Days Of Future Podcast: Examining The X-men

In 2007, a three-part saga meant to reset and redefine the X-Universe in the wake of "House of M" and Scarlet Witch's "no more mutants" declaration was kicked off with "X-Men: Messiah Complex." But, hey, we already talked about that (see Episode #79). This time, we turn our attention to the second chapter of the trilogy, the 2009 Cable & X-Force crossover event, "Messiah War." This story sees Cable and a young Hope Summers (the first mutant born after "House of M," as introduced in "Messiah Complex") jumping through time, on the run from a now villainous(?) Lucas Bishop, who is intent on murdering Hope to prevent an apocalyptic future he believes she will bring about. Joined by both Deadpool and X-Force, the secret black ops X-team recently commissioned by Cyclops to permanently eliminate threats to mutants, Cable and Hope will have to battle not only Bishop, but also classic X-villains Stryfe and Apocalypse. Does this second chapter live up to the first, and is it still - years later - an essential read