X-Men: Psylocke TPB [Paperback]

Reprints the Psylocke 4 issue mini series as stated in the discription, but more importantly, this collection also reprints the Chris Clarmount and Jim Lee 3 part story from Uncanny X-Men 256-258. Which would run you about between 20-30 bucks, depending, just by themselves. Since those issues are what started the whole "Psylocke Craze" this is a smart collection.

Genteel Englishwoman - and twin sister to Captain Britain - Betsy Braddock has had a time of it, yeah, starting out all innocent and tea and crumpety and pinkie up. Then she learns she's a mutant psychic, gets her eyes gouged out by a super-villain, is abducted to the Mojoverse, and later gets her consciousness transferred to the body of an Asian assassin and so, dark times, dark times (and, okay, it's all a bit absurd). She was gone for a bit, but she's back to being an X-Man again. This just means the fit has truly hit the shan.

Some plot SPOILERS now:

To encapsulate this and that, Psylocke flies out to Japan to re-inter her deceased original British body, except that the Hand interrupts her journey. These supernatural ninjas commit a heinous act which severs Betsy's last connection to her old life (okay, they set her first body on fire). This puts Psylocke on a revenge-driven collision course with her old tormentor Matsu'o Tsurayaba, the same asshat responsible for her body swap years ago.

And because there's a sinister conspiracy that calls for Wolverine to be in every issue of every comic book around, the plot manages to fit him in. He scampers to Japan with Betsy Braddock, but then they part ways in midflight. But Logan has his own dark agenda in Japan, and it has to do with a truly terrible annual tradition that requires him to get really hammered and get into bar brawls before he gets down to business.

This mini-series finds Wolverine at his most vengeful and reminds us once again that this is a bad, bad man. Wolverine and Psylocke end up on opposing sides, and since Psylocke has got her mean on and her ninja on, it's actually close to a fair fight between them. However, Wolverine's having on his X-Force uniform promises much bloodletting. Somewhere also in this mix lurk the thrill-seeking Yukio and an incendiary being named Jinn who holds his own grudge against Matsu'o Tsurayaba.

Back in the day I used to like Betsy Braddock a lot when she was featured in those CAPTAIN BRITAIN comics and then in X-MEN, but then I dropped the X-MEN stuff somewhen in the '90s. I didn't even know that she'd died or had a fling with Angel or were close buds with Dazzler. Recently I picked up the SWORD OF THE BRADDOCKS one-off and liked it. In this X-MEN: PSYLOCKE mini-series Chris Yost attempts to reconcile the old sweet Betsy Braddock with the darker, edgier, more homicidal Psylocke. But Betsy's solo adventure is so relentlessly action-oriented - it's very KILL BILL - that in-depth characterization is hard to come by, unless brooding and seething count. The peeks we get of Betsy's inner turmoil all have to do with her wanting to kill Matsu'o and not wanting anyone else to kill him but her and, later on, wanting to kill him because it's the merciful thing to do. She does seem to have accepted who she now is, at last. For those new to Psylocke, Yost does a good job of dropping in bits and pieces of her past history.

So, yeah, this trade collects issues #1-4 of the X-MEN: PSYLOCKE limited series. And, before I forget, the art rocks. Harvey Tolibao knows how to bring this telepathic martial artist Englishwoman to sexy, curvy life, and his handling of the action scenes is dynamic. But the trade also offers bonus material in the form of three reprinted back issues: #256-258 of UNCANNY X-MEN. This old dusty run takes us back to when Chris Claremont and Jim Lee were holding it down in the X-MEN book. This story arc goes back into those days when Betsy Braddock's mind had just been transplanted into a Japanese ninja assassin named Kwannon. Storm was still in her incarnation of a young girl. A weakened Wolverine - his healing factor at its most depleted - was wandering the East with newcomer Jubilee, and then they ran into the lethal Lady Mandarin, a master assassin deployed to consolidate the Mandarin's power base. Good times.

Looking to the future, I'm pretty psyched that Betsy Braddock is now a member of the X-Men's covert kill crew, X-FORCE. I see more good times ahead.

What you need to know: In a nutshell, British mutant Psylocke and the ninja assassin Kwannon underwent an involuntary transformation years ago that resulted in their swapping bodies. Eventually, Kwannon -in Psylocke's original body- died a victim of the Legacy Virus (X-Men 31-32), but in a twisted plan to fight the X-Men, Madelyne Pryor brought the body back to life and captured Psylocke (Uncanny X-Men: Sisterhood)

"Kill Matsu'o" is a story by Chris Yost and artist Harvey Tolibao; a fast paced adventure that contains action, mystery, twists, and character development. Finally free from the manipulations of Madelyne Pryor, back in her home dimension, among friends, and in her Asian body, Elisabeth Braddock a.k.a. Psylocke still had one uncomfortable task at hand: lay her original British body back to rest.

Psylocke travels to Japan in order to proceed with the burial, but is received by Hand ninjas whose despicable mission takes Elisabeth Braddock down a path of revenge against Matsu'o Tsurayaba, Kwannon's former lover and the one responsible for the transformation both women went through so long ago.

From there, the story is an unstoppable ride full of fights, displays of power, familiar faces, and unexpected twists; still, there is enough space to go inside the mutant telepath's soul as she reflects about what her life has been.

Chris Yost did his homework by researching Psylocke's past, the events that brought her where she is today, and the relationships she has built along the way, which is something I appreciate; not many writers take the time to do this. The entire story is narrated from Betsy's point of view, which adds to characterization without wasting page space that is better used in the action sequences.

I had not paid attention to Harvey Tolibao's work previously, but after this, I was very impressed. His pencils are detailed and consistent, and for a story that has ninjas left and right, the visuals are very fluid and dynamic. The inks by Neary and Florea are not the best, but what I liked the most about the art was the coloring by Arreola, Ramos and Reber; their use of the cold and warm colors, as well as the pink for Psylocke's power effects were amazing.

If I have a complaint about this story, is the unnecessary self pity that Betsy showed a couple of times. At the end of X-Men #32 (1994) it was clear she had made her peace with who she was "in mind, and yes, in body"; so the story would have worked just as well without the whining and the whole deathwishing thing. I wasn't too happy with Wolverine's inclusion either; it drives me crazy seeing him everywhere; but at least there was a reason for him to be there, and not just because. And to be nitpicky, there was an error when showing Kwannon's death in a flashback; can you tell what it is?

This trade paperback also includes a reprint of Uncanny X-Men 256-258 by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee, where Psylocke goes from being a British telepath to an Asian ninja assassin. I wish that X-Men 31-32 had also been included so new readers may have a better understanding of the character's transformation. Overall, "Psylocke: Kill Matsu'o" is a very entertaining read, with beautiful art, and is a must have for X-Men and Psylocke fans.