ULTIMATE X-MEN #14 REVIEW

[Brian Wilkinson]

<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/ultxmen14.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/ultxmen14t.jpg" align=left alt="Ultimate X-Men #14"></a>Reviewer: Brian E. Wilkinson, bewilkinson@yahoo.ca
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Wild Card

The Ultimate version of Gambit concludes his explosive debut as the search for the young girl in his care comes to an end!

Written by: Chuck Austen
Art by: Essad Ribic
Inked by: Jason Gorder Livesay
Cover Art by: Adam Kubert
Lettered by: Sharpefront
Colored by: J.D. Smith
Assistant Editor: Pete Franco
Editor: Mark Powers
Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas

An incredible effort is made here by writer Chuck Austen and artist Essad Ribic to make this two-issue fill-in as memorable as anything that can be done by the regular creative team of Mark Millar and Adam Kubert. In fact, so strong was Austen’s offering for this series that Marvel editorial had a bit of a no-brainer choice for Joe Casey’s replacement on Uncanny X-Men come issue #410 and I must say that I agree. The writing is top-notch with all the characterizations, action, and emotions that X-Fans have come to expect from their favorite comic soap opera. If for some bizarre reason you happen to disagree, then at least the series is back on a regular publishing schedule which should please you.

Austen’s Gambit literally leaps off the page both in terms of characterization and future potential as his search for the young girl who fell under his care last issue comes to an explosive end. While last issue gave readers insight into Gambit’s character (including his caring nature, his mutant abilities, and how he earns his living) this issue was all about kicking butt and taking names. If it weren’t for how kind Gambit had been in the previous issue, I would be feeling a lot more wary as to his true nature and potential involvement in the book for future plotlines. The bulk of this issue sees Gambit moving from one level of scum to another in search of the elusive killer/corrupt cop, Hammerhead.

The only question I had in regards to this issue was that Gambit had little to no lead in beginning his search for the young girl. I suppose that living on the street one has more knowledge of lower-level thugs so in order to more enjoy this issue I’ll just assume that Gambit was really lucky. After breaking up the card game Gambit moves on to bigger fish, namely that of the long-time regular Marvel Universe Spider-Man foe, Silvermane (who to my knowledge had yet to appear in the Ultimate Universe. Leaving a scarred Silvermane and destroyed office in his wake, Gambit prepares for his final showdown.

I am often surprised by the brutal nature of Ultimate X-Men. Each issue leaves me breathless in terms of quality of writing and art, but also because of the events that transpire. Usually there are several events that leave me wide-eyed because of the level of violence that is used. It was my understanding that the Ultimate line was primarily introduced to try and gain a new readership and in particular from younger age groups. I’m not complaining about the level of violence used here as in the context of the story it seems necessary and is rarely gratuitous, but it still is surprising. Take the way Gambit and Hammerhead’s fight is resolved. Though some might feel necessary, dramatic, and exciting, I couldn’t help but feel a small amount of shock. If Gambit is willing to resort to this level of violence (and keep in mind he is only a teenager at this point in the series) it makes me wonder what future stories would necessitate him doing.


Great mystery moment of the issue: Hammerhead mentioning that Gambit was left alive because Silvermane owed a favour to Nathaniel Essex. For all the astute X-Fans out there, this is the real name of Mr. Sinister… long time X-Men villain and a teaser for an eventual appearance in the series. You’ve got to both love and hate Austen for teasing fans like that as Sinister won’t appear for a minimum of six months at the least. Oh well, if I have to wait ten months for The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers I guess I can wait six and hope for a Mr. Sinister appearance.

Bottom line (at least for Gambit) is that there is the life (or possible death) of a little girl on the line. Despite the fact that he has only known her for a day, Gambit seems to have a clear idea of what is right and wrong. Since the young girl (whose name is never revealed) is unable to defend herself, it falls on Gambit’s shoulders to try and protect her. Save her he does, but at a terrible cost to himself. Gambit is now in a really, really bad position. He has made enemies at ever level of crime in the city, he has killed a cop (corrupt though he may be), and caused untold amounts of damage to the places he visited. As much as he may want to, he can’t keep the girl with him.

Austen really pulls on the heartstrings on the last few pages of this issue. An incredibly beautiful and touching scene sees the young girl and Remy parting ways in such a way that makes one think of a fairytale. As Remy disappears into the night and the young girl left with those that might be able to give her a better life, he quells her fears that he does not care with a simple card trick that dissolves into a heart. Though this is likely the last time we will see Gambit in these pages for some time to come I think this issue makes a strong case for fans to start a campaign for his return.

A nice touch included in this issue by Austen was the appearance of Xavier and Storm as they attempt to bring Gambit into the X-Men fold. Misunderstanding their intentions due to the frequent harassment he has previously received by strangers he brushes them off. At least Xavier managed to give him his card…. here’s hoping Gambit reads the card rather than using it to blow something up. This scene rather nicely sets up the possibility for a return appearance of Gambit while conveniently not promising anything to eager readers. Also, given that the name of this book is Ultimate X-Men it’s nice to see the X-Men actually showing up… even if only for two pages.

The art in this issue was perfectly suited to the mood and characters. Ribic’s Gambit has the perfect blending of the grit of the street mixing with the traditional charm and style that we have come to know in the Marvel Universe version of Gambit. Ribic keeps the action flowing yet considerately keeps the often quite violent aspects light enough for younger readers to enjoy. His best scene of the issue comes at the end between Remy and the young girl as the stars, trees, and shadows all work wonderfully with Austen’s words to create one of the most touching moments of the entire series so far. The energy and emotion that all of Ribic’s characters display continues to impress me and I hope to see his work again in the near future.

For those foolish readers out there who chose to abandon the series for this arc I’m sorry to say that you’ve missed out on something quite special and unique. Though I am as eager as the next to get back to the stylings of Millar and Kubert, I will miss Chuck Austen and Essad Ribic’s take on this book and wish them the best of luck in the future.

Ultimate X-Men exceeds all expectations month after month. It is worth your money, your time, and that of all your friends and families. It has strong characters, sweeping plot lines, and generates a desire for more that I have not felt from a comic in years. The freedom that the Ultimate line gives to creative teams allows them to explore any territory they want free from continuity with the chance to make old characters new. Not since the classic Age Of Apocalypse storyline a few years back have I seen characters so heroic as the consequences of their lives and world are so much more real as they don’t have to worry as much about being around for the series five years from now. The characters are more accessible, more vulnerable, and ultimately more human.

p.s. Since no creative team was credited at any point in this issue I am hoping that it was the same from the previous issue. Please forgive any errors on my part if you weren’t mentioned.

{I may be nitpicking, but at least I’m bigger than you.}

ART:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg

STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg

OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg

But this issue online now from X-World Comics (http://www.x-worldcomics.com/x/bstore/newbooksmain.html) and save!

[Pigster]

I must say I agree with your entire review. I was also surprised at the violence in this comic, but it helps build up Gambit's character. Speaking of Gambit, I don't think he was ever called that in these two comics. Anyway, a great review!

[cet]

Wow. I completely agree with you, 7th. Wonderful review. :)

(P.S. That ten month Lord of the Rings wait is killing me too! Must have...Two Towers...teaser trailer... ;) )

[EnriquefromMTY]

excelent review 7th :)

[mar420x]

Great Review, 7th. Keep up the good work.
Man, it sucks needing to read a review of a book instead of buying it. I'm saving my $ for a good reason.
Peace out. Keep it real.

[apuyana]

Thanx for the review 7th, I haven't got my hands on this issue yet but it looks pretty good, most of all I was pleasantly surprised with the Sinister thing and can't wait for his depiction on the series, here's hoping that Gambit will join the team once the good old Dr Essex makes his appearance, who knows, maybe Mark liked Austen's Gambit as much as we did... well its a nice dream anyway...

[Ezrin]

Haven't bought any of the Ultimate line but am tempted to get Austen's 2filler2 as i've read nothin' but praise!!!

[Dooptastic]

Blech. I really hope thjis isn't where Austen is going with Uncanny. Yeah, the action was fun, but the fight scenes were hard to follow and didn't flow too well. And the plot was mediocore at best. The Ultimate books are some of the best on the market, and this issue, while an okay comic in general, did not live up to the standard of the Ultimate line or the X-Men. And speaking of X-Men, where were they? This is their book, right? Storm and Prof. X barely made a cameo, and the others were no where to be scene. An all right read, but I hope he does better with Uncany X-Men.

[Dexember]

Thank you for the review.

I have always wondered what if Gambit was more a bad guy than good, for whatever reason. That would be intersting to see him portrayed in a more ruthless anti-hero light. I like it.

[jay_mckiernan]

Hello there...
Well, if you want a completely different review of this book, check out:

http://www.x-worldcomics.com/x/review/current/ultx14.html

And when I say completely opposite, believe me when I say that I'm not exaggerating. I have a strange feeling that I am in the distinct minority by saying that I wasn't a huge fan of this two-part story.
Now I know that a lot of people will say that I am not a Gambit fan, which is why I didn't like this book. Well yes, I'm not a Gambit fan - but that doesn't mean I can't read the book and be impartial.
I guess the best way I can put it is this: the story just didn't work for me and I found it really derivative.
Of course, that's just my opinion. And thank goodness that I can express it and not be flamed out because of it.
later,
j

[zenith16]

yup look's like he did. Hey maybe there should be this thing on X-fan where you have Different Review's on X-fan from four Different sits. like they do on mag's and review of movie's on tv from other places. That would be cool. Anyway, anyone want to take a look at our mutatis Review?

look in here.

http://mutanthigh.com/alternatex/ultimate/xmen14.html

[Plagioclase]

I didn't much care for this issue.

I'm among those who have never liked Gambit, but I am always willing to give these stories a shot, and I did so here. I thought that #13 was a fairly good setup issue, but #14 was a letdown. The resolution was too rushed, for one thing. The interlude in which the Professor and Storm approached Remy came out of the blue and faded out again just as quickly; it came across as being slapstick, thrown in only for good measure. Plus, I'd pick a gripe with the way the Prof. and Storm were depicted; they seemed more reminiscent of the movie than of any past issue of Ultimate X-Men.

I chuckled at the mention of Essex, as this too appeared sort of corny. I got the impression at once that someone was trying to flex their knowledge of X-history rather than allude to some future development. As far as I knew, the Ultimate universe is supposed to move away from the main universe's extensive history, not recreate it. Remy need not have any connection to Sinister at all in this timeline.

Lastly, and this is only my personal preference, I never was able to get comfortable with Hammerhead as the villain. His induction into the "X-mythos" is sort of a stretch. Silvermane's inclusion also has made me question whether Chuck Austen may have a Spider-Man fetish. I understand that Remy, being a street urchin here in a big city, might have occasion to get mixed up in mob activity, and that so far as I know the X-Men don't have many of their own organized crime villains, but these guys were the last villains I would expect to find in an X-Men comic.

[Pigster]

Originally posted by Plagioclase
I chuckled at the mention of Essex, as this too appeared sort of corny. I got the impression at once that someone was trying to flex their knowledge of X-history rather than allude to some future development. As far as I knew, the Ultimate universe is supposed to move away from the main universe's extensive history, not recreate it. Remy need not have any connection to Sinister at all in this timeline.

I'll agree with you there, but from a different point of view. I've never been much of an X-Men reader before and only got into it with Ultimate. When they mentioned Essex I had to read over it 3 or 4 times trying to make sense of it - and I never got it. Now I understand it has something to do with this Mr Sinister, only because of these message boards.

Throwing in some of the X-Men history confused me and probably everyone else who was never an X-Men reader till Ultimate.

[Brian Wilkinson]

I can see how it would do that Pigster, but at least Austen was considerate enough to make it a minor element and not integral to the story or your understanding of X-Men history.

Continuity can be a dangerous thing, even when you're telling a story without any!

Crazy....

:spidey:

[Remy LeBeau]

It's wierd, people either hate this comic or they love it. I don't know why theres nobody in the middle. I guess all the people that don't like Gambit just don't want to give the book a chance.

[Erwin Rafael]

i have a question. what's the point of reviewing online? is it really just to express our opinion? i mean we can always do that on the message boards. actually, the message boards is an avenue for every fan to review a comic book. so what's the difference between an online review by a site and a fan review expressed in the message boards?

since everyone can write their opinions on the boards, i always thought that reviewers have been given a different task - to spread the good word. does that mean that we should not be impartial and always be positive-leaning in our reviews? well, not really. but if from the get-go you already know that you would feel negative towards the book, or if you have this thing against the creators or the characters or something, then why even bother to review it? didn't we always say, if you don't like it, don't read it? then isn't it just appropriate that if you already know that you won't like the issue even if you haven't picked the issue up yet, then you should not volunteer to review it?

i am not hitting on anybody, but i guess us reviewers have a great responsibility not to send the wrong signal to the public that comic books are on a downturn, because really, the industry is going up in terms of sales AND quality. i myself have given negative reviews, and i think i have a negative review going up this weekend if i get this "fill-in job", but i know that it's a case of frustration on an issue that i honestly thought would be very good as it is done by a creative team that i highly respect. i don't know if there's a point in this rant, but i guess it's something to think about...

btw, nice review, Brian. now i' be waiting for your review of the next isue to see if you can finally convince me to read Ultimate X-Men :D

[Remy LeBeau]

I COMPLETELY agree with you. If a person says they don't like a character before they even read a comic book they probably won't be as willing to give the book a chance. After all, what is a comic book character, except a bunch of words and scribles that were made by a creator. I think that a reviewer has a very difficult job, trying to be completely unbias about a comic book and write a review for better or worse about what one truly thinks about a story. If you don't like the story you have to do Erwin thats ok I'm sure you'll do a good job, just don't exagerate how bad it was or anything. Just be honest.

[jay_mckiernan]

Well, as someone who isn't a huge fan of Gambit, I have to admit that reviewing these issues were a little more difficult. Having said that, I thought that the character was different enough to be able to separate from the 'real' Gambit.
My problem with the story wasn't the fact that Gambit appeared in it - my problem was that I didn't think that it was a very good story. Just a personal opinion, of course.
On the other hand, I wonder how many people loved this book simply because Gambit appeared in it. Just like people don't give this book a chance because of his appearance, I think that there may be just as many people who lauded this book simply because their favorite Cajun appeared in it.
Having given Ultimate X-Men #14 a bad review doesn't make me tell people not to try the book. Hey, not every title can make great comics each and every month. Ultimate's been really good so far and I have every confidence that it will continue that trend.
later,
j