By Warren Ellis (writer) Simone Bianchi (pencils) Simone Bianchi and Andrea Silvestri (inks) Simone Bianchi, Morry Hollowell, and Simone Peruzzi (colors)

The Story: Good ‘ol death legs, a.k.a. Forge, makes his final move against the Astonishing X-Men as Ellis’s and Bianchi’s Ghost Boxes arc comes to an end. After tracking Forge down to Wundagore Mountain, the X-men learn what his plans are to fight an inter-dimensional war using his “new mutants” and the X-men themselves as fodder. However, with a little help from above in the form of Agent Brand, the X-Men, as expected, escape but leave terrible consequences in their wake.

What’s Good: Well, if you’re a fan of the way Ellis had been telling this story, as I am, then this issue is a total winner as all the things that have made his tenure so far excellent are in play, to the max, here. I’m not going to lie: the way this series is so far paced reminds so much of Planetary and this is a good thing, despite the formulaic approach.  It’s not just the sci-fi vistas that Ellis takes the reader to, but also the pacing, and the sweeping character moments like Beast has at the end of this issue where everything is spelled out and left open at the same time.

I also have to applaud Ellis for going deep into X-Men past mythos with Forge and Wundagore Mountain, while bringing in Brand and elements from the current X-history. The whole package just works and I hope that his series stays isolated from Dark Reign.

I’ll get to Bianchi’s work below, but regardless of my criticisms, this book looks like nothing else on the stands and when he gets it right, his work is exceptional. The problem is that….

What’s Not So Good: is that he gets a lot wrong. For example, characters do not look consistent. Not only that, but his designs look nothing like what we’ve been sold these characters are supposed to look like. Check out Wolverine on page number…..oh wait comics don’t have page numbers anymore….whatever….towards the end of the book. It’s a profile of Wolvie and he looks like a 60 year old man. It seems like Bianchi decided for some reason or another to use a model for that one shot and it comes from nowhere and looks like no Wolverine we’ve seen before.

As far as the story itself, I would have liked to see more of the threat that the X-Men were facing from the other dimension. Although, the giant hand was very cool, I would’ve liked to see more of that kinda thing.

Conclusion: I hate slamming artists because I respect them so much and there is no way I could do even one line that they draw so effortlessly. That being said, the art near cripples this issue, which I would give an A if it looked differently. I will sat that Bianchi has an insane amount of talent, but it just comes out strange and distracting, most of the time in this series (kinda like another artist on the other X-Men series. I’m talking to you Greg Land). However, word is that Phil Jimenez is taking on art duties next arc and I look forward to seeing all that go down. Kudos to Ellis for re-establishing Astonishing X-Men as “the” X book on the stands. Now, just get the book out on time, will you?

Grade: B

-Rob G

First of these in a while, so let’s start off slow…

Unknown Soldier #09

Written by Joshua Dysart

In a nutshell: Focusing on the CIA agent Jack Lee Howl, Joshua Dysart’s writing overcomes the poor artwork and keeps things moving and intriguing, with an unexpected but adequate sense of humour.

Amoral and pathetic, Jack Lee Howl is a piece of shit who will let anyone stomp on him if it’ll keep him alive — even if “alive” is a bit of an optimistic term to define Howl’s condition. He describes himself, accurately, as a “tool” rather than a human being — and it’s the moment he decides he doesn’t want to be that any more that this issue of “Unknown Soldier” focuses on, without losing sight of the plot: the titular character’s indecision on whether he should murder the well-intentioned celebrity Margaret Wells, since her assassination would turn the world’s attention to the troubles of Uganda. The way they’re putting it, it’s a choice between the death of one celeb or of hundreds of child soldiers.

Providing some extra back story on the project that made the protagonist Lwanga Moses become a bandaged psycho, Dysart does a good job of exploring Howl’s background and personality and tying that to the ongoing plot: a story about the Siafu (a devastating kind of ant), for example, is used by Howl as a “way in” as he tries to work on a relationship with Moses (intending, of course, to exploit the man for his own ends). Howl is not likeable and not admirable — but he is intriguing, and that’s what he’s intended to be. Not to mention amusing in his sleaziness.

Dysart also illustrates Moses’ dilemma regarding Wells’ murder with a page divided into two panels — one showing hundreds of dead children and another showing only Wells being killed, creating a heavy contrast that, for a man with a soldier’s mentality, should be enough to make a decision.

Ponticelli’s art has improved, but only slightly. There’s more detail in his panels, but they’re just as sketchy as everything else, a dirty artwork that doesn’t have the charm of, say, Goran Parlov, the narrative brilliance of Sean Phillips or the impressive composition of Danijel Zezelj. It just looks amateur in its roughness, something that is made even worse by the laughable colour work by Oscar Celestini, whose technique would maybe look impressive in 1994 or so.

On the other hand, Clem Robins’ lettering continues to please in its intensity. You can easily hear the dialogue, imagine the voices and their tone thanks to Robins’ work (and Dysart’s good use of bold on his lines), and the placement of balloons and captions is flawless. I especially like the moment Moses yells “right fucking NOW” and “now” is written in a much larger font, with part of the balloon jagging to emphasize the shout.

Relevant and interesting, “Unknown Soldier” continues to be a brilliant ongoing that hasn’t lost its initial momentum. But it could use a decent art team.

Astonishing X-Men #30

Written by Warren Ellis

In a nutshell: Mildly amusing and pretty, but overall meh.

So, all the five-issues-long mistery and intrigue can be summed up by “Forge went crazy”.

On his brilliant Astonishing X-Men run, Joss Whedon created a number of characters to support his original story lines. Warren Ellis, on the other hand, is digging deep into the Marvel Universe to find characters and loose ends to use — it’s like he was scraping the leftovers on the bottom of a barrel and look, there’s Forge. Let’s make him crazy, create a weak connection to a major Marvel event and add a scientific thingie called Ghost Box so it’ll all look more complex than it really is.

But really — Forge went crazy and made an army of, erm, mutant mutants. That’s about it. And it took four or five issues (can’t even remember) to find that out and one issue, this one, to solve the problem. And of course, it’s solved with arse-kicking. At least, the dialogue is good and Ellis’ humour is very present, but not enough to disguise the simplicity of the plot and its reliance on the reader’s knowledge of the Marvel Universe.

The art team, however, is at its best. Simone Bianchi has a good eye for page layout, and his narrative has gotten much better. His art feels less like a strung-together bunch of pin-ups and more like a continuing story, which is a huge improvement — and at the same time, he can create panels that stand quite well on their own, like the one of Wolverine popping his claws. The colouring is also very appropriate and well-shaded, and Chris Eliopoulos’ lettering is efficient, although it doesn’t go past that.

It’s a fun issue, but it also happens to be the ending of an overlong arc — that didn’t really go anywhere interesting or unexpected.

By Warren Ellis (Writer), Simone Bianchi (Pencils & Inks), Andrea Silvestri (Inks), and Simone Peruzzi, Christina Strain, & Laura Martin (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: Astonishing X-Men should be better than it has been, especially considering both the talent involved and how long the wait is between issues. The biting humor and high-concept storyline work quite well. The muddy, (sometimes ridiculous) artwork and fairly plodding pace, however, does not.

The Story: The penultimate chapter of “Ghost Boxes” reveals more of the details behind both the ghost boxes and the artificial mutants. In addition, the X-Men learn about Forge’s involvement in a secret war between alternate realities. The information comes mostly from some brutal interrogation techniques used by the team.

What’s Good: I know it sounds terribly simplistic, but the good stuff about the current form of Astonishing X-Men keeps being good in Astonishing #29. Warren Ellis does a great job writing some of the characters (especially Emma Frost) and his storyline continues to be dense and intriguing, but not overwhelming (though it still feels like the plot’s moving a bit slow). The interrogation scenes are particularly amusing, given that they are written with an edge rarely seen in an “X” book that isn’t called X-Force.

What’s Not So Good: Just as the good stuff remains good, the bad stuff remains bad. The artwork is a mess of highs and lows that is incredibly frustrating to look at. For every panel (or page) that looks damn near fantastic, there are a handful that can be described as (feel free to pick more than one) inconsistent, muddy, unclear, or just downright silly looking. Wolverine is shown with a hilariously flat face on two occasions. Cyclops seems to have some relation to Angelina Jolie. Storm is actually lacking facial features in one panel. I could go on, but I assume you get my point. I know how good Simone Bianchi’s work can look. That’s why I have to come down so hard on the art in Astonishing.

Conclusion: The good outweighs the bad in Astonishing X-Men #29, but not by as much as I’d like. The writing rocks for the most part, but the book as a whole is weighed down by the art and the pacing.

Grade: B-

-Kyle Posluszny

By Warren Ellis (Writer), Simone Bianchi (Pencils & Ink Washes), Andrea Silvestri (Ink Washes), and Simone Peruzzi (Colorist)

The Story: The mystery surrounding the now deceased Subject X and the strange electronic box grows deeper as the X-Men work to unlock whatever secrets may be held. The investigation winds up involving Agent Abigail Brand from S.W.O.R.D. and a five mile chunk of land in China that’s considered to be an intelligence dead zone.

What’s Good: Warren Ellis is slowly, but surely, unraveling one hell of a science fiction story with his first Astonishing arc. By allowing the reader to learn things only as the team does, Ellis ensures that each issue leaves you wanting more. It works extremely well, and makes for a fairly dense read. This is why it helps to have so much character work and entertaining (sometimes hilarious) dialogue throughout the book. The story could easily become overwhelming without the witty exchanges helping make everything a bit more digestible for those new to Warren Ellis’ style of science fiction.

What’s Not So Good: The artwork and, in a minor way, the pacing. I honestly can’t think of another series that hits such artistic highs and lows within the same issue. For every gorgeous or cool looking scene, there are others that look far too muddy. For every great character shot, there are facial expressions that are absolutely ridiculous or totally inappropriate (for the given scene). It’s the very definition of hit or miss and, quite frankly, this story deserves better.

As for the pacing, I only mention it because all the fun character work does little to actually advance the plot. Normally, I wouldn’t even bother mentioning it because I happen to enjoy Ellis’ banter quite a bit, but some may find the story already moving slow enough without all the added team moments.

Conclusion: An extremely entertaining chapter in what is quickly becoming a fantastic sci-fi story. The only thing holding this one back is the inconsistent artwork, but what damage it does is far from critical. This one’s worth it for the story alone.

Grade: B+

-Kyle Posluszny

Warren Ellis, (Writer) Simone Bianchi, (Artist) and Simone Peruzzi (Colorist)

Not to take anything away from the excellent run by Joss Whedon and John Cassaday, but this issue of Astonishing X-Men begins what might be my most anticipated creative run of the year. Warren Ellis became one of my favorite writers with his incredible work on the Thunderbolts, while Simone Bianchi’s preview art for this series left me wanting much more. Needless to say, I came into this issue with high expectations. Suffice to say, I think many will think this issue suffers a bit because it has to establish the new status quo. Personally, I wasn’t disappointed.

Astonishing X-Men #25 kicks off with the team already relocated to San Francisco – an event that will be taking place in Uncanny X-Men #500. Armor mulls a new code name, Beast is his usual amusing self, Storm drops in to rejoin the team in order to gain information for the Black Panther, Wolverine is fighting a hangover, Emma Frost is being, well, Emma Frost, and Cyclops is just happy the team has regrouped. Things are pretty calm at the start of this arc as Ellis takes his time reintroducing everyone with some great character moments. Soon though, a call comes in from the San Francisco P.D. and the team is off to do some consulting work regarding a mysterious, possibly mutant, death. Overall, this is a smooth transition to the new creative team and while I wish things moved forward a little bit more in this issue, a solid storytelling foundation is now in place.

I expected Ellis to do some awesome things with these characters and, sure enough, everyone gets a chance to shine. The banter throughout the book is a lot of fun to read and I am happy to report that none of the charm of Whedon’s run has been lost during the creative switch. The storyline already feels like a classic Warren Ellis tale and I look forward to his more scientific approach to the intricacies of mutation. I wish there was a bit more of the new main storyline in this issue, but things are off to a compelling start nonetheless.

Simone Bianchi’s artwork is a treat to look at throughout the issue, but a part of me wishes the entire book could have been done without coloring. The pencil work loses something with the coloring as parts of the book look muddy and it feels as though some detail was lost here and there. A little more vibrant color palette would have been welcome as well, as everything feels rather…dim. Despite my criticisms, this is still a good looking book all around and I look forward to seeing what Bianchi has in store for us as the series goes on.

Astonishing X-Men is a good start for the new creative team. The character moments are spot on, the artwork is excellent and, at times, stunning. This arc looks to have a lot of storytelling possibilities. If you liked Whedon’s run, be sure to give Ellis a chance. (Grade B+)

- Kyle Posluszny

A Second Opinion

The first few pages of this book bored me out of my mind. I had all but written it off when things finally took a more interesting turn. I love the fact that the team is welcomed by the San Francisco community and law enforcement. I also like how Warren Ellis attempts to get away from the costumes (like Grant Morrison did), even if for just a little while. There’s nothing like a nice little mystery mixed with some good science fiction to get things started. I have no doubt Ellis’ run here will be full of fun, entertaining concepts.

Simone Bianchi’s art is beautiful as expected, and his panel work very interesting. But drawing pretty pictures doesn’t mean you’re a good storyteller, and this is something Bianchi’s going to have to work on. In a way, his work reminds me of Chris Bachalo’s body of work. It’s always great on the eyes, but awful in execution. There’s also a lot of inconsistencies, especially when it comes to Storm. Sometimes she looks like this beautiful goddess while other times she looks like Jay Leno’s African cousin.

As much as the reintroduction of the team roster bored me, I absolutely loved the maturity and camaraderie shown between Cyclops and Wolverine. It’s never been easy between these two, but this issue finally shows that there’s been some growth over the years and it’s just written brilliantly. Please, let’s keep this forward momentum going. The X-Men is all about evolution and after undoing nearly everything Grant Morrison did, maybe – just maybe -  Marvel editorial will be smart enough to let things stick this time. (Grade: B+)

- J. Montes