Age of Ultron #1 (of 10)

I have absolutely no idea what the point of this comic is supposed to be. Marvel's ten-issue event begins here with only the smallest appearance of it's leading villain. What we do get is some weird dystopian alternate reality (think Age of Apocalypse but half-assed and really crappy) where the world has fallen to Ultron and D-list villains like the Owl are powerful enough to take down Spider-Man.

Nearly the entire issue is dedicated to Hawkeye's bloody rescue of Spider-Man from the Owl and his goons. Making it back to Avengers headquarters we briefly meet far-less heroic versions of Iron Man, Luke Cage, and She-Hulk. Along with Wolverine and Emma Frost it appears the heroes of this world have nearly given up as Ultron reigns supreme and Captain America lacks the will to lead his team into action.

Aside from being extremely violent, unnecessarily gritty, and all around unenjoyable, this first issue is also rather pointless as we don't really spend any time getting to know any of these versions of classic Marvel characters. Maybe they're saving that for the next nine issues. God help us all. Pass.

[Marvel, $3.99]