The Sword is Mightier Than the Pen

UNCANNY X-MEN #479 - In this issue: a man with a ridiculously large sword! No, really, it's enormous. It's so huge that even the other characters feel compelled to laugh at it. This looks decidedly like a story where the creators have got their wires crossed and what should have been a big, imposing symbolic sword has turned into an utter joke, forcing Brubaker to try and save the day with a self-deprecating script. Imagine if Rob Liefeld had outfitted Cable with a sword and you get the idea. There's a story in here, of course, which would probably have been a lot better with a more sensible sword. But to be honest, I just spent most of the issue gawping at the page and thinking, "Good god, that looks utterly ridiculous." Shame, because I can visualise the same script being perfectly decent without the huge lump of steel. C+