It begins in the year 2420, the new incarnation of Ultron has destroyed the Earth's mightiest heroes. He reigns supreme over not just Earth, but the entire Universe. Doctor Doom has brought together several members of The Avengers from the past to assemble and battle the threat of Ultron. In the future ruled by Ultron, the remaining humans have been turned into drones captured by Ultron himself. The ones that remain are on the run from the menace. Doctor Doom brings together The Avengers to take Ultron out in a series of multiple front attacks.
The story here is pretty straightforward. Ultron has taken over the world and it's time for The Avengers to defeat the terror known as Ultron. These facts don't take away from the story at all, though of course The Avengers are quite suspicious when Doctor Doom assembles them. Vision is the voice of reason here as he knows that this Doom is not the original Doom.
The story progresses quickly and we are shown a future Captain America with a present day Vision and Black Widow being pulled from their time. The inevitable confrontation between The Avengers and Doom is a quite enjoyable read, particularly for the fans of The Avengers. The opening moments of the battles between The Avengers and Ultron's army are certainly entertaining.
The artwork is pretty standard fare in this issue. Ultron is portrayed as menacing and the flooded, future version of New York City is well done. The flooding of New York City is due to the effects of Global Warming. Facial emotions are portrayed in a way that you can easily determine the desired emotion. The action sequences are done well and you don't have to guess what is happening. In one panel, you see Ultron standing over fallen heroes and you may notice that RoboCop has been vanquished as well. The Bio-Slaves are absolutely terrifying looking and Ultron's Avengers look impressive. I was particularly impressed by the Bio-Slaves in this issue.
With the release of The Avengers: Age of Ultron, Marvel is doing everything they can to get the general public ready and psyched for the movie. And of course, they are getting us fans even more excited for the release. With Ultron Forever and Rage of Ultron both out this week, and a little less than a month before the movie, they are going to milk this for all it's worth. Can you blame them? I mean I would.
If you're looking for something to pick up for a quick read, this will be it. The action is fun and the artwork is good. It's not going to make anyone's top issue of the year list, but it's well worth the price and time just for the fun of it.
