Ultimate Comics: Avengers 2 #1

Marvel Comics
Ultimate Comics: Avengers 2 #1
By Zak Edwards
May 5, 2010 - 15:19

Marvel Comics
Writer(s): Mark Millar
Penciller(s): Leinel Francis Yu
Inker(s): Gerry Alanguilan
Colourist(s): Laura Martin
Letterer(s): Cory Petit
Cover Artist(s): Yu & Martin
$3.99 US

Well, just when I was getting hope that Millar’s next run on his Ultimates would be as good as the last, this issue comes and makes me worried. The new season of Millar’s UC Avengers, coming only after a week after the last one, feels like it was written in about ten minutes and takes about a minute to read. All action and no substance would be a fairly good assessment which, disappointingly, makes the book no better than anything else on the shelves.

I will say this though, Millar’s Punisher does not disappoint on the blood and gore front, something to keep in mind before passing this to a young reader. The story is essentially a story of The Punisher, a type of character Millar is very adept at writing. Having just recently picked up the first couple of trades of Garth Ennis' run on Punisher MAX, I have to say I don't feel like I'm reading anything different. Not to say the character isn't enjoyable, but so many pages of rehash is disappointing. But after the blood and guts, including the eight-page fight at the very beginning with little to no words, the book doesn’t have much to it. The thing is literally a blood bath and no more. Whole pages are wasted on showing the Punisher shoot things in very grandiose ways. The only thing this issue does is get the Punisher into a Captain America-esque costume, something which does interest me but, once again, could have been done in a third of the space. The decision to not have Millar play with his original recreations is a bold one I want to support, but the Avengers is becoming little more than bullets again. While fun, I was hoping for more substance and less shooting. However, the developments of the issue are what is most interesting. Seeing what Millar does between the Punisher and Nick Fury will be exciting and gory to be sure. But the future is the most interesting part of the issue, as the present is a little too self-indulgent and lacking.

The change in art is a welcome one as well, with Leinil Francis Yu’s rougher style fitting the tone of the book much better than the crisp and clean style of the last artist. The book does look amazing, a bonus considering the lack of content. Yu’s characters are expressive and cool looking, certainly the Punisher’s new costume looks very cool. With all the fighting, art has to be stellar and, while it didn’t fully distract, Yu’s art is just that. His actions sequences are fun to look at, and Captain America’s angry and brutal fighting style looks awesome in Yu’s hands, as does the Punisher’s multiple murders.

6/10 Hopefully things get better. If they don’t, they’ll look good doing it!