Bass
Nexus of the World
TheManWithoutFear said:
I pretty much agree with you.
We've known about a traitor since #5 "The Passion". #6 "The Defenders" had us see the traitor in part. #7 "Wolf in the Fold" had the traitor do something since the Hulk outing. #8 "Born on the Fourth of July" had Captain America be seen as the traitor.
The story isn't moving slowly.
The issues are coming out too slowly.
Also - why are people stating that Cap isn't the traitor? Just because he said, "I dunno what you're talking about, Fury"? My God. The traitor may kill unarmed children but LIE?! Obviously, that's beyond the pale. :roll:
The problem is the question, "Who is the traitor?" and since April we still don't know with certainty. That's too much to ask from an audience. We should've had this issue last month. And it seems there's no Ultimates in December. Is there an Ultimates issue in October or November? I dunno. #8 was very nicely pitched, very exciting and tense, but instead of being an issue or chapter, it felt... it wasn't enough.
Why?
Because it was over-hyped. This is, in my opinion, a case where the quality of a story was actually harmed not by anything it did, but by the people producing it by hyping it up too much. We were promised a lot, and instead we get this thing which does not fully deliver on the promise. It's unfair. There should've been more certainty.
Regardless, it was a good issue if you ignore all the publicity around it. What's interesting is the parallel's between this issue and The Passion. It's exactly the same. The origin of the Ultimate under siege is completely re-written (no doubt, lending credence to the Loki theory) and we just don't know who to trust. The Ultimates is becoming a very troubling and sinister series, because we just don't know what's going on. Where's Ultron? Red Skull? Is Cap really the traitor? Hank must know for certain. When will Thor return? Is Hawkeye really dead? Just what was on the security tapes? Having all these questions is ironic considering how I've just been complaining that there's too much hype around the series.
As for "who is the traitor?" - well, I find it odd that Betty Ross would announce that "we cannot confirm or deny Cap's involvement". Why mention him at all? She wasn't asked specifically about Cap. Why say it? Well, I would think to make the traitor believe they're safe and to hopefully lure them out. But why choose Cap as a scapegoat? And why would Nick keep the facade in private with his troops? Too many plot holes for this to be really plausible.
But, I throw in the towel on speculation. I just cannot be bothered anymore. I've taken all the clues we can see, narrowed it down, and we've yet to get anything more concrete. So for me, I'm finished with speculating.
I agree with MWOF, the issue had problems. But all of them were publicity. Ignore the noise and look at what happened.
SHIELD kicked the crap out of Captain America and took him prisoner because according to all the evidence, he betrayed the team and killed Hawkeye's entire family because he's not really Captain America at all and never, ever has been, but an impersonator who was placed in ice so Stark would find him and bring him into the Ultimates.
That's a big, big, big thing to happen. Just because we were promised something else outside of the issue itself, shouldn't let us think "nothing happened". The story has progressed a great deal - just not in the way we were told it would.
Regarding Loki's appearance in "Born on the Fourth of July". Here, is Tony Stark and on his left, another Tony Stark. The moral? Sometimes Hitch draws the same face.
This is just a terrific panel.
Admit it. This would've scared the **** out of you.
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