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Ultimate Comics: X-Men (Collected Editions)
Ultimate Comics: X-Men, Vol. 1
The biggest mutant cover-up has gone public as the true history of the X-Gene is revealed. the United States government has been outed as the X-Gene's creator and mutants have been branded terrorists. as an identity crisis rocks the mutant world, the mistrust between man and x-man gets deeper ... and it is in this insanity that the X-Men emerge. Who are the X-Men? and how will they fare in a world where they are criminals? Will these outlaw mutants be willing to defend mankind, when all of humanity cries out for their imprisonment?
Collecting: Ultimate Comics: X-Men 1-6
Collecting: Ultimate Comics: X-Men 1-6
144 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2012
9 people are currently reading
308 people want to read
About the author
Nick Spencer
1,000 books345 followersLibrarian Note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Nick Spencer is a comic book writer known for his creator-owned titles at Image Comics (Existence 2.0/3.0, Forgetless, Shuddertown, Morning Glories), his work at DC Comics (Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), and for his current work at Marvel Comics (Iron Man 2.0, Ultimate Comics: X-Men).
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Nick Spencer is a comic book writer known for his creator-owned titles at Image Comics (Existence 2.0/3.0, Forgetless, Shuddertown, Morning Glories), his work at DC Comics (Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), and for his current work at Marvel Comics (Iron Man 2.0, Ultimate Comics: X-Men).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
September 26, 2022
Mutants have it harder than ever with their true history revealed, and post the carnage of Ultimatum, what they didn't need was an Executive Order branding them all as terrorists! Yet a small Kitty led X-Men team emerges to continue the fight! In addition the vast majority of living mutants are captive and in some cases being tortured! The Purifier antagonist capitalising on world disarray to strike is just the start of even darker days. Interesting series reboot, a Four Star, 8 out of 12.
2022 read; 2017 read; 2013 read
2022 read; 2017 read; 2013 read
October 25, 2014
3.5 stars
I've read part of this storyline somewhere, but I can't put my finger on it...
Maybe just a continuation of this particular story?
Whatever. I liked it.
After Magneto goes nuts and destroys New York, what's left of the X-men are in hiding. Or in Camps.
Not the fun kind of camps, with sing-a-longs and spooky stories around the fire...
Kitty Pryde is telling the story of how she went from Miss Don't Wanna Get Involved to Big Time Mutant Terrorist.
And along with that, you get a look at how the United States government is trying to do damage control, after they're 'outed' for being the idiots who created the mutant problem.
With this taking place in the Ultimate universe, it won't be for everyone, but I enjoyed it.
I've read part of this storyline somewhere, but I can't put my finger on it...
Maybe just a continuation of this particular story?
Whatever. I liked it.
After Magneto goes nuts and destroys New York, what's left of the X-men are in hiding. Or in Camps.
Not the fun kind of camps, with sing-a-longs and spooky stories around the fire...
Kitty Pryde is telling the story of how she went from Miss Don't Wanna Get Involved to Big Time Mutant Terrorist.
And along with that, you get a look at how the United States government is trying to do damage control, after they're 'outed' for being the idiots who created the mutant problem.
With this taking place in the Ultimate universe, it won't be for everyone, but I enjoyed it.
August 21, 2016
The first issue, or at least the first half of the first issue, are spectacular. The first scene has an intense emotional impact, and it's the perfect way to hammer home just how dire the situation is for mutants now. And the last scene is great, too, entirely unexpected. Interested to see where that's going. In between, it's ok, but nothing special. Too much like too many other stories I've read.
July 26, 2017
The world hates all mutants now that Magneto went along and fucked up the world. Oh you didn't read Ultimatium? Well that's good. IT WAS HORRIBLE. Basically Mag goes nuts and sends a tidal wave to take out New York. In the process he kills a ton of heroes and then other villains eat other heroes (yes, the blob eats the wasp...no I'm not joking) and just a ton of dumb shit happened.
So can we recover? Kind of. I never read these even though I read all of Ultimate X-Men back in the day. I figured I'd give it a try when saw it on my Library Shelf. Kitty, Iceman, and Mr. Flame on (Human Torch) are in hiding. On top of that we show Wolverine's Son (jimmy I believe) who makes a small cameo at the start and then comes back for about 2 minutes later. He's kind of useless and the cover is a big lie but whatevas. Either way we begin to form a new X-Men team, though underground, against Snyder who is a crazy God Loving man trying to destroy all mutants. While that's happening the government is working with Pedro and yeah, just a ton of shit happening at once.
What I liked: The start was great. Really shows how much fear people have that they'd kill their own child. Sick but easy to see in this disturbed world. I also enjoyed Kitty basically running shit. She's actually my favorite X-Men of the ultimate universe. Also Iceman and Human Torch play good off each other. Their dialog is fun and easy to go with and a few laughs to be had. The art is solid and easy to follow through.
What I didn't like: Stryker was kind of meh as a villain. THe fact they trusted quick silver is fucking DUMB. Also Jimmy is pretty much useless. The pacing alters from fast paced to slow as snails at times too.
Overall not a bad start. I think I'll continue. It reminds me mostly of most of Ultimate X-men. Fun but silly and dumb. Maybe it'll get better? Let's find out!
So can we recover? Kind of. I never read these even though I read all of Ultimate X-Men back in the day. I figured I'd give it a try when saw it on my Library Shelf. Kitty, Iceman, and Mr. Flame on (Human Torch) are in hiding. On top of that we show Wolverine's Son (jimmy I believe) who makes a small cameo at the start and then comes back for about 2 minutes later. He's kind of useless and the cover is a big lie but whatevas. Either way we begin to form a new X-Men team, though underground, against Snyder who is a crazy God Loving man trying to destroy all mutants. While that's happening the government is working with Pedro and yeah, just a ton of shit happening at once.
What I liked: The start was great. Really shows how much fear people have that they'd kill their own child. Sick but easy to see in this disturbed world. I also enjoyed Kitty basically running shit. She's actually my favorite X-Men of the ultimate universe. Also Iceman and Human Torch play good off each other. Their dialog is fun and easy to go with and a few laughs to be had. The art is solid and easy to follow through.
What I didn't like: Stryker was kind of meh as a villain. THe fact they trusted quick silver is fucking DUMB. Also Jimmy is pretty much useless. The pacing alters from fast paced to slow as snails at times too.
Overall not a bad start. I think I'll continue. It reminds me mostly of most of Ultimate X-men. Fun but silly and dumb. Maybe it'll get better? Let's find out!
June 23, 2024
A firm 3.5 from me.
Infinitely better than the previous Ultimate universe X-Men books, this story does a great job getting the reader drawn in immediately with a harrowing scene of a father putting down his newly mutant daughter. A grim beginning with severe implications for the mutants.
Kitty Pride has never been one of my favourite characters but this version of her is deeply compelling, troubled obviously by the events of Ultimatum (dogshit) and the death of Peter Parker (peak) her character feels dynamic as she's dragged into the conflict with Stryker.
Speaking of Stryker, I praise the original version as seen in "God Loves, Man Kills" and this incarnation though different, is just as interesting to me. The idea of merging him with Bastion makes this Stryker as dangerous physically as he is psychologically.
The humor works well enough, the dialogue between Iceman & Torch is a fun point and their chemistry from Ultimate Spider-Man is maintained well.
A solid book overall, eager to see where it leads.
Infinitely better than the previous Ultimate universe X-Men books, this story does a great job getting the reader drawn in immediately with a harrowing scene of a father putting down his newly mutant daughter. A grim beginning with severe implications for the mutants.
Kitty Pride has never been one of my favourite characters but this version of her is deeply compelling, troubled obviously by the events of Ultimatum (dogshit) and the death of Peter Parker (peak) her character feels dynamic as she's dragged into the conflict with Stryker.
Speaking of Stryker, I praise the original version as seen in "God Loves, Man Kills" and this incarnation though different, is just as interesting to me. The idea of merging him with Bastion makes this Stryker as dangerous physically as he is psychologically.
The humor works well enough, the dialogue between Iceman & Torch is a fun point and their chemistry from Ultimate Spider-Man is maintained well.
A solid book overall, eager to see where it leads.
June 16, 2013
This starts out OK - feeling original - but then quickly devolves to a tedious conflagration of retread repeat stories from old X-Men books, plus kinda boring and repetitive exposition.
The religious sermons and proselytising are nothing new - we've heard it all before (multiple times) and it doesn't even move the plot or understanding of the characters forward - feels like pure page filler, or maybe an exercise by the writer in channeling a preacher. I guess every writer has to do it once, get it out of their system. Wish it didn't have to drag down this X book tho - boring and distracting from a storyline that doesn't need it, and which makes this feel like just another iteration of the same old stories that Marvel has done plenty before.
You know what would make this a fresh take? What if the religious whacko actually *did* show some divine powers (or at least make you wonder)?
At least once we get to the big reveals, we get to see some interesting plot points unfold. I'm happy enough to get a chance for a few surprises.
The religious sermons and proselytising are nothing new - we've heard it all before (multiple times) and it doesn't even move the plot or understanding of the characters forward - feels like pure page filler, or maybe an exercise by the writer in channeling a preacher. I guess every writer has to do it once, get it out of their system. Wish it didn't have to drag down this X book tho - boring and distracting from a storyline that doesn't need it, and which makes this feel like just another iteration of the same old stories that Marvel has done plenty before.
You know what would make this a fresh take? What if the religious whacko actually *did* show some divine powers (or at least make you wonder)?
At least once we get to the big reveals, we get to see some interesting plot points unfold. I'm happy enough to get a chance for a few surprises.
September 13, 2016
In the aftermath of Magneto's Ultimatum Event, this is a gut-punch of betrayal and devious plans... I have read two chapters into volume 2, and the lies and deceit continue for a while, ripping up the mutant world in Marvel's Ultimate universe.
August 11, 2023
So, this is the best that Ultimate X-men has ever been.
Reverend Stryker is killing mutants dressed in the armour of a sentinel. The president is meeting with Pietro, who promises to get him cerebro so he can fill his mutant concentration camps. And Kitty, she just wants to be left alone. She, Bobby, and Johnny (who has declared himself basically a mutant, much to the others' annoyance) are hiding in the murlock tunnels, refusing to get involved. She says it's what Peter would want. It clearly is not.
Soon, they're joined by Rogue, who claims to bear messages from God, and Jimmy, who doesn't like their newfound neutrality.
They're all traumatized. The X-men are dead. The brotherhood are dead. They're the only ones left, and now they learn that they're not even tomorrow people. They're just an experiment gone wrong.
They can no longer believe they're the future. They have to learn instead how to be people, which is very difficult.
This one doesn't resolve much, although there are some really fun twists, most of which I didn't figure out ahead of time, and the setup is really exciting. I just wish Spensor had stayed in this book longer. It's sad knowing I'm already halfway through his run.
Reverend Stryker is killing mutants dressed in the armour of a sentinel. The president is meeting with Pietro, who promises to get him cerebro so he can fill his mutant concentration camps. And Kitty, she just wants to be left alone. She, Bobby, and Johnny (who has declared himself basically a mutant, much to the others' annoyance) are hiding in the murlock tunnels, refusing to get involved. She says it's what Peter would want. It clearly is not.
Soon, they're joined by Rogue, who claims to bear messages from God, and Jimmy, who doesn't like their newfound neutrality.
They're all traumatized. The X-men are dead. The brotherhood are dead. They're the only ones left, and now they learn that they're not even tomorrow people. They're just an experiment gone wrong.
They can no longer believe they're the future. They have to learn instead how to be people, which is very difficult.
This one doesn't resolve much, although there are some really fun twists, most of which I didn't figure out ahead of time, and the setup is really exciting. I just wish Spensor had stayed in this book longer. It's sad knowing I'm already halfway through his run.
March 28, 2021
The beginning was amazing, then there was a little slump I find, then it became intriguing again with Rogue being or not being a double agent. The ending though!!!!
September 29, 2013
OK so I'm coming in late to the party here...I think this is part of the second wave of Ultimate Comics titles.
Magneto made some massive attack on NYC, causing flooding and killing millions...this led to mutants being put into concentration camps and shoot to kill orders.
This team consists of: Kitty Pryde (known as Shroud here, not Shadowcat), Bobby Drake (still Iceman), Johnny Storm (Human Torch - the FF are no longer, and even though he's not quite a mutant, he somehow fits here), and Jimmy Hudson, the son of Wolverine. Rogue also shows up, and there's some appearances by other characters (Quicksilver, Colossus, Karen Grant Jean Grey, Storm, Nick Fury).
This is fun having them back as underground characters, and I like the team up of Fire/Ice, they have a great chemistry here. Jimmy Hudson is a chip off the old block, and that's the best possible thing here. Rogue is her mysterious good/bad/who knows self, except now she's hearing things from "God" who tells her what to do to save the world.
The book gets bogged down in the sermonizing of main bad guy (William Stryker Jr. - who's a sort of human/Sentinel hybrid preaching religious zealot wanting to eradicate mutants) and the usual crap that's been done lots before.
However, there is potential here, and the last page, and the reveal of who Rogue has been talking to as "God" makes me smile and gives that 'Geek out' moment where the possibilities for storylines just open right up. LOVE it. I think last page cliffhangers are great to get you on an upswing heading into the next book/volume.
Worth a read, though I suppose knowing the earlier history of Ultimate X-Men/Ultimate X, etc. would be good.
Magneto made some massive attack on NYC, causing flooding and killing millions...this led to mutants being put into concentration camps and shoot to kill orders.
This team consists of: Kitty Pryde (known as Shroud here, not Shadowcat), Bobby Drake (still Iceman), Johnny Storm (Human Torch - the FF are no longer, and even though he's not quite a mutant, he somehow fits here), and Jimmy Hudson, the son of Wolverine. Rogue also shows up, and there's some appearances by other characters (Quicksilver, Colossus, Karen Grant Jean Grey, Storm, Nick Fury).
This is fun having them back as underground characters, and I like the team up of Fire/Ice, they have a great chemistry here. Jimmy Hudson is a chip off the old block, and that's the best possible thing here. Rogue is her mysterious good/bad/who knows self, except now she's hearing things from "God" who tells her what to do to save the world.
The book gets bogged down in the sermonizing of main bad guy (William Stryker Jr. - who's a sort of human/Sentinel hybrid preaching religious zealot wanting to eradicate mutants) and the usual crap that's been done lots before.
However, there is potential here, and the last page, and the reveal of who Rogue has been talking to as "God" makes me smile and gives that 'Geek out' moment where the possibilities for storylines just open right up. LOVE it. I think last page cliffhangers are great to get you on an upswing heading into the next book/volume.
Worth a read, though I suppose knowing the earlier history of Ultimate X-Men/Ultimate X, etc. would be good.
February 6, 2013
The premise for this new series of X-Men is terrific, almost making Days of Future Past into a modern storyline. The first couple of issues of setup are particularly strong. When Stryker enters the pictures, things get a little slow, as he’s not the most interesting character and was done better in the main universe, but this is still a very enjoyable volume.
November 9, 2025
If you've ever read through the series Fables, Vol. 1: Legends in Exile, you might remember that the story is mostly solid right up until the halfway point and then it dips in quality for quite a while before it gets back into its rhythm. This is because Bill Willingham had only planned on writing 75 issues, and had wrapped up all the major plot points and was essentially starting over at issue #76. And his new ideas? Not as original or as well-outlined as the first 75 issues.
That's pretty much what's going on here. It seems like the group of writers working on the Ultimate Universe had a relatively well thought out road up to and including Ultimatum. It wasn't great but it made use of a series of plot points in the various FF, Ultimates, Spider-Man, and X-Men stories to reach a certain major plot point. And then the ideas ran out.
Brian Michael Bendis's continuation of the Spider-Man stories are okay, and really ramp up when he introduces Miles Morales. But the various Avengers, Ultimates, X-Men, and the FF-focused Doonsday storylines just don't seem to have the heart of the original Ultimate titles.
The X-Men rehashes the rehashes of the rehashes of the Days Of Future Past storylines with mutants being put in internment camps. And while the additional storybeat that mutants were actually created by the government and not evolution is theoretically interesting, Spencer just doesn't use it to make any interesting statements.
The villain of the story Stryker Jr/Nimrod is every single anti-mutant human character from the non-Ultimate universe franchise. There is nothing special about him, and he's never really the threat that he story needs. He's pretty much a watered down version of the 616 Universe's Bastion who doesn't even really get to use his powers before he's removed from the playing field.
Also, with all the characters who survived Ultimatum, and all of the X-Men from Universe 616 that Spencer could have used to make the story interesting, he decides to, instead, focus on Kitty Pryde, Iceman, The Human Torch, and Rogue. Honestly, he doesn't do anything interesting with them either. Making Kitty Pryde a character called Shroud seemed like it was going to go somewhere interesting but it's just Kitty Pryde in a different outfit peacocking but not really doing anything cool.
All in all, this is kind of a wasted relaunch of the series. I don't think it appeals to many X-fans or even Ultimate X-fans.
That's pretty much what's going on here. It seems like the group of writers working on the Ultimate Universe had a relatively well thought out road up to and including Ultimatum. It wasn't great but it made use of a series of plot points in the various FF, Ultimates, Spider-Man, and X-Men stories to reach a certain major plot point. And then the ideas ran out.
Brian Michael Bendis's continuation of the Spider-Man stories are okay, and really ramp up when he introduces Miles Morales. But the various Avengers, Ultimates, X-Men, and the FF-focused Doonsday storylines just don't seem to have the heart of the original Ultimate titles.
The X-Men rehashes the rehashes of the rehashes of the Days Of Future Past storylines with mutants being put in internment camps. And while the additional storybeat that mutants were actually created by the government and not evolution is theoretically interesting, Spencer just doesn't use it to make any interesting statements.
The villain of the story Stryker Jr/Nimrod is every single anti-mutant human character from the non-Ultimate universe franchise. There is nothing special about him, and he's never really the threat that he story needs. He's pretty much a watered down version of the 616 Universe's Bastion who doesn't even really get to use his powers before he's removed from the playing field.
Also, with all the characters who survived Ultimatum, and all of the X-Men from Universe 616 that Spencer could have used to make the story interesting, he decides to, instead, focus on Kitty Pryde, Iceman, The Human Torch, and Rogue. Honestly, he doesn't do anything interesting with them either. Making Kitty Pryde a character called Shroud seemed like it was going to go somewhere interesting but it's just Kitty Pryde in a different outfit peacocking but not really doing anything cool.
All in all, this is kind of a wasted relaunch of the series. I don't think it appeals to many X-fans or even Ultimate X-fans.
June 23, 2020
The X-Men have disbanded. Mutants are rounded up and put into camps. Militias are following Stryker’s lead, executing ‘illegals’ on sight. The relationship between human and mutant have never been so frayed. With civilization on the brink of collapse, the new mutants are on the run.
Better to die fighting for your freedom than to live the rest of your life as a slave. Essentially the mantra of the new team now comprised of Kitty Pride, Bobby Drake (Iceman) Jonny Storm (Human Torch), Rogue, and Wolverine’s son, Jimmy Hudson. Storm and Colossus are imprisoned in an experimental camp. The only other surviving member, Jean Grey, has disguised herself among the masses as Karen Grant, gathering a few other derelicts to take refuge in the proto-state, Tian, before succumbing to despotism. In the new mutants quest to take down Stryker, and to liberate the south west from the robotic grasp of Master Mold, Kitty Pryde’s X-Men, without Jonny, leave Morlock’s tunnel and become freedom fighters.
The once squeamish, naive young girl takes center stage, growing to be a powerful, independent, and strong-willed leader who’s not afraid of making the hard decision that includes killing Stryker, destroying Tian, and standing up to the military forces who want to repossess their sovereign land.
With the mental resiliency of Xavier and strength of Magneto, “vindication of purpose and integrity,” Pryde becomes the worthy successor to Cyclops. Her awareness leads to mutant revolution, her leadership leads to mutant liberation, and her hope leads to a better life for mutants. Signs of characters that can extract right from the righteousness and distinguish strength from power. As nothing is more symbolic than the sanctuary the mutants literally built from nothing but dirt; desiccated plaines terraforming into a promise land from the propagation of sentient plant life. And instead of abusing the gift for her own gain, or seeking the destruction of mankind, she shares her gift to the world.
The new X-Men is Kitty Pryde’s X-Men. A true character story.
Better to die fighting for your freedom than to live the rest of your life as a slave. Essentially the mantra of the new team now comprised of Kitty Pride, Bobby Drake (Iceman) Jonny Storm (Human Torch), Rogue, and Wolverine’s son, Jimmy Hudson. Storm and Colossus are imprisoned in an experimental camp. The only other surviving member, Jean Grey, has disguised herself among the masses as Karen Grant, gathering a few other derelicts to take refuge in the proto-state, Tian, before succumbing to despotism. In the new mutants quest to take down Stryker, and to liberate the south west from the robotic grasp of Master Mold, Kitty Pryde’s X-Men, without Jonny, leave Morlock’s tunnel and become freedom fighters.
The once squeamish, naive young girl takes center stage, growing to be a powerful, independent, and strong-willed leader who’s not afraid of making the hard decision that includes killing Stryker, destroying Tian, and standing up to the military forces who want to repossess their sovereign land.
With the mental resiliency of Xavier and strength of Magneto, “vindication of purpose and integrity,” Pryde becomes the worthy successor to Cyclops. Her awareness leads to mutant revolution, her leadership leads to mutant liberation, and her hope leads to a better life for mutants. Signs of characters that can extract right from the righteousness and distinguish strength from power. As nothing is more symbolic than the sanctuary the mutants literally built from nothing but dirt; desiccated plaines terraforming into a promise land from the propagation of sentient plant life. And instead of abusing the gift for her own gain, or seeking the destruction of mankind, she shares her gift to the world.
The new X-Men is Kitty Pryde’s X-Men. A true character story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2021
The first book of the relaunched Ultimate X-Men, set in the aftermath of 'Ultimatum'.
Mutants have been declared illegal and those that aren't in internment camps are on the run. As the US Government tries to deal with the public discovering it was instrumental in creating the X-gene, William Stryker Jr. unleashes a religious crusade against mutants.
One of the many things that always annoyed me about the Ultimate Universe was that mutants turned out to be created due to an escaped biological contagion. This meant that the X-Men, who have always been an allegory for race relations in America, were effectively the products of a disease. I don't think it's what the Ultimate writers intended but it was the result of some pretty short-sighted thinking on their part.
Here, finally, we get a book that actually addresses this narrative and gives it the weight and examination such a revelation deserves. We get to see what it means to mutants to find out that they are not the next stage of evolution but are the result of an experiment gone awry. I particularly enjoyed Johnny Storm's reaction that him getting his powers as the result of science gone wrong means that he's the same as his mutant friends thanks to this revelation. It was a nice counterpoint to the darker and more disturbing connotations of the revelation.
Aside from the exploration of mutants-as-plague theme, there's not a great deal to write home about here. Stryker's a perfectly serviceable villain for the story but he's nothing that any long-term X-fan won't have seen before.
We also have to deal with our heroes, particularly Kitty and Rogue, acting so stupidly that, whilst in character for the context, they end up being great frustrations to the reader.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.com *
Mutants have been declared illegal and those that aren't in internment camps are on the run. As the US Government tries to deal with the public discovering it was instrumental in creating the X-gene, William Stryker Jr. unleashes a religious crusade against mutants.
One of the many things that always annoyed me about the Ultimate Universe was that mutants turned out to be created due to an escaped biological contagion. This meant that the X-Men, who have always been an allegory for race relations in America, were effectively the products of a disease. I don't think it's what the Ultimate writers intended but it was the result of some pretty short-sighted thinking on their part.
Here, finally, we get a book that actually addresses this narrative and gives it the weight and examination such a revelation deserves. We get to see what it means to mutants to find out that they are not the next stage of evolution but are the result of an experiment gone awry. I particularly enjoyed Johnny Storm's reaction that him getting his powers as the result of science gone wrong means that he's the same as his mutant friends thanks to this revelation. It was a nice counterpoint to the darker and more disturbing connotations of the revelation.
Aside from the exploration of mutants-as-plague theme, there's not a great deal to write home about here. Stryker's a perfectly serviceable villain for the story but he's nothing that any long-term X-fan won't have seen before.
We also have to deal with our heroes, particularly Kitty and Rogue, acting so stupidly that, whilst in character for the context, they end up being great frustrations to the reader.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.com *
December 28, 2018
This was a real disappointment for me, as the Ultimate is my favourite X-men Universe.
The Positives:
- The art was consistently beautiful
- The Ultimate versions of beloved characters were here (Ex-es Bobby Drake and Rogue, Kitty Pryde, etc.)
The Negatives:
- The main villain is just a religious fanatic...
- A whole pointless plotline with Quicksilver and the USA president, which only serves to provide loong boring exposition paragraphs. It takes too much time and there is literally no payoff.
- The X-men don't really do much - they just sit down and state how everything is lost, and there's no point to do anything at all ??
- the PAGES of Striker's religious preaching made me want to kill myself.
- The unbelievably easy shift of the X-men community going from science based to believing religious solutions so strongly? I can't imagine people would jump ships so fast?
Overall, there are much better X-men Arcs out there. Don't waste your time.
The Positives:
- The art was consistently beautiful
- The Ultimate versions of beloved characters were here (Ex-es Bobby Drake and Rogue, Kitty Pryde, etc.)
The Negatives:
- The main villain is just a religious fanatic...
- A whole pointless plotline with Quicksilver and the USA president, which only serves to provide loong boring exposition paragraphs. It takes too much time and there is literally no payoff.
- The X-men don't really do much - they just sit down and state how everything is lost, and there's no point to do anything at all ??
- the PAGES of Striker's religious preaching made me want to kill myself.
- The unbelievably easy shift of the X-men community going from science based to believing religious solutions so strongly? I can't imagine people would jump ships so fast?
Overall, there are much better X-men Arcs out there. Don't waste your time.
April 23, 2019
This "New" Ultimate X-Men isn't really new, but more like a continuation of Ultimate Spider-Man. There's nothing wrong with that as it was a great book but its not exactly what one thinks of when they think X-Men. Spencer does a fantastic job with these young heroes, especially Bobby and Johnny. The plot was great. It is something that has been done many times before but this Ultimate twist was nice. Loved Val Cooper here. The art, almost entirely by Paco Medina, was beautiful. Overall, a slight curveball on what's expected and that's a good thing.
July 26, 2024
Hopefully on a better trajectory than the first Ultimate X-Men run. It's an interesting story setup, and I am a big fan of Kitty so I like that she gets to be the star. But the Quicksilver scenes are useless and predictable, and the mutant girls right now have thousands of times more characterization than the boys, other than on the issue of Peter's death. Good art is a nice bonus.
March 26, 2019
3.5 stars
May 3, 2019
The X-men tries to survive even through they are hunted down. Stryker makes his move to kill all
May 12, 2019
Disjointed if you hadn’t read the previous run but by the end a firm ground has been established with a core if Kitty and Rogue with the boys.
June 14, 2021
3.5/5
May 26, 2022
These covers are bad. Thankfully the story isn't. I'm enjoying how Kitty's motivations are being explored. Excited to see where this goes!
April 30, 2024
3.5. I'm liking these books more than all the ones before Ultimatum.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2025
3.5/5
March 13, 2014
OK, so this isn't what it pretends to be. I picked this up assuming it was the first volume of X-Men in the Ultimate Universe and Wolverine would be a major character in it. I was wrong on both counts.
It may be volume 1 but this follows on from previous X-Men stories in the Ultimate universe and from what I could gather they ended with Magneto launching a massive attack on New York. In fact most of the first half of this collection repeatedly reminds of this, without really pushing on the storyline much. We get a major revelation that the X-gene mutation was created by the US government and that is a good revelation, but for some reason it gets put into the background really quickly.
The villain of the piece is part-Sentinel William Stryker who endlessly preaches about mutants and how much he disapproves of them. Seriously, most of the collection consists of his preaching until a team of X-Men sort him out.
And now we're onto that team of X-Men, oh dear. We have Iceman and a conflicted Rogue which is fine but then we have Kitty Pryde as the Shroud (just no),Wolverine's uninteresting son and inexplicably Fantastic Four's Human Torch. The Human Torch was clearly shoved in because fire goes well with ice but him working alongside the X-Men is ridiculous. Also I have to question why on Earth Wolverine is on the cover when he is barely even mentioned in the whole story.
I think I've mentioned everything that annoyed me in this book. The only bits I really liked here was the last couple of pages and the wonderful appearance of Quicksilver, Magneto's son. Here he is a character whose motives are utterly unclear and I like that a lot.
An OK volume for people that have read all the previous Ultimate X-Men stories but an atrocious jumping on point and advertised very misleadingingly.
It may be volume 1 but this follows on from previous X-Men stories in the Ultimate universe and from what I could gather they ended with Magneto launching a massive attack on New York. In fact most of the first half of this collection repeatedly reminds of this, without really pushing on the storyline much. We get a major revelation that the X-gene mutation was created by the US government and that is a good revelation, but for some reason it gets put into the background really quickly.
The villain of the piece is part-Sentinel William Stryker who endlessly preaches about mutants and how much he disapproves of them. Seriously, most of the collection consists of his preaching until a team of X-Men sort him out.
And now we're onto that team of X-Men, oh dear. We have Iceman and a conflicted Rogue which is fine but then we have Kitty Pryde as the Shroud (just no),Wolverine's uninteresting son and inexplicably Fantastic Four's Human Torch. The Human Torch was clearly shoved in because fire goes well with ice but him working alongside the X-Men is ridiculous. Also I have to question why on Earth Wolverine is on the cover when he is barely even mentioned in the whole story.
I think I've mentioned everything that annoyed me in this book. The only bits I really liked here was the last couple of pages and the wonderful appearance of Quicksilver, Magneto's son. Here he is a character whose motives are utterly unclear and I like that a lot.
An OK volume for people that have read all the previous Ultimate X-Men stories but an atrocious jumping on point and advertised very misleadingingly.
November 24, 2016
Marvel's Ultimate Universe is being given another makeover, which means that after a long wait we finally get a new Ultimate X-Men series. This time around Nick Spencer and Paco Medina are the creative team, and they're dealing with a diminished X-Men lineup in the wake of the epic (and epically awful) Ultimatum events.
In this story, the US government is revealed to be the real source of all mutants, but reaction to mutants is worse than ever. Mutants are being interred and executed by Sentinel-like Nimrod robots, and the X-Men - what's left of them - have gone underground. The one thing that can bring them out of hiding is the threat posed by the fanatical son of William Stryker.
I wasn't familiar with Spencer's work prior to this volume, but I was impressed by this storyline. Sure, it's essentially a mashup of the X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills stories, but it's handled well and has that Ultimate X-Men style. It's weird seeing an X-Men team made up of Kitty Pryde (in some weird new persona), Iceman, the Human Torch and apparently Wolverine's son (I must have missed something), but I can roll with it. Oh, and Rogue...sort of. There are also neat sub-plots involving Quicksilver as government stooge and what appears to be Apocalypse, which should prove interesting in future issues.
I hadn't previously seen Paco Medina's work either, but he provides some very solid artwork here. It's not quite at the Andy/Adam Kubert or David Finch level, but does bear some similarity to Cary Nord's work.
Overall, Spencer and Medina turn in a very satisfying X-Men story that lays the groundwork for more adventures. In the end, I'm just glad to have the Ultimate X-Men back. It's the only X-title I still follow.
In this story, the US government is revealed to be the real source of all mutants, but reaction to mutants is worse than ever. Mutants are being interred and executed by Sentinel-like Nimrod robots, and the X-Men - what's left of them - have gone underground. The one thing that can bring them out of hiding is the threat posed by the fanatical son of William Stryker.
I wasn't familiar with Spencer's work prior to this volume, but I was impressed by this storyline. Sure, it's essentially a mashup of the X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills stories, but it's handled well and has that Ultimate X-Men style. It's weird seeing an X-Men team made up of Kitty Pryde (in some weird new persona), Iceman, the Human Torch and apparently Wolverine's son (I must have missed something), but I can roll with it. Oh, and Rogue...sort of. There are also neat sub-plots involving Quicksilver as government stooge and what appears to be Apocalypse, which should prove interesting in future issues.
I hadn't previously seen Paco Medina's work either, but he provides some very solid artwork here. It's not quite at the Andy/Adam Kubert or David Finch level, but does bear some similarity to Cary Nord's work.
Overall, Spencer and Medina turn in a very satisfying X-Men story that lays the groundwork for more adventures. In the end, I'm just glad to have the Ultimate X-Men back. It's the only X-title I still follow.
October 25, 2012
Meanwhile the reboot of Ultimate Comics X-Men was a bit more up my alley which is strange because this series is relying quite heavily on the “world that hates and fears them” angle that X-titles have been using since the sixties. Nick Spencer (whose work on Morning Glories is awesome) has taken a neat twist on the nature of mutants, that the U.S. Government created the X-Gene, and totally run with it. Spencer follows the revelation and its repercussions on the lives of mutants throughout the book and it really does a wonderful on exploring the nature of identity and perception. Paco Medina’s art definitely works well here and his huge splash pages detailing the situations mutants now find themselves in are particularly fantastic in capturing the tone of the story. Ultimate Comics X-Men also tosses Johnny Storm into the mix who, despite lacking an X-gene, constantly refers to himself as a mutant (much to the annoyance of many characters). The Johnny Storm/Bobby Drake pairing is a natural one and given Reed Richards’ history in the Ultimate ‘verse it’s nice to see the Human Torch getting some play elsewhere. I’m already an avowed Nick Spencer fan so I’ll definitely be on board with while he as the helm.
September 23, 2014
I'm not an Ultimate U veteran. I've read the occasional issue and a handful of Ultimate Spider-Man, but I didn't really keep up with the universe and have never read Ultimate X-Men. Spencer's run appears to be a sort of reboot of the series, but it's important to acknowledge that it really isn't. Events pick up right after Ultimatum, and anyone not familiar with the Ultimate U will likely be lost, and possibly frustrated. Jean Grey changed her name? The Human Torch is an X-Man AND black haired? Wolverine had a son? There's lots to catch up on, and it's up to you how much you care to invest. For me though, Spencer's dialogue and characters are fresh, and it was great to see Kitty in a starring role. The smaller team, and significant change in dynamics was refreshing, keeping the relatively center of the road story engaging enough to finish. The religious motifs of some of Claremont's most memorable work is intact here as well, channeling some really great stories through a modern lens. Paco Medina's art is also stylish and expressive, making every page buttery and easy to digest.
I don't know how this compares or holds up as a continuation of Ultimate X-men, but it's a lot better than some of the more obnoxious X-dreck we've seen over the last decade.
I don't know how this compares or holds up as a continuation of Ultimate X-men, but it's a lot better than some of the more obnoxious X-dreck we've seen over the last decade.
December 10, 2012
I wasn't sure what to expect from this. the Ultimate stuff since Ultimatum has been pretty hit or miss. this was definitely more of a hit, and it seems that the stuff after the Death of Spider-man event has that old Ultimate line feel. Good, with awesome dialog and engaging stories, set in a more realistic Marvel world.
The character dynamics of the remaining X-men (plus Johnny Storm) work out really well. I like that they are all teenagers and have that youthful want to go fix things. This is all held back by the wise beyond her age Kitty Pride. Like I said, the group dynamics are great and I look forward to where this story goes.
Critiques? I guess maybe a better explanation of what was up with Strykers Sentinel armor. Judging by his eye it looked like he had a cyborg kind of thing going on. And Jean Grey's appearance seemed kind of random, I was expecting the story to get back to her before the end. Perhaps it's just in a later volume.
The character dynamics of the remaining X-men (plus Johnny Storm) work out really well. I like that they are all teenagers and have that youthful want to go fix things. This is all held back by the wise beyond her age Kitty Pride. Like I said, the group dynamics are great and I look forward to where this story goes.
Critiques? I guess maybe a better explanation of what was up with Strykers Sentinel armor. Judging by his eye it looked like he had a cyborg kind of thing going on. And Jean Grey's appearance seemed kind of random, I was expecting the story to get back to her before the end. Perhaps it's just in a later volume.
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