The Good
The nice thing about the current status of AVENGERS VS. X-MEN is most of the little fights have been put on hold. The X-Men now have the Phoenix Five, five members with a portion of the Phoenix Force. They have been 'solving' the world's problems but the Avengers don't trust them with the power.
The main focus here is on Rogue (she is pretty much the lead character in the series). As she goes out to continue doing what she can in saving the world, she is confronted by Ms. Marvel. You can imagine how this is going to go. Rogue and Ms. Marvel have a long and dark history since Rogue accidentally absorbed her powers and a portion of her mind. With the escalation of the battle between the two teams, this is going to get very messy.
Christos Gage does a great job in delivering a tie-in story without it feeling completely bogged down by the main series. Many of the tie-in issues have been all over the place and the added fact that this lines up perfectly with the shipping schedule is an extra treat. Rogue and Ms. Marvel are great characters. This is the match up that many of us want to see even if it's a tough decision in who to root for. Throw in David Baldeon's art and Brian Reber's colors, it's a fun ride.
The Bad
It is great to see the two fight but we're all on the verge of hero vs. hero overload. It's also hard to accept that the X-Men would be so willing to believe that any bit of the Phoenix Force could be controlled. This is more of a problem with the overall story and not necessarily this issue in particular.
For a series called X-MEN LEGACY, it really feels like it should just be called ROGUE.
The Verdict
The AVENGERS VS. X-MEN tie-ins have been a mixed bag. Christos Gage and David Baldeon give us a nice detour in the main event with a focus on Rogue and Ms. Marvel. The entire AvX story is feeling like a car accident and you can't help but look. Issues like this give us more of a focus on the characters. We get to hear what Rogue thinks of everything and its that insight that provides more substance over fight after fight, even if there is a pretty cool one here.