Okay, so directly following last week’s House of X #1 was Powers of X #1, released yesterday. Oh boy. It is so. dang. weird. Last time I stated that Jonathan Hickman’s writing isn’t really for me, but this issue sure was. It was absolutely bonkers, I mean, all over the place, people, but it maintained a sense of fun and I was intrigued and entertained. Here are some spoiler-heavy highlights:

• That sense of fun I just mentioned? Yeah, that comes in the form of the best version of Nimrod ever, Nimrod the Lesser. He was murderous and adorable.
• The time jumps in this issue are so bizarre, with each giving me anxiety because they harken back to high school mathematics, hence, Powers of X. For a refresher, powers of x are the number 10 multiplied by itself in accordance with an integer. This is how the years are determined in this book.
• The first year introduces a female character who meets Charles in his apparent younger days and seems to know him. It’s definitely Moira! Or, wait, maybe it’s not Moira? I guess we just have to stay tuned.
• We find out that Mister Sinister contracts with the government in the future to engage in his usual genetic-experimentation shenanigans, including splicing mutants together to create new characters for us to enjoy. This includes Rasputin, who has the abilities of Colossus, Magik, and more, and Cardinal, who is a red Nightcrawler (and that seems to be all). Also, he is a compelled pacifist. Also, I love him.
• Last but certainly not least, I am thrilled to announce that, thanks to Powers of X #1, I can include yet another addition to the list of “Librarians in Comics” in my upcoming book.