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Astonishing X-Men (2017) (Collected Editions)
Astonishing X-Men, Vol. 1: Life of X
Charles Soule and a stellar roster of superstar artists unite to put the Astonishing back in the X-Men! An ancient evil is attacking the world's most powerful minds. It will have them by the time you finish this sentence, and a moment later, it will have us all. A band of X-Men discovers the truth behind the threat, but is there any time left for Psylocke, Old Man Logan, Bishop, Archangel, Fantomex, Rogue and Gambit? In an action-packed X-epic, they must head to the astral plane in pursuit of...the Shadow King! But in this brain-bending mindscape, not everything is as it seems, and reality is a relative concept. Will this impromptu squad of X-Men be able to contain the chaos from spilling out into the world?
COLLECTING: ASTONISHING X-MEN 1-6
COLLECTING: ASTONISHING X-MEN 1-6
144 pages, Paperback
First published February 21, 2018
22 people are currently reading
243 people want to read
About the author
Charles Soule
1,526 books1,691 followersCharles Soule is a #1 New York Times-bestselling novelist, comics author, screenwriter, musician, and lapsed attorney. He has written some of the most prominent stories of the last decade for Marvel, DC and Lucasfilm in addition to his own work, such as his comics Curse Words, Letter 44 and Undiscovered Country, and his original novels Light of the Jedi, The Endless Vessel, The Oracle Year and Anyone. He lives in New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
August 27, 2023
Although only Three Starred by me: The first two arcs are pretty interesting takes on rebirth as in each arc a key person from the X-Universe returns; but it is because of the final arc (despite having Greg Land's photocopy 'art') that makes me think this is a season I'd like to reread in the future; there's something about a group of lost X-Men being led by the biggest loser of them all, Havoc, trying to do their thing and not really achieving anything. An innovative and thought provoking take on the X-franchise which Matthew Rosenberg should have been allowed to expand on.
2019 read
2019 read
March 6, 2018
This is the best "New" X-Men title I've read in awhile.
It's time to enter the astral plane and face off against the Shadow King. Charles is back! OR Is he? People are obviously doubting him since he died awhile ago but he has the extreme psychic power to bring in a team of X-Men such as Gambit, Rogue, Old man Logan, and more. Together they go to save the professor and stop the Shadow King from breaking out. Twist and turns occur multiple times that lead to a very exciting ending.
Good: Loved the hell out of the art. Stylish and gritty enough to make it stand out. The characters all work together well, weather they agree or are bickering, it's all intense and interesting. The fights are great, and over the top action can only happen in the astral plane. Also the ending is fantastic and leads up to so many awesome stories that can come from this.
Bad: Some of the pacing slowed down in issue 3-4 and kind of a slog to get through a bit.
Overall this was fantastic for the most part. Funny, exciting, stakes, and great art. This is one of my favorite X-Men books in awhile. A 4 out of 5.
It's time to enter the astral plane and face off against the Shadow King. Charles is back! OR Is he? People are obviously doubting him since he died awhile ago but he has the extreme psychic power to bring in a team of X-Men such as Gambit, Rogue, Old man Logan, and more. Together they go to save the professor and stop the Shadow King from breaking out. Twist and turns occur multiple times that lead to a very exciting ending.
Good: Loved the hell out of the art. Stylish and gritty enough to make it stand out. The characters all work together well, weather they agree or are bickering, it's all intense and interesting. The fights are great, and over the top action can only happen in the astral plane. Also the ending is fantastic and leads up to so many awesome stories that can come from this.
Bad: Some of the pacing slowed down in issue 3-4 and kind of a slog to get through a bit.
Overall this was fantastic for the most part. Funny, exciting, stakes, and great art. This is one of my favorite X-Men books in awhile. A 4 out of 5.
August 15, 2022
A middling story where the X-Men come together because they're in close proximity to Psylocke. The Shadow King is back and trying to break out of the astral plane. For reasons untold Psylocke can't go to the astral plane even though it's the purview of psychics so she sends some random X-Men. The narration in the book was mind numbing and there was a lot of it. Marvel broke out its big guns to each come in and pencil an issue. Some of my friends really dig this book, but Charles Soule hasn't written anything at Marvel that has impressed me.
February 11, 2018
[Read as single issues]
Charles Xavier is dead...isn't he? So who's mind is battling the Shadow King on the Astral Plane, and who's mind is calling out to Old Man Logan, Psylocke, Gambit, Bishop, Archangel, Rogue, Fantomex, and Mystique to come and save him? The answer will...probably not surprise you as much as you'd think.
The idea of this book has been done before - astral plane battles aren't anything that the X-Men haven't dealt with before, even if it takes a while to get to that stage since there's a real-world battle to be fought before/alongside it. In fact, spending too much time on things seems to be this book's downfall. There's a lot of time devoted to the battle outside the Astral Plane, and then the fight itself against the Shadow King feels stuck in a holding pattern for at least two issues, as if this story was designed to run four issues instead of six (I've made this complaint before, and I'll keep making it until Marvel listen. Stories should be as long as they need to be.)
The final conclusion is intriguing, and it's clear Charles Soule is building towards something bigger in the second arc, but it takes far too long to get there.
The artwork is also very 'your mileage may vary'. Every issue is pencilled by a different artist, and while that might work okay in single issues that are released monthly, reading the story in trade may feel very inconsistent. There's no denying the talent on display, with Jim Cheung launching the book while Mike Del Mundo, Mike Deodato, Ed McGuinness, Carlos Pacheco, and Ramon Rosanas all get an issue each. All solid artists in their own right (although I have issues with Rosanas but that's a whole different review), but I feel like one after another they're not very good company for each other. It must be awkward for Soule as well to have to tiylor his script differently for every single issue, too.
The title of Astonishing X-Men has a lot of history, and while this could shape up to be worthy of the legacy, it doesn't feel like it just yet.
Charles Xavier is dead...isn't he? So who's mind is battling the Shadow King on the Astral Plane, and who's mind is calling out to Old Man Logan, Psylocke, Gambit, Bishop, Archangel, Rogue, Fantomex, and Mystique to come and save him? The answer will...probably not surprise you as much as you'd think.
The idea of this book has been done before - astral plane battles aren't anything that the X-Men haven't dealt with before, even if it takes a while to get to that stage since there's a real-world battle to be fought before/alongside it. In fact, spending too much time on things seems to be this book's downfall. There's a lot of time devoted to the battle outside the Astral Plane, and then the fight itself against the Shadow King feels stuck in a holding pattern for at least two issues, as if this story was designed to run four issues instead of six (I've made this complaint before, and I'll keep making it until Marvel listen. Stories should be as long as they need to be.)
The final conclusion is intriguing, and it's clear Charles Soule is building towards something bigger in the second arc, but it takes far too long to get there.
The artwork is also very 'your mileage may vary'. Every issue is pencilled by a different artist, and while that might work okay in single issues that are released monthly, reading the story in trade may feel very inconsistent. There's no denying the talent on display, with Jim Cheung launching the book while Mike Del Mundo, Mike Deodato, Ed McGuinness, Carlos Pacheco, and Ramon Rosanas all get an issue each. All solid artists in their own right (although I have issues with Rosanas but that's a whole different review), but I feel like one after another they're not very good company for each other. It must be awkward for Soule as well to have to tiylor his script differently for every single issue, too.
The title of Astonishing X-Men has a lot of history, and while this could shape up to be worthy of the legacy, it doesn't feel like it just yet.
November 16, 2021
This was actually a pretty good read!
It starts off with the team forming around trying to protect Psylocke and then we learn the Shadow king is targeting the psychics to come to the real world from the Astral plane and so the X-Men go there to stop him but what they find will change them forever maybe. Logan, Mystique and Gambit and others go there but Charles is fighting Amal there and well its a battle of psychic projections and games and what not meanwhile in the real world Bishop and Angel.. can they protect their team and if they do, what will be the cost? And what is Shadow king's ultimate plan?
Its a very intriguing volume and I like the slow build up to the events and the psychic battles are interesting and the callbacks to the past of the x-men too, this volume uses up continuity really well and that works in its favor for sure. The artwork changes every issue and thats fun sometimes, otherwise its hard to make out some scenes. Charles writes this character really well but I like how he handles Xavier and Angel and showing their dark personas plus this leads into the next storyline really well.
It starts off with the team forming around trying to protect Psylocke and then we learn the Shadow king is targeting the psychics to come to the real world from the Astral plane and so the X-Men go there to stop him but what they find will change them forever maybe. Logan, Mystique and Gambit and others go there but Charles is fighting Amal there and well its a battle of psychic projections and games and what not meanwhile in the real world Bishop and Angel.. can they protect their team and if they do, what will be the cost? And what is Shadow king's ultimate plan?
Its a very intriguing volume and I like the slow build up to the events and the psychic battles are interesting and the callbacks to the past of the x-men too, this volume uses up continuity really well and that works in its favor for sure. The artwork changes every issue and thats fun sometimes, otherwise its hard to make out some scenes. Charles writes this character really well but I like how he handles Xavier and Angel and showing their dark personas plus this leads into the next storyline really well.
July 9, 2018
This was alright. Nothing...astonishing (thank you, thank you) but not god awful. The problem here is that there is a loooooot of setup for very little payoff. Hopefully the next volume will move at a better pace.
On a related note: I am sure there was a time when the resurrection of a dead character was a big deal. I dabbled in comics when I was younger but didn't start to devour them until I was well into my thirties, but I am sure I remember hearing about this or that character coming back and thinking "wow, what a twist!". They do it so often now, though, that it isn't even worth mentioning in a review that this or that character is now back from the dead/limbo/wherever. They have used the same trick so much that it is no longer shocking. A character dying should get a reaction of "WHAAAAAT!?!?!?!". Instead, it elicits more of a "Huh. I wonder when he/she is coming back."
I don't know the solution to the problem (better writing maybe? Perhaps we should write compelling stories rather than relying on shock value?), but it is definitely a problem.
On a related note: I am sure there was a time when the resurrection of a dead character was a big deal. I dabbled in comics when I was younger but didn't start to devour them until I was well into my thirties, but I am sure I remember hearing about this or that character coming back and thinking "wow, what a twist!". They do it so often now, though, that it isn't even worth mentioning in a review that this or that character is now back from the dead/limbo/wherever. They have used the same trick so much that it is no longer shocking. A character dying should get a reaction of "WHAAAAAT!?!?!?!". Instead, it elicits more of a "Huh. I wonder when he/she is coming back."
I don't know the solution to the problem (better writing maybe? Perhaps we should write compelling stories rather than relying on shock value?), but it is definitely a problem.
March 3, 2018
The two color X-Men series have still to convince me after 2 volumes each (not enough issues of Red yet). The ones before this reboot were even worse. So you'll excuse me if I didn't put much faith on Astonishing X-Men.
I was wrong.
This is a first act of which I don't want to tell much for fear of spoiling. High stakes from the beginning, lots of tension and action. One character apprently comes back from the dead - it seems to be in the air at Marvel lately - and interesting promises of bigger things to come.
Soule also played his characters very well, using the core of their personalities to justify their presence in the book. I still don't know what to make of him : he doesn't shine on DD- to say the least- but manages by far the best X-title of the lot, and not only by simple comparison.
One artist per issue here (Cheung, Deodato, McGuiness, Pacheco, Rosannas, Del Mundo). That's something I usually dislike, but all are good in their own right- one minor reservation for Rosannas- and that more than made up for it.
As much as I'm not sure I'll keep on with Blue and Gold, I'm pretty sure to go with this one for at least a little while.
I was wrong.
This is a first act of which I don't want to tell much for fear of spoiling. High stakes from the beginning, lots of tension and action. One character apprently comes back from the dead - it seems to be in the air at Marvel lately - and interesting promises of bigger things to come.
Soule also played his characters very well, using the core of their personalities to justify their presence in the book. I still don't know what to make of him : he doesn't shine on DD- to say the least- but manages by far the best X-title of the lot, and not only by simple comparison.
One artist per issue here (Cheung, Deodato, McGuiness, Pacheco, Rosannas, Del Mundo). That's something I usually dislike, but all are good in their own right- one minor reservation for Rosannas- and that more than made up for it.
As much as I'm not sure I'll keep on with Blue and Gold, I'm pretty sure to go with this one for at least a little while.
September 26, 2018
Meh was okay and you would think that with the players in this book that it would have been better, but the theme has been played out so many times that it wasn't all that great.
December 14, 2020
Дочитав сьогодні 1-у збірку Вражаючих людей Х і скажу вам, я був приємно здивований. Незважаючи на те, що збірка складається з шести випусків, яку писав Чарльз Соул, але малювали різні команди, історія зграбна, малюнок добротний, нічого надзвичайного, але все достатньо технічно і динамічно.
Сюжетно це класична супергеройська заруба, з традиційним вже для Х-менів копанням в душах та мотивах. Все це варево достатньо логічно скомпоновано, динаміка на пристойному рівні, характери героїв звичні і не викликають дисонансу.
Історія показова, особливо в плані сюжету, маємо кілька достатньо цікавих сюжетних поворотів, автор не сцить жертвувати героями, якщо того потребує сюжет, до того ж маємо першокласний кліфхенгер, що чіпляє сталевим гаком.
На мою думку, ця збірка нараз втирає носа всіляким “громадянським війнам” і здатна не просто розважити читача хорошою історіює, а й провокує бажання продовжувати знайомство з серією.
Сюжетно це класична супергеройська заруба, з традиційним вже для Х-менів копанням в душах та мотивах. Все це варево достатньо логічно скомпоновано, динаміка на пристойному рівні, характери героїв звичні і не викликають дисонансу.
Історія показова, особливо в плані сюжету, маємо кілька достатньо цікавих сюжетних поворотів, автор не сцить жертвувати героями, якщо того потребує сюжет, до того ж маємо першокласний кліфхенгер, що чіпляє сталевим гаком.
На мою думку, ця збірка нараз втирає носа всіляким “громадянським війнам” і здатна не просто розважити читача хорошою історіює, а й провокує бажання продовжувати знайомство з серією.
January 7, 2019
Wasn't overly fond of this. I felt like it wasnt really going anywhere for the first 4 issues. The last two issues savee the plot but only just. Felt like Soule was building something big but with a series that ends after 3 volumes I'm probably going to spend my time elsewhere for now.
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June 29, 2024"there is something about the way the x-men fight. their history together--all those victories, defeats, secrets, lies, betrayals, love and hate--it makes them something only they can be. they fight for themselves, and for us, but also for what they are. every battle is a statement: we are mutantkind. look how beautiful we are." !!!!!!
March 19, 2018
Soule is a thoroughly inconsistent author, but at least he seems to be going in the right direction with Astonishing X-Men: assembling a crew of classic X-Men, sending them after a classic menace, and paying attention to who they all are as characters. This feels very much like a continuation of the Uncanny X-Force comic from the early '10s, except, one must admit, not as good.
Its biggest problem is decompression. Too many mainstream comics nowadays think you should be running a single battle over six long issues, and that's largely what Astonishing X-Men is. Yes, it remains relatively interesting, but you feel a bit empty at the end.
And, I am thoroughly not in support of the big character return in this volume, one of a trio of big X-character returns in 2017. I mean, maybe Soule will do good with this and make it a chance to say some final goodbyes, but the X-men had really grown past at least two of those characters (and the third had been replaced pretty thoroughly), so every one of these returns to status quo just lessens the X-Men comics, even if providing an interesting story along the way.
With all that said, this comes in at 3.5 stars or so: I like it more than Gold (as it feels like it has the depth that Gold is missing), and it's at least comparable with Blue.
Its biggest problem is decompression. Too many mainstream comics nowadays think you should be running a single battle over six long issues, and that's largely what Astonishing X-Men is. Yes, it remains relatively interesting, but you feel a bit empty at the end.
And, I am thoroughly not in support of the big character return in this volume, one of a trio of big X-character returns in 2017. I mean, maybe Soule will do good with this and make it a chance to say some final goodbyes, but the X-men had really grown past at least two of those characters (and the third had been replaced pretty thoroughly), so every one of these returns to status quo just lessens the X-Men comics, even if providing an interesting story along the way.
With all that said, this comes in at 3.5 stars or so: I like it more than Gold (as it feels like it has the depth that Gold is missing), and it's at least comparable with Blue.
April 18, 2018
I absolutely loved this book. It can be hard to be an X-Men fan, but Soule lives up to the legacy of the Astonishing name, and delivers what is absolutely an incredible X-Men book. This book does not rely on nostalgia, instead forging ahead with something new, while using a recognizable and iconic cast of characters. It's incredibly focused, and carefully paced, despite the "mind-games" plot happening on the macro. Stories like this are easy to do wrong, but in my opinion, Soule executes this narrative with grace, and obvious careful planning. Every character has a role to play, and even by offering us multiple perspectives (including that of the non-mutant military) Soule creates a grand experience, with all the potential in the world to become the next great X-Men tale.
Elements echo Morrison's New X-Men and Remender's X-Force, while still daring to dive into completely new territory. Soule makes the best of what he has, and gives us characters complete with their recent and grisly baggage. He really offers us a TEAM comic, with each character lugging around their own weight and perspective. None of that is to even speak of the brilliant surprise ending.
I hope this comic continues for many more volumes. It's about the best thing I could hope for in a contemporary X-men comic.
Elements echo Morrison's New X-Men and Remender's X-Force, while still daring to dive into completely new territory. Soule makes the best of what he has, and gives us characters complete with their recent and grisly baggage. He really offers us a TEAM comic, with each character lugging around their own weight and perspective. None of that is to even speak of the brilliant surprise ending.
I hope this comic continues for many more volumes. It's about the best thing I could hope for in a contemporary X-men comic.
April 21, 2021
Astonishingly Uncanny X-Force Like
OVERALL RATING: 4 stars
Art: 4 stars
Prose: 4 stars
Plot: 4.25 stars
Pacing: 4 stars
Character Development: 4 stars
World Building: 3.5 stars
Crazy that these issues had zero continuity with artists and yet the art is decent and no one issue felt too jarring from the last. Given the last great run before these issues was probably Rick Remender's run on Uncanny X-Force Soule reshapes everything through that lens from villain to the team members (bar the absent Deadpool). This seems to work as it is far more interesting than other contemporary runs suffering from Bendis ridiculousness and terrible writers. There are plenty of nods to Remender's work and is a good place to start from in order to get what is going on here. It's sad that Soule only had the 12 issues and then Hickman switched everything up as it would have been nice to see where Soule wanted to go with this group.
OVERALL RATING: 4 stars
Art: 4 stars
Prose: 4 stars
Plot: 4.25 stars
Pacing: 4 stars
Character Development: 4 stars
World Building: 3.5 stars
Crazy that these issues had zero continuity with artists and yet the art is decent and no one issue felt too jarring from the last. Given the last great run before these issues was probably Rick Remender's run on Uncanny X-Force Soule reshapes everything through that lens from villain to the team members (bar the absent Deadpool). This seems to work as it is far more interesting than other contemporary runs suffering from Bendis ridiculousness and terrible writers. There are plenty of nods to Remender's work and is a good place to start from in order to get what is going on here. It's sad that Soule only had the 12 issues and then Hickman switched everything up as it would have been nice to see where Soule wanted to go with this group.
May 16, 2020
This was pretty good. The Shadow King was the main villain, and while I've never been a fan of the character, this story was a strong point. There was also the reintroduction of a character that surprised me, mainly because it was pretty major and I hadn't read or heard anything about it. The artists changed with each issue, and normally I like consistency in the art, but this time I didn't mind the changing art.
Overall a strong X-Men story, especially when compared to more recent X-Men comics.
Overall a strong X-Men story, especially when compared to more recent X-Men comics.
May 21, 2018
I enjoyed this book. I liked the split between the real world and the astral plane. I liked the mix of characters involved and the overall arc of the story. I’ll be looking out for volume 2.
January 19, 2022
this was actually really good!! kinda dragged on sometimes but the whole thing was great!
December 24, 2019
Сюжет тримає, події розгортаються стрімко, том має завершену історію з несподіваним кінцем.
Єдиний вагомий мінус для мене - це новий художник чуть не в кожному випуску.
Загалом раджу звернути увагу.
Єдиний вагомий мінус для мене - це новий художник чуть не в кожному випуску.
Загалом раджу звернути увагу.
May 29, 2018
Good start to a new team. It is confusing will so many teams and some of these x-men are on other teams (atleast I think so...i dunno). Anyways I like this team it has a faint resemblance of the old uncanny avengers from Remender which I loved (Fantomex, Wolverine, and Psylocke). The story is also good with the Shadow King taking center stage. I think the writing was pretty dang good, its got some history and good layering with the characters. Bishop and Archangel are good additions, Gambit and Mystique are sort of team B but I am sure that will change in later issues. The art was also really good, panels has lots of actions. I am on board for volume 2.
December 31, 2019
Charles Soule kicks off this latest volume of Astonishing X-Men in grand style. After The Shadow King launches a psychic attack against Psylocke, she summons a small band of X-friends to come to her defense in the Astral Plane. The rotating team of artists keep the quality high for each issue collected here, but I really dug Mike Del Mundo’s work on the last chapter. His pencils and Marco D’Alfonso’s colors really capture the horror of dream-like realm of the Astro Plane and the shifting sense of otherness that comes with the many psychic projections as Soule’s script gets downright apocalyptic. Good stuff!
June 28, 2018
Best X-men story in ages. Uneven art. Wish Cheung had done the whole thing. Or McGuinness. Mike del Mundo's art is squirrelly and totally bugs me. Really great X-team story. Must read for X-fans.
April 5, 2025
⚡️Почну із сюжету (постараюсь мінімум спойлерів і лише те, що було в першому випуску). Є персонажка Псайлок (до речі, бачу її вперше), з якою відбуваються дивні речі, що можуть загрожувати всьому людству. На щастя, вона послала сигнал найближчим Людям Ікс, які прийдуть їй на допомогу. У принципі, весь сюжет буде пов'язаний з цими персонажами, хоча, скажу одразу, їх для цієї команди "вражаючих", як на мене, було забагато. Також частина команди відправиться до іншого виміру, де повинна буде перемогти злодія арки. Що сподобалось, так це те, що все-таки гарно підійшли до подолання лиходія, шляхом продумування цього завчасно.
👤Чомусь Чарльз Соул вирішив узяти 8 основних персонажів (+ ще 2, які не входять до команди, але на яких побудований сюжет), хоча, по факту, не всі з них гарно розкриваються, або мають цікаві діяння. Окрім Псайлок, новими також для мене стали Фантомекс і Бішоп. Чесно, мені було б цікаво дізнатися щось про них, але їм приділили небагато часу саме в розкритті особистості, що дуже мене засмучує (Ангел сюди теж входить). Конкретно були деякі зародки розкриття персонажів, як-от у того ж Ангела й Фантомекса, але до кінця арки все не сильно просунулось. Чого не скажеш про Лоґана, якому приділили мало не цілий випуск, який справді був цікавий (в ідеалі такий випуск можна було приділити кожному з персонажів, але вже як є) й історії Ґамбіта з Роуґ, яка мені спраді сподобалась, хоча не була сильно довгою. Якщо брати якісь загальні речі, що не сподобались, то це момент з однією з персонажок, яка вирішила підзабити на завдання просто так, і один урядовець, який капець іноді підбішував своїми нелогічними рішеннями. Не можу не відмітити двох "некомандних" персонажів, розкриття яких було добре, а й іншим і бути не могло, бо вони займають велику частину арки.
🌎Якщо брати інший вимір, то він показаний непогано, хоча інколи складається враження, що він взагалі незрозумілий. Мені здається, якби із самого початку нормально пояснили правила цього виміру і потім просто злегка доповнювали його, то було б непогано. А так, іноді додається щось таке, що ні в кут ні в двері.
😐Якщо брати всі випуски загалом, то я помічав справді достатньо неточностей, недомовленостей, яких би можна було уникнути копнувши трохи глибше або взагалі викинувши. І, за традицією, у Fireclaw знову часто відсутня правильна форма звертання.
🎨Загалом тут малюнок доволі непоганий і з кольорами працює так само. Інколи займає по дві сторінки (що я дуже люблю), хоча під кінець він мені здався на рівень нижче. Хочу виділити малюнок, концепт якого мені сильно сподобався: коли показують, як персонаж робить дві дії одночасно в різних місцях. Як на мене, показано дуже влучно й дуже гарно, особливо, коли різні діалоги сходяться до спільної кінцевої репліки.
💯Загалом мені сподобалось, але відчувається, що можна було краще.
Сюжет: 6
Персонажі: 6
Малюнок: 7
Кольори: 8
Загальний бал: 68%
👤Чомусь Чарльз Соул вирішив узяти 8 основних персонажів (+ ще 2, які не входять до команди, але на яких побудований сюжет), хоча, по факту, не всі з них гарно розкриваються, або мають цікаві діяння. Окрім Псайлок, новими також для мене стали Фантомекс і Бішоп. Чесно, мені було б цікаво дізнатися щось про них, але їм приділили небагато часу саме в розкритті особистості, що дуже мене засмучує (Ангел сюди теж входить). Конкретно були деякі зародки розкриття персонажів, як-от у того ж Ангела й Фантомекса, але до кінця арки все не сильно просунулось. Чого не скажеш про Лоґана, якому приділили мало не цілий випуск, який справді був цікавий (в ідеалі такий випуск можна було приділити кожному з персонажів, але вже як є) й історії Ґамбіта з Роуґ, яка мені спраді сподобалась, хоча не була сильно довгою. Якщо брати якісь загальні речі, що не сподобались, то це момент з однією з персонажок, яка вирішила підзабити на завдання просто так, і один урядовець, який капець іноді підбішував своїми нелогічними рішеннями. Не можу не відмітити двох "некомандних" персонажів, розкриття яких було добре, а й іншим і бути не могло, бо вони займають велику частину арки.
🌎Якщо брати інший вимір, то він показаний непогано, хоча інколи складається враження, що він взагалі незрозумілий. Мені здається, якби із самого початку нормально пояснили правила цього виміру і потім просто злегка доповнювали його, то було б непогано. А так, іноді додається щось таке, що ні в кут ні в двері.
😐Якщо брати всі випуски загалом, то я помічав справді достатньо неточностей, недомовленостей, яких би можна було уникнути копнувши трохи глибше або взагалі викинувши. І, за традицією, у Fireclaw знову часто відсутня правильна форма звертання.
🎨Загалом тут малюнок доволі непоганий і з кольорами працює так само. Інколи займає по дві сторінки (що я дуже люблю), хоча під кінець він мені здався на рівень нижче. Хочу виділити малюнок, концепт якого мені сильно сподобався: коли показують, як персонаж робить дві дії одночасно в різних місцях. Як на мене, показано дуже влучно й дуже гарно, особливо, коли різні діалоги сходяться до спільної кінцевої репліки.
💯Загалом мені сподобалось, але відчувається, що можна було краще.
Сюжет: 6
Персонажі: 6
Малюнок: 7
Кольори: 8
Загальний бал: 68%
March 17, 2018
While referring to Whedon's run in the title makes me feel old, Charles Soule delivers the best of the three current X-men titles--the other two, currently, being X-men: Blue and X-men: Gold. (X-men: Red has too few issues out for me to judge.) That said, unfortunately, that bar is not particularly high right now. Soule's writing relies less on nostalgia than the other two titles and seems like a return to form without trying to wipe the ever- convoluted slate clean. The characters selected, however, do have a 90s feel to them: Gambit, Rogue, Old man Logan, Psylocke, and Mystique rescuing Professor X and battling an emergent Shadow King. Furthermore, this X-team doesn't seem to be as stuck in "Summers family dynamic" rut that plagues a lot of the X-men titles and has since the early-to-mid-1990s. Soule does a lot here picking up from Whedon and doing right by Claremont without aping either. It's not perfect--the arc wraps up a little too easily, the astral plane stuff makes inconsistencies and twists too abundant, Psylocke, the Shadow King, and Professor X's actual powers and scale are inconsistent, but for a recent X-b00k, it's pretty good.
The art is Marvel/X-book house style. There is a different artist each issue--Cheung, Deodato, McGuiness, Pacheco, Rosannas, and Del Mundo. That does mean that it isn't particularly standout anywhere, but it is consistent.
The art is Marvel/X-book house style. There is a different artist each issue--Cheung, Deodato, McGuiness, Pacheco, Rosannas, and Del Mundo. That does mean that it isn't particularly standout anywhere, but it is consistent.
December 24, 2020
Sarebbe un 2/5, ma il voto in più va per il cast di disegnatori con cui Charles Soule è riuscito a collaborare, sfruttando chissà quale materiale di ricatto: perché, se fossi stato un disegnatore, solo per ricatto avrei collaborato a realizzare una storia così... Insipida.
Perché il concept, a mio parere, era interessante si: però il tutto è stato sviluppato con poca, boh, voglia? Non saprei nemmeno bene come spiegare, però è semplicemente una storia a cui non ci si appassiona, nonostante (come dicevo) di elementi interessanti ci siano e alcune caratterizzazioni siano azzeccatissime - primo fra tutti: Charles Xavier, che qui sfoggia un po' la summa di tutto il suo carattere; impavido leader, padre ispirante e abile stratega, ma anche freddo bastardo, viscido manipolatore e insensibile calcolatore.
E' difficile spiegare che sensazione provo, ma "Life Of X" passa semplicemente sotto gli occhi e poche sono le sequenze che fanno anche solo scomporre di poco il lettore, anche solo per strappargli un disinteressato . "Vita di X" (come tradotta in Italia) ha un buon ritmo action, ma non ha mordente, non ha carattere, non ha una personalità. E' semplicemente una storia d'azione, con gli X-Men. A volte non c'è niente di male, però mi aspettavo di più. .
Perché il concept, a mio parere, era interessante si: però il tutto è stato sviluppato con poca, boh, voglia? Non saprei nemmeno bene come spiegare, però è semplicemente una storia a cui non ci si appassiona, nonostante (come dicevo) di elementi interessanti ci siano e alcune caratterizzazioni siano azzeccatissime - primo fra tutti: Charles Xavier, che qui sfoggia un po' la summa di tutto il suo carattere; impavido leader, padre ispirante e abile stratega, ma anche freddo bastardo, viscido manipolatore e insensibile calcolatore.
E' difficile spiegare che sensazione provo, ma "Life Of X" passa semplicemente sotto gli occhi e poche sono le sequenze che fanno anche solo scomporre di poco il lettore, anche solo per strappargli un disinteressato . "Vita di X" (come tradotta in Italia) ha un buon ritmo action, ma non ha mordente, non ha carattere, non ha una personalità. E' semplicemente una storia d'azione, con gli X-Men. A volte non c'è niente di male, però mi aspettavo di più. .
January 18, 2019
Quem acompanha meus escritos por aí sabe que eu e meu irmão começamos a ser fãs de X-Men por causa de uma saga que tem o Rei das Sombras como o vilão principal. Neste encadernado que retoma a tradição das histórias grandiloquentes de Supreendentes X-Men, Ahmal Farouk é novamente o antagonista. E mais: temos o Professor Xavier e o Rei das Sombras lutando e fazendo jogos psíquicos na mente de Psylocke. Então ela convoca alguns X-Men e os coloca para lutar dentro de sua cabeça, no plano astral. Meu coraçãozinho e minha emoção nostálgica de criança vibraram com cada página produzida por Charles Soule e uma gama de talentosos artistas. Isso também porque, diferente da maioria dos escritores atuais dos X-Men, Soule respeita a cronologia e as personalidades dos personagens. Assim, temos uma historinha envolvente, cheia de jogos e tramoias psíquicas e como um final bem surpreendente que resulta no retorno do Professor Charles Xavier. O ponto negativo é que não é uma história autocontida, que só vai se revelar no próximo encadernado. Mas vamos combinar: seria sensacional se o defeito de todos encadernados fosse continuar na próxima edição, né?
March 22, 2020
Not terrible, but still seems like more of the same, like something we've all read a couple times before. Farouk Amahl, the Shadow King, is playing a game with Charles Xavier (wait, isn't he dead?) on the astral plane in an effort to return to the real world once again. He thinks he has Charles' spirit? (essence? whatever..) firmly under control, but it looks like Xavier has his own ends in mind, too. Their psychic battle pulls in a seemingly random group of X-men, who all just happen (?) to be in the London area at the time and who then become pawns in the game: Old Man Logan, Psylocke, Bishop, Rogue, Fantomex, Angel, Gambit, and for good measure, Mystique (who first appears in the form of Beast). Maybe this grouping isn't as random as it first appears? The art is done by a rotating cast of some of Marvel's top artists, with a different one taking each issue. Not a bad first arc, but it does feel very familiar...
September 2, 2019
I actually read this in like Novemberish last year before I was on Goodreads. Figured I’d say some thing on it since I just read #s 13-17. This was one of the first comics I read in my return to reading comics. I remember really liking it. Soule definitely got the team dynamic down pat. With the nice art, it was cool to see how Charles Soule has them working together as a unit. Also It was cool to see them taking on Farouk. Then ironically afterward I watched Legion season 1 and they also had to take on Farouk. Anyway great volume here.
December 17, 2019
This was a fun read.
While I always thought Soule's writing in the Inhumans lacked a-- soul. With the X-Men he seems to really understand who these characters are plays them nicely.
The story is not groundbreaking, but has a nice pace and is quite enjoyable.
I can certainly do with these kind of stories and get rid of the many, mostly during this era, that are just fluff.
While I always thought Soule's writing in the Inhumans lacked a-- soul. With the X-Men he seems to really understand who these characters are plays them nicely.
The story is not groundbreaking, but has a nice pace and is quite enjoyable.
I can certainly do with these kind of stories and get rid of the many, mostly during this era, that are just fluff.
November 9, 2018
Continuing the (surprisingly this time) great x-read of 2017/18...
Yeah, I'm not sure that I believe that I am giving five stars to a modern X-book either. I'm not sure when the last time was that I gave any book a five star rating. But ummm… Wow. This one was just that freaking good.
Here's a warning. I am going to just gush all over this book. This is the kind of book that makes this entire readthrough worth even the worst of it.... So if you are here for my occasional snark or negativity, this one isn't for you.
Alright, so there has been a lot that I have been thinking about, especially as I near the end, throughout this read of a decade or so of X-comics. The limits of nostalgia, character versus archetype, recurring storylines, recurring story arcs, the inability of Marvel to allow these characters to move forward or change in any meaningful way. And all of that, every bit of it, is in here.
This book starts out and you immediately know that it is something different. The writing is closer to poetry than the flat prose that you often see in these books. The characters are introduced as archetypes, as gods of a sort. I wasn't sure that I was sold immediately, but I was hooked. I was intrigued and I had to read more.
From there, it jumps immediately into a conflict on two planes (earthly and astral) with the Shadow King - who is handled deftly and brilliantly here, thankfully - and I am in awe at how there can be so much going on in the more quiet spectrums (character, motivation, metatextual stuff) and yet the pacing is so fast. The story steams ahead while also dealing with complicated and heavy stuff. Soule can freaking *write.* This is some heady stuff. And the meta-text is so absolutely spot on. The X-Men entering the astral plane find themselves watching a play of their greatest hits. As they slowly realize that it isn't real, we are treated to a bizarre history of all of the very similar stories that we have been treated. One of them soliloquizes on the limits of nostalgia and repetition. Oh my, this book tackles the problems and strengths of this serial storytelling in such a brilliant way. I very seldom feel like mainstream hero books can stand as literature, but this one is darned close. It's smart, self-referential in the best of ways. It's a thoughtful book and I really appreciate that.
(Okay, fair point. It probably wouldn't be all that brilliant to newer readers of the X-books. It is tailor made for long-time readers, for those who have followed these characters for a very long time. And since recent Marvel is doing all in their power to focus nearly entirely on new readers, I figure that's alright...)
Metatext and intellect aside, the story itself is also a lot of fun. The battle between Farouk and... Charles Xavier (?!) plays out like many of their battles in the past (which of course is touched on within the story) but it is exciting. Each trying to one up and sidestep each other, how they both use these characters... It is a propelling narrative and it is really entertaining.
There are some great surprises which are actually surprising, not telegraphed to the point of becoming boring.
It is taking all of my strength not to spout expletives about how much I loved this one. It is just the real deal. One of my all-time favorite books from Marvel. I cannot wait for the next volume. (Please don't tell me that this series is already cancelled, too. I can't bear to look.)
Yeah, I'm not sure that I believe that I am giving five stars to a modern X-book either. I'm not sure when the last time was that I gave any book a five star rating. But ummm… Wow. This one was just that freaking good.
Here's a warning. I am going to just gush all over this book. This is the kind of book that makes this entire readthrough worth even the worst of it.... So if you are here for my occasional snark or negativity, this one isn't for you.
Alright, so there has been a lot that I have been thinking about, especially as I near the end, throughout this read of a decade or so of X-comics. The limits of nostalgia, character versus archetype, recurring storylines, recurring story arcs, the inability of Marvel to allow these characters to move forward or change in any meaningful way. And all of that, every bit of it, is in here.
This book starts out and you immediately know that it is something different. The writing is closer to poetry than the flat prose that you often see in these books. The characters are introduced as archetypes, as gods of a sort. I wasn't sure that I was sold immediately, but I was hooked. I was intrigued and I had to read more.
From there, it jumps immediately into a conflict on two planes (earthly and astral) with the Shadow King - who is handled deftly and brilliantly here, thankfully - and I am in awe at how there can be so much going on in the more quiet spectrums (character, motivation, metatextual stuff) and yet the pacing is so fast. The story steams ahead while also dealing with complicated and heavy stuff. Soule can freaking *write.* This is some heady stuff. And the meta-text is so absolutely spot on. The X-Men entering the astral plane find themselves watching a play of their greatest hits. As they slowly realize that it isn't real, we are treated to a bizarre history of all of the very similar stories that we have been treated. One of them soliloquizes on the limits of nostalgia and repetition. Oh my, this book tackles the problems and strengths of this serial storytelling in such a brilliant way. I very seldom feel like mainstream hero books can stand as literature, but this one is darned close. It's smart, self-referential in the best of ways. It's a thoughtful book and I really appreciate that.
(Okay, fair point. It probably wouldn't be all that brilliant to newer readers of the X-books. It is tailor made for long-time readers, for those who have followed these characters for a very long time. And since recent Marvel is doing all in their power to focus nearly entirely on new readers, I figure that's alright...)
Metatext and intellect aside, the story itself is also a lot of fun. The battle between Farouk and... Charles Xavier (?!) plays out like many of their battles in the past (which of course is touched on within the story) but it is exciting. Each trying to one up and sidestep each other, how they both use these characters... It is a propelling narrative and it is really entertaining.
There are some great surprises which are actually surprising, not telegraphed to the point of becoming boring.
It is taking all of my strength not to spout expletives about how much I loved this one. It is just the real deal. One of my all-time favorite books from Marvel. I cannot wait for the next volume. (Please don't tell me that this series is already cancelled, too. I can't bear to look.)
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