One of the most intriguing Marvel characters ever created, finally gets the send-off they deserve. Collecting the five issues of X-Men: Phoenix – Endsong series, Greg Pak flexes his writing muscles for one last time with a character he has a long history with.

We last saw the Jean Grey in the Dark Phoenix saga, where millions of people were killed when an entire planet was taken out, but the freshly resurrected being is back and looking for its former host Jean Grey who has long since passed. But with the power to resurrect the dead, Phoenix and Jean Grey reunite once again and the entire planet nay the entire galaxy is under threat.  The action comes thick and fast with the X-Men dispatched to deal with the problem, but it’s the side stories that really add an emotional element to the book. Quentin Quire, a young mutant for instance, learns of the Phoenix’s ability to resurrect the dead and wants to use that knowledge to bring back the love of his life in a storyline similar to the Anakin Skywalker/Palpatine arc. And let’s not forget poor Scott “Cyclops” Summers, the leader of the X-Men, who now finds himself torn between his new and former loves.

Every turn of the page is lavished with beautifully sweeping artwork by Greg Land, giving the book an epic feel and as a bonus we also get the original ending in Uncanny X-Men #137, which perfectly defines just how far the characters have evolved. But the advice I’d give to any potential reader is – ignore everything that has come before, what we have here, should be considered, for now at least, the definitive ending for the Phoenix. .. Chris Andrews