Ultimate X-Men

Ultimate X-Men 34-39

Brian Michael Bendis comes on to write two arcs, this one with David Finch on art.  People from Wolverine’s past return to kill him, again.  And Wolverine decides to run away from the school.  Again.  Bendis keeps it fun, especially during the issues where his Ultimate Spider-Man shows up for a quick crossover.

Peter Parker makes a good point.

I love a beautifully colored Phoenix effect.  (Dave Stewart)

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Ultimate X-Men 40-45

Bendis’ writing just sings.  It’s such a joy to read.  Even long, uninterrupted pages of dialogue, I can read for days if he’s the author.

Storm looks good in any costume.

Here, Angel joins the team, the President of the United States tries to start his own team of mutants, things go horribly awry, and Beast dies in the fight.

Storm is understandably upset.

And holy crap, issue 41.  Wolverine flat out kills a mutant kid who develops a death field as his power.  It took two minutes for me to read it, but the emotional impact lasted a lot longer.

So tragic.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good (Really good for 41.)

Ultimate X-Men 46-49

Brian K Vaughan takes over as regular writer.  Brandon Peterson draws the story.  He starts slowly with his take on Mr Sinister, a stuttering, serial killing maniac with mental health issues.  It’s nothing special.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Ultimate X-Men 50-53

Andy Kubert jumps into the artist seat.  Gambit shows up again after his wretched introduction back in issue 13.  This time, he’s working for Fenris, kidnaps Rogue, gets a change of heart, and convinces her to run away with him.  The main story’s forgettable aside from that ending, but Vaughan and Kubert work combine to give us some really nice moments.

Lovely.  Justin Posnor colors.

EXCELLENT fight scene.  Hate Gambit's hair, though.

I'm all on board with a Wolvie/Storm romance.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Ultimate X-Men 54-57

Stuart Immonen’s the penciller!  I do love his work.  This arc introduces us to Ultimate Mojo, Arcade, Spiral, and Longshot, in a Murderworld/Running Man scenario.  In a surprise twist, Longshot turns out to be a murdering mutant supremacist.  

Heh, "merits to decompression."  A wink to Bendis?

Boo, Blink is dead in this world.

Great pose.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Ultimate X-Men 58

Steve Dillon (RIP) draws this one-shot where Professor X thwarts a bank robbery from the inside.  Some creative uses of telepathy, I really enjoyed this one.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Ultimate X-Men 59-60

Wolverine and Storm fight Lady Deathstrike, who’s conflated w/ Yukio in this world.  Fun action.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Ultimate X-Men Annual 1

And just like that, Gambit’s gone.  This is the second X-Man to die by falling building (after Beast).  I wonder why that’s the preferred method of death for the writers.  What a waste of an awesome 616 character.  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Fine