X-men: The Wedding Special #1

Written by: Chris Claremont (The Dream Before), Marc Guggenheim (Boys’ Night Out) & Kelly Thompson (Something Old)

Art by: Todd Nauck (The Dream Before), Greg Land (Boys’ Night Out) & Marika Cresta (Something Old)

Published by: Marvel Comics

With the wedding of Kitty Pryde and Piotr Rasputin fast approaching, it’s no surprise that their friends and family want to make sure the duo has their special nights out before the impending nuptials.

The Dream Before

With the wedding of Kitty and Piotr drawing near, the leader of X-Men Gold recounts a nightmare that she’s had before – one she’s never told anyone about. During the beginning of her time with the X-men, the young mutant found herself launched into space on a giant bullet. Yes, it sounds just as crazy at it is and it’s hard to explain because while she was rescued and her life as an X-man went on, Kitty still finds herself haunted by the fear that she never did escape – she is still trapped in space, forgotten with nothing but her memories.

Through these memories, we go through Kitty’s most cherished, important and hardest memories of her life, eventually settling on her working at the Belles of Hell bar with Lockheed in tow. Getting a visit from Kurt Wagner a.k.a Nightcrawler, Kitty admits that she’s getting cold feet about the wedding. But with some talking to and a visit from some unexpected loved ones, Kitty gets just the reassurance she needs.

Boys’ Night Out

What’s a wedding without a bachelor party? Well, when you’re friends with Kurt Wagner, Bobby Drake, Simon Lasker, and Remy LeBeau, a wild party to recognize the end of your ‘singledom’ is in order. Now, where else would a couple of bros go to celebrate such a moment? Las Vegas, of course! But Piotr is not really seeing the fun in the situation, especially when he would have preferred to stay back at the school, spending time with his bride-to-be. Adamant about not wanting to attend a strip club, the men drag Piotr to a casino instead.

As the group of X-Men try to get Piotr to at least attempt having a good time, he and Bobby are attacked by a disgruntled ex-employee of the casino when he hears the pair mention being X-Men. As a brawl ensues Colossus, Iceman, Gambit, Pyro and Nightcrawler try to discern why they’re being attacked by a demon (check out X-men Gold #7 for the answer), eventually ending up with a property damage bill. But, the night isn’t over yet – you’ll have to read X-men Gold #26 to find out where the post-quarrel shenanigans lead them.

Something Old

As Kitty gets ready for her bachelorette party, she is questioned by her husband-to-be if it’s even necessary. Kitty insists that it is and she would never cancel on her girls this last minute, pointing out that he attended his bachelor party in Vegas of all places. Being rushed along by the likes of Rogue, Rachel, Ororo, Psylocke, Illyana and more, the dynamic group heads out for a night of karaoke. However, when they arrive to the venue, Kitty is shocked by the sign which reads: “Stripperoke” (all Ororo’s idea, of course).

With a veil and bride-to-be sash on, Kitty is ushered into the club to get the full experience of strippers and karaoke, but she makes a quick escape to the ladies room for a bit of calm. While taking a breather from all the commotion, she finds Rogue who is fixing her makeup in the mirror. The duo share a happy exchange, which is hopeful for both of their love lives and futures. When Kitty finally decides to head back to the party, she is attacked by leader of the Morlocks, Callisto. But you’ll just have to read The Wedding Special to find out just what happens next.

GOC Review

The wedding of Kitty Pryde and Piotr Rasputin is arguably one of the most anticipated comic events from Marvel Comics this summer. As one of the X-Men’s most long-standing couples, it’s easy to see why – hell, it even got garnered the return of Chris Claremont. Joining Claremont for the other two tales of ‘mutant matrimony’ are Marc Guggenheim and Kelly Thompson. The trio all have very distinct writing voices and they were used well in their respective stories with each writer putting their own spin on the characters in question, while still maintaining a cohesiveness in the personalities of the X-men who appear in multiple stories such as, Kitty, Piotr, and Kurt.

With the artwork, we have a team that is comprised of the talented Todd Nauck, Greg Land, and Marika Cresta. Much like their writing counterparts, each artist has their own distinct and recognizable style which fits well within the context of their stories. A theme that carries throughout the art of the three stories is the rich and bright colours through most panels. I am not sure if it’s an ode to Kitty and Piotr being part of the Gold team, if it signifies the hopefulness and happiness of their wedded bliss, or neither. Whatever it is, it works really well. Kudos to Rachelle Rosenberg, Jason Keith and Federico Blee for their colour work in this book.

All-in-all, X-men – The Wedding Special is a good book with fun stories that showcase their two many spouses-to-be with all their pre-wedding fun, mayhem, and jitters rolled into one. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s definitely a nice book to have if you’re a fan of the mutant couple and are looking forward to the wedding event set to happen in X-men Gold #30.

This one gets 3 wall phases out of 5.