Age Of Ultron #10A.I.

The Team
Writer Mark Waid Artist Andre Lima Araujo

Before starting this review the elephant in the room needs to be recognized. Age Of Ultron was ultimately a disappointing story and left me cold as a reader of Marvel, However the story was fairly self contained and for the most part will not affect the titles that you read. The story also took a huge risk and it did not pay off, Age Of Ultron was a big failure as a story, but was the right step in breaking up an event comic book. With that being said this new issue that is kind of attached to the last one but not really, leaves the series in a weird place. You should be interested in it simply because Mark Waid is tackling the story who has been on a role for the last couple of years in his career. In fact this title reads like the quintessential comic book by the writer. So many Marvel heroes are plagued towards the melodrama, and stuck in a weird sense of self deprecation. The main character of this issue known as Hank Pym can be seen as public offender number one of this rule. The fact that Waid keeps writing superheroes rising above their own demons in a way such as this, means he is an optimist and his comics are not going to lead you towards pouring a whiskey when you are done reading.

Ultimately this is probably for the best as DC has countless titles of pure melodrama at the moment, and the writer is blossoming some real creativity by letting these heroes breath more. Pym as a character can only have so many mental breakdowns before the reader is just completely uninterested in him as a character. The Avengers themselves are suppose to be good people that gather together to fight what is posing a threat to humanity. Based on some of the information coming out of the most recent Marvel event, the character should be ecstatic that he has proof of being essential to the universe. The best part of this title may just simply be the heroic acts performed. A woman is saved and terrorists are stopped all with the help of Ant-Man. At the end of the day he matters simply because lives are saved and nobody is killed. For instance the most recent Superman movie flies in the face of what superheroes are letting Superman kill, this philosophy flies in the face of everything this title and Waids work stands for. This book celebrates optimism and the fact that heroes are silly, oafish, and not willing to kill. Best of all it is simply fun to read a man picking up the pieces of his life and starting again. In this comic book the focus is completely on the character, and really who could ask for more. The cover is also indicative of what actually happens in the interior pages. Shadows of Ultron are cast aside, they are not all that Ant-Man means to the world in which he lives.

Araujo has some clean pencils that are slightly dulled here by D’ Armata’s colors. In comic books a washed out style like the one he uses does not have a place in scenes that contain daylight. Characters look strange and shiny, along with gritty and unsettling when they are not even meant to. Do not let D’ Armata dull your enjoyment of this title or the artwork here, because greatness awaits. This is an incredible issue that will hopefully serve as the new status quota for Henry Pym, read and enjoy.