I bought these two tpbs on a whim. Best purchase I have made in years.
The concept behind the group is that these are the X-men's executioners - Wolverine, Psylocke, Archangel, plus Fantomex (apparently some sort of Sentinel hybrid who comes across as an arrogant Frenchman) and Deadpool. They go out and solve the dirty problems the X-men are philosophically unable to do so.
What sounds like an exercise in Charles Bronson brutality but with masks and claws instead evolves into various arguments about the point of vengeance, nature v nuture (especially when they visit the Age of Apocalypse), and whether the task includes killing children because of their potential. It loses its way a bit when the group go off to Captain Britain's interdimensional hang out, but otherwise does not lose pace at all.
And the result of it is remarkable. Here I dabble in spoilers... Sorry, but don't know the spoilers UBB code. (edit - worked it out)
Archangel is destroyed. Apocalypse is cloned and becomes a teen hero (which is done much much better than it sounds). Nightcrawler from the Age of Apocalypse betrays the team in order to seek vengeance. And Wolverine is emotionally shattered through the machinations of Sabretooth when he is compelled to kill his son, Daken, by drowning him in a muddy puddle - and does it without becoming berserk, instead making the human decision to do it in order to avoid the death of the students at the Jean Grey school.
This is one of the most haunting things I have read in comics, and provides the pretext for Wolverine swearing off killing.
There's also a poignant moment between Deadpool and the young Apocalypse which is so laden with meaning that it made me pause to think about it.
I really recommend it.
