In the aftermath of the Age of Ultron, we have a short four part miniseries called Hunger. Now having not read Age of Ultron, I was a little wary as the cover has AU Aftermath emblazoned across it. I didn’t know how events from the Bendis maxiseries would tie in and relate to this title. Plus not knowing the storyarc I was worried I would be at a bit of a disadvantage, however I was happy to see that this is not the case.
If you are looking for this on the shelves it won’t be hard to find as the cover features the devourer of worlds himself, Galactus, rendering in glorious Adi Granov artwork. Opening the cover though, the first page sets it all aside and places this firmly in the alternate dimension we know as the Ultimate Universe. The Watchers have bestowed Rick Jones, a teenage boy, with the power cosmic so he can serve as creation's champion. But how will a teenage boy cope with the power and responsibility?
Well at first, badly. Youth has a way of ignoring the bigger picture a lot of the time, and instead concentrates on things like burgers. Seeing as he is shirking his responsibilities, the Watchers shift him back to where he is needed.
At first it could be some kind of missionary quest, as he is plunged into the middle of the Kree-Chitauri war. But this is not the case. Amongst the furore, the Gah Lak Tus swarm is detected, something that it is far greater than the current situation. A huge amount of insectoid-like machines are approaching, and they bear an uncanny likeness to the headgear of a Marvel Universe Celestial with a similar sounding name.
Drawn to the power of the action like moths to a nightlight, they decend upon the scene and it’s only after a series of events that includes Rick unleashing a huge amount of power that things look up.
Momentarily...
Through a temporal crack the real Galactus emerges, hungry and searching for food. It’s a metaphorical Mohammed and mountain situation as Galactus meets the Gah Lak Tus swarm, ending the first issue in a pivotal point for the Ultimate Universe.
Joshua Fialkov - a well know horror writer for titles such as I, Vampire and the film Infected - is helming this title. Having worked with most of the main publishers (and some smaller ones too) this is a large step for him taking on quite a complex and renowned character. The premise of the title does mean that he has a certain amount of free reign though, as the Ultimate Comics line is renowned for taking huge risks. The possibilities are huge and with such a short run of issues, it does feel as if though this miniseries is something of a proving ground for him, but time will tell. He has a good writing style, which is light and in this case isn’t taking things overly seriously. This plays well into Rick Jones’ characterisation.
Captain Britain and MI:13 alum Leonard Kirk is the artist for the issue, and when it comes to big impact pieces, boy can he deliver! Some of the larger spreads in space and the emergence of Galactus are fantastic looking. It did feel though that he needed to fill these bigger spaces in order to really flex his artistic muscles, as some of the smaller images just felt a bit more cramped and lacking in detail. Overall though it is impressive to look at.
As a first issue for a comic I wasn’t really aware of before, I was pleasantly surprised. I think that fans of Galactus will enjoy the spotlight being shone upon him without the Fantastic Four’s involvement, and those who don’t know him it’s a different approach to introduce him.
With only four issues in the series - and beautiful cover art from Adi Granov throughout - it makes it a very collectable proposition, especially in the light of the ComicCon announcement of the forthcoming Cataclysm series.
Matt Puddy could really go for a burger right now.
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