Stephanie Kay
Oct 13, 2007, 09:36 pm
<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/marvel/0806/ASTX016_col.jpg" target="_blank"><img src=" http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/marvel/0806/ASTX016_colt.jpg" alt="Astonishing X-Men #16" hspace=10 align=left></a> Reviewer: Jason Grasso, Desperad07@aol.com
Story Title: Torn (Part 4 of 6)
“yeahbuhwhat?”
Writer: Joss Whedon
Artist: John Cassaday
Colorist: Laura Martin
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Assistant Editor: Sean Ryan
Associate Editor: Nick Lowe
Editor: Mike Marts
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Published By: Marvel Comics (www.marvel.com)
In Astonishing X-Men #16, Shadowcat grabs the spotlight as the Hellfire Club continue to deliver mayhem and mystery at Xavier’s. The story arc has been playing out like a hybrid love child of Gosford Park, Panic Room, and an episode of Buffy. By the end, Kitty Pryde is still the only X-man standing (or at least, standing with her wits) but who knows for how long. Cyclops and Colossus remain out for the count the entire issue, Beast is but a roaming, feral cameo, and Wolverine’s playing comic relief.
But we gain a little more understanding of what the Hellfire Club is up to, attempting to open something Emma Frost refers to as “The Manger” (a diamond shaped, impregnable metal coffin). Emma’s diamond-mutation powers clarify what most of Hellfire already knew, that it would not be easy for any of them to get into. But there just happens to be an X-Man running around with phasing powers (by design, of course).
Cassady gets some great scenes to illustrate in the issue. The biggest highlight being the page-turning fight scene between Emma and Kitty, particularly the first punch thrown from the latter. It’s a classic shot, made even more enjoyable by Kitty’s long-standing suspicion of the White Queen (something I, too, have always felt as a reader). Another highlight is the childlike Wolverine’s reaction to his claws popping out.
I give credit to Whedon for focusing on Shadowcat as the team’s sly strength instead of the obvious and overused candidate for last man standing: Wolverine. But turning Wolverine (now absent from the other two main X-titles) into a frightened wuss with the mind of a child for two issues (so far) is a brazen move that just seems to work. It underlines the desperation of Kitty’s progress because Logan’s far from returning to the battlefield. And it makes for some great absurdist humor.
This issue is book-ended by the S.W.O.R.D. storyline. It opens at the Peak, S.W.O.R.D.’s off-world headquarters, with a rampaging Ord breaking out with the secret revealed to him by Danger, who later pilots the shuttle Ord escapes on. At the end of the issue, S.W.O.R.D. intercepts the shuttle but not before a timely departure by its two key passengers. That secret is the identity of the eventual destroyer of the Breakworld.
And by the end, not only do we know THAT secret but also who’s underneath Perfection’s cowl. In fact, we didn’t have to go far to discover their identities. The revelation of the Breakworld destroyer makes sense and fits in with Whedon’s overall series arc. (And it’s delivered to us in a very cool last-page shot by Cassady.) It should also be noted that in issue #15, when Danger approaches Ord about the identity of the destroyer, that character is the very first one on panel in the next scene.
Perfection, however, is a tougher nut to crack. After Shadowcat has captured Emma in a cavern underneath the mansion and returns above ground, only to be confronted by Perfection, who reveals herself as the White Queen ! Kitty’s dumbfounded response is not only in character but also representative of the audience. I had to remind myself that this is a comic book and whether or not the eventual explanation of how this is possible makes sense or is remotely realistic, it’s still a comic book. But still, it’s certainly a wild revelation. I’m not sure how it explains away Emma’s villainy which we readers of future solicits know will happen based on the cover of issue #19 other than the far too predictable mind-control angle. (Though I'm not sure how that's possible other than time-travel or cloning.) I’m hoping Whedon gets more creative than that because Emma has wrought a lot of undeniable evil with the Hellfire Club the last few issues, behavior that would be hard to rack up as part of a heroic inside job.
With two more issues in the arc left, that’s really not to criticize here. Here, we get another great issue with some mysteries slowly unwrapped and a few more created. The whole arc is turning into a truly isolated tale, with the main plot kept to the mansion and its few remaining inhabitants (while the subplot is merely there to set up Whedon and Cassady’s next story arc). While some might argue about its detachment from current continuity, being unhindered by House of M, Decimation and Civil War is one of this title’s biggest strengths. Whedon is allowed to focus on the characterization and while the other big X-titles play in bigger sandboxes or get caught up in the convoluted nature of crossovers, he gets to entertain us with an old fashioned round of mind games and whodunit mystery set, of course, in a mansion.
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xhalf.jpg
Buy Astonishing X-Men online now from X-WORLD and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopexd.asp?id=20336)
Story Title: Torn (Part 4 of 6)
“yeahbuhwhat?”
Writer: Joss Whedon
Artist: John Cassaday
Colorist: Laura Martin
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Assistant Editor: Sean Ryan
Associate Editor: Nick Lowe
Editor: Mike Marts
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Published By: Marvel Comics (www.marvel.com)
In Astonishing X-Men #16, Shadowcat grabs the spotlight as the Hellfire Club continue to deliver mayhem and mystery at Xavier’s. The story arc has been playing out like a hybrid love child of Gosford Park, Panic Room, and an episode of Buffy. By the end, Kitty Pryde is still the only X-man standing (or at least, standing with her wits) but who knows for how long. Cyclops and Colossus remain out for the count the entire issue, Beast is but a roaming, feral cameo, and Wolverine’s playing comic relief.
But we gain a little more understanding of what the Hellfire Club is up to, attempting to open something Emma Frost refers to as “The Manger” (a diamond shaped, impregnable metal coffin). Emma’s diamond-mutation powers clarify what most of Hellfire already knew, that it would not be easy for any of them to get into. But there just happens to be an X-Man running around with phasing powers (by design, of course).
Cassady gets some great scenes to illustrate in the issue. The biggest highlight being the page-turning fight scene between Emma and Kitty, particularly the first punch thrown from the latter. It’s a classic shot, made even more enjoyable by Kitty’s long-standing suspicion of the White Queen (something I, too, have always felt as a reader). Another highlight is the childlike Wolverine’s reaction to his claws popping out.
I give credit to Whedon for focusing on Shadowcat as the team’s sly strength instead of the obvious and overused candidate for last man standing: Wolverine. But turning Wolverine (now absent from the other two main X-titles) into a frightened wuss with the mind of a child for two issues (so far) is a brazen move that just seems to work. It underlines the desperation of Kitty’s progress because Logan’s far from returning to the battlefield. And it makes for some great absurdist humor.
This issue is book-ended by the S.W.O.R.D. storyline. It opens at the Peak, S.W.O.R.D.’s off-world headquarters, with a rampaging Ord breaking out with the secret revealed to him by Danger, who later pilots the shuttle Ord escapes on. At the end of the issue, S.W.O.R.D. intercepts the shuttle but not before a timely departure by its two key passengers. That secret is the identity of the eventual destroyer of the Breakworld.
And by the end, not only do we know THAT secret but also who’s underneath Perfection’s cowl. In fact, we didn’t have to go far to discover their identities. The revelation of the Breakworld destroyer makes sense and fits in with Whedon’s overall series arc. (And it’s delivered to us in a very cool last-page shot by Cassady.) It should also be noted that in issue #15, when Danger approaches Ord about the identity of the destroyer, that character is the very first one on panel in the next scene.
Perfection, however, is a tougher nut to crack. After Shadowcat has captured Emma in a cavern underneath the mansion and returns above ground, only to be confronted by Perfection, who reveals herself as the White Queen ! Kitty’s dumbfounded response is not only in character but also representative of the audience. I had to remind myself that this is a comic book and whether or not the eventual explanation of how this is possible makes sense or is remotely realistic, it’s still a comic book. But still, it’s certainly a wild revelation. I’m not sure how it explains away Emma’s villainy which we readers of future solicits know will happen based on the cover of issue #19 other than the far too predictable mind-control angle. (Though I'm not sure how that's possible other than time-travel or cloning.) I’m hoping Whedon gets more creative than that because Emma has wrought a lot of undeniable evil with the Hellfire Club the last few issues, behavior that would be hard to rack up as part of a heroic inside job.
With two more issues in the arc left, that’s really not to criticize here. Here, we get another great issue with some mysteries slowly unwrapped and a few more created. The whole arc is turning into a truly isolated tale, with the main plot kept to the mansion and its few remaining inhabitants (while the subplot is merely there to set up Whedon and Cassady’s next story arc). While some might argue about its detachment from current continuity, being unhindered by House of M, Decimation and Civil War is one of this title’s biggest strengths. Whedon is allowed to focus on the characterization and while the other big X-titles play in bigger sandboxes or get caught up in the convoluted nature of crossovers, he gets to entertain us with an old fashioned round of mind games and whodunit mystery set, of course, in a mansion.
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/xhalf.jpg
Buy Astonishing X-Men online now from X-WORLD and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopexd.asp?id=20336)