“I Steve Rogers… Do Solemnly Swear…”

Wait, what? Here’s the email subject line that greeted me when I got in to work this morning:

Captain America Elected President Of The United States of America!

Given a glitch with my work computer, I wasn’t able to look at the preview pages that were attached to the email, but I thought I’d share a couple of them here. Because this is… an interesting development. I’d been watching some of the Ultimate Comics Ultimates previews and story comments for a while, and particularly the “Divided We Stand” story-arc that seems to be bridging a handful of the UC line (Spider-Man and X-Men at least). However, I’m not really sure what I make of it, now…

Here’s what Marvel Entertainment’s Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso had to say of the development:

“This is one of those stories that could only be told in the Ultimate Comics Universe, where the only rule is simple – there are no rules… We’ve seen Captain America fight wars and battle super villains, but running a country is a whole new challenge – but don’t worry, this isn’t about political speeches and closed door meetings. This is exactly the kind of high-octane, super powered thrill ride you’d expect from a book called The Ultimates!”

Hm… Colour me skeptical.

Sam Humphries, who scripted the issue (and also works on Fanboys vs. Zombies for Boom Studios) said:

“Captain America was created in 1941, but this is the first time he’s been made Commander in Chief. It’s an honor to write a landmark milestone for such an iconic character… We’ve made a commitment in Ultimates to show how epic events have significant consequences. President Cap is no different. This will have a lasting impact on Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, and the whole team.”

Also:

Seriously?

On a happier note, the cover for issue 15 is pretty badass:

Ok, I vote Thor for President!

(Putting the “God” in “In God We Trust”? Too far…?)

“The Ultimates” Vols. 1 & 2 (Marvel)

Writer: Mark Millar | Artist: Bryan Hitch | Inks: Andrew Currie & Paul Neary | Colours: Paul Mounts

Strange beings with incredible powers have risen up to challenge the old order, and ordinary citizens are scared witless. The government’s solution: a small but lethal army known as the Ultimates, created to protect us all from the newly rising threats to mankind!

Despite the plentiful recommendations and obvious popularity of this series, I’m sad to say it left me utterly underwhelmed. The story felt flat and over-padded. It clearly had an influence on the recent (excellent) Avengers Assemble movie, but it still managed to fail on a number of levels. I will concede that these two books – also available in a special edition collection (cover image above left) – did have moments of inspired storytelling, but they were fleeting and far between as to have little overall impact on the quality or my level of enjoyment.