Written by Jonathan Hickman
Drawn by Marcho Checchetto
Published by Marvel Comics

In the year 2000, Marvel Comics launched the Ultimate Universe, a new line of comics set in a separate continuity from Marvel’s mainstream universe, in which Marvel superheroes were being revamped with new origins as if they were being created for the first time. And the first series to launch that line was Ultimate Spider-Man, and I was there when it started.

Damn, that was really 24 years ago? I feel old.

Last year it was announced that Marvel was rebooting the line, which made sense to me. It’s a different world now, a generation has passed, and I think it’s time for a new attempt to modernize the Marvel Universe. But I was disappointed when it was announced that Jonathan Hickman would oversee this new line. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve read several of Hickman’s comics over the years, and I’ve loved every one of them. But, still, he’s already a longtime established writer. When the original Ultimate Universe was launched, it was led by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Millar, two writers from the indie comics scene who were still relatively new to mainstream comics, and I think that’s what made the line work so well. These young (comparatively speaking) hungry writers had bold fresh ideas that could resonate with a younger audience. So I felt like Marvel should have tried to find someone like that for this new line. Someone who could give us a Marvel Universe built for Gen Z (and maybe even Gen Alpha).

Thus I didn’t bother checking out the miniseries that launched this line, and wasn’t planning to get any of the ongoing titles at first…but the first issue of the new Ultimate Spider-Man was published today, and I guess I just couldn’t help myself.

Since I didn’t read the miniseries, nor any news article about it, I went into this book relatively blind. The only thing I knew about this new title is that Peter Parker would be starting his career as an adult, who is already married with children, rather than as a teenager, which I found to be a potentially intriguing choice.

So what’s the verdict?

Read on.

There will be spoilers.

I can say right off the bat that this issue quickly fills in the reader on what you missed if you didn’t read the miniseries, with the help of a handy little summary on the front page (which could be argued is creatively cheating as it’s telling, not showing). The overview is that The Maker, a supervillain from the original Ultimate Universe (and who is actually an evil version of Mr. Fantastic from The Fantastic Four…it’s a long story), traveled to this parallel world and manipulated various events to ensure that most of the superheroes never gained their powers, and that included making sure that 15-year-old Peter Parker was never bitten by that radioactive spider.

Now it’s 20 years later, Peter is 35 years old, married to M.J., and they have two red-headed children, May and Richard (it’s unclear if they’re supposed to be twins, or what age they are, Richard is drawn as taller than May, but doesn’t look older than 12 at the most). Peter wears glasses, has a beard and mustache, and works as a reporter at the Daily Bugle.

As the issue progresses, we learn several other details about this new continuity. While Peter’s Aunt May died in a terrorist attack that the Maker was secretly responsible for, Uncle Ben is still alive and is the managing editor at the Bugle, along with his good friend J. Jonah Jameson. Other details are that Matt Murdock, still blind, is a local Catholic Priest. Harry Osborn is a trusted businessman, running Oscorp Industries since his parents were also killed in that terrorist attack. But we did get a brief glimpse of someone in a high-tech Green Goblin suit. Whether that’s Harry or someone else remains to be seen.

We also meet the Kingpin, Wilson Fisk. Here he’s head of the board that owns the Daily Bugle (and includes Robbie Robertson, who appears older, thanks to his gray hair, than his mainstream counterpart), and when the board announces some editorial changes in the way they want the Bugle to be run, both Jonah and Ben quit on the spot, leaving Peter to decide if he should join them, but he’s hesitant because of his familial responsibilities.

Later a mysterious figure (I shouldn’t spoil everything) appears and informs Peter of his missed destiny, and how he’s meant to be a hero, and presented with a test tube containing a spider…

While the various continuity changes presented here are potentially interesting, I can’t say that they’re groundbreaking. It’s too soon to fully judge, we’d have to see how Hickman makes use of these changes in his future stories. I’d never heard of this artist before, but Checchetto does a good job.

However, my main complaint is the writing. Hickman is following the biggest trope of 2000s-era comics, something that especially described the original Ultimate Spider-Man title: decompressed storytelling. It’s 43 pages of mostly talking heads, just different scenes of people having conversations, either at home, at the Bugle, or in a bar. Peter doesn’t get bitten by the spider until the second-to-last page, and then we just a glimpse of him as Spider-Man on the final page, where he’s drawn in silhouette from a distance.

So we don’t actually get a good look at Spider-Man in this new Spider-Man comic book.

I’m sorry, but for $5.99 I expect a little more bang for my bucks. So overall I have to label this issue a disappointment. I do feel some curiosity as to what happens next, but I don’t feel any urgency to get the next issue. I may revisit this title when the first story arc is collected in a trade that I can get cheaply, but for now, I’ll pass.

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024-) #1