UNCANNY X-MEN #525
The first mutant is born after the events of House of M where the Scarlet Witch proclaimed ‘No More Mutants.’ Second Coming is the final part of the X-Men Trilogy that started 3 years ago with the Messiah Complex followed by the Messiah War. Second Coming centers on Cable and Hope Summers returning to the present day as they are hunted by Bastion.
Things look grim for the X-Men as Bastion traps them in a sphere that surrounds the island of Utopia as well as San Francisco. He then creates a portal on the Golden Gate Bridge and sends enhanced army of Nimrod sentinels from the Days of Future Past timeline to destroy the remaining mutants on Utopia. With no other choice than to use the last time jump, Cyclops sends Cable and X-Force sent into the future to stop the Nimrods as the X-Men battle them in the present day.
Finding a way to break through the impregnable energy dome are the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. They realize that with their combined might it would take all day to break in while the citizens inside only have a few hours left.
Usually back in the 1990s any comic issue ending with 25 regardless of whether it was 25, 125, 225, or 525 had a special place in a story or event. Here we have three different stories taking place within one issue: Cyclops and the X-Men inside the dome, the Avengers and Fantastic Four outside of the dome, and Cable with X-Force in the future. Each story is cannibalizing the other one so it feels like nothing is happening within this issue. Would have been nice to only focus on the present day and what is happening within and outside of the dome. Most likely this could keep the story well structured and the tension between the heroes high.
NEEDS IMPROVEMENT - 3 OUT OF 5
