A living nightmare walks on Krakoa in X-Force #18 preview

X-Force #18
(Image credit: Garry Brown/Guru-eFX (Marvel Comics))

After the Quentin Quire-centric X-Force #17, the book returns its focus to Krakoa only to find a living nightmare prowling the grounds of the mutant sanctuary that is a living island.

Benjamin Percy, what are you up to?

Check out this preview of X-Force #18:

That's Percy with guest artist Garry Brown, who's drawing the next two issues. 

"WELCOME TO THEIR NIGHTMARES! QUENTIN QUIRE returns to Krakoa to find a nightmare creature wreaking havoc on X-Force," reads Marvel's description of X-Force #18. "But what deadly secrets are X-Force hiding...and who's trying to unearth them?"

What Black Tom is confronted by in the above pages by some form of energy that is similar to the pinkish hue of the monstrous visions Quentin Quire had in the last issue. It could be coincidence, or it could all be related.

Back in October, Percy told Newsarama that "some of the mutants are beginning to have…troubling nightmares, shall we say? Dun-dun-dun."

A bit more can be gleaned from the description of the following issue, X-Force #19. 

""WHAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF! The only way to battle the nightmare is on its own turf. Sweet dreams, QUENTIN QUIRE.""

The cover to that issue has Jean Grey experiencing the nightmares, and given her Omega-level mutant abilities that could mean some nasty things. Quire and Grey share a bond on several levels, the most unique being the both have been hosts of the Phoenix Force.

Speaking of covers, here's both covers to X-Force #18 - the primary cover by regular series artist Joshua Cassara, and then a variant by X-Force creator Rob Liefeld.

X-Force #18 goes on sale March 17.

Keep up to speed on all the new X-Men comics, graphic novels, and collections in 2021 and beyond.

Chris Arrant

Chris Arrant covered comic book news for Newsarama from 2003 to 2022 (and as editor/senior editor from 2015 to 2022) and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table. (He/him)