I was there from the beginning when the original Ultimate Spider-Man launched at the turn of the century. The Ultimate Marvel Universe, which took existing characters and told their stories from the beginning again with a contemporary, modern feel, shorn of the convoluted decades of continuity that dragged the original Marvel Universe down, was a huge success. Though, especially with the Spider-Man title, it was great for younger readers, they were so well written and plotted that they worked just as well to bring back lapsed older readers too.

In the few decades plus since then, the Ultimate Universe fell prey to the same missteps as the regular Marvel series always has; ever more convoluted continuity, inconsistent creative teams and a reliance on underwhelming crossovers. The Ultimate Universe has met a seemingly definitive end more than once, and as of 2023 has returned once again.

In this new incarnation of the Ultimate Universe, which doesn’t require any reading beforehand (the background is explained very economically with a single, brief passage of exposition and moments of dialogue in the story itself), we meet a middle-aged Peter Parker who seems to have everything he’s ever wanted. Or at least, he seems to have everything that the regular Peter Parker wants; he’s married to Mary Jane, he’s got kids, a stable job, and his Uncle Ben is still alive too.

It’s not all sunshine and roses of course. Though he has Uncle Ben, there’s at least one relative he’s close to who’s notable by their absence. And he has this niggling feeling that something is missing; that he’s not supposed to be where he is right now.

You see, this Peter Parker was never bitten by the spider. He doesn’t have powers. He’s just a regular, middle-aged guy with nothing remarkable about him.

Sure, he seems like a decent guy, but we know that he could be so much more. Amazing. Spectacular. Spider-Man.

He soon gets a message from a surprising source, which gives him something he’s been seeking without even realising. And his destiny can finally be set in motion.

I’m not the biggest fan of Jonathan Hickman’s writing. Though it’s very impressive from a technical standpoint, I tend to find that it feels too self-satisfied and indulgent; always setting up for a long-term payoff which doesn’t always hit the mark.

Yet there’s no denying that his slow-build, character led approach works wonders here, helped massively by Marco Checchetto’s frankly stunning artwork. It’s expressive, detailed and grounded; the body language and overall realism makes everything believable and relatable; the shift in focus to a Peter Parker who’s starting out in middle age also helps that along, for current comic readers (who I’m sure are overwhelmingly middle-aged themselves right now, even if they were teens when reading the original Ultimate Spider-Man!).

I find it really interesting to see the contrast here with the new Ultimate Marvel vs DC’s Ultimate-style Absolute Universe; the latter of which just goes to eleven in terms of style, tone and content.

There’s a much more grounded approach here, and though I definitely had my attention fully grabbed by Absolute Batman’s opening story arc immediately, the more measured pace of Ultimate Spider-Man #1 feels much less striking, but definitely far more relatable.

I think it’ll probably be a comic which lives or dies on the way Hickman develops it over the course of its run, and given that I’m late to the party on this (issue 24 is about to be released), I suspect that it’s doing just fine. One thing I’m really not keen on is the massive branding of the Ultimate line, which leaves far less space for the cover art.

Though it makes the line as a whole really easy to identify on store shelves, it does harm the appeal of the covers. Still, that feels like nit-picking, considering how good this extended-length first issue is, and how much ground it’s able to cover.

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