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THE ULTIMATES #1
"Super Human"
Highly Recommended (10/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Mark Millar
Pencils: Bryan Hitch
Inks: Andrew Currie
Colors: Paul Mounts w/Bongotone
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Price: $2.25 US/$3.50 CAN |
Do not come into the Ultimates #1 looking for Ultimate Avengers.
That's not what this is. Instead, what we have is one of the best Captain
America stories told in recent years, and it's probably no coincidence that it's
set in World War II, when Cap was considerably more relevant. Millar's harder
edge works fine for this Captain America, who has all the inspirational power
and ability that the mainstream Cap is meant to have but with a more believable
arrogance and military mindset, and Hitch's art is phenomenal, with inker Andrew
Currie and colorist Paul Mounts giving everything an edgy, grimy feel perfectly
fitting for the time and place of the setting.
There are any number of stunning images in this book. The fleet of planes over the North Atlantic on page one, the first full-page shot of Captain America, the sight of a transport plane/bomber soaring overhead toward the Nazi compound and the shots of men on the ground rushing at a fortified position all come right to mind. Hitch has captured the feel of Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers, Thin Red Line and other recent World War II films.
This effective setting
immediately brings the reader in, and gives us a sense of the stakes as well.
Rather than simply a costumed menace, Millar has chosen to tell the story of
Cap's mission against a Nazi hydrogen bomb, and the more realistic approach
really helps the story. Captain America comes across as a super soldier, with
the emphasis on the word soldier, barely using his shield and mostly serving as
a tough commanding officer for the troops. Of course, Millar clearly gets Cap as
well, because he's got the hero doing things solo that are noble and
self-sacrificing, including leaping onto a rocket in flight or piloting an
aircraft right into a fortified position.
Despite this being a story focused largely on introducing one character, it manages to be quite epic. Millar and Hitch are both skilled at this type of story, having honed those skills on The Authority, and it shows through here.
Hundreds of troops rushing hundreds of others, gunfire everywhere, air support,
explosions, this feels for all the world like a huge battle right out of World
War II. However, Millar gets in some nice characterization as well. The first
line in the book is a hilarious look at a soldier's mindset, and the addition of
a fiance to Captain America's past is a very nice touch that makes his sacrifice
near the end of the war all the more effective. And given the familiar last name
of his fiance, I wonder if she isn't related to a certain Fantastic scientist.
There wasn't much doubt in my mind that Millar and Hitch would deliver a great read, and they didn't let me down. This is a fantastic Captain America story, and a promising beginning for The Ultimates.
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