This issue of Ultimate X-Men didn't quite work for me as well as most previous issues. Some brilliant but ill-fitting art is the most obvious difference here, but it's mostly characterization elements that seemed off to me. I remain interested in this mature and political take on the action-packed Marvel mainstay of mutants, and this issue has its fun moments as well. But too many questions nag at me about the characters to allow for full enjoyment of the plot.
As Wolverine and Cyclops fly off for the Savage Land to investigate the disappearance of a team of Navy SEALs, Jean Grey feels as though the last vestiges of her sanity are slipping away, slowly being eaten by an alien presence in her mutant mind. Meanwhile, the Beast's self-imposed isolation within the team has driven him to seek companionship online, and he begins to open up to the woman he believes to be on the other end... so much so that he starts letting dangerous secrets slip out.
I've seen the strong manga influence in Kaare Andrews's artwork before, so it's not surprising to see it turn up here. While it still makes for a consistent tone with the work of regular artist Adam Kuebrt, the extreme exaggeration and razor-sharp angles in the characters are a bit too much. The characters seem lost in the style. When I saw Andrews's name on this issue, I was hoping for more of the inventiveness we see in his cover art, specifically the versatile and highly entertaining covers he does for Incredible Hulk. There's nothing actually wrong with his art here, but it doesn't seem to suit the story.
There are a couple of characterization points that don't quite seem right. Millar uses the closeness between Jean and Cyclops to bring the former's emotional crisis to life, but I wish we could have seen the relationship between the two characters develop. We're just told the bond is there; it's as though Millar is relying too much on mainstream continuity. If I'm to believe in the love these different versions of the characters share, I want to see it grow.
The Beast's online flirtation strikes me as remarkably thick-headed. The reader is given no indication that Hank is the least bit leery of the anonymity that the Internet affords the person with whom he's conversing. Maybe he's well aware and is just playing along, but until that greater context is revealed, the Beast comes off as surprisingly dim, not at all in character for one of the more clever characters in the cast.
There were elements I enjoyed. The comedy of errors that is the Brotherhood of Mutants was entertaining, and the notion of the Hellfire Club being financial backers of Professor X's dream struck me as an interesting new spin and addition to the X-Men story.
