“This is Forever. This is the End” – Uncanny X-Men #22 Review

Writer: Matthew Rosenberg / Artist: Salvador Larroca with David Messina / Marvel “We have always been at war.” After half a year of putting the “Last X-Men” through the worst possible circumstances, Matthew Rosenberg and Salvador Larocca’s Uncanny X-Men #22 finally puts everyone’s favorite mutant toys back on the shelf, but not before leaving behind a lot of dead bodies for Jonathan Hickman to sort through before taking the reins. In their final confrontation with the O.N.E. (One National Emergency) and Warlock-bred Sentinels led by General Callahan, several X-Men make the greatest sacrifice in order to ensure a brighter future. In the previous issue, Emma Frost successfully erased the memory of mutants from the collective unconscious of the entire human population. Without a war, without a cause, and without struggle, what purpose do the X-Men serve? In many ways, hiding in plain sight is even worse than death because mutants are not the ones who need to change, but rather the bigoted humans. Through the ages, Scott Summer exists as Charles Xavier’s most dedicated student and protector of the dream – even when he kicks the Professor X out of his own house, kills him, or becomes branded as a mutant terrorist.  Even with these changes, ole One Eye (literally, now that his own grand-daughter sniped his right eye), Cyclops lives as something of a doubting Thomas when it comes to his ability to lead the X-Men.  When this issue begins, fellow X-Man, former student and New Mutant D…