Im a little concerned that the miniseries as a whole will follow the lead of this first issue and be a somewhat insubstantial read, but overall, this is a good strong start to the series, and Im certainly looking forward to seeing where this ones going. Read Full Review

There are slight criticisms of this issue, sure: some of the dialogue sounds forced - Im missing the Posh Spice video!, Its like the sound of babies dying! (those two arent related, by the way), Hairsines facial artwork still leaves something to be desired, and the story is yet to really give anything away - but then again, this latter complaint is exactly what weve come to expect from these paced-for-the-trade miniseries. With all the promise of another high-octane crossover between the Ultimates and the Ultimate X-men, it would have been difficult for the creative team to make much of a mis-step here: as it is, Ellis exceeds expectations, eschewing the kind of bombastic storytelling which has characterized Mark Millars run on the Ultimates core title and opting instead for an original and inventive take on an alien invasion story. With all this, and the introduction of a brand-new Ultimates team member to boot, Ellis and Hairsine are setting out their stall for a potential Read Full Review

The only frustrating part of the issue is the cover. I wish it had been a little more appropriate for this part of the story instead of being the image that will probably be on the cover of the TPB. Colossus and Wolverine are on the cover, but never appear in the issue. Marvel should make more of an effort to fit the cover with the story. Read Full Review

Trevor Hairsine certainly does the wide-screen visuals with an impressive sense of scale, as the opening pages of this issue do a fantastic job of capturing the sheer intensity of the Tunguska explosion. The art also does a very effective job capturing the elements of horror as the series of panels that show us the multiple suicides are wonderfully disturbing, as are the shots of the alien civilization being destroyed. The big moment where the character is introduced in the final pages is also pretty effective, as there's a nice sense of majesty to the final page image. Read Full Review

If this sounds like the first ten minutes of a film, thats exactly how it feels to read. It doesnt get far enough for the reader to work out whether its a good movie or not. It looks like it probably is, but theres not enough of the human heart yet to see if all the action will have any punch behind it. Read Full Review