Recommended Comics: Ultimate Spider-Man #1-110
Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley Create Graphic Novel Classic
Feb 6, 2009
Ultimate Spider-Man was the first series to officially take place in Marvel’s newly formed Ultimate Universe. The Ultimate Universe, first spawned in 2000 by newly instated Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada’s, was essentially Marvel’s answer to avoiding 40 years of continuity while still writing stories the same beloved characters.
Quesada, determined to attract new readers, proposed the Ultimate Universe as a way to start with fresh continuities for Marvel fan favorites such as Spider-Man, X-Men and Fantastic 4. The Ultimate Universe has proved to be a fun way for new readers to get involved in fresh storylines without having to know 5 decades of continuity.
Marvel Vets Bring Ultimate Spider-Man to Life
While most of the Ultimate Universe series are certainly noteworthy, the first 110 issues of Ultimate Spider-Man are especially poignant, well-crafted, and expressive of the spirit of the original Spider-Man as well as Marvel comics in general. Quesada hit gold by pairing up fan favorite Brian Michael Bendis with original Spider-Man artist Mark Bagley.
The pair’s dynamic chemistry lasted through 110 fantastic issues, breaking the record for the longest partnership to collaborate on a series. The previous record was held by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for their work together on 102 issues Fantastic Four. Fans, at first skeptical of the Ultimate Universe’s first experiment, grew wholly attached to Ultimate Spider-Man by the time of Bagley’s departure.
Mark Bagley left the series and was replaced by Stuart Immonen in 2007. Immonen previously worked on Ultimate X-Men and Superman before joining Bendis on Ultimate Spider-Man and came to the series with large shoes to fill. “It's always intimidating to follow in the footsteps of someone who's had a long and successful run, but when that person has been the only artist ever on a title, those feelings are magnified exponentially,” Immonen said in an interview to fan website News-o-Rama just before taking over for Bagley.
Ultimate Spider-Man: Modern Re-telling of Peter Parker’s Origin
The first issues of Ultimate Spider-Man return smart-alec super-hero Peter Parker to his shy nerd roots. Parker is once again a high school science geek who lives with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben and lusts after pretty girl Mary Jane Watson. With Ultimate Spider-Man, writer Bendis hits a comfy stride in his re-telling of the timeless story of teenager torment.
Parker’s awkward relationships and unsteady daily dealings with bullies, friends, hormones and high school are all too believable and relevant to today’s world. It’s Bendis’ minute touches, such as having Peter hired as a web designer intern for the Daily Bugle (instead of the original photographer job) that help make this modern take so believable.
Modern details aside, Bendis sticks to the main highlights of Spider-Man’s early years. His beloved Uncle Ben is murdered early on, ironically by a criminal Parker could have stopped with his newly formed Spider powers, however Bendis writes Ultimate Uncle Ben as a former hippie who still wears his hair in a ponytail.
The homage to the Spider-Man’s original early years along with a few expertly placed differences helped earn Ultimate Spider-Man rapport with both longtime Spider-Man fans and new readers. The Ultimate Spider-Man series is consistently one of Marvel Comic’s best selling books every month since its debut.
Ultimate Spider-Man Storylines: Graphic Novel Check List
Per the new direction of Marvel since Joe Quesada took over, all of Marvel’s Ultimate Universe series are eventually available in graphic novel (Trade Paperback) format. Refer to this checklist for a complete collection of Bendis and Bagley’s classic Ultimate Spider-Man.
- Power & Responsibility #1-7
- Learning Curve #8-13
- Double Trouble #14-21
- Legacy #22-27
- Public Scrutiny #28-32
- Venom #33-39
- Irresponsible #40-45
- Cat and Kings #47-53
- Hollywood #54-59
- Carnage #60-65
- Superstars #66-71
- Hobgoblin #72-78
- Warriors #79-85
- Silver Sable #86-90
- Deadpool #91-97
- Clone Saga #98-104
- Ultimate Knights #105-110
Read this series to fully experience one of Marvel Comics’ most well-received comic books in its history.
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