The Death of Doctor Strange: X-Men/Black Knight

A tie-in issue to The Death of Doctor Strange ongoing Marvel story arc, The Death of Doctor Strange: X-Men/Black Knight is more an issue to flesh-out Jacks Chopra than anything else as both daughter and father work out their trust issues in the middle of a battle against demons.

Doctor Strange is dead and the mystical barriers he had erected to keep Earth safe have fallen. London (and the X-Men) have been swallowed up and Jackie joins the fray. Unfortunately, the X-Men have all been turned into demons by Necromon the Netherking and Jacks is out to prove she doesn't need any help to save the day. On the plus side, some back up does arrive in Excalibur's wielder Faiza Hussain whose prescience does allow Dane to come up with a ridiculous plan based on the visions of Merlin he sees from the Ebony Thone.

We don't get much of the X-Men here, as they spend much of the issue as demons. However, it appears that Jacks will be seeing more of them in the future with the reveal that Dane Whitman's daughter, along with being a new Black Knight, is also a mutant (a fact the group decides not to share until the world calms down a bit... whenever that may be).

The issue plays on ideas about the Ebony Blade and how its wielder becomes the sword. Introducing the idea that the Blade comes from the Stone of Arthurian myth allows the reuniting of the Sword and the Stone to send back the demons (although it leaves Jacks in an uncomfortable state with Excalibur sticking out of her chest until they world gets back to normal). The end of the issue suggests Faiza may stick around for a bit, giving the young hero another friend and mentor, at least in the short-term.

[Marvel, $4.99]

• Title: The Death of Doctor Strange: X-Men/Black Knight (One-shot)
• Comic Vine: link
• Writer: Si Spurrier
• Artist: Bob Quinn