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The Ultimates (Collected Editions) #2
The Ultimates, Vol. 2: Homeland Security
After managing to take down the Hulk, the government sponsored superhero team called the Ultimates have run into some problems. A shape changing alien race, which are responsible for some of humanity's worst moments (Captain America fought them in World War II) are once again rearing their head to wipe out humanity...
192 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2006
51 people are currently reading
1181 people want to read
About the author
Mark Millar
1,513 books2,560 followersMark Millar is the New York Times best-selling writer of Wanted, the Kick-Ass series, The Secret Service, Jupiter’s Legacy, Jupiter’s Circle, Nemesis, Superior, Super Crooks, American Jesus, MPH, Starlight, and Chrononauts. Wanted, Kick-Ass, Kick-Ass 2, and The Secret Service (as Kingsman: The Secret Service) have been adapted into feature films, and Nemesis, Superior, Starlight, War Heroes, Jupiter’s Legacy and Chrononauts are in development at major studios.
His DC Comics work includes the seminal Superman: Red Son, and at Marvel Comics he created The Ultimates – selected by Time magazine as the comic book of the decade, Wolverine: Old Man Logan, and Civil War – the industry’s biggest-selling superhero series in almost two decades.
Mark has been an Executive Producer on all his movie adaptations and is currently creative consultant to Fox Studios on their Marvel slate of movies.
His DC Comics work includes the seminal Superman: Red Son, and at Marvel Comics he created The Ultimates – selected by Time magazine as the comic book of the decade, Wolverine: Old Man Logan, and Civil War – the industry’s biggest-selling superhero series in almost two decades.
Mark has been an Executive Producer on all his movie adaptations and is currently creative consultant to Fox Studios on their Marvel slate of movies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 184 reviews
September 14, 2018
My 2nd time reading this and I still think it's a pretty awesome conclusion to Super-Human.
Plus, it has one of the best Captain America one-liners ever:
Apologies to my French friends - we know you guys are ass-kickers.
This one does a good job introducing Hawkeye and Black Widow as the badass black ops agents signing on to work with the superheroes. Millar shows you that they're able to not only hold their own, but they're also needed because of their skills and experience.
And let's face it, it's no easy task to make a guy with a bow look relevant on a team like this.
Sadly, this is also the first peek we get at the twinsest storyline.
I can't...ew.
I love the evil alien Nazis more than I should, because seriously, enough with the Nazis already. But it still somehow works for me here. I guess because the story is tied to Captain America I give it a pass? I don't know - it's fun!
Millar's Ultimates just hits my sweet spot.
If for whatever reason you haven't given it a whirl, I'd recommend you try it out. Good stuff.
Plus, it has one of the best Captain America one-liners ever:
Apologies to my French friends - we know you guys are ass-kickers.
This one does a good job introducing Hawkeye and Black Widow as the badass black ops agents signing on to work with the superheroes. Millar shows you that they're able to not only hold their own, but they're also needed because of their skills and experience.
And let's face it, it's no easy task to make a guy with a bow look relevant on a team like this.
Sadly, this is also the first peek we get at the twinsest storyline.
I can't...ew.
I love the evil alien Nazis more than I should, because seriously, enough with the Nazis already. But it still somehow works for me here. I guess because the story is tied to Captain America I give it a pass? I don't know - it's fun!
Millar's Ultimates just hits my sweet spot.
If for whatever reason you haven't given it a whirl, I'd recommend you try it out. Good stuff.
August 2, 2016
A little movie called The Avengers came out last week and grossed all the money that’s ever been printed by the US Treasury according to the entertainment news.
This will probably mean that a bunch of people who don’t ordinarily read comics will see the flick, get all excited to get more stories so they’ll rush to the comic book stores and grab something with Avengers in the title, and then probably be extremely disappointed when they don’t see anything that looks close to the movie because Joss Whedon smartly boiled his film down to several core members that have been on the team in it’s nearly 50 year history.
As a public service to people who don’t have boxes of comics preserved in Mylar wrappers in their basements, but who would like to read some of the funny books that inspired the movie, I humbly suggest you try The Ultimates.
“But wait, that’s not even called The Avengers. What’s that got to do with the movie?”
A lot actually, especially this volume. Marvel realized that their regular line of comics with decades of history was putting off potential new readers and launched a line that rebooted some of their most popular characters like Spider-Man and X-Men. For some reason they decided to rename the team in this version The Ultimates instead of The Ultimate Avengers like they did the other books in this line. I don’t know why. Maybe they got tired of everyone asking what exactly they were supposed to be avenging.
Anyhow, when it comes to the Marvel movies, the film makers have used elements from both the original and Ultimate lines, and Whedon borrowed several elements from this series for his film like the idea that Nick Fury and SHIELD essentially create the team, and this one involves huge alien invasion by the same guys that they fight in the film so this book will at least seem recognizable to the film fans.*
*Marvel has launched a tie-in book with the same characters as the movie called Avengers Assemble, too, but it’s only been out for a few months so there’s only going to be a few issues available.
Plus, it’s just a great comic story. Millar’s rebooted heroes are a slight twist on the original versions. Captain America is still a legendary hero from World War II, but he’s a bit more of a grumpy old Republican than the original Cap. (Millar has said that Ultimate Cap looks like Brad Pitt but smells like your grandpa.) Thor uses his hammer and lightning to lead anti-war and environmental protestors, and he may be an escaped mental patient rather than a god of thunder. Bruce Banner’s anger at being a geeky nerd make this version of the Hulk apt to eat people rather than just smashing them. Tony Stark is even more of a crazy drunken playboy than the Robert Downey Jr. portrayal of him. This also includes Hawkeye and Black Widow as well as original Avengers who didn’t make the film Hank and Janet Pym, but they’ve got severe domestic issues.
The fine folks at Onion’s AV Club have also provided some helpful info here.
This will probably mean that a bunch of people who don’t ordinarily read comics will see the flick, get all excited to get more stories so they’ll rush to the comic book stores and grab something with Avengers in the title, and then probably be extremely disappointed when they don’t see anything that looks close to the movie because Joss Whedon smartly boiled his film down to several core members that have been on the team in it’s nearly 50 year history.
As a public service to people who don’t have boxes of comics preserved in Mylar wrappers in their basements, but who would like to read some of the funny books that inspired the movie, I humbly suggest you try The Ultimates.
“But wait, that’s not even called The Avengers. What’s that got to do with the movie?”
A lot actually, especially this volume. Marvel realized that their regular line of comics with decades of history was putting off potential new readers and launched a line that rebooted some of their most popular characters like Spider-Man and X-Men. For some reason they decided to rename the team in this version The Ultimates instead of The Ultimate Avengers like they did the other books in this line. I don’t know why. Maybe they got tired of everyone asking what exactly they were supposed to be avenging.
Anyhow, when it comes to the Marvel movies, the film makers have used elements from both the original and Ultimate lines, and Whedon borrowed several elements from this series for his film like the idea that Nick Fury and SHIELD essentially create the team, and this one involves huge alien invasion by the same guys that they fight in the film so this book will at least seem recognizable to the film fans.*
*Marvel has launched a tie-in book with the same characters as the movie called Avengers Assemble, too, but it’s only been out for a few months so there’s only going to be a few issues available.
Plus, it’s just a great comic story. Millar’s rebooted heroes are a slight twist on the original versions. Captain America is still a legendary hero from World War II, but he’s a bit more of a grumpy old Republican than the original Cap. (Millar has said that Ultimate Cap looks like Brad Pitt but smells like your grandpa.) Thor uses his hammer and lightning to lead anti-war and environmental protestors, and he may be an escaped mental patient rather than a god of thunder. Bruce Banner’s anger at being a geeky nerd make this version of the Hulk apt to eat people rather than just smashing them. Tony Stark is even more of a crazy drunken playboy than the Robert Downey Jr. portrayal of him. This also includes Hawkeye and Black Widow as well as original Avengers who didn’t make the film Hank and Janet Pym, but they’ve got severe domestic issues.
The fine folks at Onion’s AV Club have also provided some helpful info here.
June 7, 2018
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Oh man! That was epic!! A lot better than the first 6 issues. It was action-packed and with a good plot line. The graphics are also pleasing to the eyes! 😍😍 Can't wait to see what's next!!
Black Widow:
Just fangirling a little bit! (I just recently picked up comics but am a big fan of Marvel movies. I think I need more Black Widow comics!! Anyone got any recommendations? Cheers!)
And Jan at the end. Good on you girl. Stand up to that bully and misogynist prick, don't call yourself a super-hero when you're beating your wife behind the scene!!! Grr.
Oh man! That was epic!! A lot better than the first 6 issues. It was action-packed and with a good plot line. The graphics are also pleasing to the eyes! 😍😍 Can't wait to see what's next!!
Black Widow:
"Would you please just shut up and do as you're told, you disobedient, little man?"
Just fangirling a little bit! (I just recently picked up comics but am a big fan of Marvel movies. I think I need more Black Widow comics!! Anyone got any recommendations? Cheers!)
And Jan at the end. Good on you girl. Stand up to that bully and misogynist prick, don't call yourself a super-hero when you're beating your wife behind the scene!!! Grr.
March 22, 2023
A great conclusion to the story set up in Volume One.
August 28, 2017
No bullshit Just save the world wathever the cost!
November 30, 2010
I’ve never been one to fear change, but reading The Ultimates: Homeland Security makes me wonder if that creeping illness of aging is starting to catch up with me because I don’t like what Mark Millar’s done to my favourite comic book hero and my favourite super team.
Now, I get that the Ultimates aren’t the Avengers and that the Ultimates universe is some sort of weird parallel land or something, but no matter how we dress it up, The Ultimates is an attempt to “reboot” the Avengers in an age of reboots. The problem for me is that the rebooting hasn’t added depth; instead, it has made the story shallow and seems to be taking Captain America and the Avengers back to the days of Rah! Rah! propaganda.
When Frank Miller gave us The Dark Knight, changing Batman forever, he took a glossy, rather silly, detective-style superhero and gave him real angst. The comic went from light weight action fluff, to heavy weight psychological drama, and that change was healthy.
But Mark Millar isn’t doing the same thing here. The thing I have always loved about Captain America was that his ideals didn’t always match the prevailing political mood. Captain America has often done what he thought was right even if it pitted him against his friends, the law or the government. He wouldn’t follow orders just because they were given to him. They had to be right too. Yet, in the Ultimates we see him actively joining in the cover-up of Bruce Banner’s identity as the Hulk, and even covering up the Hulk’s intentional Manhattan tirade – a raging Hulk smash fest that killed several hundred New Yorkers – because to blow the whistle on the Reichstag Fire moment would cost SHIELD and the Ultimates their funding. The Captain America I know and love would never let that stand.
Captain American has always embodied American ideals, not American reality. We have Iron Man for that.
In the Ultimates, my Avengers have become a government run, government supported, government funded “defense system.” Gone is their autonomy. Gone is their honour. They are government thugs working, quite literally, for Homeland Security, and suddenly Marvel Comics is beating the propaganda drum – and not all that subtly – for the Patriot Act and everything else that makes me sad about the USA.
I will give this series one more chance. I’ll read one more graphic novel, but if it doesn’t improve I will bury the experience deep inside and pray that this isn’t the direction Joss Whedon’s Avenger film is headed. That would be one of my saddest cinema experiences – ever.
Now, I get that the Ultimates aren’t the Avengers and that the Ultimates universe is some sort of weird parallel land or something, but no matter how we dress it up, The Ultimates is an attempt to “reboot” the Avengers in an age of reboots. The problem for me is that the rebooting hasn’t added depth; instead, it has made the story shallow and seems to be taking Captain America and the Avengers back to the days of Rah! Rah! propaganda.
When Frank Miller gave us The Dark Knight, changing Batman forever, he took a glossy, rather silly, detective-style superhero and gave him real angst. The comic went from light weight action fluff, to heavy weight psychological drama, and that change was healthy.
But Mark Millar isn’t doing the same thing here. The thing I have always loved about Captain America was that his ideals didn’t always match the prevailing political mood. Captain America has often done what he thought was right even if it pitted him against his friends, the law or the government. He wouldn’t follow orders just because they were given to him. They had to be right too. Yet, in the Ultimates we see him actively joining in the cover-up of Bruce Banner’s identity as the Hulk, and even covering up the Hulk’s intentional Manhattan tirade – a raging Hulk smash fest that killed several hundred New Yorkers – because to blow the whistle on the Reichstag Fire moment would cost SHIELD and the Ultimates their funding. The Captain America I know and love would never let that stand.
Captain American has always embodied American ideals, not American reality. We have Iron Man for that.
In the Ultimates, my Avengers have become a government run, government supported, government funded “defense system.” Gone is their autonomy. Gone is their honour. They are government thugs working, quite literally, for Homeland Security, and suddenly Marvel Comics is beating the propaganda drum – and not all that subtly – for the Patriot Act and everything else that makes me sad about the USA.
I will give this series one more chance. I’ll read one more graphic novel, but if it doesn’t improve I will bury the experience deep inside and pray that this isn’t the direction Joss Whedon’s Avenger film is headed. That would be one of my saddest cinema experiences – ever.
July 8, 2011
Following the devastation wreaked by the Hulk in the first book, Bruce Banner is locked up for his irresponsibility. Nick Fury reveals a secret that could destroy Earth. And alien Nazis are running rampant! This could only be a job for - the Ultimates!
Mark Millar follows up his popular first book on the Ultimates with another strong volume. Homeland Security is in a way the ultimate distinction between good and evil - evil aliens intent on destroying Earth who are inhabiting the bodies of Nazis versus Captain America and co. The bad guys seem to have stepped out of a David Icke fantasy into the Marvel Universe.
The action is fantastic and the story good fun to read - Cap has a great line: "Surrender? Do you think this 'A' stands for France?". I'm still not sure what Jan Pym brings to the team though - Wasp? A woman who turns into a wasp? How does that possibly match Hulk, Iron Man, or Thor? Also Betty Ross' personality seems to have completely changed from the first book (which is good as she was a completely different character then). But small quibbles aside, this is great, action-packed comic book.
Mark Millar follows up his popular first book on the Ultimates with another strong volume. Homeland Security is in a way the ultimate distinction between good and evil - evil aliens intent on destroying Earth who are inhabiting the bodies of Nazis versus Captain America and co. The bad guys seem to have stepped out of a David Icke fantasy into the Marvel Universe.
The action is fantastic and the story good fun to read - Cap has a great line: "Surrender? Do you think this 'A' stands for France?". I'm still not sure what Jan Pym brings to the team though - Wasp? A woman who turns into a wasp? How does that possibly match Hulk, Iron Man, or Thor? Also Betty Ross' personality seems to have completely changed from the first book (which is good as she was a completely different character then). But small quibbles aside, this is great, action-packed comic book.
January 20, 2023
Изслушайте ме! Тази история ми беше доста по-интересна от първата част на Върховните, макар все още да не са ми любими тези интерпретации на познатите герои. Но не затова пише тук, пиша за да посоча пропуснатия потенциал на този комикс. Много се разочаровах, че никъде не се споменава за доноси срещу лица, нито за Бай Тошо, дори не е спомената и партията. Но все пак в този комикс има "герои", които се изправят срещо нацистите, и аз винаги ще си живея с мисълта, че Марк Милър е замаскирал недалечната българска реалност в този комикс. Главни дейсвтащи лица: Николай Бясов, Капитан България - Стоян Роджалски, Железният другар - Антон Страков, Богът на полу(и цели)проводници - Тош, Червената невеста, героят на средностатистическия българин, който побийва жена си - Хан Пимов, Герашкото око, Хълк и др.
August 26, 2016
Following the adventures of the hooligans from vol.1, Mark Millar’s characters steps into territory which finally does bring out their heroic side. It left me feeling discontented completely with the only saving grace being the art.
Even before getting into my thoughts on the book, I must admit that the whole gamut of superhero team-up’s have started to become very stale to me. There could definitely be exceptions but then so far what I have seen has been rather clichéd versions of fighting aliens. JLA, JSA, Avengers, Ultimates, Power Puff Girls – everything is about fighting aliens ! A former semi-Nazi/semi-Chitauri foe of Captain America returns with a huge army to take over earth (rolling eyes !) and our misfit heroes beat the crap out of them. Sure enough, the name dropping from the first volume has disappeared to be replaced with the team finally forming an integrated fighting force.
Cap, Tony and Thor do gel together to fight well but that is only for about three panels towards the end. There also seems to have been inexplicable transformations and omissions from the first book to the next with the entire arc on Iron Man disappearing, Thor becoming milder to the mortals and Cap America turning into someone whose dialog resembles a lamentable B-movie (’You think this A on my head stands for France ? ‘ - cheesiness overload). A reviewer here on GR captured it perfectly when she said – We don’t need American realism in Captain America. We have Iron Man for that and Cap is for the American ideal.
Where do I even begin to talk about the Hulk ? The character is not one known for his intellectual skills while in the green giant form and yet here whatever remains of his brains is firmly lodged between his legs. In the last battle the Hulk bellows - ’Hulk not sissy ! HULK STRAIGHT !’ and this was my tipping point. I completely detested the book at this point.
Gritty realism in comics is quite a fancy name to use but the execution by Mark Millar is piss poor. I am done with his run of Ultimates.
Not recommended ! Nope…nope…nope.
Even before getting into my thoughts on the book, I must admit that the whole gamut of superhero team-up’s have started to become very stale to me. There could definitely be exceptions but then so far what I have seen has been rather clichéd versions of fighting aliens. JLA, JSA, Avengers, Ultimates, Power Puff Girls – everything is about fighting aliens ! A former semi-Nazi/semi-Chitauri foe of Captain America returns with a huge army to take over earth (rolling eyes !) and our misfit heroes beat the crap out of them. Sure enough, the name dropping from the first volume has disappeared to be replaced with the team finally forming an integrated fighting force.
Cap, Tony and Thor do gel together to fight well but that is only for about three panels towards the end. There also seems to have been inexplicable transformations and omissions from the first book to the next with the entire arc on Iron Man disappearing, Thor becoming milder to the mortals and Cap America turning into someone whose dialog resembles a lamentable B-movie (’You think this A on my head stands for France ? ‘ - cheesiness overload). A reviewer here on GR captured it perfectly when she said – We don’t need American realism in Captain America. We have Iron Man for that and Cap is for the American ideal.
Where do I even begin to talk about the Hulk ? The character is not one known for his intellectual skills while in the green giant form and yet here whatever remains of his brains is firmly lodged between his legs. In the last battle the Hulk bellows - ’Hulk not sissy ! HULK STRAIGHT !’ and this was my tipping point. I completely detested the book at this point.
Gritty realism in comics is quite a fancy name to use but the execution by Mark Millar is piss poor. I am done with his run of Ultimates.
Not recommended ! Nope…nope…nope.
March 29, 2013
Ye flippin' gods. Where to even begin.
Millar phoned in this dialogue by carrier pigeon. It clunks when it's not laughably bad, which is basically the whole second half. Female characters are (further) reduced to sexual jokes. Sterling lines like "Hulk not Sissy! HULK STRAIGHT!" and the infamous "SURRENDER?" bit are representative samplings, but also kind of over the top in ways that gloss over the more mundane inadequacies of writing: repetition, the inexplicable and unironic use of the word "darling" as a dialogue quirk for EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER, the fact that every character ultimately sounds just like every other.
Just a big ol' meh, overall, when it's not a big ol' AUGH WTF.
Art, though: still great.
Millar phoned in this dialogue by carrier pigeon. It clunks when it's not laughably bad, which is basically the whole second half. Female characters are (further) reduced to sexual jokes. Sterling lines like "Hulk not Sissy! HULK STRAIGHT!" and the infamous "SURRENDER?" bit are representative samplings, but also kind of over the top in ways that gloss over the more mundane inadequacies of writing: repetition, the inexplicable and unironic use of the word "darling" as a dialogue quirk for EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER, the fact that every character ultimately sounds just like every other.
Just a big ol' meh, overall, when it's not a big ol' AUGH WTF.
Art, though: still great.
May 28, 2022
Хм, не очаквах тази графична новела да ми хареса толкова, че да дам максимална оценка, но... чудото се случи. Капитан Америка, Хълк, Железния човек и още няколко от супергероите на Марвел проляха доста пот, но успяха да предотвратят коварна извънземна атака. А това, че почти всички смятаха Тор не за скандинавско божество, а за избягал от лудницата нацепен тип, беше едно от най-яките сценарийни решения, които съм срещал до момента. Голям смях.
July 20, 2020
El tomo me pareció más flojo que el otro. Por momentos divertido, por momentos rutinario. Teniendo en cuenta que lo mejor es lo afanado a Ellis, lo que queda es bastante olvidable. Chau, Ultimates.
June 23, 2025
Bruce is far and away the most interesting to me, at least since Hank was out of the picture for most of it, and on that note, the artists draw them as way too similar to the point that the only way to distinguish them out of costume is that Bruce has glasses—between Hank being drawn as more dirty blonde/brunette, Bruce being in a rough place at the moment and having some stubble, and the lighting usually being pretty dark, it’s super hard to tell. That said I maintain that they’re both attractive in a pathetic wet cat way.
I also wish that writers would find a better balance between writing Janet as the competent badass that she is and repeatedly traumatizing her—you can have a badass woman without having to balance it out by her being naked half the time and also kept naked in a test tube! I do maintain that I think it’s neat that they applied the “losing your clothes when you change sizes” aspect to both Janet and Hank in this series but the difference in presentation is still noticeable.
“HULK STRAIGHT!” did in fact make me laugh, as did the classic Cap one-liner everyone already knows.
I also wish that writers would find a better balance between writing Janet as the competent badass that she is and repeatedly traumatizing her—you can have a badass woman without having to balance it out by her being naked half the time and also kept naked in a test tube! I do maintain that I think it’s neat that they applied the “losing your clothes when you change sizes” aspect to both Janet and Hank in this series but the difference in presentation is still noticeable.
“HULK STRAIGHT!” did in fact make me laugh, as did the classic Cap one-liner everyone already knows.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 20, 2020
I did not like this. It’s a wonder how many good reviews I see for this (albeit mainly from years ago).
I’ll admit, the quality of the art and writing is probably 3-star territory, but the characterizations are terrible. This is all through the lens of the edgy 2000s (a theme they nail to a fault), and man did this feel dated. I get they were going for a more “realistic” take on the Avengers or to make it grittier and more adult, but that doesn’t mean “just make everyone an asshole”. But that’s what Millar did. He just made everyone an asshole. Not one person was likeable. Hank Pym is a wife-beater, Bruce Banner is a creepy incel scientist, Captain America is a frat-bro. And everyone is mean and depraved just because. I know it’s supposed to be an alternate take, and while parts of the story were interesting, this wasn’t enjoyable to me.
I’m gonna finish the series because of its importance to the Marvel Universe, but now I can’t say I’m looking forward to it. Sigh...
I’ll admit, the quality of the art and writing is probably 3-star territory, but the characterizations are terrible. This is all through the lens of the edgy 2000s (a theme they nail to a fault), and man did this feel dated. I get they were going for a more “realistic” take on the Avengers or to make it grittier and more adult, but that doesn’t mean “just make everyone an asshole”. But that’s what Millar did. He just made everyone an asshole. Not one person was likeable. Hank Pym is a wife-beater, Bruce Banner is a creepy incel scientist, Captain America is a frat-bro. And everyone is mean and depraved just because. I know it’s supposed to be an alternate take, and while parts of the story were interesting, this wasn’t enjoyable to me.
I’m gonna finish the series because of its importance to the Marvel Universe, but now I can’t say I’m looking forward to it. Sigh...
May 6, 2013
Spoilers ahead: Much, much, much better than the first volume. Betty's behavior takes an unbelievable turn. She's actually likable in this one, the slutty edge remains, but never mind that. Also, Cap kicking Dr. Pym's sorry ass takes away the awkward tension. The ending is as close to a happy one that you can get in a universe full of superheroes.
June 19, 2017
The Ultimates is the closest I've seen to a comic being a movie. The plot was kickass, the writing + illustration were awesome, and I was just a huge fan of it. V2 was def better than v1, but mainly because there was a lot less random sexism, AND Black Widow showed up. A+.
August 25, 2014
I wish I'd read The Ultimates in order, I think I'd have gotten more from the story. I was happy to have Hawkeye in there now, that's worth 4 stars on its own. The story was pretty exciting.
August 31, 2015
Better than volume 1 but still not good enough
January 21, 2016
Nice alternate reality version of the Marvel Avengers series. Good story and art. Recommended
January 19, 2024
This volume is 192 pages and covers issues 7-13 of The Ultimates. It was a fun and action packed read that felt more like the MCU than a traditional comic. That was the charm of the Ultimate Universe I guess.
December 8, 2025
Lu au format Urban Nomad
Excellent, ce n'est pas un classique pour rien. Certaines planches sont mémorables, les dessins sont très beaux et l'histoire n'a pas trop mal vieilli. Très bon moment.
petite remarque homophobe cependant avec nos chers Hulk et Captain America
Excellent, ce n'est pas un classique pour rien. Certaines planches sont mémorables, les dessins sont très beaux et l'histoire n'a pas trop mal vieilli. Très bon moment.
petite remarque homophobe cependant avec nos chers Hulk et Captain America
December 4, 2025
This was great! Can absolutely see where the first Avengers movie took inspiration, but maybe it’s for the best there was no Hank Pym in that version….
November 21, 2021
3.5 stars.
I don't think the Ultimates fighting aliens is as compelling as the Ultimates fighting the Ultimates, but the action here is quite spectacular in places and the conclusion satisfying. The portrayal of Hank Pym haunts me.
I don't think the Ultimates fighting aliens is as compelling as the Ultimates fighting the Ultimates, but the action here is quite spectacular in places and the conclusion satisfying. The portrayal of Hank Pym haunts me.
June 7, 2025
This wasn’t really my thing. Too dire. Too busy. Too much.
July 13, 2020
What would happen if the Avengers wouls be written as if they were The Authority? Here is the answer: widescreen non-stop action, with witty language and clever punchlines. Not much in terms of story, but great characterizations and phenomenal drawing take the lead in the best version of the Avengers ever done.
June 16, 2024
I've been on a Marvel kick lately. I'm not reading these graphic novels in the right order so I'm experiencing the overarching stories in weird ways but there's enough backstory that I can keep up. I enjoyed this one - maybe not as much as others. I really like the artwork and the different combinations of the heroes as they fight against an alien invasion that has infiltrated every part of society and the government. Some very interesting character development and relationships between characters that I hadn't know about before reading this one. Very interesting.
November 19, 2021
Yeah, volume 2 has things just go off the rails as Millar is hell-bent on getting edgy with the characters and this story just basically turns into a nicely drawn shit-show.
Every unlikable characteristic about The Ultimates you saw in vol. 1 gets taken up another notch. Maybe it's an clever commentary on how super-heroes are like celebrities and you don't really know anything about them and the image they project is just an image that doesn't reflect anything about their reality...except it's not that clever. And it gives Millar too much credit for something I don't think he's capable of. (his later work reveals much) he doesn't believe in heroes, so he doesn't write them.
Which is why I don't want him touching Captain America, because he fundamentally misunderstands the character, so he's not writing cap, he's writing some other guy. The France insult towards the end is pathetic and jingoistic...and while it may have reflected a number of things about the american politic at the time than Millar despised, it's such a betrayal of who Cap is as a character that Brubaker wrote a specific refutation of it because it was such a betrayal of the character.
Think about it: Millar takes one of the worse moments in original recipe Hank Pym's lifetime, where he stuck his wife in a fit of frustration and rage (a scene the original writer regrets, because of how it has come to define hank Pym's character in the Marvel Universe) and makes it the core of the character. This Hank Pym should be in jail. he's a violent abusive sociopath. This is what Millar is writing the "heroes" as. Iron Man is a drunk and a narcissist; now Millar throws on that he's basically a coward too.
If you want to write stories about bad guys saving the world, go write Suicide Squad.
The alien invasion is ok (there's something interesting in the Chitauri getting booted out of every other planet in the galaxy and needing to either control earth or flee the dimension, but it's only a page) but could have used better development, rather than a sudden betrayal and here we go.
Hitch's art is still good, and there's some nice scenes, but overall this is a lot of flash and hype and little else. It definitely leaves a bad taste in the mouth and while it's influence on the Avengers movies is obvious, the biggest influence is in what NOT to do: make your characters awful, horrible people.
Also? the pop culture and real-life references stink. they were a mistake then, and they've aged awfully. Even the Samuel L. Jackson wink isn't needed.
Every unlikable characteristic about The Ultimates you saw in vol. 1 gets taken up another notch. Maybe it's an clever commentary on how super-heroes are like celebrities and you don't really know anything about them and the image they project is just an image that doesn't reflect anything about their reality...except it's not that clever. And it gives Millar too much credit for something I don't think he's capable of. (his later work reveals much) he doesn't believe in heroes, so he doesn't write them.
Which is why I don't want him touching Captain America, because he fundamentally misunderstands the character, so he's not writing cap, he's writing some other guy. The France insult towards the end is pathetic and jingoistic...and while it may have reflected a number of things about the american politic at the time than Millar despised, it's such a betrayal of who Cap is as a character that Brubaker wrote a specific refutation of it because it was such a betrayal of the character.
Think about it: Millar takes one of the worse moments in original recipe Hank Pym's lifetime, where he stuck his wife in a fit of frustration and rage (a scene the original writer regrets, because of how it has come to define hank Pym's character in the Marvel Universe) and makes it the core of the character. This Hank Pym should be in jail. he's a violent abusive sociopath. This is what Millar is writing the "heroes" as. Iron Man is a drunk and a narcissist; now Millar throws on that he's basically a coward too.
If you want to write stories about bad guys saving the world, go write Suicide Squad.
The alien invasion is ok (there's something interesting in the Chitauri getting booted out of every other planet in the galaxy and needing to either control earth or flee the dimension, but it's only a page) but could have used better development, rather than a sudden betrayal and here we go.
Hitch's art is still good, and there's some nice scenes, but overall this is a lot of flash and hype and little else. It definitely leaves a bad taste in the mouth and while it's influence on the Avengers movies is obvious, the biggest influence is in what NOT to do: make your characters awful, horrible people.
Also? the pop culture and real-life references stink. they were a mistake then, and they've aged awfully. Even the Samuel L. Jackson wink isn't needed.
November 29, 2009
The good: very nice art. Everything looks like a big screen comic book movie.
The bad: everything else. The entire cast is either jerks, seriously messed up or unable to speak unless they have something clever or snotty to say.
The only stable characters are Sam Jackson... I mean Nick Fury and Captain America, and they spend most of their time playing babysitter to the other 'heroes'.
Millar basically took the original heroes, found their most negative trait and made that the personality for the Ultimate version.
The heroes spend a couple issues being messed up and fighting each other, then Millar decides their should be some bad guys and the story gets slightly more interesting. Liked the WW2 flashbacks.
There are some good ideas here, but Millar is another writer who equates 'jerk' with 'realistic' and makes us wait too long before anything actually happens, and by the time it does I found it hard to really root for the guys that I'm told are the heroes.
He does write a pretty badass Cap, but otherwise it was pretty unsatisfying.
The bad: everything else. The entire cast is either jerks, seriously messed up or unable to speak unless they have something clever or snotty to say.
The only stable characters are Sam Jackson... I mean Nick Fury and Captain America, and they spend most of their time playing babysitter to the other 'heroes'.
Millar basically took the original heroes, found their most negative trait and made that the personality for the Ultimate version.
The heroes spend a couple issues being messed up and fighting each other, then Millar decides their should be some bad guys and the story gets slightly more interesting. Liked the WW2 flashbacks.
There are some good ideas here, but Millar is another writer who equates 'jerk' with 'realistic' and makes us wait too long before anything actually happens, and by the time it does I found it hard to really root for the guys that I'm told are the heroes.
He does write a pretty badass Cap, but otherwise it was pretty unsatisfying.
April 17, 2020
Continuamos con la primera parte de Ultimates Superhumano y debo decir que la historia si me mantuvo cautiva leyendo.
La oscuridad continúa creciendo, vemos a un Capitán América más oscuro y directo, un Bruce Banner demasiado complejo e inseguro (para mí gusto) y un Thor el cual a mi parecer es del que empezaron a sacar ideas para adaptarlo a la pantalla.
✨Concuerdo con el director de Panini que es sin duda notable y merecedor de elogios que Mark Millar y Brian Hitch hayan hecho seis publicaciones sin un supervillano que que interviniera siendo el punto de conflicto los mismos superhéroes. Una de las cosas que más aprecio de Mark Millar es como profundiza en sus personajes y los hace más cercanos, y humanos.
✨Crítica: Algo que no me gustó es que el drama se me hizo demasiado neutral en este tomo, así que esto hizo que prefiriria la primera parte.
Personalmente, cuando no me gusta el dibujo al 100% no logró conectar, pero esos son solo detalles quisquillosos de mi parte.
4,2 🌟
La oscuridad continúa creciendo, vemos a un Capitán América más oscuro y directo, un Bruce Banner demasiado complejo e inseguro (para mí gusto) y un Thor el cual a mi parecer es del que empezaron a sacar ideas para adaptarlo a la pantalla.
✨Concuerdo con el director de Panini que es sin duda notable y merecedor de elogios que Mark Millar y Brian Hitch hayan hecho seis publicaciones sin un supervillano que que interviniera siendo el punto de conflicto los mismos superhéroes. Una de las cosas que más aprecio de Mark Millar es como profundiza en sus personajes y los hace más cercanos, y humanos.
✨Crítica: Algo que no me gustó es que el drama se me hizo demasiado neutral en este tomo, así que esto hizo que prefiriria la primera parte.
Personalmente, cuando no me gusta el dibujo al 100% no logró conectar, pero esos son solo detalles quisquillosos de mi parte.
4,2 🌟
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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