Reviews - Astonishing X-Men #16

Last issue the new Hellfire Club revealed themselves and easily took down the X-Men. Cyclops was catatonic, Wolverine was a pussy, Beast was feral, Colossus got the shit kicked out of him and Kitty Pryde was sent down to the core of the Earth. Where was Emma Frost? Well, it appears Emma is actually in league with the Hellfire Club and has betrayed the X-Men.

Kitty has managed to regain her senses and stopped phasing to the core of the Earth. She quickly returns to the Mansion to see that Wolverine and Beast are of no help. We learn of that there's something the Hellfire Club wants and they need Kitty to retrieve it. Kitty takes down Emma but is then confronted by the White Queen? WTF? Another twist in the plot I guess.

There's also a side plot regarding SWORD and the alien Ord. Ord has been told by Danger (the Danger Room personified) that there is a mutant responsible for the destruction of his homeworld. He escapes the PEAK, SWORD's base of operations, and heads towards the mansion. Looks like someone's in trouble.

Whedon has written an intriguing issue. I think that Joss Whedon's work is great but I don't particularly enjoy the X-Men. There are too many timeline inconsistencies for the stories told by Whedon to really work. Marvel's continuity is getting as convoluted as DC's. Kinda sad.

John Cassaday's art is as enjoyable as ever. I really liked Cassaday's work on Planetary and the Authority. It is a shame that the book is bi-monthly but at least it's actually bi-monthly, unlike many of the new series out right now.

A good issue overall. I don't collect any of the other X-Men books as the entire mutant concept has really been stretched thin recently. Even with House of M, there is too much emphasis on the more popular characters only. I'll still pick up Astonishing X-Men until Whedon and Cassaday's run ends at issue 24.

DRAGONCRYPT - Monday, September 25, 2006