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Post by jakefury on Mar 25, 2011 21:43:06 GMT -5
 Issue #1 Writer: Jeph Loeb Artist: Frank Cho Everything Nearly Ended Countless Heroes Were Killed The Fantastic Four Have Disbanded The X-Men Are Gone Mutants Are Hunted As Criminals The World Still Needs Saving This Is What Happens Next Chapter One: Thor Reborn Eight months after Ultimatum and Hawkeye is disussing the current state of the Ultimates with Tony Stark. They're reminiscing over their losses and being involved with SHIELD again when they're suddenly attacked by the Defenders. (Nighthawk, Power Man, Damon Hellstorm, Hellcat & Black Knight) The ensuing 5 on 2 fight isn't going well until Captain America, Valkyrie and Zarda arrive to offer an assist. The Ultimates quickly regain the advantage until Hellstorm opens up a magical portal and the Defenders follow Mjolnir through it. (Valkyrie had tossed it at them) We then go to Valhalla and Thor is sitting on a throne of skulls and bones. He's screaming for Hela and wants to know what it's going to take to get him back to Earth. She says there is something he can do for her and he says to name it. She undresses and says she wants a son and then Thor gets his heart's desire. Back to the Triskellion and Tony Stark is discussing the Defenders with Carol Danvers. (apparently she's the head of SHIELD and doesn't have powers) He's wanting to know how they actually got their abilities and Carol informs him that she has an undercover agent on the team. She says its Hellstorm and he went off the grid three weeks ago. Stark wants to know why and she says its a precaution after what happened during Ultimatum. She then tells him to calm down and go get a vodka or take a shower to cool off. Captain America and Zarda have been watching their argument and Cap says something needs to be done because they hate each other. Zarda doesn't see it that way and offers to take Steve back to her quarters and show him what she means. He takes off to talk to Valkyrie about what went down. Next we go to Central Park as Ka-Zar & Shanna are taking a walk. Apparently they're the new it couple and all the tabloids have been following them. We also see Black Panther tagging along with them and he's keeping their pet tigers company. They notice the weather seems to be getting colder and we soon find out why. Loki and Amora have just arrived along with an army of Asgardian trolls. Finally we go back to the Triskellion and Tony has taken Carol's advice and hit the showers. He's speaking to a woman in his bed and its none other than Carol herself. They tell each other they hate each other and then hit the sheets. Fury Thoughts: I haven't read an Ultimates comic since Ultimates 2 so I was kind of hesitant when I bought this. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. There's plenty going on and the art by Cho is really good with the exception of some of his facial expressions. I thought some of the sexual overtones were a bit much with Cap/Zarda and Tony/Carol but it's a minor complaint. Overall, I'll go 5.5/10 and I'll have issue 2 up in the next few days. |
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Post by jakefury on Mar 27, 2011 19:26:42 GMT -5
 Ultimates New Ultimates Issue 2: Thor Reborn Part 2 Writer: Jeph Loeb Artist: Frank Cho Issue 2 arrives as Loki and Enchantress have launched an attack on NYC using hordes of Asgardian trolls and dragons alike. The Ultimates take the defensive but their ranks are split due to the manipulations of the Enchantress. The Good: This issue is one big battle and Cho captures it nicely with his art. He does an especially nice job with the mythical creatures like the trolls and dragons. We get to see many of the Avengers battle the hordes of Asgard and also battle each other due to the Enhantress. Using her tricks and guile she turns Valkyrie, Carol Danvers and Zarda against the rest of the Ultimates. We also get a great insight into the mind of Captain America throughout the issue. At the end we see the villains standing tall and head into the next issue with little hope for our heroes. The Bad: Nothing major to report. Fury Thoughts: I thought this issue was a little stronger than the first and followed it up nicely. 6/10 |
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Post by jakefury on Mar 27, 2011 19:49:38 GMT -5
 Ultimates New Ultimates Issue 3: Thor Reborn Part 3 Writer: Jeph Loeb Artist: Frank Cho In this issue we get to see the origin of Valkyrie and how she was easily duped by Loki & The Enchantress. We also see Ka-Zar, Shanna and T'Challa successfully rescue Cap, Tony Stark and Hawkeye. Of course all of this was helped by Carol Danvers who apparently wasn't under the influence of Amora like we thought. The Ultimates head back to their HQ and get stocked up on kicking some Asgardian ass. Amor'as hold over Zarda and Valkyrie is broken and an enraged Valkyrie attacks Loki but gets impaled with her own sword. This of course allows what we've all been waiting for: Thor is back. The Good: The origin of Valkyrie was well done and like Cap last issue we get to see everything that's going on in her mind. The battles are again well done. The dialogue between Hela and Thor in Valhalla is interesting as well. We see Thor attempting to strong arm his way out but Hela using their unborn child to use against him. Apparently, time passes a little faster in Valhalla then it does on Earth. The Bad: Once again there isn't a whole lot of bad. Everyone involved gets a fair share of face time. Fury Thoughts: Another good issue in an underrated series. It's moving at a brisk but steady pace and definitely has plenty of action and other things going on. 6/10 |
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Post by jakefury on Mar 27, 2011 20:27:22 GMT -5
 Ultimates New Ultimates Issue 4 Part 4 "Thor Reborn" Writer: Jeph Loeb Artist: Frank Cho Thor has returned and after learning of Valkyrie's death (her death allowed him to return) he is righteously pissed off. His anger is directed against friends and enemies alike. Not even a Loki-controlled Zarda can slow him down and Iron Man doesn't have any luck either. In Valhalla, we see Barbara Norris transformed in a real Valkyrie by Hela and sent to Earth. Loki warns the Ultimates that Thor has been holding back since they first met him due to his anger being controlled. Now his fury has been unleashed and it doesn't look good for them. The Good: One thing I've liked about this series is the look into the inner workings of a different character in each issue. This issue features Loki and it doesn't disappoint. We get a great look at what it was like growing up as Thor's brother and how his feelings toward him developed. The action in this one is pretty decent again but it's mostly Thor kicking ass and taking down anything in his path. The Bad: If you're not a fan of Thor you may not like this book. He's heavily featured here. It makes sense in the context of the series but it does feel a little Thor heavy. Fury Thoughts: This issue wasn't quite as good as the previous three but it's still pretty decent. Again the odds look hopeless for the Ultimates as we head into the final issue. 5.5/10 |
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Post by Erik-El on Mar 27, 2011 23:22:48 GMT -5
Holy crap! Tons of reviews! I need to throw a poptart into the toaster before I get started on all these.
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Post by jakefury on Mar 28, 2011 18:23:20 GMT -5
Holy crap! Tons of reviews! I need to throw a poptart into the toaster before I get started on all these. Hahaha, I also wanted to add that this series takes place in Ultimate-Verse history as right before the one you've been reviewing. |
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Post by jakefury on Mar 28, 2011 19:19:01 GMT -5
 Ultimates New Ultimates Thor Reborn Issue 5 (Conclusion) Writer: Jeph Loeb Artist: Frank Cho The last issue of this series is here and it's a good conclusion to this 5 issue limited series. In this issue we see the Ultimates roster with some defections leaving a core lineup of Thor, Iron Man, Hawkeye & Captain America. Zarda returns to the Squadron Supreme's universe and we also see the departures of Ka-Zar, Shanna & T'Challa. The Good: I can't compliment Cho's art enough on this series. It made the entire series visually appealing and is very good. The story keyed around Thor's return and it was handled well. I didn't feel like there was any unnecessary material and it fit well into the 5 issue installment. One of the strongest points to the series was each issue focusing on individual characters. The last issue focused on Thor and it was well done. The series had some great action throughout and also some interesting plot developments. There weren't any unnecessary deaths. The two that occurred fit well into the story. The Bad: Nada. My only complaint with the Ultimates is the lack of an ongoing series. I really fail to see the need for everything to take place in limited series and minis. Overall: 6/10 for a solid series. |
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Post by jakefury on Mar 28, 2011 19:23:47 GMT -5
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Post by Admin on Mar 28, 2011 19:32:55 GMT -5
Nice, I appreciate this since I love the ultimates but I don't want to torture myself by reading this work  |
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Post by jakefury on Mar 28, 2011 19:35:06 GMT -5
Nice, I appreciate this since I love the ultimates but I don't want to torture myself by reading this work Call me crazy but I enjoyed it.  |
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Post by Admin on Mar 28, 2011 19:37:55 GMT -5
Did T'Challa get any kind of spotlight in this? I loved Loeb's one-shot with his origin.
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Post by jakefury on Mar 28, 2011 19:40:42 GMT -5
He took down Valkyrie when he was rescuing Cap & Hawkeye but thats about it.
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Post by Erik-El on Mar 29, 2011 11:52:54 GMT -5
You know, the crazy thing is that I have all these issues, but have still not read them.
I always planned to but heard such bad things about the story arc that I back-listed them for other titles until I eventually forgot about them.
Now Fury, you said you liked the stories but you never gave a single issue above a 6. The average score for the issues so far is 5.8. Now you say you like the series but have given it such a ho-hum scoring. Will scoring like that, it is hard to break open those back-issues even when you admit you like the series.
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Post by jakefury on Mar 29, 2011 17:29:03 GMT -5
You know, the crazy thing is that I have all these issues, but have still not read them. I always planned to but heard such bad things about the story arc that I back-listed them for other titles until I eventually forgot about them. Now Fury, you said you liked the stories but you never gave a single issue above a 6. The average score for the issues so far is 5.8. Now you say you like the series but have given it such a ho-hum scoring. Will scoring like that, it is hard to break open those back-issues even when you admit you like the series. Maybe I was a little harsh and when I'm reading individual issues they don't always reflect my feelings on the series as a whole. As a whole I'd go about 6.5 The series flows well and has equal action and other stuff going on. But its a little Thor heavy IMO. Which is to be expected since he was the one returning. It's nothing Earth shattering or a must read but I enjoyed it. |
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