X-Factor #39!!!

Overall- Hot damn, I sure as hell didn't see this one coming... Now, before I go any further, Peter David himself, the spectacular writer of this series, actually put a plea in the beginning of this issue to not post spoilers of this comic book, out of respect for fellow fans of this book. So, right off the bat, let me tell you, if you ARE a fan of this comic book and haven't read it yet, skip this post. Don't read it. Don't spoil it for yourself. If you aren't a fan/reader of this comic, then this is the time to start reading this comic book. There, I did my due diligence here. If you don't want the monster shock that happens in this issue ruined for you, stop reading now, and after giving this comic a read, let me know what you thought about the events of this issue...

OK, if you're still here, I'm going to spill the beans about what happens within this comic. Siryn is in labor for 15 hours, before the doctors decide to sedate her and preform a c-section. There's a pretty funny bit where Siryn lets out a scream and breaks practically all of the windows in the hospital. One of the nurses calls her a "Screaming Mimi", to which Siryn responds, "That's someone else and she goes by Songbird now." Peter David, you're f###ing awesome! You old school Marvel fans should be able to pick up that cool reference right away.

Before the c-section, Siryn asks Jamie to marry her, and he readily accepts. The doctors preform the c-section, and Siryn delivers a baby boy. However, the newborn is slightly blue, so the doctors take him away to get some oxygen into him. Jamie follows the doctors, still paranoid that the government and Val Cooper have some kind of hidden agenda concerning his child. Jamie decides to visit Val, who is in the hospital after being shot last issue, and they talk about a number of topics, including the baby, Val's agenda(she still claims the government isn't interested in kidnapping the baby like Jamie suspects), as well as the fact the Val feels that deep down, Jamie wants to work for the government, where he would always have someone there to tell him what to do, since she knows that he hates making the tough decisions. This conversation was actually an excellent look at both characters, but especially Jamie, since I feel that deep down, he knows Val is right.

After leaving Val's room, Jamie runs into Guido, who tells him that the baby is fine, and Siryn is holding him right now. Jamie rushes into the hospital room, where the team is gathered around Siryn's bedside, while she holds her newborn son. Siryn finally comes to terms with the death of her father(Banshee)in a rather poignant scene and decides to name the baby Sean after her dad. Siryn offers Jamie the chance to hold his son, and Jamie happily complies, taking his newborn son into his arms for the first time..... And then the unthinkable happens, as Jamie absorbs the newborn into himself as if it was a common duplicate!!!

Everyone in the room, including Jamie is absolutely horrified and Siryn leaps out of bed and tears at Jamie's shirt and chest while screaming at him to give her her son back. Not one member of X-Factor makes a move to stop Siryn, who is finally pulled off by a doctor who heard the commotion from the hallway. By this time, Siryn is bleeding badly, having torn her stitches from the c-section and ultimately passes out. Jamie takes this opportunity to get out of the room, where he winds up hiding in a broom closet.

Eventually, Guido finds Jamie and tells him that Siryn was looking for him. Jamie returns to Siryn's room and finds her back in bed again. Jamie apologizes profusely, and says that the night the baby was conceived, they were both drunk, and most likely, one of his dupes was responsible for impregnating Siryn. And apparently, the offspring of one of Jamie's duplicates is still just a duplicate of him and therefore would be reabsorbed by his body. Siryn quietly apologizes to Jamie as well, putting out a hand to him. Jamie tells her she has nothing to apologize for, but as soon as he touches her hand, she breaks his pinkie finger. After that, Siryn quietly tells Jamie that the next time she sees him it'll be his neck she breaks, and with that, the comic ends.

Wow, that comic was one hell of a rollercoaster ride! I'm still catching my breath! I never in a million years saw the development with the baby coming, so kudos to you Peter David. I had dozens of different scenarios running around my head as to what would happen in this comic, but none of my ideas were even in the same ballpark as to what actually happened. I mean, Jamie absorbed his f###ing son! That's it, baby gone! After Siryn carried the kid for 9 months, in a few horrible seconds, the baby is gone, just like that! The image of Siryn reaching for her son as he became transparent and vanished into Jamie was absolutely powerful, and artist Valentine De Landro did an awesome job of showing just how horrible the whole situation was. There's nothing more I can even say about what happened in this comic book.

I'm still stunned by what I read... I would imagine the repercussions from the events of this issue are going to tear this comic book and this team apart. I CAN NOT wait to find out what Peter does for an encore next issue. This issue proves why Peter David is one of my all-time favorite writers. The man can write one hell of a story. If you don't believe me, just check out this issue, or the brilliant Captain Marvel series he wrote a few years back. For a score, I'm obligated to give this comic a 10 out of 10. Recently, I've been trying to give out less 10's, but this comic totally earned it. If you aren't reading X-Factor, this issue is a GREAT jumping on point. The next couple of issue's should be absolutely incredible.