Ultimate Fantastic Four #38 (Spoilers)

[killerbass]

Um, it's over -- Mike Carey's first UFF arc is finished.

I'll leave the summary for someone else with more patience.

My criticisms:

1. There were too many new characters unleashed all at once.
2. The plot, for an Ultimate comic, was way too complex. Come on, I wouldn't even begin to try and read this to my son. I'm not even sure I got all of the plot...
3. Very little character development -- stuff happened, people reacted, bad guys were subdued for now, and Reed has additional alien intellect -- but other than that, everything seems status quo.

What I liked:
1. The art was decent -- once I uset to the differences between Land and Ferry.
2. A couple of cool moments here and there -- Reed getting kissed, Thing losing a part of his rocky hide, and Sue's reaction to the aforementioned kiss.

Anybody else think that maybe the 616 writer (McDuffie) and the Ultimate writer (Carey) need to be flip flopped. I think McDuffie would do a great UFF, and the old time FF fans would appreciate Carey. Thoughts?

I am hanging on -- especially for Mark Brooks.

1.5 stars out of 5.

Just my two cents,
Tom

[Omega Alpha]

I think it was very good. Yeah, the plot is complex, and will probably work better in TPB, but it was still an excellent read, Ferry's art was very good, and it had several good moments.

[MaxofSteel]

I've liked the arc very much so far, and I'm excited about picking this last one up.

...Any spoilers would be appreciated though.:p

[gorthon616]

As to the general critiques of the comic I'll just copy what I have written in a different thread.


Carey has a certain style which may not be for everyone. He is big on epic stories with a minimalistic view on characterization. When you "drawn out," other people see epic. The difference is the viewpoint which dictates the pacing. Typical form is more like a first person shooter. The character drives the motions and the action. Whereas this takes more of a third person perspective. You see the expanse of the story with the character merely moving within it. The first seeks to engage the reader in a view, whereas the latter wants the reader to disengage from any particular view and read the story as a more submersive experience.

As far as the characterization goes, its also part of the style. No, there is no long expansive dialogue or text showing the "character" of the characters. However each character is given a well-defined voice. Certainly I am not getting into their head, but you do get a feel for them. I do not "know" the characters, nor do I really "care" about them in the sense that it makes a difference to me what happens to the seed unit in the long run. But the feel that they have is enough to give intrigue to the story, to see how they will interact with the story and the story will interact with them. Again story driven, rather than character driven.

As far as the actual issue goes, honestly I have to say it was something of a let down. The switch from Thanos/Glassgallow and the rest of those forces to Ronan seemed largely contrived. True, we had known that Ronan was a part of Thanos' forces and his son, but he had not been developed either individually or as an aspect of being within Thanos' group. So it really seemed more like a random encounter than being part of the plot.

The actual fight up until Tesseract losing and the subsequent power-team-up and then the Thing yanking the universal weapon from his hand was pretty solid as well. However, the Tesseracts loss seemed very anti-climatic (which can work at times, but in this case doesn't seem to work at all), combing their powers to blast Ronan seemed hackneyed, and the Thing just yanking the weapon from his hand... well just felt like a very weird note to end the battle on.

The touch with Thanos overlooking Reed considering how to build the cosmic cube was intriguing.

Overall, I still really enjoy the series and my only criticism (though other criticisms may stem from this single criticism) was my only apprehension that I had as the series was previewed and released. Why was Ronan in this comic book? He didn't have anything to do with the series until the last few pages of the second to the last issue, and then suddenly he is spotlighting the ending battle? It seemed really outside the context of the story and just didn't mesh well with everything else.

Plus, Ronan looked fairly lame and so did his American Gladiator stick... I mean Universal Weapon....

I hope somewhere down the line Carey reveals more on why Ronan was included in the story the way he was.... perhaps the fact that he is human looking (notably the only alien on Thanos' side that looks humanoid) means that maybe there is some connection with him to Earth? He is (seemingly) still on the planet (maybe? I forget if the Seed Unit took him back or not).

I have this grudging fear, however, with the degree of Kirby New Gods flavored references that Carey placed into the story, Ronan was a contrived plot device to place the story more solidly as a reflection of Marvel property.

[wingsofdamnation]

i enjoyed the arc but i think that it was stretched too thin over the six issues. definitly could've been condenced. i really like the art and i like the writing but think this could've been a 3-4 issue arc.

[garin]

2. The plot, for an Ultimate comic, was way too complex. Come on, I wouldn't even begin to try and read this to my son. I'm not even sure I got all of the plot...Huh? Where did you get the idea that the Ultimate line was intended to be simplistic, or for younger readers? The Ultimates isn't more kid-friendly than the Avengers.


As far as the actual issue goes, honestly I have to say it was something of a let down. The switch from Thanos/Glassgallow and the rest of those forces to Ronan seemed largely contrived. True, we had known that Ronan was a part of Thanos' forces and his son, but he had not been developed either individually or as an aspect of being within Thanos' group. So it really seemed more like a random encounter than being part of the plot.

The actual fight up until Tesseract losing and the subsequent power-team-up and then the Thing yanking the universal weapon from his hand was pretty solid as well. However, the Tesseracts loss seemed very anti-climatic (which can work at times, but in this case doesn't seem to work at all), combing their powers to blast Ronan seemed hackneyed, and the Thing just yanking the weapon from his hand... well just felt like a very weird note to end the battle on. I completely agree with your criticisms here. Overall I still really enjoyed the arc, but I wish it could have ended on a stronger note.

[StoneGold]

I think the problem is Mike Carey writes aliens as really alien. And that doesn't compute that well, because most people like aliens to be basically human, but with weird shaped heads.

[BadAssMofo]

I liked this storyline very much. The artwork was great too. On the page where they say they have reinforcements I think I spot Ultimate Impossible Man, and Firelord. Can you guys spot anyone else??

I love the fact that Thanos is sitting in Reeds brain just waiting. Great story!!

Oh yeah. Ronan the accuser is a badass!!

[Clairaudient Freedom Soldier]

Excellent conclusion and superb art! I also want to know more about the Seed Unit "reinforcements".

Best Marvel creative duos of all time:

Stan Lee + Jack Kirby (Fantastic Four)

Chris Claremont + John Byrne (Uncanny X-Men)

Chris Claremont + Michael Golden (Avengers Annual #10)

Kurt Busiek + George Perez (Avengers)

and coming soon ...

Mike Carey + Pasqual Ferry (Ultimate Fantastic Four)

[jade_nova]

Huh? Where did you get the idea that the Ultimate line was intended to be simplistic, or for younger readers? The Ultimates isn't more kid-friendly than the Avengers.

I think he got the idea about the Ultimate being simple and for young readers from articles when the line first started.

[killerbass]

Huh? Where did you get the idea that the Ultimate line was intended to be simplistic, or for younger readers? The Ultimates isn't more kid-friendly than the Avengers.

Well, to start they are rated for all ages -- although I don't have the book in front of me...

Then there was this interview (http://www.collectortimes.com/2000_12/Clubhouse2.html) with Bill Jemas from way back when, where he said,

"Marvel believes that the Ultimate Spider-Man and X-Men lines are the answer. Core comic fans will love these books. The characters are pure and true to themselves. The stories are strong, complete, compelling, and produced by our best artists and writers. But, any new reader can pick up any one of these books and start reading. Essentially, the Ultimates swap out the traditional back-story and replace it with a rich, self-contained, Year-2000 context."

But whatever... I still think this storyline would have been a better 616 story, but what do I know -- I'm just a cranky old guy...

--Tom

[Jim Yost]

I respect what Carey's doing, and I'll more than likely buy the trades from here on out...

But I'm done with the monthly now. Honestly, I just look forward to Bendis' versions of the UFF in Ultimate Spidey more than their appearances in their own book.

Again, not a slam against Carey. I think he's really got some great ideas, and as a collection they probably read like the best sci-fi... it just doesn't get me all charged up.

[killerbass]

Honestly, I just look forward to Bendis' versions of the UFF in Ultimate Spidey more than their appearances in their own book.

Again, not a slam against Carey. I think he's really got some great ideas, and as a collection they probably read like the best sci-fi... it just doesn't get me all charged up.

Yeah, what he said! I really think he just needs to spend a little bit more time on characterization.

Maybe if we put Bendis and Carey in a blender -- ew -- but that might be messy...

--Tom

[garin]

Well, to start they are rated for all ages -- although I don't have the book in front of me...

Then there was this interview (http://www.collectortimes.com/2000_12/Clubhouse2.html) with Bill Jemas from way back when, where he said,

"Marvel believes that the Ultimate Spider-Man and X-Men lines are the answer. Core comic fans will love these books. The characters are pure and true to themselves. The stories are strong, complete, compelling, and produced by our best artists and writers. But, any new reader can pick up any one of these books and start reading. Essentially, the Ultimates swap out the traditional back-story and replace it with a rich, self-contained, Year-2000 context."
He says new readers, not younger readers. My impression of the Ultimate line, and that quote confirms it, is a re-imagining of the universe in a modern context that's not mired in thirty years of continuity. It has nothing whatsoever to do with simple stories, and it's definitely not supposed to be Marvel Adventures.

[killerbass]

He says new readers, not younger readers. My impression of the Ultimate line, and that quote confirms it, is a re-imagining of the universe in a modern context that's not mired in thirty years of continuity. It has nothing whatsoever to do with simple stories, and it's definitely not supposed to be Marvel Adventures.

I agree to disagree with you.

--Tom

[Jim Yost]

My take on it of late has been that ORIGINALLY, the Ultimate books were SUPPOSED to be what Marvel Adventures is, but once Millar started working on Ultimate X-Men (putting Jean & Logan in bed... what was it, 3 issues in?) and The Ultimates, it kind of became impossible, and instead they positioned it as simply new-reader friendly... as a universe meant to have cohesion and sophistication right off the bat. As it stands, The Adventures Universe seems to be for "young readers," to sort of be what the Classic Marvel U was for so many of us up until the 90's, The Ultimate Universe is specifically aimed at teens as an alternative to manga, and the Classic Universe... sort of is whatever it feels like being at that moment, as a result of not having to appeal to a specific demo.

[drinkblatzbeer]

i thought the arc was awesome...
i was not looking forward to the carey/ferry arc and now i am sad to see ferry go...i liked the team...

i also like the power thanos has been given, and if not able to contain the original galactus (or whatever piece of shit is running around in the ultimate U) story, at least we get an amped up thanos story which really just served as a bit on an introduction...
with that being said, i hope the story gets laid off of for a bit, and comes back in a huge way in a year or so...

bringing the cosmic cube into the mix was also a nice touch...

[garin]

I agree to disagree with you.
I don't agree to that.

(Simpsons reference)

Yeah, it's off topic anyway.

[malephoenix]

This was such a stinkin' good arc. I agree that I was hoping for a stronger ending somehow, but WOW was that a great ride. This story blew me away.

[Clairaudient Freedom Soldier]

Did anyone discern the implicit message in Ultimate FF #38?

Tesseract, a.k.a. the Ultimate Mr. Miracle, couldn't defeat the threat alone, but when the Marvel heroes and the DC-esque heroes cooperatively integrated their powers, they triumphed over the threat; i.e., Marvel and DC have to pool their assets in order to strengthen the comic book industry.

[wingsofdamnation]

I think the problem is Mike Carey writes aliens as really alien. And that doesn't compute that well, because most people like aliens to be basically human, but with weird shaped heads.
see thats one of my favorite parts about his writing. im tired of seeing aliens protrayed as humans with different skins. thats mainly why i try to stay out of cosmic story lines because the aliens really kill it for me. but this was great! the cultures were very different and they were actually beleivable aliens and not humans in costume

[StoneGold]

see thats one of my favorite parts about his writing. im tired of seeing aliens protrayed as humans with different skins. thats mainly why i try to stay out of cosmic story lines because the aliens really kill it for me. but this was great! the cultures were very different and they were actually beleivable aliens and not humans in costume

I like it too. But it's not as accessible as pointy eared aliens.

[Pyro]

As a whole, I am very impressed with Carey and Ferry's work on UFF... Though in the future, I'd like to see more of just the four.

[ultimatespyder20]

The arc wasn't too bad at all. Yeah, there was a lot of plot, and characters, but it's to be expected in a story like this. I would like to see the Seed 19 be used again, and I'm glad that they really didn't kill off characters like they do a lot in Ultimate Titles. Ferry's art was very good, I enjoy him a lot on this title.

Alec

[Harold of the Rocks]

see thats one of my favorite parts about his writing. im tired of seeing aliens protrayed as humans with different skins. thats mainly why i try to stay out of cosmic story lines because the aliens really kill it for me. but this was great! the cultures were very different and they were actually beleivable aliens and not humans in costumeHell yeah. Exactly the point. Even 'translated' to english, these critters have a funky way of talking and I like that. And it's not just Yodaspeak, either. It adds to the point that these guys are truly alien. I have re-read these issues several times, in part to let it sink in and understand it better (as we would have to in 'real life'), and in part because I totally enjoyed how they did have a different culture and perception of how things worked.


1. There were too many new characters unleashed all at once.
2. The plot, for an Ultimate comic, was way too complex. Come on, I wouldn't even begin to try and read this to my son. I'm not even sure I got all of the plot...
3. Very little character development -- stuff happened, people reacted, bad guys were subdued for now, and Reed has additional alien intellect -- but other than that, everything seems status quo.Regarding these criticsms:
1. I am glad that not every character we meet is just a reimagining of Marvel Universe characters. Give the Ultimate Universe some of it's own unique characters. I didn't find it overwhelming at all to be introduced to Seed 19 and Gallowglass. That's pretty much the entirety of new characters. How did you react the first time the (616) Fantastic Four encountered the Salem Seven? Too many new characters to enjoy the story? Not me. And they were introduced in only two issues, almost one, really. Here you had six issues to absorb about as many characters.

2. The plot was involved in some levels, but that's what I would expect from an encounter with aliens and dimension-hopping. It should be something that only Reed can adapt to quickly. The rest of us are supposed to be a little overwhelmed -- because it's so unlike anything we have ever experienced. And isn't the 'Ulitmate Universe' dead horse a pile of dust now? It's a re-imagining. That's it. Never supposed to be for younger readers, never supposed to be simple. Just seperate from decades of continuity. It seems like someone needs reminding of this in every single thread in this forum *sigh*.

3. In terms of character 'development'. Not every arc is gonna redefine how a character perceives his life. Not every story has to take a character and have him come to an epiphany about his or her reason for being. I would say that many characters were given at least 'reinforcement' as to their nature:

- Reed now has absorbed the entirety of Halcyon science. Tell me that won't come into play in the future. It also demonstrates that he may be the only person with the intellect to actually put it to use. And tell me that Thanos wasn't gloating because regardless of the fact that Reed sees it as a defense against Thanos, Reed is working on making a Cosmic Cube now. Exactly what Thanos wants. This also adds to Thanos' character as a master manipulator.

- Sue's bravery. Taking down Gallowglass, when she knows he's going to explode like a supernova when she does. She confronts Dreamcatcher for making her a killer. She basically takes no shit from no one throughout this arc. And she's the caretaker, the medic if you will. And she shows her intellect is solid as ever, helping Reed revive Tesseract. I'm not sure how much she developed per se, but she remained strong and caring, brave and noble despite a hellacious adventure.

- Johnny's still Johnny. Still cocky, wise-cracking, and the adrenaline junkie. And party animal. And not afraid to be first into battle.

- Ben still the noble warrior. He breaks up an execution, but apologizes for it bringing unwanted attention to the team. Dreamcatcher marvels at his strength of will after helping him break free of Thanos' "possesion".

-- I would say that this story solidified what we already knew about our heroes for the most part, but the experience also adds another layer to these characters and what they have endured. That counts for something. It also introduced Ultimate Thanos, Ultimate Ronan, and the Seed 19. I also had no problem with the length of the arc, if you are gonna introduce new characters from another dimension, it takes some time to give it the depth required. Now we have an understanding (in part) of the Halcyon Universe and it's major players. Also it's current political climate and culture, as well as it's mythology were presented as well. It is true it could have been done in fewer issues, but only at the expense of this sort of depth that allows the reader to immerse themselves into a story with an entirely new culture as its centerpiece.


I hope somewhere down the line Carey reveals more on why Ronan was included in the story the way he was.... perhaps the fact that he is human looking (notably the only alien on Thanos' side that looks humanoid) means that maybe there is some connection with him to Earth? He is (seemingly) still on the planet (maybe? I forget if the Seed Unit took him back or not).Actually, all of the aliens were 'humanoid'. If you mean having skin in a color we are used to seeing on Earth, that is something different. And actually, Grail Fountain also strongly resembled an 'earth human' as well. As far as Ronan being contrived, I disagree. He's the son of Thanos. Thanos is not going to engage the heroes head on because for one, it is beneath him to do so, and secondly, he can manipulate his own son into doing it for him. It's pretty clear Ronan is Thanos' most powerful soldier as well. And when Ronan gets defeated, it is an affront to Thanos. The ties between them serve to have The Fantastic Four effectively humiliate Thanos without direct confrontation. I think this is setting up the return of Thanos really nicely. Now he has a personal grudge against our heroes. As far as 'where Ronan is now', the two worlds seperated after Ronan was taken down. I interpret that as everything went back to it's proper world. I'd say he's in the custody of Seed 19 now.

Personal highlights of "God War"

- Vykni (issue #33): "This place smells. And the indigenes -- they look just human enough to be creepy. It's like a bad sense-net flick. Planet of the Monkey People."
- Abbey Road visual reference in issue #33. Not once, but twice!
- Ben had some great one-liners. I love how Carey writes him.
Threshold:"Perhaps there was no hostility here at all."
Ben:"Maybe not. But we've got plenty now. What flavor would you like?"In issue #36, while disguised as a Halcyon Grand Marshal, approaching the execution that's about to take place...
Resurgence Guard: "I apologize Grand Marshal, but only public order officials can mount the platform."
Ben: "Yeah? Any rule about me bringin' the platform down here?"
Smash!!!In issue #38, after Vykni animates a wall to attack Ronan and tells the 'primitives' to run and escape...
Ben: "Run? And get shot in the back? How's that gonna look on my resumé?"There's plenty of other ones. Those are just some of my favorites.
- Ferry's artwork (the whole team, actually) really worked well with this 'otherworldy' adventure. I know Ferry is off for the next arc, but is he off for good? I had the impression that Mark Brooks was coming in for the next arc as a 'respite' for Ferry. Am I wrong? Do we have a regular penciller/artist now, or not?

- Lot's of other goodness. Sue taking down Gallowglass, and the fear in his eyes moments before was awesome. Ben and Dreamcatcher's interaction and mission together was really fun to read. So much more...

This book remains one of my favorite reads whenever it arrives at my store. Maybe cutting the Fantastic Four free from decades of continuity is part of this. I mean, now when they've done time-travel, dimension-hopping, Negative-Zone exploration, etc. it feels so much fresher. They're still new at it, and the stuff they are encountering is mind-blowing, for us as well as the characters. I mean they are getting their 'sea-legs' right now, and maybe that's what I'm digging on, rather than watching them react to yet another time-traveling, other-worldly threat for the 500th time. Maybe the 616 is where one should be looking for more character development, because we (and they) have pretty much seen it all at this point. And in some ways, I think we are seeing that. Complain about Civil War all you might, but the '4' are really getting put to the test as individuals because of it. And I would be remiss if I didn't mention Aguirre-Sacasa's work on MK4/'4'. That had some great stories and character moments in it.

[Clairaudient Freedom Soldier]

Excellent analytical response, Harold of the Rocks, I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the "God War" arc, but I want to know who's your favorite Seed Unit character :) .

[kal_el21]

This arc had up and downs for me. The interaction between the aliens confused me somehow. I feel like I would need a chart to identify them and their powers. Loved the idea of the Cosmic Cube. I really can't wait to see what this duo does with Diablo in the next arc.

[gorthon616]

Actually, all of the aliens were 'humanoid'. If you mean having skin in a color we are used to seeing on Earth, that is something different. And actually, Grail Fountain also strongly resembled an 'earth human' as well. As far as Ronan being contrived, I disagree. He's the son of Thanos. Thanos is not going to engage the heroes head on because for one, it is beneath him to do so, and secondly, he can manipulate his own son into doing it for him. It's pretty clear Ronan is Thanos' most powerful soldier as well. And when Ronan gets defeated, it is an affront to Thanos. The ties between them serve to have The Fantastic Four effectively humiliate Thanos without dirent confrontation. I think this is setting up the return of Thanos really nicely. Now he has a personal grudge against our heroes. As far as 'where Ronan is now', the two worlds seperated after Ronan was taken down. I interpret that as everything went back to it's proper world. I'd say he's in the custody of Seed 19 now.

Well, the thing is they never really say any of the things you seem to think it implies (aside from Ronan being the most powerful solider). The connection with Thanos was never really established, they just sort of said he was his son. For me, it seems like they just missed beat before the climax.

But, I don't want to get into arguing against this arc. It was too fantastic to keep grinding out the minor criticisms. :cool:

[Harold of the Rocks]

Excellent analytical response, Harold of the Rocks, I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the "God War" arc, but I want to know who's your favorite Seed Unit character :) .Thanks for the kind words. As to a favorite Seed 19 character... I am inclined to say Dreamcatcher. Very cool powerset, and her interaction with Ben is fun. She admittedly got more 'screen time' than the rest of her team, and as a result gave us more of a glimpse into her universe than the others. It's weird to think that she can 'become' a memory of a taste, a (presumably digital) code, can merge others' powers, etc. -- I mean her powers seem mostly only limited by her imagination, as she can become anything 'non-physical'. She had a couple of cool lines, one being "Oh yeah. I've got you wrapped up nice and warm. In love. In light. In lies." (when she had 'disguised' the rest of her team in NYC). Another great one is when she first engages Sue in battle: "No problem. If her fields are permeable to light, or ideas, or emotions-- they're permeable to me.". Threshold is also interesting, as the 'team field leader', but I still got to vote for Dreamcatcher.
Well, the thing is they never really say any of the things you seem to think it implies (aside from Ronan being the most powerful solider). The connection with Thanos was never really established, they just sort of said he was his son. For me, it seems like they just missed beat before the climax.

But, I don't want to get into arguing against this arc. It was too fantastic to keep grinding out the minor criticisms. You are right in that we never see an interaction between Thanos and Ronan, which could have been cool and added more to what I feel was implied. There was that exchange between Grulbur and Ronan where he is told that he ignored his father's orders by leaving males over ten as survivors after crushing a rebellion. Ronan replies that he never got the proper code and was unable to decipher it. I know this is me reading between the lines, but the manner in which Grulbur tells him that (and especially using the word "ignored", rather than "misunderstood") seems to imply that there is already some tension between father and son. Maybe the next time we see these two, it will begin with Thanos chastising his son for failing him 'again'. The father-son dynamic could have been further developed and you are right about that. I have agreed with you on other threads that Ultimate Fantastic Four is a really enjoyable read and our debating some of the nuances or details doesn't change that fact at all. On that point we are in total harmony. I'm looking forward to Ultimate Diablo. Everytime this Ultimate Universe expands, and I get to travel alongside the 'Ultimate Imaginauts', I'm totally diggin' it.

[gorthon616]

You are right in that we never see an interaction between Thanos and Ronan, which could have been cool and added more to what I feel was implied. There was that exchange between Grulbur and Ronan where he is told that he ignored his father's orders by leaving males over ten as survivors after crushing a rebellion. Ronan replies that he never got the proper code and was unable to decipher it. I know this is me reading between the lines, but the manner in which Grulbur tells him that (and especially using the word "ignored", rather than "misunderstood") seems to imply that there is already some tension between father and son. Maybe the next time we see these two, it will begin with Thanos chastising his son for failing him 'again'. The father-son dynamic could have been further developed and you are right about that. I have agreed with you on other threads that Ultimate Fantastic Four is a really enjoyable read and our debating some of the nuances or details doesn't change that fact at all. On that point we are in total harmony. I'm looking forward to Ultimate Diablo. Everytime this Ultimate Universe expands, and I get to travel alongside the 'Ultimate Imaginauts', I'm totally diggin' it.

Yeah, there's definitely room for development there. Perhaps Carey meant the read to look for more implications than I have. On second thought, perhaps my criticism of Ultimate Ronan is due to me falling in love with the 616 Ronan in Annihilation, making me more critical than I normally would be. But you make alot of excellent points too. :)

Anyways, God War was a great arc. And I too am totally on board for Diablo. Can't wait.

[Clairaudient Freedom Soldier]

Thanks for the kind words. As to a favorite Seed 19 character... I am inclined to say Dreamcatcher. Very cool powerset, and her interaction with Ben is fun. She admittedly got more 'screen time' than the rest of her team, and as a result gave us more of a glimpse into her universe than the others. It's weird to think that she can 'become' a memory of a taste, a (presumably digital) code, can merge others' powers, etc. -- I mean her powers seem mostly only limited by her imagination, as she can become anything 'non-physical'. She had a couple of cool lines, one being "Oh yeah. I've got you wrapped up nice and warm. In love. In light. In lies." (when she had 'disguised' the rest of her team in NYC). Another great one is when she first engages Sue in battle: "No problem. If her fields are permeable to light, or ideas, or emotions-- they're permeable to me.". Threshold is also interesting, as the 'team field leader', but I still got to vote for Dreamcatcher.

Dreamcatcher was my favorite character too, and her ability to become any non-physical modality, or "shape", was definitely cool. Vykni's ability to instill inanimate objects with a sentient vitality was also interesting, and Tesseract's ability to fight on all levels of reality at the same time has many possibilities. I can't wait for Carey & Ferry to revisit the war between Halcyon and Acheron.

[Froggy]

This was a real cool issue. I loved the panel with TEsseract unfolding in diff levels of reality. soooo trippy. Vykni, Threshold, and Dreamcatcher had the coolest powers IMO

Also I loved the ending with reed making the cosmic cube

[Butch Mapa]

I'll disagree on whoever said it could have been shortened to 3-4 issues. I think 6 was just right for this one.

Between this, Annihilation, Planet Hulk, and UXM, its a great time to be a cosmic Marvel fan. UFF trumps them all with sophistication though. ;)

[loopdodgers]

I came onto UFF around President Thor, and I have to say that while Millar's arcs had some good qualities, I am in love with the epic, sci-fi feel that Carey has had with God War. It's definitely an arc I had to reread, but I think that just made me enjoy it more. And Carey certainly knows how to use super powers in comics.

[killerbass]

I spoke with Mike Carey at MegaCon this weekend...

Carey said that he did get some flack about all of the characters debuting at once in the God Wars arc. He then added it was because he had all of the toys to play with, he went full trottle in his first arc. (I told him that I thought it read well once you had all of the issues...)

According to Mr. Carey, the next arc is Diablo, which we all know Mark Brooks is drawing... Mark is somewhere in the second issue.

Meanwhile, the arc after that is Silver Surfer, which Pascual Ferry is working on. Carey said he's scripted up to issue 43.

I was very impressed with Carey, he seems like a nice guy...

--Tom