The Good
The third of the new Ultimate books to come out after the events of Cataclysm is here, and frankly, this is the only book that got it completely right. Both the story and the art work so well here and this issue actually deals with Miles adjusting to the new world, post-Galactus.
There's a lot of set-up for where this series is going, and it's all good. A certain villain from Spider-Man's past, not so much Miles' past though, has returned, and while the two haven't met each other yet, it's certainly on the horizon.
What's really interesting the Brian Michael Bendis is setting up here is that there's two criminal Spider-men, in kind of similar outfits, committing crimes. What's really great about that scene with the Spider-Twins is the two page layouts by artist David Marquez. It's set up to reflect the Spider-Twins helmets and adds a new layer of cohesiveness to the book. We feel a real connection to the characters, even if they're bad, just from how the panels are laid out.
This issue builds on a lot more than who Miles will be fighting in the upcoming months. This also builds on his relationship with Katie Bishop and the friendship he still has with Mary Jane. Miles still has that connection to the Parker Spider-Man and it's good to see it still a part of this book.
Marquez, overall, does one hell of a job with his art. However, don't forget that colorist Justin Ponsor also makes this art look incredibly awesome. Artistically, this is the best looking of all the Ultimate book relaunches by a landslide.
That final page? WTF?! As Comic Vine's resident Ultimate Universe fan, I am flipping my lid and demand answers! Or I can just wait until next month. Seriously, what a shocking ending. No one spoil it!
The Bad
The title of this series, MILES MORALES: THE ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN is a bit much. I'm surprised Marvel didn't add "All New" to the title.
As an Ultimate Spider-Man fan, I was very pleased with this first issue. It does everything right.
The Verdict
Since the reboot of the Ultimate books, fans have had a hard time finding something to cling to since ULTIMATES and ULTIMATE FF do not meet the high expectations in both story and art. Luckily, MILES MORALES is the book the Ultimate universe needs and deserves. This book has one hell of a creative team driving this story and it actually feels like a fine followup to Catalcysm, since those events actually affect the characters seen here. Finally, that final page is utterly fantastic and shocking. This is the Ultimate book you need to read.
55 Comments