Ultimate X-Men #19 - Review and Spoilers!

[Hi-Fi]

There are only 20 mutants still active in the US, apparently. Thery are given their own independent land to live in. They'll be treated as illegals if they decide to cross the borders. Some of them aren't happy with the new deal, others want to make the best of it. Regardless, they are all forced to work together if they want to survive. There's a vote to decide who'll lead. There's a present from Fury to Kitty. There's an update on Rogue's situation. There's a possibility of a coup being orchestrated. There's Magma lightning the night on fire. And there's Karen Grant. Oh yeah, there's Karen Grant.

The remaining mutants are:

Kitty
Jimmy
Iceman
Rogue
Storm
Mach 2
Psylocke
Warpath
Zero (who plays a big and interesting part)
Magma
Shola
Armor
Blackheat (an interesting new character with the power of plant manipulation)
Micromax
Seth (who I think is that tech kid/Black Box from a few issues back)

and a few others who remain unnamed.



Perhaps my favorite issue from Wood's run, and that's saying a LOT. Things feel so real... the drama, the hard time, the emotions, the bittersweetness. The characters motivations make sense, everything works. We feel for these people. We want them to succeed (and, particularly, for Nomi to NOT. What a great foil to Kitty Wood has created).

Just a couple of minor issues: Storm seems a bit... toned down. I'm cool with her taking orders but I feel like she should be more vocal than what we got here. Also, didn't Psylocke die? Probably not Wood's fault, but the editors mistake. Still, I hope there's time to throw in an explanation for her presence.

Art is solid.

This is an amazing book. Highly recommended!

10/10

[Home made ectoplasm]

Trade waiting but sounds great!

[sage6paths]

Ultimate Utopia! Lmao that is awesome and ironic. Also is Farbird a new creation or is there one in the 616? Also Jean Grey!

[5cents]

wow there are only 20 mutants left. 616 mutants should feel lucky. Maybe Psylocke isn't really Psylocke at all. Since Jean is doing double duty I wonder what she appears to be doing with Fury?

[emgeo]

Incredible issue. My LCS owner looked over my shoulder at the last page with a big 'wha?!?!'.
The divisions are already running deep and make the outcome that much harder to guess the fallout of. I love the 'new mutants' and the prospect of people being uncertain about the exact powers or total extent of the powers of their fellow mutants makes for an element of suspense and surprise not common in the 616 X-verse. The environment itself is a character in the story and significant plot line, another refreshing remainder of what's possible in an X book.

Brian Wood in 8 issues of work has just pulled off an amazing re-imagining of what the Ultimate X community could be.

[StepsOntheMoon]

I can't tell if Karen Grant/Jean Grey is a future antagonist or ally. Why is she still "Karen Grant?" Where are the other mutants that were with her (like Firestar?)
ONLY 20 KNOWN MUTANTS ACTIVE IN THE US?! That's terrifying.

[sage6paths]

I can't tell if Karen Grant/Jean Grey is a future antagonist or ally. Why is she still "Karen Grant?" Where are the other mutants that were with her (like Firestar?)
ONLY 20 KNOWN MUTANTS ACTIVE IN THE US?! That's terrifying.

I think Jean Grey is going to be a future antagonist. She is against Nick Fury and Nick Fury is helping Kitty. I'm sure we will see Ultimate X sometime in the future.

Also I doubt QQ took the cure. I'm sure he has something planned.

[taylor51]

Wood continues to knock it out of the park. Of particular note is how satisfying each individual issue is. Waiting for All New X-Men's next issue had been killing me, and right after I read today's? Totally killing me to have to wait till two weeks week, and I LOVED this week's issue (Bendis is gonna have a great run over there I think).

But anyway, Wood brings the heat every issue, and you're definitely left excited for what's to come, but the way he lays his hooks for next issue down still leaves everything feeling resolved by the time things are done. Wood's not giving us part one of a six issue written-for-trade story, he's long plotting an epic one issue at a time and it's GREAT. I'm perfectly content to read this book monthly, whereas I usually long to trade wait. Top of his game, I'd say.

[StepsOntheMoon]

Reservation X definitely looks like it's going to be amazing. I'm also curious where Ultimate Quicksilver and co are, I feel like if there are only 20 mutants left, he'd have SOMETHING to say. I know B Wood can't tackle ALL of that in the moment without going off on tangents, but whenever those plot threads re-emerge in ten, twenty issues, I think that will be really interesting.

[Jack Uncanny]

Incredible issue. For me this is the Marvel book right now. Does anyone want to guess who are the five mutants we do not know about yet?

[Warren Worthington III]

Any word on Colossus, Havok or Northstar?

[sage6paths]

Incredible issue. For me this is the Marvel book right now. Does anyone want to guess who are the five mutants we do not know about yet?

There is the red-hair girl.
The black-hair guy that looks like namor.
And the guy that looks like Leech.

[Hi-Fi]

Any word on Colossus, Havok or Northstar?

No. But Northstar is dead, right?

Is Colossus the only remaining gay mutant? That's kinda sad.

[chakal]

Blackheath is not a new character. In 616 universe he used to be known as Plantman. He was retconned into being mutant in Ultimate Universe.

The issue was super-awesome. Wood is a great writer. He prooved himself with adjectiveless X-men, and now he's doing even better work. The nods to decimation and utopia are cool idea.


Wonder if we get ultimate avx too?

[sage6paths]

Also there are still the mutants in Tian.
Jean Grey and Ultimate X and the runaways.