ENTER: THE ASTRAL PLANE!
In the next chapter of this action-packed X-Men epic, PSYLOCKE, ROGUE, OLD MAN LOGAN and the rest of their impromptu team travel to the astral plane in pursuit of the dastardly SHADOW KING. But on the astral plane, not everything is as it seems, and reality is only as reliable as what you think it is... Will the X-Men be able to contain the chaos from spilling out into the world? From superstar writer CHARLES SOULE and rock-star artist MIKE DEODATO JR., ASTONISHING X-MEN is the book you cannot afford to miss!
Rated T+
Bold, intelligent, and visually arresting, Astonishing X-Men is a masterfully surreal and brilliantly daring departure from its counterparts. While making a decisive call in only second issue would be premature, there are no signs of diminished potential. If Astonishings greater tenure continues apace by providing similar inventive stories, it may well be crowned the king in its own right. Read Full Review
'Astonishing X-Men' #2 is clever and stylish, a much needed creative graduation from the previous era in both art and script. The title manages to feel fresh while maintaining a sense of classic X-Men storytelling. Read Full Review
"Astonishing X-Men" #2 is a wild journey into the astral plane worthy of the "WTF" cover. Read Full Review
This is a solid issue of Astonishing X-Men. While the machinations of the Shadow King don't really go to particularly unexpected places, they're still brought to life well by the team of Deodato and Martin. The dialogue between the characters is enjoyable, and the plot does move itself at a decent pace. This book is quickly becoming my favorite X-Men book on the market, and it is easily recommendable to the seasoned mutant fan. Read Full Review
Focusing on mining character relationships, this creative team cements Astonishing X-Men as one of the top-tier "ResurrXion" titles. Read Full Review
This book is off to a pretty solid start, but I really want it to be the "great" X-Men title. It's not there yet. Read Full Review
Astonishing X-Men #2 was another strong entry in what is already the best current comic book in the X-Men franchise. Charles Soule showed his clear understanding and respect towards the X-Men's history in how he used that history to develop Shadow King's latest plot against the X-Men. Having Mike Deodato's talent to help elevate the danger the X-Men are faced with in Soule's Shadow King story. If you are an X-Men fan, Astonishing X-Men is one comic you should be reading. Read Full Review
A decent second outing, despite some hiccups here and there. Interested to see where this story with Xavier goes, and hope to see more of the Gambit-Fantomex dynamic. Read Full Review
So overall this is a book that I would put middle of the road. It's not great but it also isn't terrible. If you are on an X-Men high and want another X-book to read, then yes pick this one up. You might find something to love here. If you are a new reader and got into X-Men Gold and X-Men Blue and really love them and you are looking to check this one out, don't expect this one to be anything like those books. It's still got an interesting story but is a lot more dry in it's style and tone. Read Full Review
The X-Men dive into the Astral Plane and pat themselves on the back for working out that they're pawns in a larger game. We readers get a closer peek at the Xavier vs. Farouk struggle, and the stakes are *far* higher than the mutants suspect so far. Charles Soule's script wraps some solid, freaky plot twists in a thin candy shell of meta humor. On the visual side, Mike Deodato hammers complex collages out of rather simplistic elements. His usual chromatic conspirator, Frank Martin, expends a lot of effort to deliver an unfortunately muddy result; art and colors combine to make the Astral Plane look like a murky, messy place to visit.
While not as great as the first issue, issue #2 has a lot of good things going for it, and Soule looks to be well in control of making this a great series. The back and forth banter between the Shadow King and Professor X will remind longtime X-Men fans of their initial meeting in Uncanny X-Men #117. While this issue has a slower pace to it, I still think Astonishing X-Men is currently the best X-Men book on the market.
Very entertaining and builds on the mystery of the first issue. Nice astral plane wacky action keeps you wonder what is going on at the start. The fact they change artist every issue throws off a bit, but it is a nice showcase to see other talents.
It had such a great first issue but this one just felt boring half the time even with Deodato doing the art.
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