All-New X-Men #25 with its impressive array of artistic talent would be a good jumping on point for new readers. The issue explains, albeit briefly, why these five teenage X-Men are stuck here in the present day Marvel Universe. Along the way we get a lot of great artistic renderings of these iconic characters " and not just of the first class crew, but of Colossus and Kitty, Magik and Emma, and Wolverine too. If you've managed to skip this series so far, this would be a good issue to give a try. Read Full Review

While some might write this off as an anthology comic that's simply marching toward to inevitability of a big event, I see it as crash course in X-Men mythology for the uninitiated. Sure, it might not be familiar and it might not even be showing things that are going to happen. But the beauty of comics is that on any given page you might be seeing something incredible. The narration is big and sweeping, enveloping readers in a grand scheme that may never come to be. For readers new and old, there is something intrinsically exciting about that. Comics are about infinite possibilities and while the modern media machine seems to have stripped them of that quality, All-New X-Men #25 reminds us that it still exists. Read Full Review

And the varied artwork helps a great deal. I don't know that this is "the greatest artist roster ever assembled" as the cover proclaims, but it's a mighty fine assortment either way. The issue features a nice mix of classic X-Men pencillers (Art Adams, Paul Smith) and artists you wouldn't normally expect to see on a Marvel book (Bruce Timm, Jill Thompson). These artists contribute a variety of splash pages and more traditional sequential work scattered in among David Marquez's framing sequence, with the overall flow and effect working better than the similarly focused Ultimate Spider-Man #200 from last week. Read Full Review

After establishingall the possible futures for the X-Men, the story is back to Beast's bedroom again. The true identity of the mystery visitor is revealed, and I can tell you that he's not Professor X. Yeah, I know that's what they want us to believe, and they did a good job doing that. Overall, it not clearwhat the future of X-Men will really be like, all we know is that things are never going to be the same again. Read Full Review

All-New X-Men #25 feels like a turning point for the series, especially with the Original Sin crossover coming soon. Read Full Review

I know this is setting up the tie-in for that story but even on its own this was a solid issue. I was a bit iffy on it while reading through it but once it had time to settle in, I really have to say that overall this was a quite enjoyable set of short ‘What If' stories. Bendis really nailed the story telling in retrospect and for the most part I felt that the different use of artists through the tales fit what was being told. I'd say while this could be taken as a filler issue it was quite an enjoyable one and worth checking out! Read Full Review

All New X-Men #25 is not a whole lot story wise but it does act as a bookend to what has happened in the series so far. Things are different post ‘Trial of Jean Grey' so this pause was not unneeded. Story wise there wasn't a ton here to get excited about but it did help to build up to the big Original Sin event. The art was really the selling point here and it didn't disappoint. I'm excited for what comes next in the journey of these kids. Read Full Review

The story is a pretty thin (and actually somewhat grim) excuse for several poster images of the team and assorted members. But the art almost makes up for it. Read Full Review

In the end, All New X-Men #25 is a book both hampered and saved by the art. The story itself was structured in a way to showcase the guest artists, but in doing so there was no forward movement in the ongoing story at all. Bendis may touch on some themes he has brought up over the previous 24 issues, but ultimately it isn't enough to make the issue feel like anything more than filler. With that said, oh what pretty pretty filler it is, as this issue features quite possibly the best collection of artists you will see in a book this year. As a reader you have to ask yourself whether the beautiful art by some of the best in the business can make up for a lackluster story, and extra dollar on the cover price. Read Full Review

Overall, this one is a bit of a mixed bag and that makes it hard to recommend. The story of the issue, while well done and stirring interest in where it will go past this issue, is anywhere, is really just a single scene and not an actual story and right now it feel like missing it wouldnt be a huge loss to the overall story of the book. On the art side, its going to be hit or miss depending on your personal preferences. I cant say this is a truly bad issue, I feel its one that even amongst fans of the series, as many people are going to hate it as love it. Read Full Review

Don't get me wrong, there's some very nice artwork here (highlighted for me by Bruce Timm's showcasing Jean Grey in her various forms), some of it quite funny, but as a fan of the original idea of The Watcher as a silent observer I'm less than satisfied with this verbose version that even goes so far as to insult the X-Man after speaking his mind. For such a momentous issue All New X-Men #25 can easily be skipped by those not willing to pay $5 for a story that doesn't do much of anything to further ongoing stories and whose absence won't be felt going forward if you choose not to read it. Hit-and-Miss. Read Full Review

As a concept I am sure All-New X-Men #25 sounded great but what we got on paper was something that failed to execute a memorable anniversary issue. Instead of using all of the great talent that was assembled to enhance the story he was looking to tell Brian Bendis created a comic book that failed to tell a story worth buying. That is a shame because the main story involving Beast and the Watcher was good. But because of the large gaps between it and contribution made by each artist involved, the main story is completely forgettable. In turn, this made All-New X-Men #25 feel like I wasted my time and money on a glorified collection of superhero posters. And just by making me have to write that sentence I cannot recommend this issue to anyone and instead ask you to save your money or buy a different comic book. Read Full Review

But it's an important realization in the context of All New X-men. There may not be much of a plot to All New X-men #25 and despite the additional length and long list of guest artists, it doesn't feel all that epic. It was a serious story with a serious impact that tried to get too cute along the line. While it may have failed at being cute, it does succeed at following the themes that make up the foundation of All New X-men's appeal. It just isn't worth paying an extra dollar. Read Full Review

Story telling aside, the artwork in this book was impressive. The cover alone made this the first book I read. However it wasn't enough to make me enjoy this more than I did. Unless you care about the art I would suggest skipping this book. You're not missing much. Read Full Review

There really isnt much meat to this issue; its used to mostly showcase the art, which is good for the most part. Bendis did a decent job of creating several alternate futures, but this issue was a bit of a letdown. Next month this series will get back to its roots and continue the great tale that Bendis is weaving. Read Full Review

Good issue, lots of awesome art, especially the Art Adams pages with the Beast.

While the art was amazing on its own, some of the artistic swaps were too drastic and just served to take the reader out of the story.

While the mini-comics (featuring Kitty/Peter and Logan/Jean) were quite amusing, they should have been placed at the end of the issue after the main story had concluded. The story was unrelated and just felt out of place where it was.

The art in this issue is exceptional though. You should buy it if only for the fantastic art you get in here.

First, why are they saying this issue is monumental? It's not surprising any X-Title got to issue 25. There were some interesting pieces in this hodgepodge, but there were, ahem, monumental fails as well. I like the overarching Beast and mystery guest dialogue, but so much of the rest was just throwaway and not the reason I buy the comic.

Din't like it at all. with issues like this one i just want to quit; We'll see next charter with Immonen back.

The only thing that makes this a landmark issue is the fact that I was genuinely furious after reading it, and few comics have had that kind of impact on me.

This was an overpriced waste of paper. All-New X-Men readers, you need not worry if this is absent from your collection because you won't even notice. The tie-in plot is boring, utterly ridiculous and doesn't even make sense. The only redeeming qualities of this issue are a couple of funny, short indie strips, but most of those aren't even good either and don't flow in any particularly cohesive manner towards the overall story setup.