With Mystique #5, Declan Shalvey ends his game of cat and mouse between the titular Mystique and Nick Fury Jr. The journey has been great and winding, but Shalvey delivers on the promise of a conclusive and sincere capper to one of the baddest mutants in the Marvel Pantheon.
MYSTIQUE #5
Writer: DECLAN SHALVEY
Art and Main Cover: DECLAN SHALVEY
Variant Cover: MARK BROOKS
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: February 19, 2025
Mystique #5 opens with a tense hand-off of prisoners, as Fury offers Mystique Destiny as a trade for Fabien Cortez. The book flashes back to 2 days prior and to the events directly following last issue’s cliffhanger. Mystique reveals that she’s been manipulating events from the start, posing as not only various shield agents and mutants, but the Fury’s Nicholas themselves. Her ultimate goal: use SHIELD assets and the protozoa device to erase her existence from global data files, escaping with Destiny to live a “mundane” life.
Fury is forced to go along with this plan, and is chewed out by Director Maria Hill for over reaching his boundaries. However, even now not everything as it seems, as Fury discovers the haunting truth behind Mystique’s evolving powers: her genetic structure is deteriorating. In one final act of love, Mystique abscons with Destiny, hiding out incognito until further notice.
Mystique has been an exciting Mission: Impossible level caper. Mystique #5, while light on action, packs an emotional wallop. Shalvey isn’t afraid to have his characters be vulnerable, or even to fail. Mystique’s fate is haunting, yet bittersweet. Some hardcore fans are going to be frustrated that not all the toys are going back in the chest the same as how they came out.
That isn’t to say he completely emasculates his characters either. Both Fury and Mystique get some brutal licks in. it’s so rare to see a single creator given free reign over these corporate owned characters that big swings like this should be praised. It’s worth the heartache to see these often static side-characters get some growth.
It’s also nice to see an “X-title” that organically addresses some of the plot-beats and character moments Hickman and company established during the Krakoa era. This is the same Raven Darkholme who worked her way to the quiet council, and cut through enough red tape and the Moira of it all to secure her family. She’s not here to play nice, nor to lose it all at the last second. While some of the reveals and intricacies of this book’s plot may be confusing, the vibes and characters remain consistent.
Speaking of consistency, Shalvey remains a solid cartoonist. His use of “ligne claire” drawing technique is appropriate for espionage thrillers. His work here represents a link in a long chain of smooth and stylish spy-comics. His Mystique oozes with charisma and darkness, right up until she erupts into grotesque body-horror. Shalvey’s panel compositions in this issue are worth highlighting as well, as he weaves between cinematic wide panels and a more fast paced traditional six-panel grid. Matt Hollinsworth’s colors are well-suited to the art, especially the beautifully rendered sunset in the early portion of the book.
Shalvey delivers a strong conclusion to his Mystique mini-series; possibly the definitive ending for the character and a true epilogue to the Krakoan-era of the X-men.
