With Possibly The Most Startling Image Of Stan Lee...

...that isn't from the '70s, Ultimo returns to Shonen Jump.

Ironically, unlike last time, now I think I might be looking forward to it a little bit.

Why?

Because "Vice," the less girly, more evil (or at least cranky) robot, turned into a huge sword demon thing that was really pretty awesome.

So I'll attribute any excitement about it to "the Kelley Jones effect." In effect, if Vice keeps turning into huge insane-looking demon things, I'll be happy.

That, and "Lord Dunstan" looks like he'll be pretty ridiculously amusing if he keeps showing up.

That's right, Stan Lee's self-insertion character (or Hiroyuki Takei's homage character-I'm not sure which) is actually literally the immortal Stan Lee, so to speak.

Ultimo (reminder: not that Ultimo), by the way, is hecka creepy.

LOOK AT THAT, WILL YOU?!

Vice is less creepy.

Biggest "what the" moment: A guy goes into a pawn shop or something looking for something to buy for a girl he's crushing on, and there in the pawn shop is the robot Ultimo. And the pawn shop owner is the old man who found Ultimo after Ultimo crashed and burned in "chapter zero."

And I have this strange feeling that the guy will try to buy Ultimo for his crushee. That actually would be kind of stupid awesome.

(Stranger still, my sister points out that the guy is apparently a reincarnation of a dude who shows up in the 12th century sequence. Weird.)

My sister also remarks that Ultimo strikes her as seeming rather more evil than Vice, who comes off as a petulant, cranky child. (She also mentions that when she looked into what people were saying when "chapter zero" came out, a person remarked that "Wow, and I thought that everyone [in the cast] was gay for [the main character of Hiroyuki Takei's previous manga].")

A bit more content:

A Note from Stan Lee
Hi, Heroes!
Wanna know why I'm more excited than a monkey in a banana tree? It's because starting with this issue, which you're gratefully holding in your eager hands, the ultimate battle of good and evil plays out monthly in Ultimo, the magniloquent manga I co-created with Heroic Hiroyuki Takei!
And what better place for the terrific tale of two fantastic robots, battling it out through space and time, than the home of the greatest manga on Planet Earth-SHONEN JUMP. Fans across Japan and America can now experience the indescribable wonderment of seeing Ultimo literally JUMPing off the page!
And wait'll you see the dynamic Dr. Dunstan! This incredibly handsome guy might just remind you of my very favorite writer, though my legendary modesty prevents me from mentioning his name!
So don't waste a minute, True Believer! The fun and fantasy lie just ahead!
Excelsior!
Your Man Stan

It's amazing that he still can talk like that after all these years, innit? I mean, wow.

Not much else to say, really.

-Signing off.