Astonishing X-Men #18

Astonishing X-Men #18

I've been reading other reviewers regularly, even though my own posting has taken a dive as of late. I hope to rectify that situation this week, and I hope that somebody actually noticed. But I've felt like shit for not posting all this time, and the more I've neglected it, the worse I feel.

Regarding Joss Whedon's last arc of Astonishing. Looking back at his limited comics portfolio, it's obvious that his work can be much, much better - just look to his opening arc from way back when on Astonishing. However, even when read together in one shot, these last six issues make very little sense. Sure, there's an underlying advancement of plot, but the details themselves are completely bewildering, to a fault. Often, I hadn't the slightest clue as to what was supposed to be happening - except in the broadest of strokes. Many details made no sense to me whatsoever - even though the art is absolutely beautiful, I still couldn't figure out what was going on. If Buffy had been like this, it would have been cancelled before the start of its second season. And the pacing. Many people, including myself occasionally, have criticized Bendis for his laconic pacing, but this is just ridiculous. If any of Whedon's television programs had been paced like this, they would never have acquired the fanbase which they now yet hold. And, taken as a whole, this story isn't even a good one - in fact, it's considerably weaker than "Danger", which was not very good at all. The only notable parts of this arc were the introduction of the kids in the mansion (which really seems to be quite empty otherwise), and the transformations of Wolverine, Beast, and Cyclops...each of which could still have been focused on for a single issue, while still maintaining the forward momentum of an accelerated story. For instance, each episode could have been presented from the altered viewpoint of one of those main characters. That would have been interesting. I've been seriously considering letting my mail subscription to this title lapse...the next arc will determine my decision. (I need to subscribe to at least two books to retain my current pricing, so I've got to figure out another book to take its place - either Daredevil or Cable/Deadpool - any suggestions?) Regarding this arc, each issue has been more AWFUL than that which preceded it.