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ULTIMATE MARVEL TEAM UP #13
Recommended (7/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Ted McKeever
Colors: Transparency Digital
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Price: $2.25 US/$3.65 CAN |
I'm left with
the impression that this would have been a more interesting single issue story,
because while there were interesting elements in each part, there was also a
feeling that the plot was being stretched to accommodate two issues of story.
However, McKeever's artwork is an example of the kind of thing we're not used to
seeing from Marvel, and Bendis again shifts his style slightly to fit the
artist, resulting in an unusual and entertaining approach to Dr. Strange. As
with each issue of the title, the shift in tone is noticeable and important to
the story, and I quite enjoyed the freaky, funny take on magic that Bendis and
McKeever had to offer.
The secret to the Ultimate
books has been to keep just enough tradition of the characters while giving it a
slight twist. In the case of Dr. Strange, Bendis introduced a son, giving Dr.
Strange an element of amateur quality that puts him on the same level as
Spider-Man and gives him a personality that fits nicely into Bendis's dialogue
strengths. I was laughing out loud at the interplay between Wong and Strange,
and the casual way that Strange throws around cosmic forces was both a nod to
the power he wields and just how new all that power is to him.
While the strongest Team-Up stories haven't really even needed Spider-Man in
them, I am always glad when a story makes use of Spider-Man well in this title,
and I quite enjoyed the role he had in this one. Basically, Spider-Man is the
point-of-view character this time, pointing out some of the absurdities of comic
book magic in general and Dr. Strange's abilities in particular, and his role as
the down-to-earth element makes for a funny and satisfying conclusion to the
story. It did seem as if a lot of the material, particularly Strange's origins
and the villain's motivation, was recapped when it didn't need as much space to
do so, and the weirdness of the situation is played up a little too heavily in
dialogue and panel time, when it really got across just fine in the artwork.
Ted McKeever's artwork is
definitely an acquired taste, and it's one of the more unconventional styles in
comics. This has been true of a lot of artists on this series, which, if nothing
else, deserves credit for introducing a variety of impressive artists to a new
audience. McKeever's twisted and surreal take on Spider-Man gives us a sense of
the magical dimensions he is thrust into, and the wild pyrotechnic effects give
a real sense of the power and bizarre nature of magic as well. In all honesty, I
found the constantly fluctuating proportions and body designs to be a little
distracting at time, particularly during the quiet and normal scene where Peter
wakes up in Strange's house, but in general, the artwork was ideal for the
story.
Ultimate Marvel Team-Up has largely been the story that
treats Spider-Man as a fish out of water, encountering the wide Marvel Universe,
and it has almost always been an entertaining read as a result. I've found the
single issue tales to be my favorites for the most part, but I think that when
all is said and done, this will be marked as another success for the Ultimate
line.
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