Joss Whedon’s Astonishing X-men is, overall, a good comic. Â Yup, that guy (Buffy and Firefly).
The strength of the comic is easily the characterization and realization of each of the X-men as a personality and a person.  From Beast’s struggle with the inner-creature, to Cyclops actually being charismatic and cool enough for anyone to follow, to Wolverine’s love of beer: each X-men is interesting on their own and in any interactions they have with each other.
Sadly, the same cannot be said for the overall plot and villains.  Both are pretty weak.  There are a few main story arcs throughout and none of them are noteworthy.
That doesn’t matter as much. Â The bulk of the book is about the charming cast’s journey and their dialog with each other; the plot and villains are just something the characters can talk about.
The point that sold me on the series: a friend told me that it made Cyclops cool.
I called bullshit. Â There is no way anyone could do that.
Joss Whedon can.
Not available yet, but a hardcover omnibus is on the way:
Otherwise you can start with the paperbacks (the hardcovers are a bit harder to get a hold of):
