ICYMI! Ultimate X-Men #4: Cosmic Horror X-Games

Pacing is an essential element in comics that speaks to the most compelling part of the medium. A form built around the juxtaposition of images to create meaning, movement, and narrative uses pacing as its beating heart. The number of panels, their sizes, and even the white space of the page can all contribute to the overall rhythm of a comic. Pacing is instrumental in ensuring a comic feels like a full meal rather than a blip of cotton candy. That sense of pacing is all-important to remember as Ultimate X-Men unfolds, as the book makes it a challenge to experiment with three distinct genres and styles of pacing to create something unique. 

Ultimate X-Men #4 – written and illustrated by Peach Momoko with script adaption by Zack Davisson and lettering by VC’s Travis Lanham – takes a step forward in the ongoing story as Hi-chan continues to come across reminders of her dead friend, Tsubara. She and Maystorm reflect on Nico Maru’s role as the school’s fortune teller on a rainy day before Hi-chan leaves for home. On the way, the shadowy figure seen in issue two returns with a vengeance, attacking Hi-chan with dark dagger weapons. Hi-chan is forced to use her powers to defend herself, which works but comes at the cost of revealing herself to students at the school. 

Momoko’s writing for the issue lingers heavily in the school drama and interiority of Hi-Chan, making for an excellent refocusing after the last issue’s spotlight of Maystorm. The multi-hyphenate creator brings a rich texture to the character, evoking a deep sense of history for this person who’s only existed to the audience in three issues. While Hisako is present as a character with extensive continuity in the primary universe, what Momoko establishes in these four issues is spectacular. Like the other Ultimate books in this line, the character drives the plot and stories just as much as the comic booky sci-fi alternate history premise. 

Returning the shadowy figure to the story is also an excellent choice to speed up the pace, escalating the slice-of-life tone from the issue’s first half. The fight sequence is quick but provides an opportunity to dig deeper into the mystery and history of Hi-chan’s relationship with Tsubara. The quick fight also offers a look at how much Hi-chan is growing into her powers, with decisions less focused on just defense but moving into some offense as well. She rips a shadow dagger from the figure and then attacks with her motorbike, making proactive choices. Hi-chan is not operating like a fully trained X-Man or fluid action hero but there is enough present to showcase her development as a character.

Momoko’s artwork does an excellent job of underscoring these character development moments, fluctuating its pace to match each element of the story. From the creeping horror of the shadow creature to the breezy moments at school, and then the frantic kinetic beats when Hi-chan’s powers manifest, Momoko displays a mastery of each internal rhythm. When put together, the comic sings in its presentation of reading speed. None of the paces feel out of place and harmonize rather than undercut one another. Momoko is conducting a symphony that makes the book stand out from the other books on the shelves, channeling the larger bridging of Western superhero comics with a horror/slice-of-life manga approach. 

The approach to the world does a great job of presenting the familiar in a way that feels organic to the larger Ultimate world while being its own thing. Momoko’s design work and coloring give the book its own identity that feels wholly original. The shadow creature comes straight from the Fullmetal Alchemist or Junji Ito school of cartooning, standing in sharp contrast to the various antagonists present in Ultimate Spider-Man or The Ultimates. Her design work for the shadow creature stands at an intersection of uncanny motion and obsidian stiffness, lending itself to a depiction of something non-Euclidean. It seems impossible to put into words just how deep and larger the shadows exist, transcending the two-dimensional nature of comic books. 

Much of that sense of otherworldliness is thanks to the watercolor aesthetic from Momoko. The inky blacks deepen the shadows and make for a perfect pairing with the mystical, pinkish reds of Hi-chan’s mutant power. Using the clashing tones highlights the dichotomies of the issue, putting an enriching bow on Momoko’s larger work. The palettes embed a sense of lore and history into the world, putting it in direct opposition to the overtly modern feeling of Ultimate Spider-Man and Ultimate Black Panther. Those books and their specific coloring styles thrive in the sci-fi-alt history created in the wake of the Maker’s machinations, while there is something more vintage about Momoko’s hues.