(Click to see entire page. Copyright Marvel, 2004)
Those words are “Fastball Special.” The following two pages are a single-panel spread of Peter launching Logan into the upper atmosphere in the time-honored Claremont fashion. It suddenly doesn’t really matter how exactly Peter’s back from the dead, or what Chuck Austen and the rest have done to the series since the early ’90s. In just a couple of pages and a few well-placed lines of dialogue. Whedon’s erased all concerns, and suddenly, you’re back in the halcyon days of 1986 like nothing’s changed at all.
Given what readers have endured in the hands of writers since Claremeont, it feels like coming home, and I got a lump in my throat reading this issue. It’s been a long time since the X-Men books have had an emotional stake for me, but Whedon’s found the heart of the title, and this is only halfway through Astonishing #6. His sarcastic dialogue is spot-on, especially the quips between faux-British Emma and cliched ’70s superspy Nick Fury (“”Doesn’t sound like you. Great big covert muckity and all that.”). Scott and Hank have some wonderful character moments, and the last three pages, with Peter and Kitty coming to terms are just perfect.
Oh, yeah. Best. Cover. Ever.
