Marvel’s X-Men have a hell now, and Sabretooth is the devil

Most villains in the world of X-Men have developed redeeming and sympathetic qualities. Some point. That’s just what happens when your superhero soap opera about an oppressed class goes on for more than two or three decades. But I think if you ask any X-Men fan, they’d agree: Sabretooth hasn’t. You can’t get mad at him!

When the creative minds behind the X-Men’s Krakoan era needed a scapegoat to demonstrate the new Mutant state’s version of capital punishment, they logically picked Sabretooth. You are In House of X #6, the Quiet Council dropped Sabretooth into a bottomless pit for potentially all of eternity and we haven’t seen him again until now, with Sabretooth #1.

How interesting could a comic about a guy trapped “alive but immobile, aware but unable to act on it” be? Well. This is actually pretty fascinating. It’s a pleasure to look forward the next issue.

Is there anything else happening inside our favourite comics’ pages? We’ll tell you. Welcome to Monday Funnies, Polygon’s weekly list of the books that our comics editor enjoyed this past week. It’s part society pages of superhero lives, part reading recommendations, part “look at this cool art.” There may be some spoilers. You may not have enough context. However, there will be many great comics. This is the latest edition.

Sabretooth #1

Image by Victor LaValle/Marvel Comics

Here is the most basic summary: Sabretooth #1 is that it’s The Good PlaceWith More There was a twist. The intelligent island of Krakoa itself is generally cool with all the mutant stuff happening on it, but it’s not so hot on being a prison. This gives Sabretooth the freedom to think as he pleases: It allows him to create simulations of any of his sick fantasies, for ever.

However, the meat of the story lies in Sabretooth shows up in the issue’s final pages. As Sabretooth is enjoying his personal paradise, five mutants join him in the jail cell, turning everything into their hell.

Monkey Prince #1

Image: Gene Luen Yang, Bernard Chang/DC Comics

I love Gene Yang’s writing. I love Bernard Chang’s art. Monkey Prince #1 is a great debut, but my favorite bit might be the issue’s use of the ol’ Rotate the Page trick. The slanted panels direct the reader to flip the book. All pages within the Celestial realms of the Monkey Kings are then read sideways. Chang and Sebastian Cheng are both colorists who work together to show the reader that they truly do exist somewhere else.

#1 New Masters

Image by Shobo Coker, Shof Coker/Image Comics

I don’t know much about The New MastersA futurist scifi comic about a Lagos that is populated with humans and aliens. Shobo and Shof Coker have clearly done a lot of world-building here, but the book doesn’t feel overwhelmed with it. There is a story to follow, including a character we can root for, as well as a conflict and stakes. This book shows a scrappy young protagonist who will have to fight against an elite team of thieves.

Detective Comics #1051

Image by Irvin Rodriguez/DC Comics

There should be more cover art featured in Monday Funnies, I’m just going to go ahead and admit that. But that doesn’t change the fact that whichever DC editor or designer who put “Psycho Pirate, Qu’est-que c’est” on this got a good old chuckle out of me.