Ultimates 3: Who Killed the Scarlet Witch
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Artist: Joe Madureira
While a far cry from Millar's Ultimates, honestly, I kinda enjoyed this one... for me, it's a guilty pleasure...
Ranking: 3 stars
(WARNING: THE FOLLOWING SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THIS COMIC MENTIONS SEXUAL CONTENT FROM THE STORY THAT SERVES AS A MAJOR PLOT POINT, AND SOME READERS MAY FIND THIS DISTURBING. TURN AWAY IF YOU ARE OFFENDED BY SUCH MATERIAL...)
Jeph Loeb is one of my favorite comic writers of all time (if not number one), and it just kills me every time I come across articles or reviews calling him one of the worst writers in the medium. For those who do not know, Jeph Loeb is a comic book writer who is known for creating groundbreaking classics like BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN, BATMAN: DARK VICTORY, BATMAN: HUSH, SPIDER-MAN: BLUE, and SUPERMAN FOR ALL SEASONS. These stories only were they popular among both fans and critics, as they gave a first-person narrative from the characters which displayed their inner psychologies. Despite being famous for such masterpieces, in recent years, Loeb has become one of the most controversial names in the comics industry. Recent comics of his have drawn hatred from many readers. While "RED" HULK and ULTIMATUM have been the main focus of criticism towards Loeb, the one book that people seem to consider the start of Loeb's downward spiral is ULTIMATES 3: WHO KILLED THE SCARLET WITCH. While many people consider this to be one of the first comics that brought down Jeph Loeb and the Ultimate universe, I honestly thought this series was okay... Nothing great, but nothing terrible as well. Set in the Ultimate Marvel universe, ULTIMATES 3 was the infamous sequel to the fan favorite ULTIMATES 1 & 2 by Mark Millar and Brian Hitch. Both series not only updated the Avengers for a modern audience, but also emphasized the development of it's characters in a realistic and relatable environment. Since the first two books were gigantic successes, fans had high expectations for the next addition to the franchise ULTIMATES 3. But instead, fans were outraged by what they considered to be a massive train wreck that ruined what the Ultimates represent.
Taking place after the events of ULTIMATES 2, the Ultimates are no longer affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D. and the US government, and are now operating under Tony Stark's mansion. Not only has the team suddenly gained new members like Black Panther and Valkyrie (a former member of the Defenders who now has Asgardian powers) without explanation, but the Ultimates are facing a PR nightmare due to Tony Stark's intimate relations with the Black Widow being recorded and leaked onto the internet. As the Ultimates are debating what to do about the situation, the team is attacked by robot mimicking Venom, demanding that they hand "her" over. Although the team defeats the machine, they aren't able to figure out who "her" is, until the Scarlet Witch is gunned down in the middle of the streets. This causes her brother Quicksilver to betray the team to Magneto and his brotherhood, taking the body of the Scarlet Witch to the savage land. With the aid of Wolverine, the team not only discovers an incestuous relationship between Quicksilver and his sister, but also a plot that may be an even greater threat that goes beyond the war between man and mutant. ULTIMATES 3 is a comic that's been heavily reviled by fans and critics as one of the worst comics of the decade. While I do agree that the book has major flaws, it's not that bad in my opinion. That doesn't mean I'm blind from the flaws however, as there are some serious problems that are easily noticable. There are numerous plot points that are introduced throughout the book and they either seem to serve no purpose to the story are left unexplained. The reader is left in the dark to why Valkyrie suddenly has god-powers when she was originally part of a second-rate superhero group, why the robot sent to retrieve the Scarlet Witch was made to look like Venom, or why Captain America posed as the Black Panther throughout the book. While some of these plot holes are explained in later books, they are left unresolved in this book, which can cause confusion or frustration for the reader. The personalities of the Ultimates are heavily misrepresented in this story, especially when compared to the previous two volumes. Wasp is portrayed as American when she was portrayed as an Asian in the first two books, Thor speaks in a Shakespearean tone (just like his mainstream counterpart) whereas he was established as a former hippie, Tony Stark gives in to alcoholism and depression when due to the sex tape scandal, when he said he was over the Black Widow at the end of ULTIMATES 2 (besides, Tony Stark was always drinking in the Ultimate Universe), and Hawkeye is suddenly a psychotic suffering from post-traumatic stress. The flaws I've mentioned are definitely serious, but I was still able to enjoy this story. I know it's not good when compared to ULTIMATES 1 & 2, but for me, ULTIMATES 3 is a guilty pleasure. I know that by definition that I should hate this comic, but I honestly don't. I feel that unlike other bad comics I've read, there was some genuine effort put into it. Loeb may have been ill-suited for the task as he had not done any previous work for Ultimate Marvel, but I feel that he did a fair job with what we were given. The writing for this story is definitely weaker than in Loeb's previous works as his famous first person narrative is absent. While I feel that Loeb's strength is his narrative, he does write some legitimately good exchanges between the characters here. While the plot twists end up being random or pointless, I feel that if there was more build up, they would have fit well with the story. Despite the criticism towards it's breaks in continuity and misrepresentation of established characters, I feel that if they were handled better, they could have potentially worked. For example, even though Loeb's version of Hawkeye is widely hated for being a gun-wielding maniac with a death wish, I actually didn't have a huge problem with it as his behavior is a result of witnessing the death of his wife and two children. While his brooding over wanting to die does get irksome, it makes perfect sense as Hawkeye cared deeply about his family, and losing them has caused him to lose all sense of meaning in life (and I found his new costume to be cool). Another criticism that people throw towards this book is that Loeb establishes Wanda and Pietro are discovered to be having an incestuous affair. Don't get me wrong as I can completely understand where why this would bother people, but I had no problem with it as I feel that this could have made an interesting conflict for the Ultimates. Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch were shown to be close together throughout previous stories, and the reader could always notice that there was something unusual about them (aside from being Magneto's kids). In ULTIMATES 3, the reader is given a flashback that shows how Magneto scorns his son due to his mother being a human (Magneto's hatred of humanity reaches genocidal levels in the Ultimate universe), drawing Quicksilver's closer to the Scarlet Witch as he his mother is dead and he is scorned by his father. So while I can see how this angered fans, I honestly had no problem with it as I feel that it could have worked due to the circumstances of their past, and it's intriguing to see how the Ultimates handle this situation due to their current PR nightmare (also you can get away with darker content in the Ultimate universe). These ideas weren't developed into what they could have been, but for what we did get, it wasn't that bad in my opinion. Loeb has received a large amount of hate from fans of the ultimate universe for these problems, but I honestly feel that they're being too harsh on the guy. Having developed an appreciation for many of Loeb's works, I will defend him to my grave as he is a great writer and I feel that the bashing he's received is unfair. Fans seem to forget about the quality of his other works, and call him out as the "Hitler" of the comics industry. It pains me when I see the hate directed towards Loeb as many of his works are among my favorite comics of all time. While ULTIMATES 3 is a far cry from both the his other works (as well as ULTIMATES 1 & 2), his writing wasn't that bad despite the problems. There are serious flaws with the book, but I still found value in it as I could see that there was a degree of effort put into it. For me, even if a story doesn't hit the mark, if the writer put effort into the story, I can still enjoy parts of it (unlike SPIDER-MAN: ONE MORE DAY where Quesada put his selfish ego above effort; I really hate that comic). Sorry Yoda, I believe in your words "Do or do not. There is no try," but if I can see effort in a story, I can be fair to it. Overall, while ULTIMATES 3: WHO KILLED THE SCARLET WITCH isn't technically good, there's nothing terrible about it either in my opinion. There were some genuinely creative ideas present, and while I felt that they weren't fully realized due being bogged down by plot holes and mischaracterizations, I could appreciate the potential they had. You can go ahead and backlash me for saying that I found this book to be okay, but keep in mind that I consider it to be a guilty pleasure. I know it's not good, but I still got some enjoyment out of it. "Do not pour guilt into someone's psyche, and don't let anyone tamper with your conscience." -Zeina Glo
