I thought X-Factor #214 was going to be a bit of a filler issue,
since it just featured one of the teammates and it followed the issue
where the last major story was wrapped up. Uh uh. Not quite. What we get
here is a pretty heady teaser of a future threat to Jamie Madrox’s
merry band of mutant detectives. You see, Darwin is roaming around in
the middle of the desert in an effort to try and collect himself after
going through a nasty ordeal where he absorbed a death goddess’ powers.
While roaming, he stumbles upon an abandoned Old West Town tourist
attraction that is populated by many homeless weirdos who dress like
cowboys and ol’ western whores.

Alot of weird stuff is said and
prophesied, but neither the reader nor Darwin knows what the hell is
going on. As Darwin so perfectly put it, we feel like we’ve walked right
into chapter 9 of a novel. We do get one major piece of relevant
information, but it seems like this issue is going to make alot more
sense as the series progresses after this point. I will say this,
however…this might be the best comic featuring Darwin that has ever
been produced. Naturally, Peter David gives him a great voice and many a
cool scene, especially when he gets his head blown off and has a new
one regrow on his abdomen. If you can get over the vagueness of this
issue’s plot, you’ll see that this is a great character showcase for
Darwin.