Age of Ultron: Book One

Just going to throw a quick review up for the first issue of Age of Ultron. This is one of the first comics to come along in some time that is worth really discussing. Brian Michael Bendis has created some of the most memorable events in Marvel history but this is shaping up to be the biggest of them all. We get a glimpse into a world of what it would be like if the villains really won and their only goal was to wipe out every living organism on the planet. Ultron is is terrifying in the respect that he has no emotions and is willing to eradicate everything, no questions asked.

This issue focuses on Hawkeye's desperate attempt to rescue Spider-Man, who has been taken hostage by a group of criminals. There is no introduction to what has happened, we are simply thrown into the situation. And for those of you thinking this is a bad thing you would be wrong, it is fucking awesome. We get to see a much more hardened version of Hawkeye that has no qualms about killing people who pose a threat to him. He is written very similar to Ultimate Hawkeye, who was written by Mark Millar. He kills at least 5-6 people before he gets to Spider-Man (Superior version). Spider-Man has just been brutalized and we see that the strongest of heroes can fall when we hear that Thor is no longer able to "help". We later get a glimpse of the resistance which consists of Iron Man, She-Hulk, Luke Cage, Wolverine, Emma Frost, Beast, and Captain America. They are willing to throw Hawkeye out simply because he refused to leave Spider-Man to rot. It is a stark contrast to the Marvel Universe we are used to where no one is left behind.

I have a few theories about what is going to happen during the event and I'll talk about them at length at another time. I will however talk about the art in this book. Holy Shit, Bryan Hitch has definitely gotten better over time. This is some of the most polished his visuals have ever been. A lot of people are complaining about the blur effect but it works perfectly with what is going on in the scene. He needs to be on a monthly book at this point. The only way for him to effectively do it is to draw everything six months in advance because he is one of the slower artists in the industry. If they could get a good timetable for him he would become a legend in the industry.

I am behind this event 100% and I have faith that is only going to get better from this point forward. This is a fantastic opening issue and every comic fan should be looking to pick this up as soon as possible. Don't wait too long, issue two comes out next Wednesday.