I am glad I have a several issue policy when it comes to new comics.  Like most people, I wasn’t too terribly into the start of this run of Astonishing X-Men.  With this issue, I’m starting to see Warren Ellis’s unique voice and knack for big science fiction ideas really fits into the X-Men.  There were some voice issues.  As hilarious as these characters are, they feel more like Warren Ellis characters wearing X-costumes than the characters I know from books like Uncanny or Joss’s run previous to this one.  What’s more, there were panels where Emma sounded like she was in a different comic book.  It was like she was having a different conversation.  I don’t know if this is a staging issue with Bianchi’s art or if this was just a weird bit of dialogue.

And speaking of Bianchi’s art, he really does well with the big splashes.  He’s a great sci-fi illustrator.  I’m more of a fan of a clean-lined, graphic design kind of look, so the soft look really wasn’t doing anything for me.  Things were over-shiny.

Shininess and voice issues aside, I had a good time with this book.  By the time I got to the end, I really got where Warren is going with this and the whole time, I thought it was building really well, with a lot of good ideas.  This book could serve as a toolbox for years to come on X-books.  It’s got so many new and good ideas for the X-Universe, I really hope it keeps up the pace.