nomadicwriter (
nomadicwriter) wrote in
doomfans2014-06-19 11:51 pm
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Ultimate FF #3
Well, the comic's already been cancelled, but there are still four issues to go...
Unfortunately, Fialkov clearly didn't know he was on borrowed time yet, because not a huge amount really happens in this issue. Essentially, the alternate-universe Atlanteans reveal that the rich folks who used to operate the undersea base were using the dimensional portal to dump poisonous waste into their reality. Doom's plan is to use the sewage pump to dump more poisonous waste on the Atlanteans, which Namor approves since they tried to kill him first. Sue is anti-murdering, but Tony's more fatalistic, saying they can't save everybody, and when they reach Coulson he agrees, prompting her to burst out: "What is wrong with you people? We're the good guys!"
Namor asks Doom how he managed to return. Doom says he built an interdimensional portal generator, but that's not what Namor means: "I saw you die. I watched your body rot, rodents dining on your entrails. How did you survive?" Doom repeats the common fan complaint about his death scene, namely that he doesn't have entrails in his metal form, and so it was an impostor who was killed:
Doom: "I left someone to rule in my stead. A contingency."
Namor: "Smart."
Doom: "Yes, I pride myself on that. Whereas you like to stand near giant pits of toxic chemicals."
He tosses Namor into said pit. Namora, arriving, approves of this, but says she can't let him do what he's about to. Doom tells her that her universe is just a shadow of this one, "No use to me or mine", and her people will die soon so her world can't threaten anyone else. Namor, less dead than expected, jumps back out of the pit (or something? Art is unclear) just as Doom sets off a big portal that will swallow the entire underwater city. They need to be on the right side of it if they want to survive.
The good guys are not pleased, since this will kill the surviving rich industrialists in their panic room as well as the Atlanteans, but there's no time to save them. Sue reluctantly says that they did what they could and have to go, saying unhappily, "We're supposed to be heroes." They step through the portal, but at the last minute Namora leaps to grab Namor and drag him down with her to his apparent death.
Emerging on the other side of the portal, our heroes discoverthere has been an abrupt artist switch for the last few pages there was some kind of interference and they're in another empty looking dimension, where they are greeted by... some dude I don't recognise, which killed the cliffhanger a bit for me. (Judging by the "Next issue" line, possibly Ultimate Universe Captain Marvel? I don't know.)
So... it feels a bit like kicking a comic when it's already down, but this issue was really the weakest so far. There are a few nice little character moments, like Tony coming up with a plan to gas the Atlanteans, to which Doom responds "You'll kill them all! Doom approves," but otherwise the writing is mostly plot-driven and functional. The action also gets a bit incoherent towards the end, though I'm not sure how much of that is an art issue.
I wasn't fond of the art in the earlier issues, and this time it feels like it's got even worse. The colouring this issue is super dull and murky, and it seems like the pages are only pencilled, not inked, which makes the whole effect even muddier. There's an abrupt artist switch for the final two pages after the characters go through the portal: the new artist, Andre Araujo, has a minimalist kind of style that I like somewhat better than Guevara's scratchy lines and inconsistent faces, but makes for a jarring switch and the limited detail only contributes to the overall feeling that everything was done in a huge rush.
Since there are only three issues to go, and the "Next issue" line promises "The truth of Doom!" whatever that is, I'm sticking it out to the end, but frankly, this feels like a pretty disappointing downward spiral for a promising book that deserved to be given more of a chance. Bummer. :(
Unfortunately, Fialkov clearly didn't know he was on borrowed time yet, because not a huge amount really happens in this issue. Essentially, the alternate-universe Atlanteans reveal that the rich folks who used to operate the undersea base were using the dimensional portal to dump poisonous waste into their reality. Doom's plan is to use the sewage pump to dump more poisonous waste on the Atlanteans, which Namor approves since they tried to kill him first. Sue is anti-murdering, but Tony's more fatalistic, saying they can't save everybody, and when they reach Coulson he agrees, prompting her to burst out: "What is wrong with you people? We're the good guys!"
Namor asks Doom how he managed to return. Doom says he built an interdimensional portal generator, but that's not what Namor means: "I saw you die. I watched your body rot, rodents dining on your entrails. How did you survive?" Doom repeats the common fan complaint about his death scene, namely that he doesn't have entrails in his metal form, and so it was an impostor who was killed:
Doom: "I left someone to rule in my stead. A contingency."
Namor: "Smart."
Doom: "Yes, I pride myself on that. Whereas you like to stand near giant pits of toxic chemicals."
He tosses Namor into said pit. Namora, arriving, approves of this, but says she can't let him do what he's about to. Doom tells her that her universe is just a shadow of this one, "No use to me or mine", and her people will die soon so her world can't threaten anyone else. Namor, less dead than expected, jumps back out of the pit (or something? Art is unclear) just as Doom sets off a big portal that will swallow the entire underwater city. They need to be on the right side of it if they want to survive.
The good guys are not pleased, since this will kill the surviving rich industrialists in their panic room as well as the Atlanteans, but there's no time to save them. Sue reluctantly says that they did what they could and have to go, saying unhappily, "We're supposed to be heroes." They step through the portal, but at the last minute Namora leaps to grab Namor and drag him down with her to his apparent death.
Emerging on the other side of the portal, our heroes discover
So... it feels a bit like kicking a comic when it's already down, but this issue was really the weakest so far. There are a few nice little character moments, like Tony coming up with a plan to gas the Atlanteans, to which Doom responds "You'll kill them all! Doom approves," but otherwise the writing is mostly plot-driven and functional. The action also gets a bit incoherent towards the end, though I'm not sure how much of that is an art issue.
I wasn't fond of the art in the earlier issues, and this time it feels like it's got even worse. The colouring this issue is super dull and murky, and it seems like the pages are only pencilled, not inked, which makes the whole effect even muddier. There's an abrupt artist switch for the final two pages after the characters go through the portal: the new artist, Andre Araujo, has a minimalist kind of style that I like somewhat better than Guevara's scratchy lines and inconsistent faces, but makes for a jarring switch and the limited detail only contributes to the overall feeling that everything was done in a huge rush.
Since there are only three issues to go, and the "Next issue" line promises "The truth of Doom!" whatever that is, I'm sticking it out to the end, but frankly, this feels like a pretty disappointing downward spiral for a promising book that deserved to be given more of a chance. Bummer. :(