Ultimates #12 (spoilers)

Cafe Society
1

I’ve never been a big Avengers fan, but I really liked the Ultimates when it started out. The whole “superhero team without a villain” thing was nice, and seeing as how it’s made up of the team that made The Authority one of my favorite books, I still like it.

When they started bringing in the Skrull, though, I started losing a bit of interest, but I gotta say, this latest issue was really cool. Pluses:

  1. I don’t know if the whole widespread destruction thing works well with the Marvel Universe (whichever one it is), but watching Thor go ape-shit was pretty damn cool!

  2. The way they just abuse Banner is still rather shocking to me. The Hulk really is a wild card here, and I’m interested to see how he plays out. It’s one thing to have a big strong guy on your side, but it’s another thing to have a big strong guy you want on your side when you treat him like utter shit and kick him while he’s down.

  3. Amidst all the battle, still managing to get a bit into the head of Stark and do some character development.

  4. Best line: from Cap. “Surrender??? You think this letter on my head stands for France?”

A few questions, though. Again, I never really paid attention to the Avengers, so I’m curious as to their support. I know they have their own little group of employees and whatnot, but do they have a any kind of military support like the Ultimates do? And why is Klieser so damn strong? I mean, ever other skrull we’ve been introduced so far can be taken out by a single shot to the chest, yet he’s survived being impalled by a jet (and if that impact wasn’t enough), being crushed, blown up, set on fire (something he recovered from in a matter of minutes), shot in the head point blank, and then nearly cut in half. Yet he’s still kicking. Is it because he’s a War Skrull, or just to make him more of an formidable opponent than the others?

Anyway, the artwork’s still nice, and I’m still enjoying the book. Now, if they could just be a bit more on schedule…

2

Best. Line. EVER. I busted a gut laughing and then for hours afterward whenever I thought of that single-panel page, I still chuckled.

3

I liked the issue, too. I figure they abuse Banner because if he turns into the Hulk, he’s going to be a uncontrollable psycho anyway- what have they got to lose? Second, remember that Banner is a MASS MURDERER… granted, he only actually killed people when he was the Hulk, but he turned himself into the Hulk in midtown Manhattan. He knew what would happen.
The Ultimates seem to have the whole of SHIELD as their backup, which makes alot of sense. Think delta force backing up superheros. Remember the Hulk fight- when Stark’s armor got damaged, a repair crew was there in minutes, and medics for Pym. The regular avengers, like most comics, don’t need backup. I like the Ultimates approach, actually. They’re basically a super SWAT team.
Klieser is some kind of super-skrull. Obviously he has powers far beyond the ordinary scrubs he commands, but don’t ask me why. It works in context. Since it’s hinted that he’s still alive, I’m looking forward to seeing the Hulk tear him apart next issue.