The Ultimates #6-13

The Ultimates #6-13

Originally released in 2002

Written by Mark Millar

Art by Bryan Hitch

I decided to give the Ultimates series another chance, having previously read issues 1-5 and not being a fan. (most of the team was unlikeable, to say the least)  Unfortunately, these issues do little to change that.  Nick Fury, the leader of the team, seems more concerned about the team's public relations image than the well-being of the members of the team itself.  Tony Stark seems to be perpetually drunk, and flippant about everything from a tumour in his brain to an impending alien invasion.

Thor seems to mean well, but he also comes across as insane, believing it's his divine right to "purify the world".  Hank and Janet Pym are domestic abusers, with Hank being a fraud and a little bit racist against mutants, and Janet publicly cheating on Hank.  Bruce Banner starts off issue 6 in a SHIELD prison after intentionally turning himself into the Hulk in order to feel like "a real man" and killing hundreds of people (at least) in the process.

Captain America is better off in these issues compared to the first few, with his apparent sexism from the first few issues toned down, but infamous lines like "Surrender?  Do you think this letter on my head stands for France?!" don't mesh with the historical context that he came from. (in the main universe, Ed Brubaker's run on Captain America had Steve say something like "the government of France may have surrendered, but its people never did" while discussing France, seemingly in rebuttal to this)

Issue 6 largely focuses on the domestic abuse between the Pyms, and as someone who really liked both Hank and Janet thanks to the animated series Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, it's so unfortunate that this series seems to portray Hank exclusively as an incompetent wife-beater and Janet as a battered spouse who still feels optimistic that they can make things work, and that this depiction seems to be the one that stuck in the public consciousness.  The whole issue is incredibly uncomfortable to read.

Beyond this point, the series introduces the Chitauri, shape-shifting aliens who seem to be the Ultimate Universe's stand-in for Skrulls, and sets them up as the main villain for the volume.  We don't get context for who or what they are until after Hawkeye and Black Widow massacre an office building that's filled with them when the Chitauri are disguised as humans, making our first impression of the two newest Avengers being that they're sociopaths who have no problem with killing unarmed civilians. (it's similar to a scene from the Matrix, though at least in the case of the Matrix, it was established beforehand that anyone could be turned into a superpowered Agent)

The art holds up well, with pages taking their time to show the scope of a fleet of helicarriers approaching a Chitauri base or zooming in and out like the panels were shots from a film camera.  I can see why this series helped to popularize the Ultimate line; it makes the whole thing feel like you're watching a blockbuster film.

Unlike the Skrulls, the Chitauri have to consume someone in order to shapeshift into them, with the main Chitauri (Kleiser) having eaten and transformed into a Nazi soldier during World War 2.  Kleiser had assisted the Nazis in order to take over the world and destroy it, seemingly to gain some kind of foothold over an old enemy of the Chitauri race. (it's unclear who that enemy is or why destroying the Earth would give the Chitauri an advantage)  The Ultimate universe seems weirdly obsessed with cannibalism, between this, the Hulk eating people, Magneto eating humans (seemingly viewing them the same as cattle), the Blob eating people, etc.

While the art's good, my main problem with the series is how the characters are handled.  My issue with Mark Millar's work on Civil War is that every major character was awful, and that only seems to be magnified here. The only reason why the Ultimates look heroic is because they're up against Nazi aliens out to destroy the world, and even the random army/SHIELD grunts come across as petty jerks, shoving children for no apparent reason.  When the Hulk appears at the end, what should be a dramatic exciting moment as Bruce Banner becomes the Hulk and saves the day turns absurd when Captain America claims that Kleiser had sex with Betty Ross in order to get the Hulk to attack Kleiser. (when that works, Captain America also claims that the alien spaceships called Hulk gay)

Even Betty Ross comes across as borderline psychopathic, falling madly in love with Bruce (when she previously didn't return his affection) after seeing footage of the Hulk eating Kleiser alive.  All in all, the art was nice, but if this is among the heights of the Ultimate universe, then I would hate to see the low points.  I gave it a chance and read through the first volume, but outside of Spider-Man, I think I'm going to ignore the Ultimate universe for the most part. (I might have to read some issues to prepare for Jonathan Hickman's Secret Wars, but that will be the extent of it)