World Famous Comics: Ultimate Fantastic Four Vol. 5: Crossover
Ultimate Fantastic Four Vol. 5: Crossover
By: Mark Millar, Greg Land Publisher: Marvel Comics Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Marvel Comics Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 144 Publication Date: May 03, 2006 Reading Level: Young Adult
Product Description: Mark Millar returns to Ultimate Fantastic Four, and he's brought X-Men: Phoenix - Endsong superstar Greg Land with him! Even in their short careers, the Ultimate FF have seen a lot of amazing things - but nothing will prepare them for the world they're about to enter! Reed Richards has used his scientific genius to contact an Earth in a surprisingly familiar parallel dimension - and he's ready to visit! Plus: The shocking secret of the Storm family is finally revealed! Locked away at the bottom of the ocean for 5,000 years, Namor the Sub-Mariner's Atlantean tomb has been breached; now, he's back to rule a planet. This is a Namor you've never seen before with a vastly different agenda. This is Ultimate Namor! Learn about the ties between Atlantis, the Ultimate Inhumans and the super-races that existed before man ruled the Earth! Collects Ultimate Fantastic Four #21-26.
Ladies and Gentelmen let me introduce to you...Marvel Zombies! This vol. has the three issues that started a revolution. The issues that started possibly one of the greatest marvel mini series of all time...Marvel Zombies.
The first 3 issues in it revolve Mr. Fantastic traveling to an alternate universe where he finds out there mostly every hero and villian have turned into zombies. Now he has to run for his life before he becomes their next meal.
This vol. also introduces Ultimate Namor aka Sub-Mariner.
This was a good book, the only part I care about is the Marvel zombies one.
Ultimate FF at its peak These stories, collecting "Ultimate Fantastic Four" #21-26 are awesome -- possibly the best story arcs in the series to date. The encounter with the alternate-reality "Marvel Zombies" version of the FF is great -- chilling, well-told, beautifully illustrated, exciting and fun. Ditto with the Sub-Mariner plotline that follows.
If you're looking for good, old-fashioned adventure-hero comicbook fun, then here's a series that really delivers. (ReadThatAgain book reviews)
Even by comic book standards, it strains my sense of verisimilitude Once again I talked myself into believing some Fantastic Four comics might be worth my time and money. The fact remains that Marvel's super-family has never managed to be cool--not in the Ultimate universe, not in the official continuity, not on the big screen. A lot of the problem, I think, is that they face conflicts on a galactic scale, problems so impossibly large that they require unbelievable solutions. Even by comic book standards, it strains my sense of verisimilitude. And while Reed Richards is miraculously inventing his way out of one interdimnensional crisis after another, the action never breaks long enough to really see him or his teammates as actual people with any kind of sympathetic humanity to them.
I'd like to think it could work. Though designed for bit of a different audience, I think The Incredibles movie proves that a super-powered family doesn't have to be lame. It seems that the Ultimate Fantastic Four books fall in all the same sinkholes as the Ultimate X-Men. Rather than taking the opportunity at a fresh start, to make the story more meaningful to contemporary audiences, to enjoy the early years of a new team of super-heroes, to experience a new image or a new energy in these characters--rather than pursuing these sorts of things, the creators are instead doing everything they can to "catch up" to the official continuity in as little time as possible and make "ultimately" make this generation's Fantastic Four exactly the same as the original. For an idea of what these comics could have been, just take a look at what Brian Michael Bendis is doing (generally) with the Ultimate Spider-man titles. Now there's a line of comics worth throwing some money at.
Maybe you are a die-hard Fantastic Four fan and you aren't understanding what I have a problem with; I respect our differences in opinion. Maybe you don't want to take my word for it, and think you should give the Ultimate Fantastic Four a try before passing judgment. Well, if that's the case, I'll tell you what: before you spend any of your hard-earned money on a purchase you may regret, come take the two TPB's I bought and see how you like them. I certainly won't be having any more use for them.
(reviewing UFF #5: "Crossover" and #6: "Frightful")
Great story and art The story time in with Marvel Zombies was outstanding, even better than the actual Marvel Zombies stories. And the last chapter with Namor was a nice re-imagining for that character. Greg Land is one of the best artists working today, right up there with Carlos Pacheco and Alex Ross.
zombies and FF?!? sign me up... i love the ultimate fantastic four. i love the original fantastic four, who can never be replaced but i like the twist of them being young teens in the ultimate universe. it just seems to make sense. anyway this volume started off the whole marvel zombie craze. a must-read.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
