Era #11, Part 10: Quiet (Mystique)

Grade: D+

It is the end game for Mystique when she must finally decide to continue to work for Professor X as his secret agent or assassinate him for the Quiet Man. Things get more complicated when her handler, Shortpack, goes missing after searching for Steinbeck, the mutant arms dealer who killed Prudance, the agent that Mystique replaced. There are plenty of double-crossings, revelations, and guest appearances in this series conclusion. 

I appreciated that the creative team provided closure to all of the various plotlines, but this run is a hot mess compared to the previous three. It feels like the title was directed to end, so Sean McKeever threw all the pieces together for a finale, but the result didn't have the same tone that made the series fun to read. In a move that seemed forced and completely out of character, Shortpack races off only to get captured for the rest of the story. Meanwhile, each issue runs Mystique through another unrelated caper that feels like fill-in stories to highlight guest appearances (Fantomex, Wolverine, and Rogue) -- often a sign of declining sales. 

[5-stars] Mystique (2003) #19

[4-stars] Mystique (2003) #20

[4-stars] Mystique (2003) #21

[4-stars] Mystique (2003) #22

[4-stars] Mystique (2003) #23

[5-stars] Mystique (2003) #24

Collected in Mystique (Vol. 4): Quiet