This may not fully satisfy Runaways fans, and nor should it be considered essential reading for the Age of Ultron crossover event. However, taken in the context of that series, this provides the human (or in this case, android) backbone to what has so far been the arguments of gods. It's a capable standalone issue, but its real heart lies as a companion to the bigger event, and it might be worth waiting to see this as part of a bigger Age of Ultron collection which will no doubt drop later this year. For now, keep your fingers crossed that this marks a hint at a new Runaways book (or at least a Victor Mancha book) in the Age of A.I. Read Full Review

Ultron #1AU is still a fun read. Victor himself is generally characterized well -- self-doubt mixed with a self-imposed predisposition to help people. And while Kathryn Immonen does a great job fleshing out Victor's inner journey, she stumbles in conveying a sympathetic plot. It's fair to assume Victor will play a part in Age of Ultron going forward and possibly into the future. That being said, the main reason I'm thinking this is the case is simply because the kid got his own One-Shot, not because of Immonen's story. Without any deeper connection to the main series or further exploration of Victor's significance, Ultron #1AU misses a lot of potential and doesn't feel as integral to the event as it should. Read Full Review

At $4, it's hard to recommend this book to just anyone. Fans of the Runaways will like the issue and get some idea what happened to them. The rest of us are going to think that it was a nice little story but not much more than that. At the asking price of the cover, that's going to be a little hard to swallow. Read Full Review

The problem is, much like the main series, "Ultron" #1AU doesn't provide much in the way of action. Just as things are shaping up, the issue concludes. Sure, that conclusion is open enough to be built upon elsewhere, but for now it feels too open-ended and Victor's story is too incomplete. As his father ravages the world around him, Victor Mancha has his own microcosm rocked to the ground. There's enough here to make readers care about Victor, regardless of their prior knowledge of the character, but there really isn't enough of a payoff for the time invested in this story. I'm sure it'll cycle back into the "Age of Ultron" story, but in doing so, I think it could very well diminish the impact Immonen and Pinna would have been able to provide with a little more space. For now, I close the back cover; fairly positive I'm not going to consider this the most memorable chapter in the Ultron story. Read Full Review

I'm not sure who Marvel is really marketing this book towards. Ultron appeals to the Runaways fans, but it doesn't really deal much with those characters. It's a good jumping-on point for new readers that will read the other Age of Ultron books, but even then it's an unsatisfying take on a character whose fate really is not deemed important in the main book. If Victor Mancha was important in the AoU universe, wouldn't he be in the main book? Case in point Ultron doesn't really add much to the table, so unless you're pining for some Runaways, you can skip out on this one altogether. Read Full Review

From the poor art, the lack of direction in the tie-in, and the lack of successfully using Ultron, I have to give this issue (with a character I love) one of my lowest scores to date. Read Full Review

It's great to see Victor Mancha get some attention, and it would've been a major oversight to not take advantage of “Age of Ultron” to spotlight the character. Unfortunately, “Ultron” #1AU fails to add much of anything to an event that is pretty shallow to begin with. While this story's importance may come to light later on, at this point it's best left for “Runaways” junkies and event completists. Read Full Review

Although Age of Ultron has been an entertaining series, save your money on Ultron #1AU. Read Full Review