Farewell Mark Millar
It's all about the little things.
I'm actually surprised how well this fit in with the death of Spider-Man. While, the Spider-Man titles focus on the tragedy, grief, and heroics of the life and times of Spider-Man we hit a dark note in the Marvel Universe, what may be an overlooked moment, we see Nick Fury using it as leverage to get his job back as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D from Colonel Danvers. He doesn't just use Spider-Man's death as leverage he uses it as guilt to force Danvers to sign her resignation. It's such a dark moment. He ruins her career and humiliates her in this private moment. You can tell how much satisfaction he's getting. It's a fitting end to Millar's run in the Ultimate Marvel universe and the Marvel universe for the foreseeable future. It even tops the giant super-human fight in this issue. It really captures that sense of cynicism and viciousness I love from Mark Miller. One has to wonder, what kind of man is Fury to use Peter Parker's heroic death as leverage for a job? And how long has he been planning to use it...?
If I had to criticize this issue for one point, it'd have to be the rush to the conclusion. With Ultimates season 1 and 2, we were indulged with long arcs. I feel like this issue should've been double sized issue. It's unfortunate with such a large cast that many don't get the spotlight in this issue. We just don't get enough of Blade (who Millar has been citing as one of his favorite characters), the new Scott Lang, or even Tony Stark who must deal with the aftermath of Gregory's reign of terror. Also, the psychic Spider-Man clone, who's been hyped since his start of Millar's return to the title, meets and unceremonious end and unfortunately Yu and Segovia don't really capture the moment. Millar however, does make use of Monica Chang and I truly hope the new writers for the series will make use of her. She's an intriguing and intelligent character and I'm quite happy with how she's been developed and written. It's not a perfect issue, and Millar forgoes the risks to keep his team together but it's a satisfying conclusion to this arc and run. He keeps it grounded. There was a good amount of Millar's trademark exposition and bombastic dialogue but it was scaled back to an enjoyable level.
Segovia and Yu's art is dynamic as ever and is a step up from last issue. Although, the cover is once again a bit misleading. Although they did tone down the hulk versions of Fury's team. They were probably the best artists suited to Millar's style since Bryan Hitch and I'm looking forward to Millar and Yu's work on Superior and Super Crooks.
In the end the issue is perfect. It serves two purposes, one where he can bookend his run from way back in 2002 and leave the door open for the next writer. You couldn't ask for more.
