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X-Men: Mutant Empire: Book 1: Siege, By Christopher Golden is a original superhero prose based off Marvel Comic’s X-MEN.

The book is split into two parallel conflicts. The first, concerning Magneto’s takeover of Project: Wideawake, is deeply enjoyable. The second, a rescue mission on the Kree homeworld of Hala, is a frustrating mess. What hurts this structure the most is how disjointed the stories feel. There is the thinnest hint of similarity in themes, both discussing a battle against oppression, but it also carries an overwhelming feeling that only half the book is relevant. Splitting up the cast allows Golden to highlight multiple facets of the X-Men, but it also halts momentum every time the narrative shifts.

The highlight of the book is the Magneto plot. The master of magnetism plots and plans to take over the Sentinel’s, the mutant hunting robots, at the US Government’s Project: Wideawake with the help of his zealous followers, the Acolytes. Here we get to understand the conflict from all sides, Magneto’s drive to create a mutant homeland, Xavier’s dream of peaceful co-existence, Amelia Voght’s skepticism and desperation, and Val Cooper’s desire to avoid anything that would make her life harder. Golden is at his peak when he taps into these character’s core and positions them around the conflict. He is less successful with the X-Men proper, Storm, Bishop, Wolverine, Iceman, and Beast. They all have a unique voice but are more passive observers than active participants.

Less successful is Cyclops� mission to rescue his father from Deathbird’s prison on Hala. Cyclops is written as the same dry character he was throughout the 90s, and the book suffers for it. Of the rest of his team, only Jean Grey gets any significant characterization. Rogue, Gambit, and Archangel get very little to do beside get into fights. Worse is the switch to Deathbird as the antagonist, she is a subtle and nuanced as the name suggests. Golden tries to add color by focusing on her lieutenant Gladiator, but his inaction in the face of evil only frustrates readers. This story feels like filler, padding to make this a trilogy, and the book is worse for it. It is incredibly skip able and half of a novel should not feel like that.

X-Men: Mutant Empire: Book 1: Siege is an interesting, if flawed, book. The parallel structure is a massive flaw, and the shift in quality between the sections only amplifies this. There is a chapter in the middle of the book where Charles Xavier debates an anti-mutant activist and an unfriendly politician, all sides laying out their fears, it is gripping. If the entire book could be this smart, this interested in examining the place of mutants in the world, it would be a must read. Unfortunately, Golden drops the ball when it comes to the sci-fi action. Both arcs end on cliff hangers, one fascinating with a promising hook for the rest of the series. The other, groan inducing and promising that the story will continue to drag forward. There is a lot to love and hate in equal measure here, making it hard to recommend to anyone except the most die hard X-Fan.