“Unstoppable” is Joss Whedon’s final story in this fantastic series, and after it the title goes on hiatus for about half a year. It concludes the Breakworld/”Colossus is the worldbreaker” story that he’s been weaving through this book since he began.

The Breakworld aliens’ master plan is to blow up Earth with a giant bullet. The X-Men, with the help of S.W.O.R.D., fly out to stop them.

The action sequences are excellent.

At one point, the now-powerless (thanks to Emma) Cyclops does a whole space fight thing and seems to die…

…Emma mourns in her own way…

He’s not dead, of course. In fact, he kicks Ord’s ass.

The conclusion has Kitty phasing the Breakworld bullet so that it passes harmlessly through Earth.

Whedon’s writing and Cassaday’s art were so powerfully human while creating stories about superhuman bravery.

After she saves the world, Kitty finds herself bound to the bullet in phased form, and is launched out into space–vanishing away.

It’s a terribly tragic way to end one of the all-time greatest runs on ANY COMIC SERIES. There’s also some symmetry: Whedon’s run is best known for bringing Colossus back and taking Kitty away.

But don’t get too sad. In the aftermath, the warmth and laugh-out-loud humor that helped make this run so memorable continue, as Armor tries to cheer up Logan after Kitty’s fate…

In fact, those last pages are the rare example of a comic book that actually makes me cry every single time I read it…