The Good
So ULTIMATE END is less about the 1610 Universe ending and a giant battle and more about figuring out a way to save everything and everyone. We have players from both universes, including two Tony Starks, one of which is drunk and acting very superior. They're trying to figure out how all of this started and it all might go back to Tony Stark.
What Brian Michael Bendis did exceptionally great job with writing Peter Parker. Spider-Man's scenes in this issue were stand-out and incredibly memorable. There's a moment where he freaks out about everyone in the 1610 knowing that he's Peter Parker. He's pretty funny and reminds readers of the differences between the 616 and the 1610. It's like a quick game a catch-up while adding a little bit of fun.
That's what makes the issue pretty great. It's very new reader friendly, even to people who have never read an Ultimate book before. Bendis delivers a lot of different characters, with different personalities, in a short period of time but it's never overwhelming and there's a great sense of flow and solid pacing to the issue.
It's great to see Mark Bagley and Bendis working together again, even though Bagley worked with Bendis last year on CATACLYSM. Working with him is inker Scott Hanna and colorist Justin Ponsor. Hanna has some great, consistent work here that really makes Bagley's work pop out as well as giving the book a ton of depth. As always, Justin Ponsor's color-work defines the look and feel of so many Ultimate characters because of his work on ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN. He's easily one of the best colorist at Marvel.
The Bad
The issue starts out with heroes from 1610 and the 616 about to fight each other and that's a pretty amazing start to the book, but the rest of the issue just becomes people talking in a room. What happened with that battle? That's what fans want to see, since SECRET WARS #0 and SECRET WARS #1 built up to that. Sure, there's a bit of it in SW #1, but the hope for this issue was some more fights.
The Verdict
ULTIMATE END wasn't what I was expecting, but nevertheless, it was a really fun issue that does tie into what's going on in SECRET WARS. If you're a fan of the Ultimate Universe, this is really something you need to check out. Even if you've never read an Ultimate book before, this book is very new reader friendly. Check this issue out for sure.
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