One of the most dangerous villains in all of X-Men looks like an egg with lipstick

Comic book settings are no stranger to the supervillain-only team, from the Suicide Squad to the Sinister Six. But Hellions, the newest book in Marvel’s X-Men lineup, isn’t just a villain team.

After all, there are no “villains” on Krakoa when every mutant is welcome on its shores. But there are mutants whose lives have warped them into barely controlled killing machines unfit for wider society. So why not put them on a team together and let Mister Sinister call the shots? I’m sure there will be no downsides to this plan.

Certainly not with Nanny and Orphan-Maker on the team, a codependent homicidal duo of a guy in a robot suit and a woman in an egg with arm and leg holes.

What else is happening in the pages of our favorite comics? We’ll tell you. Welcome to Polygon’s weekly list of the books that our comics editor enjoyed this past week. It’s part society pages of superhero lives, part reading recommendations, part “look at this cool art.” There may be some spoilers. There may not be enough context. If you missed last week, read this.

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Hellions #1

Image: Zeb Wells, Stephen Segovia/Marvel Comics

Nanny and Orphan-Maker have been around since 1988 in X-Men comics, although their appearances have not been, shall we say, numerous. Orphan-Maker is an emotionally stunted mutant who relies on Nanny’s guidance to feel safe, while Nanny’s raison d’etre is to murder the human parents of mutant children and raise them herself.

She also wears a battle suit that looks like a rejected mascot for the Eat More Eggs Lobby. The fact that Hellions appears to be trying to do something of significance with these two inexplicable weirdos is several points in its favor, to me.

Crowded #12

Image: Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein, Ted Brandt/Image Comics

Ahhh, Crowded is on hiatus again, and I will miss it. The first volume was one of my favorite comics of 2019, and the second only got better by making the leads kiss — like, a lot — as they continued to flee from scores of crowdsourced assassins.

Far Sector #5

Image: N.K. Jemisin, Jamal Campbell/DC Comics

I’ll say it: Far Sector is the best Green Lantern book running right now, and this issue, which delves into how its novice Green Lantern lead got her ring, is just as beautifully drawn and written as the rest of the series. Rarely have the bald, blue bosses of the Green Lanterns looked this good.

Hellblazer #5

Tommy Willowtree, a young hipster who’s been duped into thinking that he’s England’s backup John Constantine, is expertly designed by Simon Spurrier and Matías Bergara to be both absolutely insufferable and completely lovable. It’s going to be really sad when he inevitably bites it.

Amethyst #2

Image: Amy Reeder/DC Comics

In Amethyst #1, Amy’s normie foster parents gave her a book about crystal healing as a way of trying to relate to her fantastical life as a princess on Gemworld. The twist that crystal healing actually works — and is Big Magic — on Gemworld, is one I didn’t see coming. My hat off to Amy Reeder, I love this.