Uncanny X-Men #492 (2008) pages 7-8: Messiah Complex: Wolverine on the hunt

The "M-Day" event severely decreased the role of mutants in the Marvel Universe, making space for the Avengers characters who would soon become the focus of a score of connected movies. It also gave new urgency to the X-Men's perennial fight for survival in a world that hated and feared them.

In the "Messiah Complex" story, the first new mutant baby is born, and promptly disappears. All signs point to Mister Sinister as the culprit. In this issue, three X-Men track down some of Exodus' former Acolytes for interrogation, because Exodus is now working with Sinister. The flying one who clips some of Angel's feathers is Gargouille. This issue marks her only appearance after a a debut in the Wundagore Mountain story (1998). She was killed by Predator X not long after this final appearance here.

Billy Tan's crisp artwork fit very well with the fine but detailed style David Finch brought to this same story arc. Together with writer Ed Brubaker, they would introduce us to Hope Summers, one of Marvel's most enduring new characters of the last twenty years.

You want buildings? We've got buildings! All lovingly rendered fully. Each of the panels in this spread tilts slightly, adding energy to the urban scene. Don't miss Nightcrawler, crouching on the balcony with his extra-long tail.

The overlapping panels and lack of gutters on the bottom tier allow Tan to squeeze in one more close-up of Angel. The first panel would have been a full page splash if it had been vertically oriented instead of horizontal. The colorist appropriately gave Angel a halo with the sun behind him. As Jason Richardson points out in the comments below, this panel became the cover of the second printing for this issue.

In the final panel, arch-backed Angel looks like an homage to Led Zeppelin's Icarus logo.