COMIC BOOK OF THE WEEK – “X-Factor” #47 (Mid-November 1989)

This week’s “Comic Book of the Week” is “X-Factor” #47, which was published by Marvel Comics in Mid-November 1989. This comic was titled “Guardian” and was a solo Archangel story that was published in the midst of the ongoing “Judgement War” series. The creative team included Kieron Dwyer, writer and penciller; Al Milgrom, inker; Jim Novak, letterer; Mike Rockwitz, colorist; and Bob Harras, editor. Dwyer and Milgrom were the cover artists for this issue, which sold for $1 at newsstands.

This 32-page issue begins on an alien world, where Archangel, one of the members of X-Factor, is being held prisoner by The Chosen. Chained to the wall of a dungeon, his memory drifts back to an incident that happened in New York City. That incident involved a young runaway named Michael, who gets off the bus at the NYC Port Authority Bus Terminal.

Right out of the gate, Michael displays his mutant healing ability when he heals a blind, homeless man in front of a large crowd. The crowd begins to overwhelm Michael, but at the last moment he’s saved by members of the Children of Heaven. The Children of Heaven are members of a mutant church group, but they look more like the members of a greaser street gang. Soaring high above the streets, Archangel watches it all unfold.

The Children of Heaven take Michael back to their headquarters, where he meets their leader, Father Phillip. Phillip has the ability to read minds, and he quickly discovers that Michael has run away from home to escape an abusive father who hates the fact that his son is a mutant. After being shown his new room, which he shares with one of the unsavory street toughs that rescued him at the bus terminal, Phillip calls on Michael to heal a girl named Beth, who has tried to escape the Children of Heaven headquarters. Michael heals the girl and develops a crush on her.

Later, back on the street, Archangel breaks up a back-alley drug deal in which some of the Children of Heaven, including Michael’s roommate Greg, are trying to sell what looks like powdered cocaine to some random buyers. At the same time, back at the Children of Heaven headquarters, Phillip brings in Michael to deal with Beth, the same girl who tried to escape earlier. This time, Phillip wants Michael to use his powers to injure Beth, instead of healing her, as punishment for her escape attempt. Michael succumbs to the peer pressure and immediately regrets it.

Archangel then makes a grand entrance by flying in through a window and stapling Phillip to the wall with a barrage of flying wing razors. Phillip’s henchmen out with the guns, but they're quickly dispatched by Archangel. The Children of Heaven act like they're going to take on Archangel at first, but they run away after a stern warning from Archangel. Phillip recovers and uses his telekinetic powers to bring Archangel to his knees.

Meanwhile, Michael has healed Beth, who turns out to be a powerful telekinetic mutant. She saves Archangel by crippling Phillip's mind. Next thing you know, the cops arrive and the Children of Heaven begin to disband. Archangel directs the young remnants of the group to Covenant House, and all appear to be headed there except for Greg. The issue ends with Archangel flying away with a big smile on his face.

This comic (unless I’ve sold it) and others are available for purchase through Peacock’s Books on Amazon.com. If you’re interested in buying it, search for it there by title, issue number and date of publication.