Summary: A good chunk of the team has gone after Magneto, who stole the body of Scarlet Witch. There they join forces with Ka-Zar and Shanna's army. Thor shows off his arsenal of hammers. Wolverine knows something is up with Black Panther. Roboto Iron Man, which is about to attack Wasp, gets trashed by Roboto Captain America who then gets trashed by Ant-Man. Ant-Man reveals a 'Secret Invasion' of robot doubles. Hawkeye is still all suicidal. Thor goes head to head with Magneto and learns that an iron hammer and armor is a bad thing to take to a fight against a mutant with magnetism powers.
Commentary: Well, before I get into the negative (you know things are going to be bad when I start off like that), I want to start off positive.
I have great respect for Jeph Loeb's work both on TV (Heroes, Lost, Smallville) and in comic books (Batman: Hush, Batman: The Long Halloween). I know he can write well, so I'm just puzzled by this book. What happened?
We went from the classic volume 1 and 2 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch to this. I can't even recognize this book. It seems like Loeb just ignored continuity and did his own thing. Millar walked a fine line between the flawed aspects of these characters and the heroic aspects. It was a difficult balancing act that Millar pulled off well. Loeb just ignores the balancing act and as a result the book plummets.
We get a sex tape, an even more extreme alcoholic Tony Stark, the incestuous affair between Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch thrown in our face over and over again (I get it already!), a suicidal Hawkeye with an odd taste in costumes, Wolverine (like he isn't already in enough books), and a chaotic plot that makes little sense. On top of that, I feel like there was little research on the continuity of these characters, because some of them are acting way out of character (unless they are robots too).
He took the flaws that Millar so carefully crafted and hits the accelerator. Maybe that's supposed to make the book more cool, edgy, and action packed. But, instead it feels like a poorly done '90s Avengers book that was rushed.
I actually like Joe Madureira's art style. It is energetic and dynamic, but it isn't right for this book. It is way too extreme of a difference and is jarring for anyone who read the other books. I also don't understand why he makes these characters look so much like their 616 counterparts. I thought it was funny that there is this one panel stuck in there where Thor is showing off all his hammers. I wonder if that was thrown in last minute to help cool down fans who were angry that Thor is using a hammer that looks like the 616 hammer.
Is there anything good about this series and this issue? Well, I like the idea that Hawkeye got all self destructive, but the execution is way over the top. I like that Thor has a groupie and the fight between him and Magneto was a highlight. The overall fight between the Ultimates, Ka-Zar's forces, and Magneto's army was somewhat exciting. The twist last issue on how the dinosaurs appeared in the Savage Lands was also a nice surprise. But, the robot twist felt like a cheat, because it feels like it comes out of nowhere (like most things in this plot). I like it, but it was not set up well. And God, why did Robo Captain have to utter that Terminator line? Honestly, that is just about it for this issue.
What bugs me so much is that Loeb should know better, should be able to do better than this. Worst of all, Marvel took one of my favorite comic book titles and turned it into something I don't recognize and honestly don't care to. There have been rumors that Ultimatum will be the end of the Ultimate Marvel Universe. On one hand that is sad, because it is one of my favorite settings, but if this is what I have to look forward to... then for heavens sake put it out of its misery.
Final Word: Does the phrase jump the shark mean anything to you? Because if this were season three of a TV show, that is exactly what I would be saying.
What did you think of this book?
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