Ultimate Comics: Avengers, Vol. 1: Next Generation

Ultimate Comics: Avengers (Collected Editions)

by Mark Millar, Carlos Pacheco (Illustrator)

Guess who's back!! That's right, kids, MARK MILLAR (THE ULTIMATES, WOLVERINE, OLD MAN LOGAN) and superstar artist CARLOS PACHECO (AVENGERS FOREVER, X-MEN) blast into the Ultimate Universe for a mind-blowing, heart-pounding and gut-wrenching event of epic proportions! When a highly-classified secret threatens Captain America, only the newly returned Nick Fury has the tools to bring 'em in! PROJECT AVENGERS is a go!


Ultimate Avengers #1-6

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Superheroes, Comic Book, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

148 pages, Paperback

First published February 4, 2010

About the author

Mark Millar is the New York Times best-selling writer of Wanted, the Kick-Ass series, The Secret Service, Jupiter’s Legacy, Jupiter’s Circle, Nemesis, Superior, Super Crooks, American Jesus, MPH, Starlight, and Chrononauts. Wanted, Kick-Ass, Kick-Ass 2, and The Secret Service (as Kingsman: The Secret Service) have been adapted into feature films, and Nemesis, Superior, Starlight, War Heroes, Jupiter’s Legacy and Chrononauts are in development at major studios.

His DC Comics work includes the seminal Superman: Red Son, and at Marvel Comics he created The Ultimates – selected by Time magazine as the comic book of the decade, Wolverine: Old Man Logan, and Civil War – the industry’s biggest-selling superhero series in almost two decades.

Mark has been an Executive Producer on all his movie adaptations and is currently creative consultant to Fox Studios on their Marvel slate of movies.

Reviews

[Kemper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did Marvel really wait this long before introducing a version of the Red Skull to their Ultimate universe? Once again Millar puts a nasty and interesting twist on a familiar character by revising the origin story and unleashing a creepy and capable villain in the process. My only complaint is that the idea of Cap going rogue seemed kind of unnecessary, but the results were fun.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Re-Read 2014*
4.5 stars

Not sure how this happened, but I definitely like the book better this time around.
Not that I even realized it was a re-read until I went to write a review for it...
Maybe my tastes have changed over the years, and now I'm more interested in reading about amoral characters?
Whatever the reason, I loved it this time around!
You wanna know what's weird?
Doesn't matter, I'm going to tell you anyway.
I had an entirely different reaction to the things I didn't like 4 years ago.
Take Cap using the kindergartners as human shields, for example.
First time around I was (evidently) horrified. When I read it this time, my first thought was, Heh. Smart move, Old Man!
What's wrong with me?!
Apparently, I not only changed my view on the comic book, but I'm also turning into a horrible person.
Huh.
shrugs

*Original Review from 2010*
Rating: 3 stars

Honestly, I don't know about this one. Part of me really liked it, but another part of me just hated Millar's story line. Captain America and Hawkeye are about the only two characters in the story that I didn't totally hate, but that may just be because I haven't kept up with the Ultimates. Nah. I think it's because even the most iconic Marvel personality tends to be more than just a teensy bit scuzzy in the Ultimates universe. I absolutely loved the touch of scum that Millar gave everyone in Ultimates:Super-Human, but I think that the novelty of it is lost on me at this point.
Actually, Millar even managed to taint Captain America in this one. Throughout most of the story Cap was awesome. It was worth reading the whole thing just for the part where he gets taken into custody by the French agents. Ah, good times... Anyway, I do think Millar has a great grasp on what an extreme adversary Steve Rogers could be if he decided that he had been pushed too far. I just think he kinda lost his mind a little bit when he had Rogers use a classroom full of kindergartners as human shields. Really? Um, I thought that it was a tad out of character for Captain America, even in this universe.
I'm also still a little iffy on what the hell happened to turn Cap's son into such a psycho. Yes, he was raised on a military compound and tested to see how strong, fast, and smart he was...Oooook. I'm not saying it was a Leave It To Beaver childhood, but how do you parlay that into him gutting everyone on the military base, cutting the skin off of his face (Ewwwwww, by the way!), and turning into a crazy lunatic bent on world destruction? Did the Super Soldier serum make Cap's sperm all wonky or something? Eh, not really sure about that one. Again, maybe I'm missing some key bit of information due to my on-again off-again relationship with Ultimates. Maybe.
Ok. I'm not going to say that I'm done with the Ultimates, because I'm sure that I'll get interested in this universe again, but I will say that I'm in no hurry to visit these guys anytime soon.

[Daniel Clausen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is next level bonkers: a Captain America who curses and trolls the French, a War Machine who kills civilians, and a Nick Fury who goes the full Samuel Jackson, and more sex, rape, and torture than you can shake a stick at..oh, and I think there is an orgy of cannibalism sprinkled in for good measure.

This is not the Avengers you grew up with. Actually, it's closer to the kind of Avengers that might actually exist in the real world. None of them are very likeable, all of them are deeply flawed, and the comic doesn't even dare call them heroes. No, they're a Black Ops group. But that's what makes them so interesting. I like the idea of an Ultimate universe that can play around with these characters in different ways. It gives another understanding of who are heroes might be and points to the flaws in their mythos...and I like that. As long as it stays in that other universe.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Holy hell I forgot how much of a asshole Ultimate Captain America is. A true asshole but oh so fun.

Okay so what's happening after Ultimatium? One of the worst events ever? Well Nick Fury says it perfectly in the first page "What the fuck is this shit?" because really...it's crazy. So we have a Cap who has gone rogue. He's done listening to Shield or anyone after he finds out a secret Red Skull tells him. This time Red Skull has a far more interesting and dark past than before. He's also ruthless in his ways and decides to make everyone pay. So Fury creates the Avengers. A elite black ops team ready to face anyone in their way.

Good: Super fun and crazy and dumb but it makes it a fast paced fun reading experience. The fights are great, brutal as shit, as Mark usually writes them. I thought the reveal of the Red Skull was pretty fun too. The ending was fucked up but does lead to some interesting choices.

Bad: The over the top violence isn't for everyone. I especially thought the Red Skull murdering a child and having a wife murder her husband and then raped is a little disgusting even for me. I also can't seem to "like" anyone as everyone is kind of a asshole.

Overall fun and dumb, kind of Millar's way. It's not going to make you a fan of the Ultimates if didn't like them before, but I did, so this works. A 3 out of 5.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars. Here we find out Cap had an illegitimate son. We also find out who this Red Skull is. This prompts Nick Fury to assemble the Avengers, a black ops team to go after him. The book was decent. Cool fights, great artwork.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. My brother-in-law said that it fundamentally shifted how he saw Captain America and that's why I loved it. Millar really took the "Ultimate" shtick of shaking things up to heart and did some great things with these characters. For example: Tony Stark has a brother, Nerd Hulk is exactly that, and Red Skull...well!

[Holden Attradies · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first post-Ultimatum read in the ultimate universe, so I wasn't to sure what to expect. Honestly I was expecting utter crap, and this pleasantly surprised me.

Now, this wasn't any where's near as good as Ultimates 1 and 2, but I think very few things ever will but. It was most definitely WAY better than Ultimates 3. The artwork was stellar, and up to the high standards set by past Ultimate universe publications, and the story had a pretty solid flow to it. At first I felt like I wasn't getting to know much of anything about all of the new characters that were pretty suddenly introduced, but I felt by the end of the book I had learned a reasonable amount about all of them given how many were introduced and the length of the book.

There were a few things that seemed to internally contradict them selves and detract from the story. Unlike others I was okay with the Red Skull being a total sociopath that acted in seeming nonsensical and inhuman ways for no good reason, that seems to be the norm for a sociopath. But the speech he gave at the end about just wanting the cube to set the world right (from the view of his personal narrative) and have grown up with his mom and dad, it came off as him being too sincere and thus ruined being able to explain away his action as simply being that of a sociopath.

The second thing was the until now unmentioned older (and seemingly just as successful) Stark brother. It felt a little to obviously made up for this story.

I was blown away by the last few pages. I liked seeing Red wasp get her revenge/closure while Fury watched, which seemed very his style. And the next page, where Stark confronts Fury about this all being a plot of his to regain his old position was insanely well played. That next panel where it seems Fury is going to deny it, which I at least thought was the truth, until you read the last panel where WAM he comes right out and admits yes, he planned it all. What an unbelievable, yet consistent, prick.

Finally, I was left REALLY wanting to know what was up with the Spider-Man in the the tube. I assume he's a stray/left over Parker Clone. Is he one we've met? Is he one we never saw? I was definitely left wanting to see much more of him.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid, fast-paced story, crisp dialogue. Great action art (with a few rushed panels), and unrelenting characters. I really enjoy reading these, but I end up feeling a little dirty afterwards. Maybe it's my fear that Millar leans a little too Tea Party, and his books are just thinly-veiled propaganda?

[Lost Planet Airman · Rating 3 out of 5]

We find out who the Ultimate Universe Red Skull is -- and i don't like it much!
But I did enjoy the story, warts and all.

[Michael J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read this story a few times since the original publication in 2009, every time in the single issues. What keeps bringing me back is the dynamic art and incredible fight scenes. Plus, Mark Millar's story is a twisted re-imagining of the Avengers that I appreciate best because it makes them human and flawed (and sometimes scheming).
The storyline focuses mainly on three characters: Hawkeye, Captain America, and the Red Skull. What if Hawkeye was a gunslinger instead of an archer? What if Captain America went rogue? How hard would it be to take him down?
The Red Skull is on a mission to obtain the Cosmic Cube. During a helicopter battle, he whispers a shocking secret into Cap's ear, who goes rogue after learning it. I wondered if Captain America would really react in such an extreme way, and thought it was a bit of a stretch by Millar. By after re-reading this I realize that Cap's real intention is to stop the Skull from being corrupted by all that power, bending reality to his will. Cap realizes that S.H.I.E.L.D. will do anything to stop the Red Skull, including his death. After what he has learned, Cap won't let that happen.
The ending is a bit shocking, but understandable in this twisted alternate Ultimate universe that Millar has set up. I'd even read this again.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the days when Mark Millar used to try to tell a story instead of trying to see how much he could shock people. He avoids much of his typical shock tactics here, and give us what is probably the last, or next to last good Marvel Ultimate universe story. Who knew Captain America had a son, and that son would become the Red Skull? That Nick Fury (drawn to resemble Samuel L. Jackson) would be a bigger bastard than the Skull? There is a large violence quotient, but most of it works within the context of the story. Oh, and we get to meet Tony Stark's older, smarter, snarkier, and amoral brother Gregory and Fury's ex-wife.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark Millar doesn't write subtle stories, but his stories never think they're smarter than they really are. So, this book isn't brilliant but it's fun, in a dumb way, perhaps, but fun.

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mark Millar takes another crack at the Ultimates after the melodramatic near-apocalypse of Ultimatum. The results are unfortunately closer to the near-parody of "Ultimates 3" than the relative success of Millar's earlier storylines.

This volume sees Captain America facing off against the Ultimate Red Skull, who's revealed to have a hidden link to Cap himself. America's hero goes rogue after this revelation and eventually has to face off against a new, and amoral, black-0ps squad organized by a disgraced Nick Fury, who sees this as a way back into the world of spycraft.

A Paris-based showdown with Cap is decent enough, if pretty "extreme," but the story veers into the ridiculous with the final face-off with the Red Skull. All understandable motivations fall off the page; instead, we get some absurd showboating and a prolonged set-up for a jet-based skewering that Larry Hama did better three decades ago. If you're interested in reading the Ultimate universe to completion, this is a volume where I'd recommend the Wikipedia summary instead.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good but very dark for a Marvel book. This is set after Ultimatum when much of the ultimate universe has been wiped out, so it's a reboot of sorts. Captain America finds out he has a super powered son who is now the Red Skull, who is like the most evil human being ever. (He throws a baby out of a window, and that's one of his better days.) So Cap takes it upon himself to take the Skull down, even though the Avengers have an agenda of their own and attempt to stop him.

Like I said earlier, a little dark, but pretty good overall.

[Drew · Rating 2 out of 5]

You'll never read more terrible dialogue. That being said, Pacheco's art is good and there are some interesting ideas.

[Alasondro Alegré · Rating 3 out of 5]

★★★½

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marvel did the smart thing by getting Millar back on an Ultimate title, if only to win back the readers it lost because of The Ultimates 3: Who Killed the Scarlet Witch? and Ultimatum. These two storylines were okay for me (I've reviewed them as well), but by all accounts they were a big letdown to the readership in general.

I won't go over the plot particulars since other reviewers (collectively) have more than sufficiently covered this aspect of the book.

Some people don't like Millar's stories or dialogue, and that's fine, but at this point in his career one should know what to expect from him and not be surprised or upset when he delivers exactly what he is known for. Millar is Millar. He's figured out what works for him and he's not going to change. Basically, you know what you're getting into. And so, considering this, underneath the traditional Millar shtick of people calling each other "moron" or "idiot" and shock tactics (like throwing a baby out of a window), for sheer entertainment value this gets top marks.

This story also marks the third time (by my count) that Millar uses the [now old] technique of flying a plane at/through the bad guy (first one was in The Authority, Vol. 4: Transfer of Power, second one was in Wolverine: Enemy of the State). While still fun to watch, part of me wonders if maybe Millar is running out of ideas. So be on the look-out for another plane-through-bad-guy, as this story arc is already a few years old. ** Also noteworthy: in Nemesis is the highkacking of Air Force One and it being flown/crashed in a petrol tanker.

Also, does anyone else think Gregory Stark is a dead ringer for Daniel Craig?

[Ian · Rating 2 out of 5]

After the events of 'Ultimatum' the Red Skull steals a weapon of terrifying power from the Fantastic Four and subsequently Captain America goes rogue. Called back out of the shadows, Nick Fury puts together a black ops team, the Avengers, to solve both problems.

Somehow I always forget how mean-spirited the Ultimate universe is. It likes to pretend that it's Marvel Comics for adults, but in reality it's more Marvel Comics for sadists. The Ultimate universe's chief mean-spirited sadist Mark Millar was therefore brought on board to launch this new Avengers series. So, if what you want from your Avengers stories is rape, torture and a misogynistic xenophobic Captain America, then this is the book for you.

Now, I'm far from averse from brutal stories but here it seems to be violent for the sake of being violent or sweary for the sake of being sweary. The heightened brutality doesn't really add anything to the story itself.
It could easily have been used to give the Red Skull some genuine darkness as a villain, since much of the truly horrific stuff is his handiwork, but in the final confrontation Millar decides to play the Skull's megalomania for laughs, totally undercutting what could've been a truly chilling antagonist.

All that said, there are hints of things I liked here.
For one, I was intrigued by the idea of the Ultimates being the PR-friendly super-team, whilst Fury creates the Avengers specifically to do the dirty jobs. But honestly, if you want a dark version of the Avengers, you're far better off reading Brian Michael Bendis' 'Dark Avengers' set in the mainstream Marvel continuity.

* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.com *

[Taleisin (Tales of a Bookwyrm) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was not really impressed with this incarnation.

First the good, I like the premise of the Red Skull coming back, although I thought it was a bit of a stretch to make him Captain America's son.

Aside from Nick Fury, Hawkeye (more on him later) and Captain America, these are all copies. Tony Stark's older brother created them. They also add in pieces of the Fantastic Four and a VERY twisted Spiderman. This must be the "next generation" the title refers to. I'll stick with the originals. Since when did Black Widow becomes a job description?

Now on to Hawkeye, one of my favourite comic book characters EVER. I hate this incarnation. What is with the costume? The facemask makes him look like some weird science fiction pirate. Also, Hawkeye is SUPPOSED to be an archer, that's part of what makes him so cool. To take that away and give him guns and he's just another vigilante.

[J.M. Giovine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mark Millar is back with his ‘Ultimate’ version of the ‘Avengers’, ‘the Ultimates’, this time continuing their story after the catastrophic events of ‘Ultimatum’. Now, the survivor heroes of the wave that decimated New York City have been gathered by Carol Danvers in order to operate under the watchful bureaucratic eyes of S.H.I.E.L.D., but a new threat has appeared, a brand-new foe working alongside S.H.I.E.L.D.s rival organization, A.I.M., and capable of going toe to toe against Captain America himself. Introducing the ‘Ultimate’ version of ‘Red Skull’. Unfortunately, turns out this ‘Red Skull’ is the illegitimate son of Steve Rogers, and Gail Richards, his former fiancée from back in 1945. Cap now is facing the reality in which Nick Fury lied to him, so he’ll quit in order to find his son before the organization that hid him does, so a race against time will start for Cap, Nick Fury, Hawkeye, and the people in danger from ‘Red Skull’s’ plans of twisting and shifting reality, with the use of one of Reed Richards most important inventions: The Cosmic Cube.
I won’t lie, I missed Millar after his departure from ‘The Ultimates’ series. Ultimates 1 and 2 were such innovative and refreshing concepts in the Marvel library, that once Jeph Loeb arrived with his ‘Ultimates 3’ and ‘Ultimatum’, something of value was missing. Plot, and quality were replaced by morbidity and crudeness, placing violence and twisting scenery over narrative and purpose. So, Millar back means at least the story was heading somewhere interesting, with the tone given to his first series. Alongside Millar comes the iconic (and now gone) Carlos Pacheco, who I believed had his first incursion in the ‘Ultimate Universe’ with this series. Pacheco is no new face in the ‘Marvel Comics’ collection, with great participations as the interiors’ pencillers in several memorable titles, his style offers not that of a convoluted collection of realistic designs and details (unlike Bryan Hitch, for example), but he isn’t as cartoonish or excessively aggressive, like Joe Madureira, and David Finch. All these great artists on their own regard, but what I’m trying to say is that Pachecho arrives as this simpler middle ground for what the art in ‘The Ultimates’ has been in the previous series. His art feels like a breath of fresh air, and in many respects, it works as an engaging point for the reader to keep an interest, since it doesn’t interfere with the script. In all honesty, this isn’t Pacheco’s best work, but it’s a competent one, and it looks good enough for the kind of story presented in this volume.
Now, the story isn’t particularly revolutionary, nor as impactful as Millar’s first series. In fact, I’d say it doesn’t even look like something he’d write after ‘Ultimates 2’. Not that it is bad, but it does take a course of action that I don’t really see as a “planned” story. The idea of ‘Red Skull’ being the illegitimate son of ‘Captain America’ is a strongly controversial one, and anyone attempting to exploit it in a series might be playing with fire, so I guess Millar is the better option to at least have some twisted fun with it, and in all fairness, I think the concept worked just fine in here. ‘Red Skull’ is the complete opposite of Cap America, and their father-son relationship adds to the oddity and crudeness of it. The things that this villain does are just straight up cruel and careless, and the most interesting aspect of him is that he isn’t a Nazi. In fact, the resolution of that character is kind of tragic and deeper than I expected. Of course, it doesn’t help that his confrontation against Cap isn’t really that climatic, but the motivations of this villain are one of those few rare cases in which, they came clear at the very end, and they sort of justify the character’s villainous elements, although not his actions.
The main highlight from this series must be the new line-up of ‘The Ultimates’. War Machine, Red Wasp, Black Widow, Nerd Hulk (a clone from Banner), and Hawkeye, including Gregory Stark, who designed the ‘War Machine’ armor as the superior version of the ‘Iron Man’ armor, by his brother Tony. All of them interesting additions to the team that, unfortunately, aren’t developed enough to create a deeper interest, special attention to Gregory Stark, who is simply the “brother of Tony”, but does nothing more to create an appeal towards his own character. Seeing Hawkeye as the new leader (and apparently only original member left) was quite interesting, and his character isn’t that ruthless, or reckless, compared to ‘Ultimates 3’, in here he seems to have grown out of the tragedy relating to his family, and he plays as a more functional character.
As for the whole “Cap goes rogue”, the trait is starting to grow tiresome in these series. It was genuinely shocking to see it in ‘Ultimates 2’, but here it feels more like Millar is rehashing his own ideas rather than adding new ones.
This is far from being the best, but after the disastrous take on the series by Loeb, it is relieving to see Millar taking the lead on the series he came up with in the first place, giving us his own tone, and style once more. If you are a fan of the first ‘Ultimates’ series, then this might come as a gratifying reading, since parts of it felt closer to the original style given to those titles. Pacheco’s art isn’t as attractive or as captivating as Hitch’s, but it does the job well enough, considering the kind of story it offers. A pretty regular take on the ‘Ultimates’ that could either come out as controversial, or just competent and entertaining enough.

[Noah Soudrette · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mark Millar's original two Ultimates series are some of my favorite all time comics. This is not them. Not even close. Ever since Marvel manded the ultimate reigns over to Jeff Loeb, the whole things been a cluster fuck. While the story here isn't terrible and the characters are mildly amusing, I would avoid this. especially if you're a fan of the original Ultimates. The Ultimate universe is dead.

[Jamil · Rating 2 out of 5]

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one is a real shame.

Ever since I began reading comic books in 2019, I’ve had a fascination with and love for Mark Millar’s Ultimates.
It was my favourite Avengers book for years and still is among my favourites. I loved his characterization of “good soldier instead of good man” Captain America, Iron Man but he’s just a bored dying billionaire seeking thrills, Hawkeye but actually cool and interesting this time & Thor but an environmentalist and potentially schizophrenic.

I found them so incredibly interesting and they’re a major reason why I keep giving the 1610 Ultimate Universe a chance, much to my frequent disappointment. And oh boy this has got to be the most concentrated and intense disappointment.
As said before I love Mark Millar’s Ultimates, and much of his other stuff. I genuinely think he is one of the most creative and inventive writers of his generation. Just look up how many of his projects you’re aware of. It’s more than you think. But he only produces hits like that when he pulls his head out of his ass.

As I’ve read more and more of him, I see that he does the crass and dark and needlessly mean character stuff more and more and it gets old really quick. His old Ultimates had very interesting characterization to make up for the immaturity and fake edge that deters some readers. Ultimate Comics Avengers is sadly without any of the goodness previously seen. Despite what the cover will have you believe, Iron Man is not even a side character in this book. Captain America is present (and mean as ever (which is a positive for me) but he’s denied any of the depth he’s enjoyed in better books. Hawkeye & Fury are the only characters that I have no issues with. They’re both as advertised and written very well. But that’s all I can say for positives about the cast.

I have never seen a more uninteresting & and forgettable Avengers team.
Gone is Iron Man, Thor & Hulk. In their place is:
- Nerd Hulk: He is the blueprint for MCU Hulk. No interesting characterization and no action appeal. There’s no hulk smashes and no history or really anything worth mentioning.
- Red Wasp: Couldn’t tell you a single thing about her. Left genuinely no impression
- Tony Stark’s brother: He wears white and is blonde and is supposedly Tony Stark with no morals. Much like Cap in this volume, this is a character with an interesting premise and zero depth. Nothing is done with this concept.
- A Spider-Man & Professor Xavier clone or love child from the future (I’m genuinely not sure as it was not explained and it left no impression) who can tell the future or is psychic or something
- The new Black Widow isn’t terrible but has to share a stage with the bloated and uninteresting team
- War Machine also isn’t terrible and but that’s mainly because Carlos Pacheco (RIP) does an incredible job on art duties. I genuinely don’t think War Machine has ever looked better.

Beyond a great Red Skull design (I think future adaptations should pull from Carlos Pacheco’s designs here), the character has a terrible and nonsensical backstory with nonexistent motivation.

There is genuinely nothing to this book.

I only purchased this book because I had purchased (not read) Vol. 3 & 4 years ago by accident. Getting tired of seeing them collect dust, my ADHD said fuck it and I decided to start the series.

All in all, the cast is terrible, the art is fantastic, the writing is boring and uninteresting.

I hope this series gets better but so far, this is one of the most bland and uninteresting comics I’ve read this year. I hope Millar improves, he has the potential to do incredible things.

[Scotty Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Avengers of the Ultimate Universe finally assemble after Captain America goes rogue to find out more about the Red Skull. Ultimate Avengers The Next Generation presents a new and refreshing take on the Avengers and justifies having an Avengers in the Ultimate Universe when the Ultimates fill that void. Combine that with a compelling story, characters cast, and magnificent artwork and you're in for a great story.

Story
Ultimate Avengers The Next Generation is about how the Avengers are introduced into the Ultimate Universe. Captain America meats the Red Skull while foiling an AIM heist. The Red Skull turns out to be his son, not Nazi commander, Johan Schmidt like it is in the mainstream Marvel Universe. The discovery of having a son causes Captain America to go rogue to find answers about what Nick Furr and SHIELD were hiding from him. Nick Fury and SHIELD try to hunt down the renegade Captain America and stop the Red Skull from using the Cosmic Cube to create another Ultimatum. The Ultimate Avengers are NOT the same thing as the Ultimates, the Avengers are War Machine, Nerd Hulk, Red Wasp, Black Widow II, Spider, Greg Stark, and Hawkeye. Though the Avengers are assembled for the same reason Fury gathered the Ultimates as peacekeepers to maintain the chaos at a low they're very different. The Avengers operate in a more covert manner and beneath the radar. The Ultimates are more in front of the cameras doing the hero work and gaining good publicity. I like its fresh take on the newly introduced characters to the Ultimate Universe, it adds more layers of depth to the Ultimate Universe.

Characters
Mark Miller's ability to create well rounded and developed characters is placed on full display in Ultimate Avengers. Captain America is the patriotic boy scout who is always looking to stop evil. However, when he learns that he has a son he questions authority and goes rogue to learn what Nick Fury and SHIELD were hiding from him. This is what makes Captain America such a good character, is that he's a rebel instead of a blind patriot. Red Skull is still a terrorist, but he's not a Nazi. Instead, he's an assassin turned global terrorist trying to send a message to the powerful and joins AIM so he can steal the blueprints for the Cosmic Cube from the Fantastic Four. He killed President Kennedy and carried out war crimes in Vietnam. That being said he does have compelling motives behind his actions. Red Skull is driven to villainy because he was raised in a military compound and it drove him insane. Red Skull cuts off his own face so he wouldn't have the face his father gave him. His goal in recreating the Cosmic Cube was to rewrite history so that Captain America wouldn't go missing in action during World War II. That would mean that he'd be raised like a normal child with a father and mother. Ultimately, this original take on the Red Skull is an interesting and tragic take on the iconic villain. Nick Fury is the secretive government official who doesn't want people questioning his judgment or authority. He assembled the Avengers to stop Captain America from learning the truth about the Red Skull before having them stop the Red Skull. Now that's some John Brennan level secretiveness. Hawkeye is in a bit of a dilemma. He believes that Cap's motives are justified and empathizes with Cap. While at the same time he understands that Captain America's judgment is impaired and it could have dangerous consequences. Also, this Hawkeye uses guns. The Avengers are a pretty straight forward group of heroes. The most developed characters in the Avengers line up are Gregory Stark and Red Wasp. Greg Stark is Iron Man's older brother who wants nothing to do with Iron Man. He sees Tony Stark as an embarrassment and views himself as the rightful owner of Stark Industries. Iron Man makes two cameo appearances, one of them is him at a strip joint getting wasted. Which pretty much sums up why Greg is disappointed with Tony. The other Iron Man cameo is just Iron Man flying by a SHIELD plane. Red Wasp was married to a Georgian activist the Red Skull was sent to kill. When the Red Skull captured Petra Laskov, Red Wasp, and Nikoli Laskov, her husband, he forces her to kill Nikoli or he'll kill her baby. She kills her husband and he kills her baby anyway. So she has since wanted revenge on the Red Skull for that encounter. Which makes her purpose in the story all the more compelling. Monica Cheng is the new Black Widow and has no problems adapting that name because the Ultimate Natasha Romanov betrayed the Ultimates and killed Hawkeye's family. She has a lot of the same skills as Natasha but is a more trustworthy character than Natasha. War Machine is a colonel who uses an advanced Iron Man armor to carry out military operations. What makes the Ultimate War Machine armor cool is that it is a Transformer and is it has an arsenal at his disposal. Nerd Hulk is a clone of the Hulk created by Gregory Stark. He has the Hulk's body with Bruce Banner's brain. Anyone would expect that an intelligent Hulk would mean that the Hulk would smash stuff and not talk in third-person. However, Nerd Hulk actually prefers not to use violence and can be a bit of a chicken at times. When the Avengers were apprehending Captain America, Nerd Hulk threw Cap. to the ground and told him to stand still so he wouldn't have to fight Cap further. When the Avengers fought Red Skull, Nerd Hulk mostly stayed on the sidelines until Black Widow II convinced him to do something since he had the Hulk's body. Ultimately, Nerd Hulk serves as the comic relief because you wouldn't expect a competent Hulk to be a coward, but he is. Spider is the least developed of the crew, and that's mostly because he is in one panel. He's established as being a disturbed character who is locked in a tube. He doesn't really serve that much of a purpose in this Ultimate Avengers graphic novel, he plays a bigger role in later installments. Point being Mark Miller assembled a great cast of characters in this Avengers story.

Artwork
Ultimate Avengers hs some of the finest artwork I've seen in a graphic novel. Carlos Pacheco does a great job of giving good looks to good characters. Greg Stark looks like a blond version of Tony Stark making it obvious that they're related. He is also shown wearing all-white suits. Nick Fury looks like Samuel L. Jackson and Steve Rogers looks like Chris Evens. Captain America looks like a stars-bangled soldier wrapped in the American flag. The Ultimate Red Skull look was great. Even though he is not a Nazi or a German national, there are still some German symbols as part of his look. He has an iron cross tattooed on his forehead, it doesn't get more German than that. I assume that was done to show how far Red Skull went to repudiate his father. War Machine looks awesome. Instead of looking like Iron Man in a black and grey armor with a machine gun turret on one shoulder and a rocket turret on the other; he instead dawns a hulking mech-like armor that can summon turrets and rocket launchers from his wrists. Which is pretty fricking awesome. Nerd Hulk wears mostly suit and ties with glasses, which creates the impression that he's smarter than the actually Hulk. He's also green, which is weird because the Ultimate Hulk is normally grey. Red Wasp looks just like the Wasp, except she has a red garnet and a stinger helmet. Black Widow just looks the first Black Widow, except she wears a mask. Spider wears a Spider-Man costume. The Ulitmate Hawkeye wears a purple militaristic outfit with a mask that conceals everything except his hair. It all has a target on the mask. Point being the characters look amazing.

On that note, I will say Ultimate Avengers the Next Generation was a blast to read. With a compelling story and cast of characters, this is ultimately one of the best Avengers stories I've read. Couple that with amazing artwork and you have a wonderful story. This is a must-read for any Avengers fans.

[Christian · Rating 1 out of 5]

- Ugly and mean spirited; I guess Millar's back. I had built up some good will after Ultimates 2, but it's pretty much gone after this trash

- Do comic book writers think faces are decorative? They're, uh, they're not...

- I'm pretty sure you can survive for like 30 seconds without a face. Even if he miraculously survived the blood loss, infections, and shock, he would still be knocked out by a light breeze

- Ultimate Captain America, the violent bully, uses small children as a human shield. He's very proud of this. We're supposed to be impressed, I guess.

- Red Skull forces a woman to murder her husband with scissors, then throws her baby out a window and gang rapes her. Keep this in mind at the end when Millar tries to portray him as a poor lost boy who just wants his parents back together

- By the way, if this is fine in a marvel comic then what is Marvel Max even for? Is it just nudity and swearing? That seems like a very juvenile idea of what adult content is.

- Wow, Millar was really proud of that dumb France joke. It's just embarrassing at this point

- and all the jokes about Hawkeye's dead family? Seriously, what is going on with you, Millar?

- And then after all that he tries to be touching. IT DOES NOT WORK

- Nick Fury is basically a super villain at this point. His death toll must be in the hundreds from this book alone

- Apparently Fury set this all in motion to get his job back at SHIELD. So, let's list his achievements: destroyed half of paris, let the skull get the cosmic cube, um... maybe you can give him credit for Cap killing Skull, but that feels like a stretch.

- Jeph Loeb's Ultimates run was awful, but the weird thing about it was how many of the things people hated were present in the Millar books they praised (such as the weird incestuous Maximof twins, or all the mean-spirited dead family jokes). Loeb's running with what Millar setup. Granted, very badly, but it's still at least partially Millar's fault.

- YOU CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT A FACE

[Vanessa Rincon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe it was a mistake to start reading this one as my first comic on the Ultimate Universe. Maybe that was why I didn't enjoy it as much as I wanted. But, normally, I really like reading this kind of adventures, plus, Mark Millar is such a good writer that I honestly thought I was going to love it.

But the truth is that I've found it overly-violent, the characters are ALL pretty awful with each other, and part of the main problem is so... dumb. Plus, I still don't know if Steve Rogers was an asshole because he was suffering (and stupid, let's be honest, all of his strategic logic is simply not there) or he's just an asshole all the time. And I LOVE Captain America; for me to say that I didn't like Steve... Well. Yeah. That's enough of a statement. And can we please kill the Starks? No, seriously, I can't stand Gregory, and Tony is so, so apathetic here.

I think the story as a whole wasn't that bad. But the details, the hows and whys didn't work for me. And that's ok. Maybe they'll work for someone else. Maybe someone else will find Cap's sense of humor here funny or is going to find relatable the fact that none of the characters try to be a team. Anyway, I don't think I'm going to read the rest of this universe, but I'm glad to know about it. The art is amazing, though.

[Roberto Diaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The cinism in Millar's view of the Marvel universe in its Ultimate incarnation is present everywhere in this book. His version of Red Skull is a sadist menace with a dark and troubled past, and his rendition Avengers is a mean team full of living weapons. Carlos Pachecos art displays the frenetic pace in a beautiful way with a big and violent world.

Event if you dont like or havent read ULTIMATUM, this is a good jumping on point in the short last days of the Ultimate line.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A different universe for the Avengers,where Steve Rogers had a son who became the Red Skull.The rest of the heroes also don't have clean morals and motivations.

Tony Stark has an older brother,who is an @$$hole with no regards for the wellbeing of other people.

Good story and drawings.👍

[Ian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm back to not trusting Millar. After progress toward more intellectual character studies, this arc devolved into the macho banality I've been so critical of in past reads. I like that the Ultimate Universe is continuing to bring in classic characters with new twists, but the handling is just too bro-ish for me.

[GooglyEye Superman · Rating 1 out of 5]

In this comic, war crimes by the United States of America are acknowledged, normalized and endorsed. War crime committers are humanized, by showing them defeat WORSE war crime committers.

Also, Captain America took some kindergartners hostage to not be captured by men with guns.

I'm so sad Yu's beautiful art got wasted on this garbage.