I haven't written too much about Archie Comics' MEGA MAN comic book in the past (only here and here). I really enjoyed last summer's "Worlds Collide" Sonic and Mega Man crossover event, but normally don't read any of those comic books. MEGA MAN X is a new development in the MEGA MAN book. Based on a popular video game, MEGA MAN X is set 100 years in the future. It features an upgraded version of Mega Man named "X."
X was one of Dr. Light's greatest creations -- and potentially one of his most volatile creations. He has the ability to "think, feel, and make his own decisions" -- something I thought that the first Mega Man was already able to do. But Dr. Light was concerned that an immature X could evolve to the point where he was okay with harming people, so he placed X in a maturation storage unit shortly after his creation.
Dr. Light's secret laboratory was found 100 years after X's creation by an archaeologist named Dr. Cain. Dr. Cain found Light's warning about this new generation of robots -- known as Reploids -- and promptly, after a night of consideration, freed X from his containment and began mass-producing hundreds of Reploids to work and live among humanity.
Given Dr. Light's early warnings, this mass production of Reploids appeared premature to me. I guess this never occurred to Dr. Cain or else he suffers from bouts of hubris. But X himself seems a little unsure about this new societal coexistence.
Sure enough, incidents occur. It's mostly disputes between entitled people and sentient Reploids, but it makes the people uncomfortable. Things escalate and eventually Dr. Cain is brought before representatives of his local government to find out why a handful of people have been killed by Maverick Reploids.
Dr. Cain doesn't exactly know why the Reploids are acting up, but he has a solution. He creates a mean-looking Reploid named Sigma, furnishes him with lots of weapons, and puts him in charge of a team of Reploid Hunters. Did I mention that he looks really mean??
X is suspicious -- and frankly, so am I!
"The X Factor" was written by Ian Flynn, penciled by Patrick Spaziante, and inked by Rick Bryant. It was a great effort and introducing new readers such as myself to this cast of characters and their world. I have been hesitant to read too many of the SONIC and MEGA MAN titles because I tend to read a lot of comic books already and it can get kind of expensive. But, given LIFE WITH ARCHIE's cancellation and KEVIN KELLER's upcoming hiatus, this might be a good time to begin reading the ongoing MEGA MAN book, which features MEGA MAN X's official debut in issue #37.