Ultimate Galactus Trilogy is a dainty chode-licker. This retelling of a classic Marvel storyline does a nice job updating things and keeping it interesting.  Okay, I’m kidding. This book is a cosmic shit-heap. Marvel is a bunch of jack-offs for even considering retelling these archaic storylines. On the other hand, I really enjoyed reading it.

I’m really torn between enjoying and hating The Ultimate Galactus Trilogy.  It’s a matter of pros and cons.  Con: I am morally offended by The Ultimate Galactus Trilogy, by Warren Ellis (writer).  Released as comic books, then in soft cover graphics, and finally the hardcover edition I bought for $35. I should have known better. Reading books like this has become my equivalent to picking up a fat chick at the bar for a one night stand.  
 
Con Continued: As if it’s not bad enough Hollywood has run out original ideas, now Marvel is following in the same footsteps. I can get behind reworking a character to bring in new readers. But taking a major arc and painting it with a different brush is just laziness. Better still, it’s so close to the cinematic opus: Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer that you really don’t need to read the story. Just go watch the movie.
 
Side Con: When did everyone get so damn lazy that one of the few original movies this summer was G-Force (the talking guinea pig flick from Disney)? 
 
Pro: The Ultimate Galactus Trilogy was a genuinely entertaining saga. The omnibus I purchased was a well constructed and concise way to take in the story, and the tome itself held the weight of an epic– seriously you could fend off a mugger with that thing. I just don’t know if it’s enough. When I read an original storyline that’s pure entertainment at least it was something new/newish; but a rehashing of a classic I can’t justify, especially in a medium where anything is acceptable and possible.  

Just Fantastic appears the second and fourth Wednesday every month.

Tweet  Print This Post

Tags: books & writing, just fantastic // Add Comment »