X-Men #34 Review – Juggernaut Faces Himself

X-Men #34 (Marvel, 7/29/26): Writer Jed MacKay and Artists Greg Land & Jay Leisten send Juggernaut to the quaint town of Juniper, PA, to tear down an offensive statue. Juggernaut fans will enjoy this character study that forces Marko Cain to confront his new status quo, but everyone else may doze off midway through. Verdict: For Juggernaut fans only.

• Writer: Jed MacKay
• Artist: Greg Land, Jay Leisten
• Colorist: Fer Sifuentes-Sujo
• Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles
• Cover Artist: Tony S. Daniel, Mark Morales (cover A)
• Publisher: Marvel Comics
• Release Date: July 29, 2026
• Comic Rating: Teen
• Cover Price: $4.99
• Page Count: 28
• Format: Single Issue

Covers:

Analysis of X-Men #34:

First Impressions:

Outside of his early days as a villain and sometimes member of The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, I’ve never been a big Juggernaut fan. He’s fine. I just don’t have strong feelings about him either way. Unfortunately, this issue did nothing to sway my vote.

Recap:

The X-Men team relocated to a renovated factory in Merle, Alaska, to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life and set up a base of operations for new mutants looking for a home. The team, led by Scott Summers aka Cyclops, deals with threats – foreign, domestic, and alien – in their collective search for peaceful coexistence.

Plot Analysis (SPOILERS):

Somebody decided to set up a statue of the late Bolivar Trask in the middle of Juniper, Pennsylvania. Nobody knows how or why, other than to signal that Trask lived in the town for a few years and to honor his memory. Ripped from today’s headlines, people show up in droves to either defend the free speech of the statue’s representation or to tear the statue down as a representation of hate speech.

Juggernaut shows up on a solo assignment from Cyclops to do… something. The mission’s parameters are never stated, and it’s not clear why a statue warrants the X-Men’s attention. Juggernaut attacks the statue because he believes completing the mission will prove his worthiness to be considered an X-Man, even though he’s not a mutant. However, the statue is protected by an impenetrable force field that Juggernaut can’t break.

Over the course of hours, Juggernaut pummels the force field while intermittently talking with assorted people who represent various perspectives on the “statue problem.” In the end, Magik and Cyclops arrive to bring Juggernaut home, reassuring him that his effort is all that matters.

How is the story in X-Men #34?

How do you have a comic that’s almost all action and boring at the same time? I’m not sure, but Jed MacKay seems to have cracked that code. If you’re a Juggernaut fan and are interested in getting a peek inside the big lug’s head to understand what he feels about fitting in with the X-Men, there might be some interesting insights here for you. If you don’t really have a care for Juggernaut, this go-nowhere issue will feel like a waste.

Furthermore, MacKay’s lack of setup makes this issue feel doubly pointless. Why is a statue of Trask worth the X-Men’s time? Who built it (with a force field) and why? Why does Juggernaut believe that destroying a statue is expressing his right of free speech (when it clearly isn’t)? MacKay jumbles in so many concepts from modern-day culture war nonsense that he winds up creating even more nonsense. If he had a point to make, he didn’t make it or made it poorly.

How is the art in X-Men #34?

Conversely, Greg Land and Jay Leisten’s artwork is the bee’s knees. Juggernaut looks massive, as he should. His pummeling hits on the statue resonate with macho power, as they should. And the emotional acting from Juggernaut as exhaustion and the threat of personal failure wear him down come through loud and clear, as they should.

Plus, Fer Sifuentes-Sujo’s coloring is Grade-A excellent. The shading and textures give each panel depth and pop. Later in the issue, when Juggernaut reaches a point of exhaustion, Land, Leisten, and Sifuentes-Sujo apply a unique form of psychedelia to the panel borders and backgrounds that adds a unique flair to Juggernaut’s mental state. Good stuff.

Characters

Juggernaut is front and center in this character, and to be fair, MacKay does give the big man a little character growth as he becomes obsessed with proving himself worthy during an unbeatable challenge. When Cyclops and Magik arrive, their words of encouragement come as a blessed relief, leaving the reader with the hope that Juggernaut is now better for the experience.

Originality & Concept Execution

It’s hard to say if the story is original because the plot essentially serves as a vehicle to confront Juggernaut with his flaws. It’s not clear that his mission was designed to do that, and the ending doesn’t solidify whether or not he was changed by the experience. In effect, the issue reads like the middle part of a more complete story, so the execution is certainly lacking, even if the originality is uncertain.

Pros and Cons

What We Loved

• Character growth potential for Juggernaut
• Excellent art
• Lots of “action”

Room for Improvement

• The setup feels heavy-handed and clunky
• The mission is/was unclear
• Juggernaut’s growth potential is unrealized

Art Samples:

The Scorecard:

Writing Quality (Clarity & Pacing): 1.5/4
Art Quality (Execution & Synergy): 3.5/4
Value (Originality & Entertainment): 0.5/2

Final Thoughts:

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X-Men #34 lays out an unbeatable challenge for Juggernaut, which tests his mind more than his strength. MacKay’s aimless character piece has potential, but the setup and execution are too clunky to realize it. That said, the art team gives you plenty of visual pop to overcome the script’s weakness.

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