The New Ultimate Universe might be coming to an end, but if The Ultimates #23 is any indication, Deniz Camp plans to end it in a blaze of glory. Shifting away from the earthly battles that took place in previous issues, The Ultimates #23 takes place entirely in the heavens as Thor and Sif rally the entirety of the Nine Realms to topple the God of Thunder’s wicked brother, Loki. But Loki isn’t willing to give up his throne without a fight, especially since it was given to him by the Maker.
This issue serves as a sequel to The Ultimates #11, which previously chronicled Thor’s journey and did so in the format of an epic poem. It’s often said that comic books, especially the superhero genre, are a new form of mythology because their stories are retold and reframed over the years. The Ultimates #23 is one of those comics that proves the adage correct, especially with the way it’s formatted. Camp’s script is chock-full of sentences that feel ripped from an ancient text, including quotes about “fire-forged falchions,” “lightning lords,” and “grief of the gods.”
Camp also uses The Ultimates #23 as a meditation on stories, particularly their ending. In order to defeat Loki, Thor winds up joining forces with the fire demon Surtur and the massive wolf Fenris. Anyone who’s brushed up on their mythology knows that Surtur and Fenris both serve as heralds of Ragnarok, aka the “twilight of the gods”. Despite the fact that Ragnarok will mean his end, Thor is willing to sacrifice his own life to break the Maker’s hold on the world and start the cycle of life anew. It also goes hand in hand with the end of the Ultimate Universe, and I love that Camp is more or less telling the audience that sometimes it’s OK for a story to end.
Marvel
The Ultimates #23 is also a reunion between Camp and Stipan Morian, as they previously worked together on Image Comics’ 20th Century Men. Morian’s artwork is truly gorgeous, depicting battles between gods, giant wolves, and armies of the undead. He also makes sure to pack each page full of detail. When Surtur shows up, the page is literally engulfed in reddish-orange flames. A grieving Thor unleashes the fury of his emotions on Asgard, sending lightning crackling through the sky and forming a furious visage. Fenris literally swallows the sun whole, leading to Thor and Loki’s final battle in pitch darkness. Morian’s use of color also makes each page feel like a living, breathing painting, giving the story the epic feeling readers expect.
Topping it all off is some stellar lettering by Travis Lanham, who depicts all of the dialogue in Asgardian-style lettering. The end result makes it feel like you’ve truly uncovered an ancient tome of myths, while also serving as the perfect fit for the storytelling structure Camp’s deploying. Letters shift from white to black and small to large, giving each sentence a different sort of impact. Simply put, this is a creative team that’s truly trying to elevate the art form, if only for a single issue.
The Ultimates #23 is an epic poem in comic form, blending beautiful art with a story about the necessity of endings. It should also serve as a reminder to creators, publishers, and fans of what the medium is capable of.
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