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THE ULTIMATES #5
"Hulk Does Manhattan"
Recommended (8/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Mark Millar
Pencils: Bryan Hitch
Inks: Andrew Currie
Colors: Paul Mounts
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
I'm not sure if the long wait has tempered my enthusiasm for the series, or if I just wasn't looking forward to the big fight as much as many others were, but I wasn't as impressed with this issue of The Ultimates as I have been with all of the others. Mind you, it's still a great example of widescreen action, and the best substitute for The Authority to be found, and Hitch's art was worth the lengthy delay. While I missed the heavy character focus that has defined the first four issues, I can't deny that Millar, Hitch and Currie know how to serve up an amazing spectacle of a super-hero fight scene.
Millar's take on the various members of the Ultimates has, for the most part, made them more interesting to me than their mainstream counterparts, and I see the same sort of thing in this issue. Tony Stark's playboy attitude toward the whole super-hero thing is evident in the way he fights the Hulk, Captain America's more edgy attitude can be found in the way he fights the Hulk (and deals with Banner) and Thor's power is evident in the way he fights the Hulk. It's also really good to see him talking like a normal person, hippie or not... I hate the "Thee and Thou" dialogue of Thor in the mainstream, which has contributed to my overall dislike of the character.
Unfortunately, I'm not quite sold on Millar's take on the Hulk yet. I'm going to have a hard time seeing him as a member of the team now that he's murdered dozens of innocents, threatened to rape Betty Ross and generally shown himself to be about as likable as your average frat-boy with near-unstoppable power. Millar's got an uphill battle with that character if he's going to make him a member of The Ultimates, because for me the most enjoyable part of the issue was seeing Cap deliver a little payback to Banner for all that he caused.
While the first few issues have been a truly collaborative effort, the focus on characterization over explosive action has tilted things toward Millar's part of the story. This issue is Hitch and Currie's show, however, and they continue to impress. The pyrotechnics and the down and dirty elements of the fighting are impressive enough, including the Hulk simply tearing off Iron Man's helmet and grabbing Giant Man by the head or Captain America delivering a series of dirty fighting moves to the Hulk. However, what really impresses me is the detail that Hitch and Currie put into their interpretation of New York. The buildings and the city are uncanny in their accuracy, from the interior of Grand Central Station to the shots of the skyline, and this realistic backdrop is a big part of what makes The Ultimates work. It did seem as if Mounts went a little too dark on the colors this issue, sometimes overwhelming the work that the artists had done in ink, but the tone set by all that darkness was important as well. (Note: I have since learned that Mounts's pre-press colors were in fact really solid, and it was in the printing that the darkness appeared. Check out this Feature for more information.)
I've seen and heard the complaints by many that The Ultimates was moving too slowly, that they were four issues in and nobody had fought anyone yet. I was one of those who had no problem with this pacing, and I find that when we finally got the action everyone was clamoring for, I missed the personality conflict and celebrity humor that defined those early issues. However, while those things fell out of focus a little, they're still there, and this is a high point in super-hero action slugfests that is going to be hard to match unless you want to pull out your back issues of The Authority.
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