Paul Brian McCoy/Dave Wallace Comic Reviews

That said, I am greatly enjoying the story that Ellis and Bianchi are telling here. The gradual manner in which Ellis is gradually revealing elements of his plot and characters will likely work very well once this story is complete, and Bianchi's panel-to-panel and page-to-page storytelling works very well, with only a few moments that could use a little more clarity (such as Wolverine's trajectory from the beach to the spaceship on page 8). As with Grant Morrison and Joss Whedon's runs before him, Ellis has proved that it's possible to make the X-Men feel fresh, exciting, and accessible, and Bianchi's visuals are certainly worthy of such a flagship title.

This is one of the better Secret Invasion tie-in issues, as despite some forced Skrull paranoia, it feels like we're beginning to get some answers to questions that have been plaguing readers ever since New Avengers began. The final page cliffhanger is a little underwhelming in that it's pretty difficult to buy into its implications (especially given the current status of the character in his own solo title), but the majority of the issue succeeds thanks to a genuine sense that Bendis' Avengers run is being tied together, and some slick, impressive artwork from Billy Tan.

I really struggle to assign a bullet-rating to issues like this one, because for some audiences this will be exactly what an "event" book like this should be: a straightforward superhero slugfest with a rousing moment in which Captain America rallies the troops, a climactic scene in which an Avenger dies (yes, another one), and a conclusion that promises even more action and spectacle in the next issue. And at just four issues, Siege is shaping up to be that rare thing: a taut, lean, straightforward crossover that doesn't require much in the way of outside reading to understand, and so isn't going to break the bank. However, anyone looking for any real depth, complexity or originality is probably going to be disappointed--and personally, I'm already finding myself looking forward to the end of the event, and the coming of the new "Heroic Age" that Marvel is promising will follow it.

As I said, these are all relatively minor problems in the grand scheme of things, and I certainly won't write Siege off immediately as a result of them. However, it does sap some of the energy and the immediacy from this issue of setup, leaving the core Siege miniseries with a lot of work to do if it's to get the event off to a strong start.

Having said that, this issue (and the series as a whole) has been one of the better Ultimate books to come out of Marvel's relaunch, developing the Ultimate universe in a new but logical direction, providing a solid take on one of the most enjoyable Ultimate characters, and serving up plenty of action and spectacle for readers to enjoy. Let's hope that Ellis returns to the Ultimate books again soon.