Ultimate Spider-Man: One Year Later

Nearly one year ago, I wrote about the debut issue of Jonathan Hickman and Marco Checchetto’s Ultimate Spider-Man, the flagship title to Marvel’s revival of the Ultimate series of comics. Issue #13’s release last week marks one whole year of Ultimate Spider-Man, and it’s come a long way. This brief retrospective will begin with a look back on the best of the series so far, then review its most recent issue, and finally, predict where the most exciting superhero comic on the shelf is heading. 

For those who don’t know, Ultimate Spider-Man sets itself apart by, for one, being in another universe than the main Amazing Spider-Man title, and two, featuring a 35-year old Spider-Man married to his long-time love interest Mary-Jane Watson, along with their two children, Richard and May. It switches up the established Spider-Man framework by having Aunt May be the dead relative while Ben Parker, Peter’s tragically lost uncle, is alive, well, and serving as a supporting cast member alongside other familiar faces like Harry Osborn, Gwen Stacy, and J. Jonah Jameson. Of course, the rogues gallery is filled with familiar foes like Mysterio and Kraven, but features some dark horses, like Mole Man and Walter Hardy, the father of classic Spidey love interest Black Cat. 

For the past 12 issues, Peter Parker has been navigating his life as a family man and a Spider-Man, increasingly blurring the line as his family comes to learn his secret and he becomes closer friends and allies with Harry Osborn, the Green Goblin. This series has consistently delivered phenomenal action scenes, authentic character writing, and brilliant artwork for the past year. While some might complain that it’s slow paced and has too many scenes of “people talking,” the appeal of this series is seeing Peter with a family, so getting some quality time with his supporting cast (which Hickman is nailing) is a must. 

 

Spoilers below for Ultimate Spider-Man #13

 

Issue #13 is the payoff to a year’s worth of storytelling. Firstly, it follows up on the previous issue’s cliffhanger, which revealed that Peter and Harry have been kidnapped by Kraven the Hunter, and a sentient A.I. has taken Peter’s place at home. The A.I. originates from the black “Picotech” suit that Tony Stark, AKA Iron Lad, gave to Peter in the very first issue. The cliffhanger is spooky, and since the Picotech suit resembles the symbiotic villain Venom, it’s hard to see this ending well. The A.I. is based on Peter himself, but is likely to turn villainous. Perhaps it will resent the real Peter for displacing him upon his return, especially after forging a bond with Richard. 

The first page sees a black silhouette swing around the city, and it’s revealed to be Richard in the Pictotech suit. I’ll be the first to say that I was surprised to see Richard get involved in superheroing this soon. Or at all, really. Making his son a vigilante of his own is a consequential decision that won’t be easy to roll back. The end of the issue sees the suit congratulating Richard on taking on some petty thugs before he’s intercepted by Felicia Hardy, the new Black Cat. In issue #9, Harry blasted Walter Hardy off a roof, crippling him. Richard and Felicia should have an interesting relationship given the history of their fathers. I fear that Felicia could be a cautionary tale of the dangers of superhero-ing for young Richard. 

The other half of the issue picks up with Peter and Harry. They’re in the Savage Land, the domain of the Mole Man, a place inhabited by deadly creatures from Earth’s past. Kraven intends to hunt our boys the old fashioned way, so he lets them loose with a head start. The visceral nature of their kidnapping, implied torture, and bloody encounter with velociraptors sets the tone for this plot going forward. Peter beats a raptor to death with his bare hands, and with Harry powerless without his suit, it’s probable that these two aren’t leaving without blood on their hands. In issue #9, Harry said he “wouldn’t hesitate” to kill any of Kingpin’s lieutenants to protect Peter, so this could be Kraven’s last hunt. 

With Mysterio appearing in the Savage Land, we get the rare chance to see the villains interact without their boss, Kingpin, lording over them. Despite being teammates, they’re rather catty, which is entertaining. Kraven, though, is an absolute menace. Since he knows Peter and Harry’s secret identities, he’s tormenting them psychologically before doing so physically. As always, Hickman’s dialogue is superb across the entire issue. The villains produce so much intrigue in only a few pages, we see Peter and Harry pushed to their limits, and the conversations between Richard and “Pico-Peter” are just the right amount of unsettling. 

Marco Checchetto, the series’ main artist, is in top form. His gritty yet statuesque style is perfect for the dichotomy of realism and romanticism found at the heart of Spider-Man, and this series especially. The Savage Land gives him the excuse to draw dinosaurs, which is always rad, but it’s the colors by Matthew Wilson that really pop here. The Savage Land is slathered in deep earth tones—rich greens and dirt browns—that invoke the suffocating heat of the jungle. In contrast are Richard’s scenes. The cold blue sky and white snowfall over the city provides a canvas for the red of his hair and enveloping black of the Picotech suit to bounce off of. The Savage Land is warm but teeming with wild, deadly life; the city is safe, but cold and isolating. Contradiction and confusion is on theme for this series. It’s not easy being Spider-Man, and it will only get harder from here. 

Overall, this was a fantastic issue in the story department. Hickman has successfully capped off a year’s worth of stories while catapulting us into the series’ next phase. There’s so much to speculate on just with the information provided in this one issue. Between Richard and Felicia, Peter and Harry, and everyone we didn’t see, the next issue, which promises to conclude this two-part story with Kraven, could really go anywhere. Hickman wants us to ask who’s going to kill Kraven, and while Harry has shown a killer instinct, it could be Peter who breaks bad to defend his family, forever changing him in the process.  

Predicting the next 12 issues is a tough task, but I’m sure that we’ll find out the identity of Mysterio very soon, at least according to issue #16. Chatter online predicts that Mysterio is actually Gwen Stacy, CEO of Oscop and Harry’s wife. At first, I didn’t believe it, but after re-reading it, it makes sense. Nobody knows Mysterio’s true identity, and in issue #8, Black Cat says that he’s “gotten shorter” since they last met, implying that someone new is under the dome. His appearance in the Savage Land to simply “see them” confuses even Kraven and Mole Man. I never pegged Gwen as a supervillain type, but it could just as easily be a power grab as an inside job. Perhaps “Mysterio” plays a part in her husband’s escape. 

Seeing “Pico-Peter” develop into Ultimate Venom, perhaps with Richard as his host, is another safe bet. The suit looks a lot more like the traditional symbiote in this issue, but I could see Hickman playing the long game with this plot, waiting to develop Richard a little more before pulling the trigger. No doubt we’ll see some father-son team-up action before a villainous turn. Issue #15 sees the Parkers going on vacation, and a preview from artist David Messina promises more of Richard in his black suit. Other plots, like Otto Octavius’ Spider-Armor and the Norman Osborn A.I inside the Green Goblin suit will likely rear their head as the dust settles on Kraven’s hunt. 

One year in and Ultimate Spider-Man is still the most gripping mainstream superhero comic out there. Its consistently held my attention, appreciation, and honest-to-goodness fandom for a whole year and can’t wait to see where it goes (and how often can get away write writing about it). If you haven’t been convinced to pick up this series by now, this is your sign to get reading and see how tangled this web can get. I have a feeling you won’t want to miss what year 2 of Ultimate Spider-Man has in store.

 

You can find Ultimate Spider-Man #13 right now at your local comic book store or Amazon Kindle Book Store