Astonishing X-Men #20 - Marvel (2007)

Joss Whedon did a great job revealing Astonishing X-Men's big surprise (i.e. bringing Colossus back). This issue is full of little surprises. I like pleasant surprises. They help alleviate the crushing pressure of existence and keep me from curling up in a corner and weeping all day.

Woah. Sorry about that.

But seriously, folks, Whedon gets the X-Men. He groks what makes them cool and he does interesting things with their relationships. There are a couple of panels which show how comfortable Emma is with her powers as well as her attitude towards the world. Much like his TV shows and movies Whedon balances the funny with the deep, the contemplative with the ass kicking.

The only speedbump in this storyline for me is the storyline itself. I find the whole interstellar prophecy thing a bit silly but I am enjoying the stuff that's happening because of it. If you haven't picked up the issues leading up to this one you're probably better off waiting for the trade. It should be a really good read all at once.

John Cassaday's art has been consistently good since issue #1 but this time he gets some really big things to draw. If Planetary has taught us anything it's that Cassaday excels at drawing big things in space. When I become a famous comic writer I'm gonna write a comic which features Mogo and The Celestials as a crossover team. They'll fly around the universe fighting crime. The entire series will have four enormous panels that you'll have to assemble after you've bought all the issues and Cassaday will draw it. After that I'll retire to my island and eat nutella all day.