Written by Jonathan Hickman
Illustrated by Esad RibicThe next era has begun. As they struggle to find their place in the world, the The Ultimates face game-changing threats even they can’t handle. And with the heart of the team missing in action, the country’s last stand of defense may be on its last legs.
The manipulative mastermind that is Jonathan Hickman – I mean that as a credit to his writing ability, not an attack on his character – takes over Ultimate Marvel’s premier team book with a new volume of The Ultimates. I’d call it its official name, but it just sounds silly. Hickman says that this is the first title he’s working on where he doesn’t have a specific ending in mind, which – while exciting – might make some a bit wary about the book’s quality. The only way to know for sure, though, is to read it, and so I did, following this with a review. Follow the cut for said review.
There’s no denying that I was incredibly excited for this book. Jonathan Hickman is one of my favorite writers currently in the industry, Esad Ribic is a truly outstanding artist, and Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch’s The Ultimates and The Ultimates 2 were fantastily fun reads. Hickman and Millar, of course, are incredibly different writers, but I believed that Hickman could take the core concept that Millar developed in The Ultimates and give it his own distinct flavor, all while maintaining the original feel of the title. And I was right. This issue is takes a bit more of a top-down look at the team, from the perspective of Nick Fury’s seat in the Triskellion. We branch out from there to other characters, but the key point is that Fury’s perspective is the source. From here, we watch as things rapidly develop into “oh shi–” status.
That rapidity is both this issue’s boon and its bane. On the one hand, it’s exciting. We jump straight into action and suspense, and get a firsthand look at how intense Fury’s job is as various situations across the world go to hell simultaneously. It’s an intriguing way to keep the action in an action-heavy title while still promising the reader something different, and it is effective in terms of getting the reader interested and wanting more. On the other hand, it almost goes a bit too fast. Sure, it’s common practice for a first issue to leave the reader asking questions, but there’s a fine difference between “Oh man, what’s going on?” and “…what’s going on?” Hickman leans a bit more to the latter with this issue, and while it isn’t exactly incomprehensible, it does make it a bit difficult to decipher where he’s going from here, quality-wise.
Similarly, I’m not sure how I feel about Nick Fury. If you’re like me, you read and loved Secret Warriors, and know that Hickman writes a damn good 616 Fury. I feel like Hickman is trying too hard to distance himself from that characterization, so as to not seem like he’s just writing the same character all over again. It’s true that there are some big differences between 616 and Ultimate Fury, but there are some overlaps in personality – or at least some qualities that are similar enough that turning 180 degrees from one turns you 150 degrees from the other. There were definitely a few beats where Hickman hit the mark, but that last page in particular sticks out to me as not very Samuel L. Jackson Ultimate Fury-esque.
Still, Esad Ribic is worth the price of admission alone. Ribic is just as different from Hitch as Hickman is from Millar, but Ribic doesn’t abandon the widescreen action that makes The Ultimates the comic that it is – again, like Hickman. Like other artists before him, Ribic proves that you don’t have to fit the “house style” to draw a damn fine superhero comic. For those that are familiar with his Thor-related comics with Robert Rodi, you can see how his style still has that classical, painterly vibe, but this time he has taken a bit more of a mainstream touch to his line work, without sacrificing his unique vision – a perfect approach, considering superheroes are often considered the modern equivalent to ancient myth. To repeat myself, Ribic is one of those artists that makes a semi-decently written comic worth buying. Thankfully, he quite frequently works with excellent scribes that give him the room to truly excel.
All in all, this issue suffers from the most common flaw I diagnose: issue one syndrome. It’s good, yes, but it’s hard to judge on its own due to the fact that it depends a lot on what’s coming next. The issue does avoid the most common cause of said malady, as it jumps straight into the action, but said action is still just cleverly disguised exposition. Then, of course, there is the previously-mentioned general disjointedness that both hurts and helps the issue. Still, my faith in Hickman and – more importantly – the inspiring work of Ribic are enough to let me pass my normal “wait and see” mentality and instead give the issue a hearty thumbs up.
Final Verdict: 7.0 – Buy it!
