With this issue, I realized that Astonishing X-Men is a bit of a weird phenomenon for me. It's not my favorite title running, and I don't love it as much as comics like Ex Machina or Fallen Angel, and yet I always look forward to it and read it as soon as I can get my hands on it, while sometimes First Look books will wait until the weekend for me to get a chance to read them. Astonishing X-Men causes comic book cravings, and despite whatever minor problems I might have that prevent me from calling it a perfect comic, it is an undeniably addictive and delightfully fun read. This issue begins the second story arc of Whedon and Cassaday's X-Men, and while it doesn't delve into the teaser cliffhanger of issue #6, it does feature another memorable fight sequence guest-starring another Marvel Universe mainstay, an interesting follow-up on a supporting character from that first arc and the usual exceptional dialogue.
I don't want to say it's a shame that Whedon is too busy with TV and movies to become a full-time comic-book writer, because I love his work in TV and I can't wait for the Serenity film, but I also wish he could manage a monthly book or two, because I think he "gets" superheroes more than a lot of the big name TV/film guys who have come to comics. This issue is a great demonstration of why I believe that, as Whedon breaks from the traditionally insular world of mutants and brings in the Fantastic Four to fight alongside the team. The result is a fantastic action sequence, probably the best one the book has had, one that really allows Cassaday to show off his stuff.
There are great moments resulting in this pairing of the two teams. The banter between Thing and Wolverine, especially the "Canadians" joke, is priceless, and I got a huge kick out of seeing Colossus and Thing team up for some strongman work, something I don't think we've really seen before. We also get a really cool use of Kitty Pryde's powers that indicate what Cyclops means when he puts her on "damage control," a stupendous looking giant monster and some amusing territorial feelings on the part of the Thing. Every page has something funny, cool or inventive on it, and I'm reminded more than anything of the sense of boundless fun that Morrison recently captured in the pages of JLA: Classified. Cassaday and Whedon have perfect synergy here, and while I've been quite vocal in saying that I didn't think Cassaday's super-real style was perfect for this book, it was perfect for this issue, at least.
Then there's the stuff back at the mansion. I had honestly forgotten that our flying new mutant had lost his powers, but was very wrapped up in the story of him dealing with what is essentially a mutilation. However, while the easy way to view this particular story is as a tragedy that is self-inflicted, the prodding nature of his friend's dialogue (if that is indeed his friend and not an impostor) and the last page reveal seems to indicate something more sinister going on, unless Whedon has forgotten about the Danger Room's safety locks, which seems unlikely given his attention to other fannish details.
In terms of structure, Astonishing X-Men has some minor flaws for me. I'm uncertain why we checked back in with Special Agent Brand at this point, because while it's a good scene, it seems like her story is over. Unless it's not, which is certainly possible, but these pages felt like an unnecessary epilogue to the previous tale, while we didn't get any pages delving into that juicy cliffhanger from the last issue, unless the young ex-flyer's story is somehow related. Basically, even these minor complaints could be addressed in the long run when I see how the story plays out, and even if they're not, there's something exceptional on each page of this book, which makes it a fantastic read by anyone's standards. 9/10
