899

I feel like it's a problem when I read a superhero comic where I completely and totally side with the "villains" and think the "heroes" are the bad guys of the story. I guess this is why I don't enjoy the Ultimates titles or many Captain America stand-alone stories (also Red Hulk) - when the government/military are the "heroes" I just totally disengage and feel like I'm reading the wrong side of the story. This story is just... yeah, super "RAH RAH 'MURICA" and I did not enjoy it. ( )

By this point in this Millar/Hitch treasure, the world is all FUBAR'd; and in the middle of a Superhero story Millar manages to make a sly attack of US foreign policy...Brilliant stuff, really.

And all I can say of Bryan Hitch's artwork is--damn! I've been following his stuff since he was doing fill-ins on UK titles and at Marvel, and his line-work and composition continue to mature and evolve, as opposed to most other artists in the comic book field...

If you're reading this review in the wrong order, go back to ULTIMATES, vol 1. and enjoy... especially if you've seen the Iron Man and new Hulk films...

( )

On points this really gets a four, and the obvious relish for tormenting even fictional humans in such an intense way unsettles me a little but I think they pull it off. But my God, Mark Millar, it's not enough to just go "They all get my politics, they all know this is tongue way in cheek," and then paint a superhero caricature right-wing enough for Little Green Footballs as well as over-the-top enough for the modern nerd desensitized by the internet. It's not enough to, like, BE the irony; it has to be in the story in some kind of visible form, or you're part of the problem. So, like, gross. But very tight, well-plotted, gripping, etc., with many surprises, and the last chapter is great- the actual win condition, when you hate America more than you have all day, salvages things in maybe the only way they could be salvaged - WITH ASGARDIANS. Should I be putting spoiler tags on these reviews? Meh. ( )