Astonishing X-Men Vol. 5: Ghost Box

I read the Astonishing X-Men run with much interest. Until now it had good ideas, darn impressive artwork and excellent writing, so if you're a fan of Whedon & Cassaday, you'll be slightly disappointed by this volume.Ghost Box has an interesting concept behind it (spoiler: parallel universes) and throws in some interesting details about how the X-Men work, like telepathically learning the native language of the foreign country they happen to be in. There are maybe two moments of brilliant dialogue. Plus, it has original panel/page layouts at every step, mostly enjoyable since you don't see them very often - but here the positive aspects end.The art is, well, let's call it "unrealistic" and leave it at that; by the time you're halfway through the volume, you will have grown tired of seeing everyone's mouths open as if shouting. The concept is tackled only superficially, pretty much like the Dangerous volume, while the "What If" stories present much more interest than the main one. The are contradictions with previous volumes (so at the end of the day, how good is Beast with computers?) as well as previous personality traits (is Armor shy-"I don't know what to do" or extremely cheeky to her teammates? Is Emma really saying "I shall simply..." on every page?!).So: if you're into the series, by all means do add this to the collection. Just don't expect it to blow your mind, because overall it looks like a good idea gone bad somewhere along the line. I'm giving it the fourth star only for Abigail Brand's appearances, which were well-written, and the "What If" stories.

Anyone who truly knows Warren Ellis is aware of exactly what he is capable of as a creator. Transmetropolitan, Authority and above all - Planetary. Ghost Box is a small Ellis. Still loaded with traces and remains of his style and wit but, as with all of his recent creations, not a peak in his career, most likely a valley. Still, worth reading, for his characters are fun, smart mouthed and all. And just when you think it's over, then comes the best part, much above the normal episodes of the main story, GHOST BOXES, it is called and it's like a study on possibilities left hanging in the air from the main story. Here, if not top Ellis, we are given a glimpse of the little devil that hides inside his mind. And what a clever little devil that one is indeed.

This book has a surprising bit of quality after the departure of Astonishing X-writer Joss Whedon. The concept of Ghost Boxes (it's a secret) is an intriguing idea. More importantly, writer Warren Ellis manages to expertly work in S.W.O.R.D. (Abigail Brand) and Ororo (Storm). Also, we get some great scenes for Hidako (Armor), the new X-Man. What more can you ask for?The Ghost Boxes story ends quickly, halfway through the book. This turns out to be a plus, as the latter half of the book is devoted to what could have happened had the X-men not dealt with the problem. It's a cool concept, and I find myself re-reading this book over and over. And that's the best endorsement. Great job, X-team!

The story is good but nothing great. It is definitely a step down in the series after Whedon's time on the title. The art is fantastic though.Overall I am disappointed in the book, but it would be very hard not to be after what Whedon brought in his run.

This is a true follow up to no more mutants as we see how the ScarletWitch affected the multivariate and so one says the best insult to Emma Frost much to Cyclops chagrin.

Another great story with interesting artwork after Whedon's run. Still do like alternate dimension stories.

The story is solid (although somewhat sub-par for what I'd expect out of Warren Ellis), but I found the art style to be dark, murky, and hard to follow.

it met with my satisfaction

Boring story, badly drawn and I didn't even finish it. The inking is so dark it barely hides the fact that the characters face change from page to page which is just sloppy drawing.

This is definately worth a read and there are some good moments in it. Certain dialogue in it was a bit out of character but I still enjoyed reading it all the same. The plot was interesting, if a little slow at times. The What if? at the end though was intriguing. I liked the book overall and the artwork, although as people have said it is a little dark. I would recommend this book although I wouldn't put it as one of my top favourites...Good though.

After a very entertaining and amazing run with Joss Whedon along with the art style of John Cassaday the reins of Astonishing X-Men have now been handed to Warren Ellis with above average results. After the events of the previous Unstoppable arc, the X-men are forced to continue operations away from the X-mansion. They are sent to inspect a mysterious murder and the story builds up from there. Although Ellis manages to keep everyone in character and builds up a great plot early on, the end begins to lose steam and is a bit of an anti-climactic disappointment. The story is also easily forgettable and does not add much to the characters nor to X-Men canon.One of the few things I found interesting about Astonishing X-Men Ghost Box would be the 4 mini-stories put at the end of this TPB. They are most definitely worth a read if you have finished reading through the Ghost Box arc.Before I mention anything about the art, art style is a personal style so take this with a grain of salt. The art style also takes some getting used to. Simone Bianchi's style is quite unique and a fresh way of colouring comics but the character models are unrealistic in a disturbing way. Every single character has their ribs literally popping out of their bodies with absolutely no muscle or fat which makes them all look a bit sickly.

The plot is pretty good, no where near as good as the previous 4 volumes though. The artwork however is just terrible.

It is not as good as the previous Volumes - 1 to 4. Maybe because of the change in author and the artist.