Laura Kinney; better known as X-23, has been featured in many series. Several, self named mini's, as well as appearances in various team books. This, however, marks the character's first shot at a regular ongoing series.
It is tough to tell how well this series will do. I think the character is interesting enough that readers will support the series. But I have been wrong in the past (i.e. See New X-Men and Iron Fist.)
Many people write X-23 off due to their hatred of Wolverine. This would be a mistake though. Laura brings much of the psychological drama to her stories that Wolverine did back in the 80's when it was still cool to like the character. Laura Kinney is a tormented girl, with a very dark past.
This inaugural issue attempts to begin the examination of this tormented character. After my firt read of the book, I felt let down. As a long-time fan I wasn't interested in rehashing Laura's past. After reading rave reviews about the book, I decided to re-visit the book. And I have to say, I enjoyed it more the second time round. Maybe I was distracted while reading it through the first time. I found it easy to relate with her struggles and identified well with the character. I'm still not understanding why the New X-Men are so angry with her. In fact, I think it is outright stupid! But aside from that, the writing was solid.
Will Conrad's art is really interesting in that he pays close attention to many of the details in the surrounding environment. Things like skeletons and architecture spring to life. Strangely enough, the interior art is completely opposite of the smooth lined cover art by Danny Shinya Luo.
So what did this book teach me? I should read each book twice before reviewing. If nothing else, it is an opportunity to double up on my favourite hobby.