Ultraman: The Mystery of Ultraseven #4 introduces humanity’s new hope, the Monster Attack Team a.k.a. MAT. The team of highly trained Kaiju fighting individuals makes their first debut in Marvel Comics. This impressive entrance comes thanks to Kyle Higgins and Mat Groom (writing), Davide Tinto (art), Espen Grundetjern (color art), and VC’s Ariana Maher (lettering).
Summary
There’s a brand-new team on the scene who are sick of Ultra chaos endangering the people of Earth — and with the most advanced weapon on the planet, they’re ready to take both Ultraman and Ultraseven out of the equation permanently. Ultraman and Ultraseven are playing right into the hands of the puppet masters — and is there anything they can do to break free?
Writing
MAT, The Monster Attack Team were the human allies in the TV series Return of Ultraman. They helped Ultraman Jack to fight against monsters and save humans from danger. With their first appearance in comic form the characters succeed in displaying their skills and show they are a force to be reckoned with. This is achieved by getting right in the middle of the battle between Ultraman and Ultraseven with some intense battle scenes unfold as a result.
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Kyle Higgins and Mat Groom are truly showing their love for the Ultraman franchise with this issue. Not only by finding a way to bring in MAT and a form of Ultraman Jack (which isn’t really a spoiler as the cover gives it away) but also by making sure to bring in the plot hinted at in the second issue of the mini-series. The storytelling feels natural as if this was where the series had been heading the entire time without a major curveball to tie everything together. All while making sure to have some incredible moments of intensity as Ultraman and the members of MAT work to subdue Ultraseven.
Artwork
Davide Tinto’s artwork delivers a lot of energy to the issue. The scenes of MAT rushing to their vehicles and launching into battle are reminiscent of shows like Voltron: Defender of the Universe and Mazinger Z. This mixed in with the attention to detail with the vehicles, humans, and giants all helps to keep the energy high for the entire installment.
The color work by Espen Grundetjern energizes the fight scenes. From the MAT team’s ship launching and the Ultra’s fighting against each other, the coloring adds a fabriant atmosphere to the panels. It also aids an intense weather effect with the rain and lightning pouring down on the battlefield.
The lettering work by VC’s Ariana Maher adds very needed audio quality and an additional layer of energy to the issue. You can feel the fiery spirit of the MAT as they launch into battle. At the same time the sound effects help with each blow as Ultraman and Ultraseven continue to reconnect in a very bad way.
Conclusion
Ultraseven: The Mystery Of Ultraseven #4 introduces a new element to the miniseries. It adds a great bit of energy and helps to ensure the mini-series doesn’t run out of steam while it makes its way to the final issue. If the series manages to wrap everything up on a similar level in the next installment, it will be an ending fans of Ultraman will not want to miss.
