Joss Whedon

ASTONISHING X-MEN #5 - Writer: Joss Whedon - Artist: John Cassaday - Publisher: Marvel Comics

Alright, Whedon’s got chops. And I ain’t talkin’ lamb chops. I’m here to talk about writing chops. Given the strength of his work on ASTONISHING X-MEN so far, I’m looking to put him in the same category as Brian K. Vaughan, who, although not writing in a traditional superhero style like Johns or Simone, knows his audience, knows the characters, and has great instincts about both. I never meant to imply that TV/screen writers couldn’t be good comic book writers, but rather that it’s not a traditional superhero writing style. They’re two different animals. And more importantly, screenwriting-style shouldn’t replace traditional comic book style when you’re dealing with superheroes (which is really where my concern with current Marvel lies, among other things they are doing).

The latest issue of ASTONISHING X-MEN was excellent. I like how Whedon is handling the characterization and that Piotr (Colossus) is back. It was a great moment when Piotr got the drop on Ord and how the others reacted to it. And even though I don’t much care about the Scott/Emma relationship (simply because I think it’s sort of boring and directionless), the moment between Scott and Emma, when he he realized she was worrying over him was so nice. It just kind of warms my heart to see Scott smile and it was a great little piece of writing that, in only four panels, gave a lot of insight into both characters. I wasn’t won over by their relationship, but then again, I find with Whedon writing them, I don’t miss Jean at all and find myself not caring about all of that past continuity stuff.

And art-wise, I like Cassaday, but his style comes with limitations. I expected Cassaday wouldn’t work out in this series from my experience with his past works. Take PLANETARY, for example. Ellis’ writing meshed with Cassaday’s art, which is interesting, yet often very cold. And it’s meant to be in that context. Kind of like if Stanley Kubrick wrote a comic book. However, Cassaday’s art seems to have gone under some kind of metamorphosis to me when paired with Whedon’s writing. There’s more feeling here. These two creators could be the next Loeb/Sale if they wanted to take it to that level. They mesh so perfectly - a great team. It was unexpected.

I care about these characters right now. Because with Whedon, I don’t think I really need to worry about mischaracterization. I don’t have to pick up an issue with apprehension that he’s going to ruin these characters I care about. He loves them as much as I do.