Ultimate Spider-Man is finally here, and it brings with it sweeping changes. But the biggest change happens early on, setting the stage for a radically new Spider-Man.
To say fans have been eagerly awaiting the new Ultimate Spider-Man would be an understatement.
Many die-hard Spider-Man fans have expressed frustration with the direction of the 616-universe Spider-Man for a while now. They’re frustrated with mandates to keep Spider-Man and Mary Jane from reconciling and the constant cycle of grief and misery that perpetuates his stories.
The Ultimate Universe promises to be a respite from that, with an older, happily married Peter discovering his powers as an adult. However, the biggest change in the new Ultimate universe is one fans almost certainly weren’t prepared for.
Warning, spoilers for Ultimate Spider-Man #1 follow
Ultimate Spider-Man revives an important Marvel character, and fans are shocked
The opening pages of Ultimate Spider-Man, as seen in the preview, have already won over fans. But it’s Peter’s life at the Daily Bugle that is leaving fans with the biggest shock.
That’s because the managing editor of the new Ultimate Universe Daily Bugle is none other than Ben Parker, Peter’s uncle.
Spider-Man fans who came into the issue ready for a bold, different new era of Spider-Man weren’t quite prepared for a change of this magnitude.
“Holyshit Ben alive this universe best universe for Peter” one Redditor said.
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“My mouth dropped when I saw this, I can wait to pick up this issue” added another.
“Holy shit! This is one of those universes, where Peter actually has a happy life.” said another Redditor.
In every prior universe, one of the few constants has been the death of Ben Parker, a murder for which Peter shoulders much of the blame, inspiring him to shed his delusions of grandeur and become a superhero.
In Spider-Man’s classic origin, Uncle Ben is shot by a mugger who Peter failed to stop. While the original story makes it clear this was a coincidence, some later retcons like Spider-Man: Chapter One have tried to tie this more directly to Peter by having the mugger follow Spider-Man home, mistakenly believing is also a criminal.
The original Ultimate Comics retained that origin, and most iterations of Spider-Man have maintained a dead Uncle Ben as the driving force for Peter’s decision to become a hero. Some exceptions do exist, like the alternate reality House of M, where Peter was a celebrity hero believed to be a mutant, and, of course, the MCU Spider-Man, where Marissa Tomei’s Aunt May seems to have largely taken on the role associated with Uncle Ben.
Ultimate Spider-Man twists this, though. In this story, May Parker is apparently dead, caught in the same attempt on the lives of the Ultimates that killed Norman Osborn. Ben remains a driving force in this issue, inspiring Peter to take the leap to change his life – which means taking on the powers that were stolen from him by The Maker. How the relationship between Ben and Peter will influence his time as Spider-Man now remains to be seen, though some hint will likely be offered in coming issues and the Spider-Man-centric Free Comic Book Day issue.
Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is available now from Marvel. For more Spider-Man and comic book news, be sure to stick with Dexerto.
