Ultimates #8 Civil War II Tie-In Comic Book Review/Recap

Ultimates #8 Civil War II Tie-In & The Origins of the Ultimates

Ultimates #8 Civil War II Tie-In Recap

Carol Danvers has been thinking about the future. She’s been wondering if we have one. Between Galactus and Thanos, the really big stuff always seem right around the corner. The heroes just can’t sit idly by any more. T’Challa thinks these things, too. Today, she is visiting him in Wakanda in the interest of starting a new program. Separate from Carol’s Alpha Flight, but connected. A proactive team, designed to find and fix. To solve problems before they become crises. Black Panther expresses interest in this – Wakanda could have many things to contribute to this effort, and if they are putting a team together, there’s someone he has in mind to join the roster…

Blue Marvel is surprised that T’Challa gave Carol a recommendation, as the two don’t really get along, mostly due to political differences. He is interested in the program, but doesn’t want it to turn into some form of the Illuminati. Luckily, Carol heartily agrees with that sentiment. Dr. Brashear has one other request – that they use nonviolent solutions when possible. Carol agrees to this, and Blue Marvel mentions he has a recommendation for the team, too. Danvers knows who he is thinking of, and she is way ahead of him.

Monica Rambeau, the hero formerly known as Captain Marvel, muses on the Blue Marvel’s notions of nonviolent solutions. That doesn’t sound bad, but sometimes… “XARRR!” sometimes you need a little force to get the job done.

Meanwhile, a group of senators monitor the Ultimates, and are surprised by the addition of America Chavez, remarking they don’t even know if she is loyal to this dimension. They are not fond of this team on the whole, and are worried it could have unintended consequences. They need to watch these people closely, and they leave that in the hands of a man named Philip Nelson Vogt. His… troubleshooters are already on the case. Soon, they’ll see the full picture.

PRESENT DAY

The Inhumans bring news of the latest premonition from Ulysses. Given how well the last one went in combating the Celestial, the Ultimates are eager to tackle this new threat. Ulysses tells them of Thanos coming to kill them all. Based on the information he gives them, they realize the mad Titan is going after the cosmic cube. With little time to prepare, they assemble everyone on site, including a visiting War Machine and some of A-Force, before going to confront Thanos.

They plan to use a strategy of using Thanos’ energy against him, but they’ll need to be careful. One slip up, one mistake, and someone will die “Now give me my cube”

After that, they dug deep. The heroes saved the day. They won… but at a terrible cost.

Monica and Blue Marvel both are upset by all this, too, and, in tears, the woman realizes she probably could have saved Jim if she hadn’t have hesitated during the battle. Brashear reassures her that they are just human. Sometimes we fail. We’re not gods. Just human…. human.

Tony’s arrival is felt throughout the base. He and Danvers are already at each others’ throats. If they were to crack under this new pressure, that would be… unfortunate. Naturally, Mr. Vogt will monitor the situation. And as for Thanos, he is currently in one of the most secure prison cells on the planet. He’s off the board.

Ultimates #8 Civil War II Tie-In Review

Hello and welcome to Comic Island! My name is Arden, and this is my recap, and review, of Ultimates #8!

So this was a great tie-in, on the whole. I knew going into this that writer Al Ewing was going to deliver something fun, but I was still very impressed by this comic. The way they rather wisely touched on the origins of this team meant that it was very useful for someone like me who is only checking this series out now. It’s a good introduction for those getting into this series through Civil War II, and I think it adds a little bit to the story by giving us an idea of how the disastrous mission in the first issue of the core series with Thanos went so wrong.

It’s a real gut punch of a moment when we see that She-Hulk and Rhodey were killed by a mix of flawed tactics James himself making a slip-up. That just adds an extra little ring of tragedy and makes this tie-in great. I also like how nicely this comic stands on its own. You can get issue eight and learn a little more about the story of Civil War II without any obligation to read any more from before or after this series.

And the comic still holds up regardless. This is a neat team, and though Kenneth Rocafort’s art takes some getting used to, it is worth it. This comic gets a solid recommendation. It had a lot of great moments and serves as an excellent companion piece to Civil War II on its own.