Surprisingly good, but I am a sucker for Byronic heroes. ( )

This was the best House of M story in my opinion. The recipe is a bit strange though: take a bunch of Z-list villains and a strong emotional core, and voila, you have a surprisingly good story full of redeeming characters.

I must say, Masters of Evil really stood out to me. You almost feel bad for the characters by the end, especially in the way they die at the hands of the regime. It's the way they're treated - mostly as believable humans - that really hits home.

Absolutely pleasantly surprised. ( )

So this started off kind of cheesy, kind of men-in-tights superhero stuff and then got kind of heavy. Since it was an "alternate" reality it allowed the writers to be really brutal and kill off a bunch of characters who had been around for decades. I imagine that this kind of break from normal restrictions must be a lot of fun for the writers. ( )

I admit it; I had very low expectations for this book. I got it mainly because I am a completest and already had all the other House of M tie-ins. So, it came as quite a shock that this story was actually damn good! I didn't expect much because to me, these are all C or B-level villains at best. Other than Sandman who appeared in the third Spider-man film, I doubt anyone who isn't seriously into comics has heard of any of these characters. Fortunately, the writers used that to their advantage with a clever storyline that showed just how bad it is for sapiens that even minor villains end up fighting for humanity.

The impetus for the story comes when The Hood decides to organize all these villains into a more effective team, à la the Mafia, to protect each other and make better, more profitable heists. And if they also stick it to the House of M, so much the better. None of them are mutants, though most do have some kind of power. This strategy evolves into something greater when Hood decides to use a Sapien Rights League as a cover for the hits, and Sapiens start revering them as heroes fighting against the establishment. But, Magneto is nothing if not ruthless and when he decides to crush this rebellion, these villains intend to go out in an exciting blaze of glory.

This book was a delightful surprise. These characters work perfectly for the plot, as history has shown that many freedom fighters arise from obscurity. The core group are developed enough even in this short book to help the reader connect, and the action is non-stop. Overall, this is an excellent supplement to the HoM event. Highly recommended. ( )

A mildly intriguing central conceit wrapped in a non-space of non-happenings, wrapped in an underwhelming crossover, wrapped in a glossy cover. ( )