Review: Ultimate Comics X-Men #1 by Nick Spencer and Paco Medina

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Ultimate Comics X-Men #1

Nick Spencer – Writer

Paco Medina, Juan Vlasco, Marte Gracia – Art

 

Ultimate X-Men #1 is the final new Ultimate line book to come out and it’s incredibly different in both content and tone than almost any X-book I’ve ever read.  Previously, the X-Men’s “protect a world that fears and hates us” motif was alive and strong in the Ultimate universe when Magneto leveled Manhattan in the critically panned Ultimatum.  Coming out of that, not only are mutants hated and in what amounts to prison camps, but much of the main cast, including mainstays like Cyclops and Wolverine, are dead.  Nick Spencer is left to attempt to carve a compelling tale out of the remnants of mutants on this world, giving us both compelling protagonists and enough background information to be getting on with in the first issue.  While there is a distinct lack of action here, Spencer succeeds in crafting a tense work with relatable characters on every side of the conflict.

 

The main plot of the issue is Kitty Pryde, along with Iceman and the Human Torch, deciding what to do about the new mutant status quo.  It turns out that not only are mutants being kept in camps or killed on sight, but mutants are also the result of an American government project done on Ultimate Wolverine.  This has lead the world to a boiling point, as Val Cooper helpfully tells us in a press conference, as we get scenes of different mutants in their new status quo.

 

Apparently the cast of X-Men will be made up of Colossus, Storm, Rogue, Jean Grey, the aforementioned three, and Wolverine’s son, a mutant named James who, according to the cover, has the same claws and look as his father, though with blonde hair.  The team isn’t together right now, except for those mentioned, though it’s easy to see this as a slow build gathering of heroes.  Everyone is introduced so far and ahs their own quest except for the Torch, whose presence goes unexplained, although, really, there’s no way to work in that bit of exposition when he’s only with two characters who know his situation already.  There isn’t a terrible amount of depth to anyone yet, but everyone has something compelling going on, whether it’s trying to rescue new young mutants, deciding to openly defy the government, being imprisoned, or just wanting to know more about their history.  The tense, angry, frightened tone carries as much weight as more characterization would – the danger is so palpable you can’t help but feel it, even if you don’t necessarily feel for these characters yet.

 

If there’s one real flaw here, it’s the art.  While it’s generally attractive, it has a good bit of Greg Land’s style.  This heavy posing really takes away from the issue, and the women’s faces are all the same, with only hair to really differentiate.  That said, the expressions are generally better than Land’s and the storytelling is clearer.  This isn’t bad, just a far cry from the other two major ultimate books (Ultimates and Spider-Man) where the art was absolutely stellar.  It’s a dark story – some more shading, maybe even a noir element or two, would have gone a long way in making this truly stellar.

 

Ultimately, this isn’t a comic where a ton happens.  We’re here mostly to get caught up on the world, its characters, and see what they’d like to do next.  Protecting the world isn’t really the point for these characters anymore; rather, surviving, protecting themselves, and, sometimes even each other is.  That comes across excellently in a dense script that does far more telling than showing, but with the art the weakest part of the issue, perhaps that’s for the best.  With every ball in the air, an impressive feat given the sheer amount of characters and plot present, we’ll see how Spencer juggles them.  For now, he’s made me quite interested to see the show and this is well worth your time.  Rating: 7.5/10

Glazer is a former senior editor at Pulse Wrestling and editor and reviewer at The Comics Nexus.