Astonishing X-Men, Vol. 4: Unstoppable

I've followed the X-Men for many years now, and managed to read issues going back to the very beginning. I would like to think that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby would feel very proud of the stories that Joss Whedon and John Cassaday have put together. Filled with emotion, drama, and heart, the characters just continue to evolve. In fact, this was the first time that I liked Emma Frost. In these issues, the X-Men Cyclops, Beast, Kitty Pryde, Collosus, Wolverine, Emma Frost, and a room full of guest stars must learn the secrets of the Break World before the Break World comes after the Earth. It is the cataclysmic climax of the story begun in Astonishing X-Men #1. This volume contains Astonishing X-Men 19-24 and giant-Size Astonishing X-Men #1. Its well worth the money!!

If someone told me a couple of years ago that a X-Men comic would move me to tears, I'd pat them on the shoulder and tell them to lay off the booze. Well, either Joss Whedon is one of the best writers in the field or I'm more sensitive than I thought, because with "Unstoppable," Whedon finishes his redefining run on this title with an epic, action packed, character driven, emotional roller coaster that made me tear up on more than one occasion. From Buffy The Vampire Slayer, to Firefly, to his Marvel work, Joss Whedon is pretty much my favorite writer of all time. However, it's obvious that his run on Astonishing X-Men has been surprisingly uneven. The first volume was a solid introduction to the main story arc of the series, but the second and third volumes had pretty apparent plot problems and didn't flow nearly as well as the first one. Despite those problems, Joss managed to develop the characters, particularly Kitty Pryde and newcomer Agent Brand, in ways that the X-Men certainly didn't experience under the care of lesser writers, and not enough can ever be said about Whedon's dialogue. But I feared that, like the previous two volumes, Joss would give us a somewhat muddled story with little payoff... but I should have trusted my favorite writer a bit more, because this is a climatic ending that surpasses the highest high point the series had achieved (probably in the latter issues of Volume One: Gifted) by far. Joss brings the Breakworld saga to a great close, packing it with revelations, huge plot twists, truly heroic moments, and some really heart-wrenching drama. Joss makes up for his missteps in the previous volumes by concluding it in a way that only he could, utilizing John Cassaday's cinematic style to truly make this feel like an experience at the movies. The coloring, the mood, the dialogue... reading this book isn't just a pleasant experience, it's akin to seeing a great movie in the theatre. The book isn't perfect, and there were some loose ends that I wish Joss would have tied up. Instead of including other Marvel super heroes, under magical influence, falsely believing that they're saving the world, that page space would have been better used to tie up the Danger plot line. Emma promised Danger something, and Joss leaves that plot a bit open ended, presumably for the next writer to tackle. However, Joss's series is so self-contained that it really just felt like a long movie, so I'm left wishing he tied that up himself. With great art all around and even better writing, Joss completely outdoes himself with this book. He doesn't match what he's done before, he completely surpasses it with this truly heroic story with a heartbreaking and utterly shocking, innovative ending that closes some doors but opens so, so many more. Bravo. 9/10

I am going to miss Whedon and Cassaday's run with 'Astonishing X-Men.' During the 1980s and 90s X-men stories got so convoluted it was difficult to follow all the characters, much less explore the complex relationships between them. But Astonishing X-Men, from the very start, solved those problems by focusing on only a few team members: Cyclops, Emma Frost, Kitty Pryde, Colossus, and of course Wolverine. The interactions of these characters, particularly Frost and Pryde are at the heart of the new series, which also features Agent Brand of Sword and a new X-Man, Hisako, aka Armor. This final story arc from Whedon cannot be read independently of the first three. 'Gifted,' 'Dangerous,' and especially 'Torn' are required pre-reads before tackling this volume. Without revealing any spoilers, the plot involves the X-Men on the Breakworld, the world Colossus, it is prophesied, will destroy. One plot twist follows another every couple of pages, but even careful readers will be surprised at the ending. Both the Breakworld and Earth are saved, but by who and how this review will not say. Suffice to add, Blindfold's vision, at the end of 'Torn' is fulfilled and one of the X-Men will not return. Saddened as I am by the loss, I hope Marvel will not allow another unbelievable "back from the beyond" scenario. Even the greatest (and most sympathetic) of heroes need to rest in peace. 'Astonishing X-Men,' perhaps more than any other series, has captured the essence of the original comic: heroes who, for all their power, are all too human. Marvel, of couse, has made considerable money with 'Astonishing X-Men' from readers like myself who have returned to comics long after I thought I was "over" that phase. The series will, of course, continue under the title 'Astonishing X-Men: Second Stage' with writer Warren Ellis working with artist Simone Bianchi. But these keepers of the flame will have a difficult task on their hands. 'Unstoppable' was as close to perfection as one can get in the comic format. It is hard to see how it can be matched.

"Unstoppable" completes Joss Whedon's memorable stint as Astonishing X-Men's author in suitably epic fashion. In "Gifted" and "Dangerous" we were introduced to a classic X-Men line-up consisting of Cyclops, Wolverine, Emma Frost, Kitty Pryde, Beast, and Colossus. They were out to improve public relations, run the school in Professor Xavier's absence, and maybe save some folk along the way. Then along came Ord, an alien sent to assassinate the prophesied destroyer of his home planet, Breakworld, who just happened to be a member of the X-Men. There was fighting. At this point the Danger Room became self-aware and decided it's new mission was to murder each and every X-man and woman who had enslaved it all these years so she built herself a mechanical body and havoc was wreaked. Then came the Torn arc, which focused on the former White Queen and her reasons for inviting Kitty onto the team in spite of their mutual dislike; all that taking place with an apparent attack by the Hellfire Club as the backdrop. A SHIELD operative, Agent Brand, wound up launching the team into space just as the united villain front of Ord and Danger burst in on the scene and that brings us up to speed. Next stop: Breakworld. Now, waiting several months in between issues for this story became exhausting and my initial read-through found me tired of this arc. However, re-reading it as a solid narrative proved immensely satisfying. John Cassaday's art is as wonderful to look at as it has been throughout this outstanding addition to a legendary comic property and is worth the cost of admission all by itself. Then there's Joss Whedon; he of the witty turn of phrase, iconic hero moments, one-liners, and impeccable comedic timing. His work here is as amazing as it has been since issue one. I don't know that I've ever read a modern comic with this much love for it's characters. The British haughtiness of Emma Frost, the endearing personality and determination of an all-grown-up Kitty Pryde, the gruffly indifferent attitude of Wolverine; these are characters you will appreciate as much now as ever. Whedon even made me love Cyclops, who I've always found quite boring (how does he get those hot psychics?). Scott Summers has at least two brilliantly heroic and just plain hardcore moments in this arc which he spends the vast majority of sans mutant power, thus proving his worth as team commander even more. The denizens of the brutal Breakworld are fleshed-out and not treated as simple plot devices. The heroes land in the midst of an attempted coup by those who wish to put an end to the might-equals-right law of the land. As people see with their own eyes the one who is destined to destroy their world, the populace erupts and the separated X-Men have to fight every step of the way, the entire time wondering just what Agent Brand's true agenda is. The end result: the Earth is doomed. Doesn't it always come down to that? The entirety of the Earth's heavy hitters ar

Joss Whedon's run on Astonishing X-Men finally comes to an explosive close with Unstoppable, as Cyclops, Wolverine, Emma Frost, Beast, Kitty Pryde, Colossus, the vengeful Ord, and the murderous Danger all find themselves on an intergalactic trip to the Breakworld: a land that Colossus is prophecised to destroy. Stunning revelations are abound, and everything comes together as the TPB races to a stunner conclusion that unites all of the X-Men with nearly every Marvel hero on the planet in an effort to save the world. Marred by shipping delays, these last issues of Whedon and John Cassaday's run on Astonishing X-Men features an ending that will come to no surprise to anyone who has been keeping up with the other X-books (someone doesn't make it back) but this matters little just based on the fact that Whedon's Astonishing X-Men, along with Grant Morrison's prolific run with New X-Men, are the absolute best X-Men stories in a decade plus. The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Serenity creator provides more snappy and smart dialogue, and Planetary artist John Cassaday provides more spectacular artwork. All in all, X-Men stories rarely get any better than what you'll find here, and here's hoping that maybe one day Whedon and Cassaday will make a return to this title that both of them managed to revitalize.