Ultimate X-Men/Fantastic Four Annual #1 Review

Creative Team
Writers: Aron E. Coleite and Joe Pokaski
Artists: Dan Panosian and Mark Brooks
Inkers: Danny Miki and Troy Hubbs
Colorists: John Rauch and Antonio Fabela

Issue Rating
Story: 6.7/10
Art: 6/10
Overall: 6.35/10

Issue Summary
20 years into the future the X-Men consisting of Captain America, Wolverine, Rogue, Shadowcat, and a teenage boy Phoenix hijack a train and crash it into a building.

In the present Sue is giving Reed a hard time because he forgot about their date. Reed gives Sue some flowers telling her he hasn't forgot about their date and he was about to go get changed. But before he can do anything a train crashes through the Baxter Building. Evidently this is the same train that the future X-Men hijack earlier.

The future X-Men step out of the train and introduce themselves to the Fantastic Four as being here to help. But as Captain America and Reed shake hands Captain America throws Reed at Wolverine who stabs Reed with his claws. A fight breaks out between both teams that leads to the future X-Men kidnapping Reed.

Outside the Xavier Institute Rogue apologizes to Logan for taking the drug Banshee. Apparently Rogue still has Logan's powers and Logan tells Rogue to enjoy his powers but he will not improve of her previous use of the Banshee. After a short argument Jean calls all the X-Men to the mansion and Logan heads back alone.

At the mansion the X-Men and Fantastic Four have a discussion about the future X-Men that attack the F4. Sue says that she wants the X-Men to help fight this future X-Men since their future selves would not hurt there present. Logan gets into an argument with Sue of why he should help but Jean puts Logan in a time out psychically. Jean tells Sue that they will help them get Reed back.

Elsewhere in an unknown location the future X-Men are torturing Reed. Captain America and Wolverine leave Phoenix to continue torturing Reed. Reed tells Phoenix he knows that Phoenix is Franklin his son. Phoenix tells Reed he is lying. Suddenly Phoenix is stabbed by someone with claws. Captain America, Rogue, and Shadowcat hear some screams and head towards were Phoenix and Reed were. When they enter the Wolverine appears from the shadows reaveling he is an Phoenix's attacker and that he is not alone. Hundreds of Wolverine Sentinels attack the future X-Men.

In the X-Jet the two teams head towards the future X-Men location and once they get there they find Captain America and Rogue lying on the ground dying. Jean goes toward Captain America's body and reveals that this Captain America is not Steve Rogers but a depowered Scott Summers. Scott tells Jean that he, Jean, and the original Captain America tried to stop something or someone but had there powers taken away. In the end they killed Steve by quickly aging him and tortured and killed Jean which is the reason he took up the Captain America mantle.

Jean ask who is it that killed them, Shadowcat and Phoenix than appear and show the head of Wolverine telling them that it was Wolverine who betrayed them. Logan does not believe it was him being the traitor and the Wolverine head says that he did it because he loved Rogue. He also says that they(?) used him (Wolverine) as a model for the perfect Sentinel killing machines. Scott then dies in Jeans arms.

Sue ask the Wolverine head were Reed is and Phoenix says that the Wolverine Sentinels took Reed into 20 years into the future. Sue ask why she should trust them because they did they tried to kill Reed. Shadowcat, holding up Cap's shield infront of Sue, Logan, and Sue, tells them they have no idea why they did it and what the future holds.

Back to 20 years into the future Iceman is being attacked by a couple of the Wolverine Sentinels. Even though Iceman does his best to fight of the Wolverine Sentinels but is captured and taken into a prison cell located inside the Baxter Building.

In the Baxter Building Reed tries to get answers about were he is and see someone flying through the with their body on fire and thinks it is Johnny. The issue ends with Reed entering the room were that person flew into only to see a different version of the Fantastic Four comprised of Firestar, Invisable Woman, Namor, and what looks to be Iron Man. To be contnuein the Ultimate Fantastic Four/X-Men Annual #1

Highlights of the Issue

"Meet the future X-Men"

"Spider-Man, Spider-Man does whatever a Spider......Wait a minute Shadowcat using webshotters?"

"This solves the mystery of how Wolverine can appear everywhere in the Marvel Universe at once."

"Move over Steve Rodgers and Bucky Barnes, Scott Summers is the new Captain America. At least for one issue"

"Meet the new Fantastic Four"

Review
Ultimate X-Men/Fantastic Four Annual #1 was a very average issue with its doomed future story by Heroes writers Aron Coleite and Joe Pokaski. This is actually an enjoyable annual for those who like a very fast paced story and those who have been exclusively reading the Ultimate Universe. The problem with this issue is that not only is this a lead up to Jeff Loebs Ultimatum mini-series but also that this is a two-part annual with the second part going to be continued in a not so cleverly titled Ultimate Fantastic Four/X-Men Annual #1 that comes out in two weeks. When I pick up an annual I expect it to be a one-shot story that may or may not lead to some future story in the main book and I do not think I should pick up two annuals to read the whole story.

Now while I found this issue to be an average read there were still things that I enjoyed about this issue that will make me pick up part two of this issue. I actually thought this future group of X-Men was an interesting especially with Captain America as part of the team. When I first saw Captain America I actually thought it was Peter Parker for some reason. But still, I was suprised that out of all the characters that Scott Summers became Captain America. This is actually the first time Scott actually took the mantle of Captain America in any future timeline at least that I have read.

I also thought that both Schadowcat and Rogue's "new" appearance looked interesting, especially Rogue's. It was nice to see that at least in this future Peter and Kitty's relationship was not ignored and since Kitty has her own web shotters that probably means that Peter is dead or the very least captured in the future this team of X-Men came from. Also future Kitty's learning to make her molecules super-light or super-dense was kinda of an interesting evolution of her powers that Coleite and Pokaski gave her. Seeing this evolution of her powers could actually make Ultimate Kitty stronger than her 616 counterpart if Bendis or another writer have her powers develop in Ultimate Spider-Man or Ultimate X-Men

With Rogue her future self was actually intersting since it looks like she has permantly absorbed both Wolverine claw and Angel's wings. Her power evolution and her relationship is most likely a foreshadowing of what present Rogue and Wolverine were talking about. I haven't read Ultimate X-Men since Bendis run on it but I am wondering what that Banshee drug Rogue was talking to Logan was and if that is what had her have Wolverine's claws in the present.

The mystery of who Scott was talking about should be a interesting reveal of who killed so many of the Ultimate Universe heroes since I can't believe that Wolverine and that future version of the Fantastic Four were the ones that did it alone. My guess would be that Xavier, Appocalypse, or Magneto were the cause of this future timeline to look the way it does. And seeing that Wolverine was replicated and turned into mutant hunting Sentinels was an idea I actually liked since the Sentinels have not played a big part in the Ultimate Universe. So there inclusion in the story was nice to see even if they looked like Wolverine.

Even with those interesting developments this was definetly for those who have been reading all the Ultimate titles, specifically Ultimate X-Men and Ultimate Fantastic Four. The only Ultimate Universe book that I have been reading has been Ultimate Spider-Man so some of the information in this book I did not get. This book felt like the average team-up between groups that have been done a hundred times and there really isn't anything new with the interaction between the two teams that felt very compelling.

I have no idea what kind of drug Banshee was since I do not remember reading about it when I use to read Ultimate X-Men so that was a bit confusing and Coleite and Pokaski could have said what that drug was. I don't know if Banshee is the Ultimate Universe version of KICK or MHG?

Also where in the hell is present Scott Summers and Storm because we saw that he has a future slef that takes the mantle of Captain America. It doesn't make sense that Scott or Storm aren't at the X-Mansion or with the group that went to find Reed. Little details of were Scott and Storm are even if he is taking a vacation Hawaii would have been good. I think it would have made that scene were future Scott was dying to be more impactful if his present self was there to. But to leave out one of the bigger X-Men in a story were all the other main X-Men appear

I was disappointed that Liz and Johnny didn't interact more especially now that they have the same powers. Since both these two characters have already a nice history with one another that developed in Ultimate Spider-Man instead of having Ben hitting on Liz.

This whole two-part story is definetly also for those readers that have not read many stories about a diselent future Marvel Universe. And this future Ultimate Universe actually looked pretty peaceful since there was only the scene were the future X-Men hijack the train and the last couple scene. Coleiti and Plokaski could have done a better job by showing more of this possible future to give the readers more to care about for the next part. There isn't even enough detail given in the dialog about the possible future to give reason to know what these two teams will be fighting in the next annual in two weeks.

Now the art for this issue was not bad but having two or more artist on an issue almost never works. Case in point this issue with both Panosian and Brooks do not really have similar styles were there art easily transitions into one another. I especially did not like the first couple pages in the Baxter Building were the characters, especially Sue, were a bit to cartoony. This story would have been better of if each artist drew one annual since this is a two parter.