X-Men: Astonishing X-MenVol 1: Gifted
Written by Joss Whedon
Art by John Cassaday
Available now from Islington Libraries
You can reserve this item for free here:
http://www.library.islington.gov.uk/TalisPrism/
X-Men: Astonishing X-MenVol 2: Dangerous
Written by Joss Whedon
Art by John Cassaday
Available now from Islington Libraries
You can reserve this item for free here:
http://www.library.islington.gov.uk/TalisPrism/
X-Men: Astonishing X-MenVol 3: Torn
Written by Joss Whedon
Art by John Cassaday
Available now from Islington Libraries
You can reserve this item for free here:
http://www.library.islington.gov.uk/TalisPrism/
X-Men: Astonishing X-MenVol 4: Unstoppable
Written by Joss Whedon
Art by John Cassaday
Available now from Islington Libraries
You can reserve this item for free here:
http://www.library.islington.gov.uk/TalisPrism/
X-Men: Astonishing X-MenVol 5: Ghost Box
Written by Warren Ellis
Art by Simone Bianchi
2010
Available now from Islington Libraries
You can reserve this item for free here:
http://www.library.islington.gov.uk/TalisPrism/
X-Men: Astonishing X-MenVol 6: Exogenetic
Written by Warren Ellis
Art by Phil Jimenez
2011
Available now from Islington Libraries
You can reserve this item for free here:
http://www.library.islington.gov.uk/TalisPrism/
Joss Whedon. The guy responsible for the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and Dollhouse (amongst other things) but then I'm guessing you already knew that. This is him writing the X-Men and - what can I say? - it's really really good. It's got jokes, wise-ass dialogue and lots and lots of moments of wowness. Picking up where Grant Morrison's New X-Men left off (but don't worry - you don't need to have read it to make sense of things here) this is a modern and dynamic take on the classic X-Men line-up of Cyclops, Wolverine, the Beast, the White Queen and Kitty Pryde taking in diabolical aliens, rogue technology and psychic onslaughts. The artwork is bold yet succinct and takes you everywhere from sitting on top of an island to fighting in outer-space. These four volumes comprise Whedon's entire run on the series before he handed the reins to Warren Ellis and so if you're looking for a the perfect entry point into everyone's favourite cutting-edge mutant action-adventure misfit: this is it. Fun superheroics with an expert handling of team dynamics that knows exactly what it's doing.
And then - oops - the switch from Vol 4 to Vol 5 and Warren Ellis takes over: and as signified by the new title design: it's basically a whole new book which I must admit left me spinning the first time I read it: "this is rubbish, this is nothing like the Whedon stuff, this is a mess, what happened?" My advice for my past self and for you: is basically treat it as a brand new thing that just happens to have the same characters and you will have a whole heap of more fun as Warren Ellis brings his patented obsessions and skewed world-view on to crazy superhero mutants (which when I think about it is pretty much a match made in heaven). Answering questions that you didn't know needed answered (the main one being: What happens to all the alien space-ships that land on Earth in the Marvel Universe?) and with dialogue that tickles in lots of pleasurable ways (albeit in a totally different way to Whedon) this stuff is worth your time. Especially Ghost Box with it's artwork from Italian artist (damn Europeans - how comes they're always so good?) Simone Bianchi - who not only is a great artist - but also manages to frame everything so that it looks absolutely stupendous. (Is it too much of a stretch to compare him to some renaissance artists? hmmm. probably yes. oh well. he is very good tho).
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Links: Ugo Joss Whedon Interview, Forbidden Planet Blog Review of Ghost Box, Forbidden Planet Blog Review of Exogenetic.
Further reading: X-Men: New X-Men, Ultimate X-Men, The Ultimates, Ultimate Fantastic Four, Wolverine: Enemy of the State, House of M, Planetary.
Profiles: Warren Ellis.
All comments welcome.
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