MaREADers: Set Sail For Madripoor As Homines Verendi Makes Their First Move In Marauders #5

The pieces Gerry Duggan, Matteo Lolli, Lucas Werneck, and Fredrico Blee have been setting up are finally coming into play in Marauder #5. While the Hellfire Trading Company is facing butting heads with each other, their dominance on the high seas is challenged by an allegiance between the nations who find Krakoa distasteful, and human supremacists who want to see mutants eliminated.

Christi Eddleman: Welcome back aboard in this brand new year! I know we covered issue 4 not long ago (even if it was last year), but I found myself so anxious for this week’s issue. Many of our plot threads are beginning to come together and it seems tumultuous waters are ahead!

Vishal Gullapalli: There was a lot of setup happening over the past few issues, and I was really wondering when we’d start seeing some payoff – it turns out, very quickly. Lolli’s return to the book was also pretty nice, I wasn’t as hot on his art at the beginning but I’m beginning to get into the style.

A Frosty Duo

CE: While we’ve seen that Christian Frost would assume the role of White Bishop, I loved his first appearance in this run. He and Bobby get a delightful beat together on Christian’s ship, Mercury. While what they are up to is charming (okay cooling the ice caps is pretty rad), the fact that they’re up to it together is that much more interesting.

VG: Beyond the strong vibes between the two of them, the contents of their conversation were super eye-emoji inducing, too – Bobby avoiding discussing his overprotectiveness of Kate brings a totally new dynamic to the Marauder. It’s not a bunch of X-Men having fun on a boat, there’s an undercurrent of Bobby and Ororo staying to protect Kate, something I feel like she wouldn’t appreciate if she found out about…

CE: While I definitely picked up on Storm’s concern for Kate in earlier issues, the concern that resurrection may not work for Kate is something I hadn’t considered. I do appreciate that Bobby insists that Christian call her “Kate” though, really reinforcing not only his concern for Kate, but respect as well.

VG: I was expecting the different domains of the Hellfire Corporation to have a lot more animosity given how Shaw and Emma interacted, but Bobby and Christian hanging out on the Mercury and the later scene of the whole Corporation discussing things showed that they’re a lot more civil and even friendly with each other. Even Shinobi was pretty chill with the rest of them, it’s just Sebastian Shaw as the single grouch. [Ed. note: Sebastian Shaw is, historically, the absolute worst.]

CE: It definitely makes me question whether Shinobi believed his father about the White and Red Queens being responsible for his death, or if he’s just very good at masking any animosity. Speaking of the Red and White Queens, there are two members of the Corporation that definitely don’t let their colors put distance between them.

Women’s Work

VG: There is some heavy subtext between Emma and Kate this issue! Like, a lot more than I was expecting to ever exist between them in the modern day. Between reminiscing about their Claremont days and first meeting to teaming up to screw over Shaw, the two of them are forming a really interesting relationship, especially given their entire history.

CE: Heavy subtext is one way to put it. Another would be my jaw hitting the floor and then squealing in delight and rereading those few pages more than I’d care to admit. That kiss on the cheek felt like a birthday present just for me. The dynamic between the two definitely reads as beyond good friends. I’ve worried, and still do, that the relationship between the two has been heavily manipulated by Emma. As we’re reminded, Emma could’ve been Kate’s teacher, which casts an uncomfortable pall over the exchange. [Ed. note: I’ve seen enough late night Cinemax to know where this is going.]

VG: It’s definitely a bit uncomfortable, especially given Kitty’s history of subtext with older women [Ed. note: Excalibur sends its regards]. That being said, though, if they’re treating each other as equals I really love what Duggan’s doing with their relationship and either way I’m looking forward to where it goes. Their mutual disdain for Sebastian Shaw continues to be one of my favorite things, though – that dude can suck it.

CE: The way the two have managed to make real the vision of the Hellfire Trading Corporation despite Sebastian’s best efforts is a truly beautiful thing. Kate has settled into her role and Krakoa quite nicely – she finally knows Krakoan! Emma and Kate seem incredibly in synch and unstoppable, much to Sebastian’s disappointment. It seems Sebastian has no intention of remaining a lame duck, however, as he sneaks through a gate to Madripoor.

Bigotted Baddies

VG: Sebastian’s plans will have to wait, though, as his son’s ship is assaulted by humans during a run to Madripoor. Shaw’s clearly planning something but before that can be explored, we get to see the Marauders going to rescue Shinobi from a group called Homines Verendi – a good name for these conniving little children. [Ed. note: It’s those garbage children who ran the Hellfire Club that one time!]

CE: The children seem to be recruiting anyone looking to get rich quick in Madripoor by essentially placing a bounty on the head of every mutant. Though Bishop and Storm wisely expect a trap, they still charge right onto The Upstart only to be caught by some humans in familiar looking suits with power dampeners. It seems Homines Verendi has made friends with the Russians.

VG: And they’re not the only mutant-haters on Homines Verendi’s side. I’ve been screaming on the inside about the last page of this issue and now I can scream on the outside – THE X-CUTIONER IS BACK! AND SO IS THE HATE-MONGER! These two jerks are ridiculous and horrible and I love how stupid they are – especially the Hate-Monger, the first version of whom was a literal clone of Adolf Hitler. [Ed. note: This is probably a later Hate-Monger, robbing us of the chance to see Kate Pryde punch Hitler.] Marauders is pulling no punches when it comes to bringing in noted bigots as the villains, and these two are a welcome addition for me.

CE: I love a good villainous duo, and this ending confrontation is fantastic. Kate phases THE MARAUDER – the whole ship – I love it. The one person I’m glad to see that has developed a soft spot for the mutant cause? Our X-Desk employee. That little nugget in our data page seems to represent a bit of hope for the greater acceptance of mutants, even if we’ve got our gang of bigotted baddies to contend with.

VG: The saga of the X-Desk employee has been a treat every issue – I usually roll my eyes at full pages of prose in comics, but each page of the X-Desk’s memos have been fantastic and this one was no exception. There’s also the ominous new information that Homines Verendi has poisoned some of the Krakoan medicine to frame mutants, which already has me anxious.

CE: This issue leaves us at the top of a roller coaster and I’m enjoying the ride. We’ve got a lot to look forward to and Duggan has done an excellent job of laying a solid foundation for this book. I am left wondering if Homines Verendi or Sebastian Shaw will be the bigger threat to our Marauders. Who will our foreshadowed “backstabbers” be? I cannot wait to find out.

VG: Characters being framed for things they didn’t do and the public hating heroes for things they didn’t do tend to aggravate me in stories, but I’m genuinely interested in where Duggan’s going with this. There’s schemes on top of schemes on top of schemes, and I can’t wait for the first domino to collapse.

X-Traneous Thoughts

It’s interesting to see non-English words like “sláinte” and “gracias” in Krakoan. Double translation time!
Has Bishop accepted Kate’s offer to be the Red Bishop? I need an updated chart.
“I was barely a woman myself and would’ve utterly destroyed you” – Emma Frost
“You cannot take my power!” – Storm while STABBING A DUDE THROUGH THE EYE
Ending Krakoan reads: “Backstabbers”

Christi Eddleman is the worlds first Captain Kate Pryde cosplayer and co-host of Chrises On Infinite Earths

Vishal Gullapalli is a comics enthusiast studying computer science to enable his media consumption. He’s currently reading through the entirety of DC’s New 52 (for some reason) and logging his experience.