Spiderman Creator goes Japanese with "Ultimo"

Ultimo is credited as "Original Concept: Stan Lee" and "Story & Art by: Hiroyuki Takei", and tells the story of two 'karakuri doji' named Ultimo and Vice. They are artificial beings created by a scientist named 'Dunstan' (who bears a remarkable likeness to Lee) in feudal Japan, in an experiment to determine which is stronger, Good or Evil.

ULTIMO: KARAKURI DOJI ULTIMO © 2008 by Stan Lee-POW! Entertainment/Dream Ranch, Hiroyuki Takei/SHUEISHA Inc.

With Ultimo representing good and his counterpart Vice representing the opposite, the two robots are set loose when Dunstan is ambushed by a number of bandits led by Agari Yamato, a "Robin Hood"-type character who quickly discovers that the 'karakuri doji' aren't to be trifled with.

After the 'evil' Vice nearly wipes out his rag-tag band of thieves, Agari forms a bond with the 'good' Ultimo who rescues them all.  Soon after they are joined together against the cruel feudal lords of 12th Century Japan.

We then flash forward to modern times and meet Agari re-incarnated in a new form.  He's no longer a leader of thieves but a high school student who is riddled with adolescent angst, struggling with teen-age problems. He's broke, down on his luck and in love.

Needing money to buy his favorite girl a birthday gift, he stumbles into a pawn shop to find a dusty 'doll' standing in a glass case.  Seeing the doll triggers memories from his past life and the next thing you know, the Ultimo robot is re-activated.  And just in time because the Vice robot arrives as well and attacks the city.

ULTIMO: KARAKURI DOJI ULTIMO © 2008 by Stan Lee-POW! Entertainment/Dream Ranch, Hiroyuki Takei/SHUEISHA Inc.

Along the way, Agari discovers more people from his past life have been re-incarnated in the present. He also struggles with his love life while coming to terms with the responsibilities that having a powerful 'mechanical boy' like Ultimo at his beck-and-call pose.

Readers familiar with Lee's work know that these are common themes that he explores in his comics work. Peter Parker is the poster boy for the down-on-his luck nerd and Lee is the guy wrote the line: "With great power comes great responsibility."

But for all the familiarity that these themes may provide, the book just doesn't feel like something Lee may have written.  While Lee consulted on the concepts and plot, this is most definitely the handiwork of manga-superstar Hiroyuki Takei, Lee's partner on the project.  This is no slight to Takei's skill as a writer, but fanboys expecting the characters to exclaim 'excelsior' or 'nuff said' are going to be disappointed.

The question remains if Lee's name is enough to draw American audiences to this medium.  While manga may sell like gangbusters in other countries, it has yet to gain mainstream acceptance here.  And, ironically, the audience for manga tends to skew towards the female demographic, so only time will tell if Ultimo will make an impression on male readers.

Compared to other manga, Ultimo is a respectable first effort for Lee, but it still has a way to go before it can make an impression equal to his previous accomplishments.

Ultimo by Stan Lee and Hiroyuki Takei gets a Geek Factor Rating of 3 out of 5 *****.