Comic Book Review: Ultimates #11

The Ultimates is a favorite here at the Revolution. I think Millar consistently delivers an exciting and well planned comic book. For me, this is the best of all the Ultimate universe titles. I’m sure that Ultimates #11 will continue this trend. Let’s hit the review.

Creative Team
Writer: Mark Millar
Penciler: Bryan Hitch
Inker: Paul Neary

Art Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10.
Story Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10.
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10.

Synopsis: This issue starts with Thor in his prison asking Odin why he has forsaken him. That if it is mankind’s true nature to make war. Thor asks Odin for a sign that he can still hear his voice. We then see a strange glowing light pour down upon Thor’s tear streaked face.

We then shift to Captain America kicking the crap out of Schizoid Man’s multiple bodies. (I love Millar’s Captain America! He is such a bad-ass! I love that a Scotsman writes a better Captain America than any American writer ever has.) Wasp then takes out some more of The Liberators’ soldiers. Wasp then asks Captain America what they should do about Thor. Captain stares at the outside of Thor’s cell and says “Good question.”

We then cut to Air Force One being attacked and commandeered by the Liberators. We then shift to the Dome in Brussels where the Union has been told that if they intervene in America then the Liberators will launch America’s nuclear arsenal. Brian Braddock then says that there is one option that they have not considered.

We then shift back to Washington, DC. We see the Liberators landing Air Force One outside the White House. Colonel Al-Rahman is informed that Captain America escaped. Hank Pym is petrified that Captain America is going to de-rail their entire mission. Loki tells Pym to calm down. That they have crippled America captured the President and plan to behead his friends very shortly. They have nothing to worry about.

We then see Wasp and Captain America sneaking around the side of the White House. Captain America says that he counts 28 guards in the main room of the White House. He gets his guns out and tells Wasp to be prepared. Captain America busts down the door and sees…..Hawkeye standing in the middle of a room littered with the bodies of the Liberators’ soldiers. The soldiers are all full of arrows. Hawkeye tells Cap to relax, that this room has been secured. (Damn. I also love Millar’s Hawkeye. Probably my favorite version of Hawkeye. A complete ass-kicker.) Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch are also with Hawkeye. Wasp hugs Hawkeye and told him that they all thought he was dead. Hawkeye responds “No such luck, honey.” (Seriously, Hawkeye has lost more than any man could possibly lose.)

Suddenly, a bunch of the Liberators’ soldiers come busting through the windows and we have a braaaaaawwwl!

We then cut to New York where Tony Stark has been suited up in his original armor. He is unable to get near Stark Industries headquarters to get his current armor. Tony knows that he can’t do anything in his old original armor so he flies up into space to his space station where his “Iron Man Six” armor is located. (Sweet. I can’t wait to see this suit of armor.)

We then shift back to the brawl between the Liberators and the Ultimates at the White House. We get a nice one page splash shot of Colonel Al-Rahman telling Captain America that he has been waiting for this moment for half his life. (This should be a nice fight.)

We then see Loki outside the White House talking to Pym. Pym asks Loki why he hasn’t done anything other than stand on the sidelines through this entire battle. Loki says if he uses his powers overtly then Odin will know exactly where to find him. We see the Liberators’ version of At-At walkers rampaging though the streets of D.C. We see Bruce Banner standing still saying that he doesn’t need to run away from anyone now that he is in touch with his inner sociopath. Banner tells the At-At- walkers to just keep coming if they want to meet his inner sociopath. We see one of the walkers step on top of Banner and crush him into the ground. Suddenly, the walker topples over and we get a nice two page splash shot of a rampaging Hulk destroying the walker. Hulk then starts demolishing the walking tanks. We then get a one page splash shot of a pissed off Hulk yelling “Bring it on!” (Oh hell yeah! That was great!) End of issue.

Comments
The Good: Ultimates #11 was a total blast to read! This issue rocked from the very beginning and didn’t slow up through the rest of the issue. I really liked the scene with Thor praying to his father, Odin. Could it be that Thor isn’t really just a crazy man after all? That he is actually the son of Odin? I guess we will find out more next issue when we discover what was the source of the glowing light that shone down on him.

The fight scene between Captain America and Schizoid Man was brutal. Millar’s Captain America is just nasty. For me, nobody writes a better Captain America than Millar. I love it. Plus, Millar leaves the reader to imagine what Captain America decided to do with Thor.

The scene with where Wasp and Captain America reunite with Hawkeye was great. That was a great shot of Hawkeye standing over a bunch of bodies riddled with arrows. Millar’s Hawkeye is a total bad-ass. I am really enjoying Millar’s version of Hawkeye. I wouldn’t mind seeing Ultimate Hawkeye getting a mini-series. This version of Hawkeye is much more than trick arrows and a wise cracking mouth.

I like that Millar teased us with this Iron Man Six armor that Tony has stored up in his space station. Millar’s Ultimate version of Tony Stark is wonderful. This version of Tony always seems to have an answer or a plan for anything that may happen. He may seem like a party going drunk, but don’t be deceived by that facade. This new armor should be pretty impressive.

I also liked Colonel Al-Rahman finally getting to confront his arch nemesis Captain America. This should make for one fantastic fight next issue.

And, of course, I absolutely loved the ending. Seeing Bruce Banner return, but this time in control of the Hulk was cool. And the two page splash shot of a rampaging Hulk was a great “Hell yeah!” moment. As was the final one page splash shot of a pissed off Hulk yelling “Bring it on!” That got me all pumped up! I cannot wait for the next issue! We have been watching America and the Ultimates getting their butts kicked for several issues. It was great to end this issue with the thought of some serious payback coming in the form of a rampaging Hulk.

Millar did a fantastic job writing Ultimates #11. As usual, Millar’s dialogue was strong. The pacing of this issue was fantastic! Millar managed to mix in enough dialogue with plenty of action scenes. Plus, Millar did a great job teasing the reader with several storylines that we will see in the next issue. What is the light shining on Thor? What did Captain America decide to do about Thor? What is Tony’s new Iron Man Six armor? Will Captain America be able to defeat Colonel Al-Rahman? Is a rampaging Hulk going to be enough to help turn the tide? So many interesting questions that Millar dangled out to the reader to get us yearning for the next issue. It certainly worked on me!

Millar is so talented at writing a great action packed blockbuster type storyline. As long as Millar doesn’t let his own political beliefs bog him and his storyline down, he is capable of turning out immensely entertaining comic books. And that is what I like about Millar. He isn’t trying to be Alan Moore or anything pretentious. Millar just delivers exiting, tight, well paced and action packed comic books that a simply fun to read.

I also enjoyed Bryan Hitch’s art in this issue. I think his dark and gritty style fits the Ultimates “realistic” feel that Millar strives for in his storyline. Hitch pulls the reader into the comic book from the start. His facial expressions are fantastic. Plus, Hitch can flat out draw some excellent battle scenes!

The Bad: No complaints at all.

Overall: Ultimates #11 was a fun and exciting read. I cannot wait for the next issue. I am really going to miss Millar on this title. I have my doubts that about Jeph Loeb taking over the Ultimates. I definitely recommend any Millar written Ultimates issue.