the 60’s and 70’s might’ve felt reading an X-Men comic. Imagine growing up reading “We don’t like your mutie kind around here” and hearing the exact same phrase with a different slur in its place. X-Men legend Chris Claremont and Dalabor Talajic tell a compelling story about the detention of mutant children, and two very different responses. In the “Gold Star” cafe (a Holocaust and military reference that is addressed in the comic) Magneto befriends a young waitress, Kate. They recall heartfelt stories of war and family when a story of mutant detention is reported on the cafe television. Kate’s disgust at the treatment of the children is contrasted heavily with a group of patrons expressing sentiments like “How can liberals be so stupid” and “This is no less than those mutie scum deserve”. Only after Kate speaks up by pointing out that Magneto is a Holocaust survivor do the group of bigots back off. Afterwards, Magneto assails a detention center holding mutant children. After disarming guards, Magneto attempts to comfort and transport the children to safety. There are a couple of points which were particul…