Gods and Monsters

WOW! The team of Millar and Hitch sure do know how to turn a comic book fan's head. Gods & Monsters definitely gives bang for your buck. Collecting the first 6 issues of Ultimates 2, this TDP is an example of stylized comic book grandeur at its very best. Bryan Hitch's dynamic art provides the perfect complement to Millar's grandiose type of storytelling. The synergy between the writer and the artist just makes the pages explode with BIG moments. The Ultimates suffer the highs and lows of being raised to celebrity status. Picking up a year after the events in the Ultimates, Bruce is still incarcerated by SHIELD, Cap and Jan are now an item (though cracks are starting to show), and Iron Man and Black Widow are engaged. Initially universally lauded for their past heroics fending off the rampaging Hulk and an alien invasion, the team has little time to wallow in champagne and caviar dreams before the other shoe drops: a traitor in their midst has leaked the inside info that the Hulk's alter ego is a federal employee in SHIELD, the powerhouse entity that runs the Ultimates. Now Bruce Banner must be tried for murdering over 800 people. Not to mention, Thor has quit the team and persists in his deploration of the Ultimates, who he claims is one hair away from denouncing their domestic status and instead becoming an international pre-emptive strike force. His paranoia and ever increasing "dementia" force the Ultimates to try to take him into custody. And that's a donnybrook you have to see! Meanwhile, Hank Pym has been ousted from the team and goes to seek his fortune elsewhere. He develops his Ant-Man identity, while continuing to tinker with his Ultron program (ouch!). He even finds time to join the lowly Defenders, where he discovers he's the only one with a legit super power. There's so much stuff that happens in here! You get to witness the nationally televised trial of the Hulk, as defended by Matt Murdock; the "origin" of Thor and the appearance of the crafty Loki; a cameo by Captain Britain (also Captains Spain, France, and Italy); the debut of "Cybernatrix" ("Iron Maiden"?); the cage match between the Ultimates and the "God of Thunder"; and the hilarious debut of the pathetic Defenders (though Valkyrie is a hottie, but the Black Knight is always late for meetings, being eternally stuck in traffic). And all the while, the group dynamics of the Ultimates are slowly crumbling away. Repercussions? Why, surely. I'd just very recently raved about Ex Machina, a comic book grounded in reality. Well, the Ultimates reside on the other spectrum, where over the top is not extravagant enough. Millar and Hitch take this comic book and raise it to such resplendent levels that it takes on overtones of a Viking opera. Which is a good thing. The folly, for the comic book writer and artist, lies in being somewhere in between the two extremes, where 90 percent of the complacent comic book world dwell. I highly, highly recommend Gods & Monster.

I'm not going to regurgitate what everyone else has said about this book.They are all right.You got Hitch,one of the most talented artists in the industry today who rightfully gives this story a cinematic feel with beautiful settings and spreads.Millar has outdone himself giving us some of his finest Marvel work to date.I wouldn't say he has reinvented these timeless characters,but they are all true to their original counterparts with a modern day realistic edge.The politics are evident in the story,but do not bog the story down. This volume deals with the Ultimates first deployment into foreign territory which causes serious reprecussions later in the story,the outing and "execution" of the Hulk,the takedown of Thor(similar to the arrest of Jesus),and the revelation of a traitor in the fold.The action scenes are powerful and striking while the rising tensions among the group are illustrated just as well. While being a great story on its own,this truly is only the beginning.The series is currently 4 issues into the storyline after this and all I have to say is WOW.I will not spoil it for you,but the current volume which will probably be entitled "Grand Theft America" is and will be a MUST READ.Stay tuned for it or go out to your local comic shop and buy it! Gods and Monsters,highly recommended along with Ultimates Vol.1.

This is Mark Millar's best work and one of the best marvel volumes ever. The plot was thick and branchy and never once was I lost in the intricate work. Brilliant piece of work. I usually stick with the graphic novels because I'm a reader not a collector and I may go out and grab the smaller trades to get my 'fix'.

The long awaited new tales of the Ultimates are finally here. The first volume, plagued by shipping delays which spaced issues months between each other, achieved excellence during it's second half. As this arc starts off (with the series being re-titled Ultimates 2), writer Mark Millar and artist Bryan Hitch weave a complicated new threat to the government funded super team, with consequences for all involved. Hank Pym is off the team and no longer Giant Man. He assumes a new identity as Ant-Man, and continues to make progress on his Ultron creation (longtime Avengers readers know where this is headed), and later has a tenure on the ill-fated Defenders team. In the meantime, the Ultimates themselves are enjoying their lives as super hero celebrities: Captain America and the Wasp have been dating, Nick Fury makes further advancements in the ranks, and Tony "Iron Man" Stark and the Black Widow are engaged. All this however comes crashing down when it is revealed to the public that Bruce Banner is the Hulk, leading to a short trial of Banner with grave consequences. The leaking information leads to the mysterious Thor, whose origin is revealed, with more questions than answers. By the end of Gods & Monsters, it is apparent that there is a traitor in the ranks, and by the time you reach the last page, you'll be salivating for more. Millar's writing is top notch, pulling out surprise after surprise and plenty of shocks, while Hitch's art continues to impress. All in all, this TPB marks a new chapter for the Ultimates, and it's clear tbat this is one that won't end well for anyone.

Ultimates 2 vol. 1: Gods and Monsters does something I didn't think was possible, it is better than either of the previous Ultimates volumes. Truly epic in scope, the second Ultimates series picks up one year after the previous tome. Banner is still a prisoner of Shield, Pym is on the outs with the team, though he's now Ant-Man, Iron Man and Black Widow are in love, and Thor has left. Though Wasp and Captain America are still together, not all is perfect with their relationship. Nor is this the end of the Ultimates troubles. Loki provides a foil that even the Ultimates can't destroy, and their own group dynamics threaten to drive the team apart. The characterization and fight scenes are easily some of the best in comics, bar none. To see Thor take on the entire Ultimates is worth the price of admission alone. There's also plenty of glimpses of things to come, such as Vision making a brief appearance. Also, the trial of Banner for crimes as the Hulk provides readers with something rare in comics, consequences. Reprinting Ultimates 2 #1-6, I can't describe to you just how good this volume is, only that I would place it in the same elite grouping as Watchmen, Preacher, and Miracle Man. It has my highest possible recommendations and can easily be read by fans or newcomers. Due to plenty of mature themes, it would probably be best for an audience 14 and older. Why are you still reading this review? Treat yourself and start reading Ultimates!