ASTONISHING X-MEN #7 REVIEW

[Adam Chapman]

Reviewer: Adam Chapman adam.chapman@sympatico.ca
Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Dangerous, Part 1

The X-Men team-up with the FF against a giant monster.

<a href="http://www.comixtreme.com/gallery/data/media/583/astonishing7.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixtreme.com/gallery/data/thumbnails/583/astonishing7.jpg" align="left" border="0"> </a>Writer: Joss Whedon
Artist: John Cassaday
Colours: Laura Martin
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Editor: Mike Marts
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Review: There's a fair amount of action in this issue, the first part of Whedon's second arc for this title, but there are some great themes examined, which reflect the core fundamentals of the X-Men. The story has the X-Men fighting a giant monster in the middle of New York, given back-up by the Fantastic Four, and the fight is fun, and watching the two teams work together is great, and it works in terms of characterization much better than the X-Men/FF mini that just began.

That's just the storyline from a distance though, as it's really a character study couched in this fight, told through insightful thought bubbles which are used to great, minimal effect, in giving only a glimpse of insight into the troubled minds of the merry mutants. Colossus' return is shown to be everything but perfect, and its troubling most of all to Kitty Pryde. Whedon really gets the character of Kitty Pryde, and it's highly likely that she's never quite been written as well as she is in this series. She's both a strong willed, defiant personality, as seen in the first arc through her confrontation with Emma, but here, we see her vulnerable, insecure side, dealing with Colossus, a man she's had loving feelings for for years.

The secondary plot running through this issue centers on Wing, the student from the last arc who'd been cured, and his coming to grips with the fact that he can't fly anymore. It's really gripping stuff, and ends tragically, opening the door to great new material to be examined in future issues of this series. There's also some good character study on Agent Brand from SWORD, who featured in the last arc of this series.

The artwork by Cassaday is just beautifully rendered. There's a great sense of melancholy in the art, perfectly capturing the mood of the script. The look of Wing, his sadness, is extremely well illustrated, and evokes great emotion. The fight sequence between the FF, X-Men and the monster just screams classic. Cassaday's rendition of Kitty Pryde is just beautiful, and the way in which he captures her powers as she's saving bystanders is some of the best artwork in the issue. Just phenomenal stuff.

Ratings:

Story: http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/none.jpg

Art: http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/none.jpg

Overall: http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpghttp://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpg http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/none.jpg

Buy Astonishing X-Men online now from X-World and Save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=1244&cat=ASTONISHING+X%2DMEN)

[Ryan Read]

Great character moments in this issue, and now I get the title of this arc. Especially after that last page. Yikes!

[Patrel Rushlock]

This issue cemented my feelings of how great this title is going to be. Let's just pray Whedon stays on it for a very long time, which could just be a couple years going my Marvel's current practices eh?

[Symphony of Six]

Collosus contimplating his inner thoughts...
Kitty Pryde contimplating her inner thoughts...
Wolverine slashing a monster for three frames...

Best line of the book: "I Like Beer."

[Cardiac]

Originally posted by Patrel Rushlock
This issue cemented my feelings of how great this title is going to be. Let's just pray Whedon stays on it for a very long time, which could just be a couple years going my Marvel's current practices eh?

I hope he isn't. Keep a writer on a book for more than a couple of years and they tend to stagnate.

[Mark Blicharz]

Depends on the writer. Some writers can stay with a title for years and continue to put out great issues.

[Cardiac]

Some can but since my only previous experience with Joss' work is Buffy, I'm not hopeful.

[Mark Blicharz]

He's also the executive producer of Smallville I believe. That's also a TV show, it's not once a month, it's once a week. Every four episodes would be four months for a comic book instead of a month.

[Cardiac]

The difference being that I expect far better quality from a comic book since I don't pay a couple of quid a pop to watch a tv show. Good luck to the man, but I think he'll run out of ideas soon enough, and I wasn't overly impressed with his first arc either. Sure, it was good, but nothing special.

[Adam Chapman]

Originally posted by SSJGOKU555
He's also the executive producer of Smallville I believe. That's also a TV show, it's not once a month, it's once a week. Every four episodes would be four months for a comic book instead of a month.

Actually, he's not involved with Smallville at all. His TV projects were Buffy, Angel and Firefly, with all currently wrapped up, although his film Serenity is now in post-production. :p

[TwIsTeD_Rubz]

Beautiful beautiful stuff. whedon and cassaday show us how superhero books should be made and why this book is probably one of the top five (if not the top three) in terms of both critical acclaim and sales. this series just gets better and better. geek out moments galore! it looks like this arc will turn out much much better than the first.

[Mark Blicharz]

Doh, that was Loeb. Another J heh. Cardiac, you're missing my point, one issue a month compared to four episodes. One idea can play out for months at a time and have it be a huge story arc where on TV, an idea will play itself out in a month, but they have to stretch it to fit a season.

[The-Wraith]

The only good title Marvel put out now IMHO.

[Terry Verticchio]

Sorry, Six, the best line was between Ben and Logan...

Ben: "Don't they have a cure for you guys?"
Logan: "You got something against mutants?"
Ben: "No, Canadians."

Sorry America, but the latest election down there has made it plain the world needs us. Bwah, ha, ha!

[SamuraiDaddy]

We need Canada as much as we need Rush. ZIPPO!! BWAH HA HA HA HA!!

[WhereIsTony]

I like the PR idea of this team.

IT reminds me of the idea havok had for x-factor just before it was canceled.

[Mark Blicharz]

Yeah, that line made me crack up. Whedon wouldn't be bad to take up the FF now that Waid's run is nearly over.

[Terry Verticchio]

Originally posted by SamuraiDaddy
We need Canada as much as we need Rush. ZIPPO!! BWAH HA HA HA HA!!

NO RUSH????

PHILISTINE!!!!

[Andrea Speed]

We need Rush! Where would drummers be without Neil Peart? :D

And JMS is scheduled to take over Fantastic Four, but I've heard that won't be until late spring/summer. Have no idea who's filling in until then ...

[PinchyWearO]

Yes, Neal is the man!

And I got the scoop on the first JMS Fantastic Four Arc:

It seems when Sue had was flirting with Namor, she had an inebriated fling with his cousin, Namorita and, due to her son Franklin's reality-altering powers, they had a mutant son with invisible arching eyebrows who was cursed with a 3 second attention span.

-Pinch

**and the Canadian crack was great**

[Bad_Monkey]

Originally posted by Cardiac
I hope he isn't. Keep a writer on a book for more than a couple of years and they tend to stagnate.

Kurt Busiek wrote Avengers for five years and it was just as awesome when he left as when he started.

Mark Waid wrote Flash for more than 100 issues, no stagnation there.

Chris Claremont wrote X-Men for 17 years, and he didn't start to stagnate until he came back to the book six years later.


Some can but since my only previous experience with Joss' work is Buffy, I'm not hopeful.

And the worst season of Buffy was the one in the middle, Four.

[PinchyWearO]

Don't forget David Sim :)

-Pinch

[Bad_Monkey]

Damn good point.

[TwIsTeD_Rubz]

is it correct to assume though that there are no concrete plans after issue 12 as to whether or not the creative team is staying on the title?

[Bad_Monkey]

That's all they've committed to, so, no, there are no concrete plans.

[Ryan Broussard]

i loved it, hey didnt anyone else have colussus on their cover, he isnt shown here...i guess the took him out b/c of early solicitations

[Adam Chapman]

Heh, I noticed that the minute I got my copy- the wallpaper at Marvel.com, and the soliciation cover, both didn't have Colossus in it. Remember, we didn't know for sure if he was the real Colossus, or if he was going to stick around, because the advance solicitations kept everything mum. So that's why he wasn't in it.

Looks much better with good ol' Piotr in it. :D

[Magnus2k]

I liked it a whole lot. I liked the Beer comment and the exchange between Ben and Logan. Those two get at each other just like Spidey and Logan and I love it. Like I said in a the X4 thread, they are buddies, and kid at each other and fight just for the hell of it. That, and both have some ego issues when around each other. Well, Logan has em all the time really. But the last page, oh man, that was heart wrenching.

[Archangel 2029]

I wasn't much into this issue until the end scene with wing and who is behind it. Cassaday is the reason I get this book. His art especially how he illustrates Kitty is amazing. I have never watched any of Whedon's TV shows so to me his stories are nothing special.

[Gabriel Sosa]

what I really liked about this issue was the wing subplot, which seems to be the real plot, and the conversation he had before with his friend, this is too scary.
And I love the way the danger room was used here. I mean it has been used in similar ways before, but this time it was really frightening

[Mr Flibble]

Originally posted by Archangel 2029
I wasn't much into this issue until the end scene with wing and who is behind it. Cassaday is the reason I get this book. His art especially how he illustrates Kitty is amazing. I have never watched any of Whedon's TV shows so to me his stories are nothing special.

It's not Whedon's stories that people love, it's his dialogue & characterisation. The actual plot usually takes a back seat.