List of Ultimate Spider-Man story arcs
Featured here is a comprehensive timeline of the comic book series "Ultimate Spider-Man" created by Brian Michael Bendis and Bill Jemas, and drawn by Mark Bagley. Ultimate Spider-Man is a teenage drama, in contrast the married Spider-Man in the normal Marvel continuity.[1]
Power and Responsibility (#1-7)
- Published between: October 2000 - April 2001
- Artists: Brian Michael Bendis (writer) / Mark Bagley (drawing)
- Plot outline: In a modernised retelling of the classic Amazing Fantasy #15 story (1961), Peter gets bitten by genetically altered spider and gets super powers; fights as a wrestler to pay off family debts; refuses to stop burglar who later kills Uncle Ben; becomes Spider-Man out of guilt; fights Norman Osborn / Green Goblin
- First appearances: Peter Parker, Mary Jane Watson, Uncle Ben, Aunt May, Flash Thompson, Kenny McFarlane, Liz Allen, Norman Osborn, Harry Osborn, Doctor Octopus
- Deaths: Uncle Ben
- Notes: First comic of the entire Ultimate Marvel line; first Bendis / Bagley collaboration. Originally, Bagley was only going to illustrate the first six issues; since then, he and Bendis have broken the record for longest continual run by a creative team in Marvel history.[2]
Learning Curve (#8-13)
- Published between: May 2001 - November 2001
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Peter gets a job at the “Daily Bugle”; learns Uncle Ben's murderer had ties to the Kingpin; Peter fights his henchmen and manages to steal incriminating discs; reveals his identity to Mary Jane and becomes her boyfriend
- First appearances: The Kingpin, The Enforcers, Patsy Walker, Daily Bugle staff (J. Jonah Jameson, Joseph "Robbie" Robertson, Ben Urich, Betty Brant), Electro, The Shocker
- Deaths: Mr. Big / Frederick Foswell
Double Trouble (#14-21)
- Published between: December 2001- June 2002
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Dr. Octopus swears to kill his superior Justin Hammer; Kraven the Hunter wants to kill Spider-Man; Peter saves Hammer from Doc Ock and himself from Kraven
- First appearances: Gwen Stacy, Kraven the Hunter, Justin Hammer, Sharon Carter
- Deaths: Justin Hammer
- Notes: The Spider-Man movie came out during this arc (May 2002), starting a comics resurgence among children.[3]
Legacy (#22-27)
- Published between: July 2002 - November 2002
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Norman Osborn tries to blackmail Peter into working for him; Nick Fury helps Peter; Osborn (as Green Goblin) abducts Mary Jane and throws her off a bridge; Fury and Peter take down Osborn; Peter is shocked to learn that Fury intends to draft him into S.H.I.E.L.D. by force when he turns eighteen.
- First appearances: Miles Warren, Nick Fury
- Notes: Ever since Gwen Stacy's death in Amazing Spider-Man #121 (1973), it is fairly common to see Peter's love interests hurled off a bridge.
Public Scrutiny (#28-32)
- Published between: December 2002 - February 2003
- Trade paperback appeared: January 1, 2003
- Plot outline: Peter is framed by a Spider-Man impostor; gets shot by the police and gets help by the Wasp; impostor kills John Stacy, and his daughter Gwen blames Spider-Man; Peter takes out the impostor; Mary Jane breaks up with Peter
- First appearances: Rhino, Jean DeWolff
- Deaths: John Stacy
- Notes: In the original Amazing Spider-Man series, Gwen's father was also killed saving a child (issue 90).
- It is never explained how the imposter was able to replicate the web shooters, nor what happened to this technology.
Venom (#33-39)
- Published between: February 2003 - June 2003
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Peter meets Eddie Brock Jr., who reveals their late fathers worked on a healing balm called Venom; on skin contact, Peter is transformed into a black, psychotic, near-invincible Super-Spider-Man and just breaks free; when Eddie irresponsibly takes Venom himself, he makes the same transformation; Eddie goes on a rampage, gets gunned down by the police and dissolves
- First appearances: Eddie Brock Jr. / Venom
- Notes: This storyline started in issue #39 is continued in the Ultimate Spider-Man video game, finishing in Ultimate Spider-Man #46.[4]
Irresponsible (#40-45)
- Published between: July 2003 - November 2003
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: A pyrokinetic called Geldoff psionically destroys cars; Peter is attacked by him, but then the X-Men step in; Aunt May visits a psychiatrist to come to terms with her life; Peter and Mary Jane re-bond
- First appearances: Geldoff, Ultimate X-Men
Ultimate Six (USM #46 & Ultimate Six #1-7)
Cats & Kings (#47-53)
- Published between: January 2004 - April 2004
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline I: J. Jonah Jameson endorses a candidate for District Attorney with obvious ties to the Kingpin, but then gets second thoughts; Peter goes to "visit" Jameson and ends up saving him from the Enforcers
- Plot outline II: The Black Cat steals an artifact from Kingpin and starts flirting with Spider-Man; they are attacked by Elektra; Peter discovers Black Cat's identity and sees Kingpin and Elektra threatening her; Elektra impales the Black Cat with her sai, but no corpse is found; revealed that Kingpin wanted to use "magic" tablet on his comatose wife Vanessa
- First appearances: Elektra Natchios, Black Cat, Vanessa Fisk
- Notes: In the original Amazing Spider-Man series, the stone tablet was a source of eternal youth; in the original Amazing Spider-Man series, the corrupt politician Sam Bullitt appeared in issue 91.
Hollywood (#54-59)
- Published between: May 2004 - July 2004
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Hollywood plans to screen a Spider-Man movie; an angry Spider-Man appears on set; Dr. Octopus breaks free, defeats Spider-Man and abducts him to Brazil; Peter defeats him and flees back to Queens; Gwen Stacy finds out Peter's secret identity; the movie becomes a smash hit.
- First appearances: Mysterio (But just an actor)
- Notes: Arc obviously written as an appetizer for the upcoming film “Spider-Man 2” (July 2004) which featured Dr. Octopus as the main villain. The comic featured male lead Tobey Maguire, Director Sam Raimi and Marvel-movie head Avi Arad in cameo roles.
Carnage (#60-65)
- Published between: August 2004 - November 2004
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Spider-Man is wounded defeating the Gladiator and seeks the medical aid of Dr. Curt Conners in return for a blood sample; Conners experiments in it and is unaware that it is growing into a humanoid “Carnage” monster; Carnage murders Gwen Stacy; Peter defeats the creature and is ready to give up being Spider-Man for good, but decides to continue after stopping a mugging.
- Deaths:Gwen Stacy
- First appearances: Carnage, Gladiator (Melvin Potter), The Punisher, Boomerang
- Notes: In the regular Marvel Comics universe, Carnage was the offspring of Venom; Gwen Stacy also dies in the regular comics, but in a completely different way.
Superstars (#66-71)
- Published between: December 2004 - March 2005
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Three short stories; 1) Wolverine and Peter mysteriously wake up in each other's bodies; 2) Johnny Storm from the Ultimate Fantastic Four enters Peter's school; 3) Peter has an encounter with Doctor Strange in which he gets mixed up in a spell and is plunged into a horrific world based on his nightmares.
- First appearances: Johnny Storm, Dr. Strange
- Notes: Brian Michael Bendis appears at the beginning of both parts of the Wolverine and Peter Parker story, denouncing it as the idea of a younger editor and claiming 'Even I couldn't milk more than two issues out of this one.'
Hobgoblin (#72-78)
- Published between: April 2005 - July 2005
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Harry Osborn is back from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody, knows that Peter is Spider-Man and his vital role in defeating his father Norman (see Ultimate Six); Harry hallucinates about Shaw, his father's hitman, who goads him to unleash his “hidden abilities”; Harry transforms into the Hobgoblin; Peter fights Harry and is emotionally drained; Peter breaks up with Mary Jane because he realizes his superhero life will always endanger her.
- First appearances: Killer Shrike
- Notes: In the regular Marvel Comics universe, Harry Osborn became the Green Goblin, not the Hobgoblin.
Warriors (#79-85)
- Published between: August 2005 - January 2006
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: The mutant criminal lord known as Hammerhead tries to overthrow the Kingpin; Spider-Man suddenly is offered incriminating evidence about Hammerhead by Elektra and Kingpin; Black Cat shows up and pairs up with Spider-Man; after a gigantic fight, many characters are incapacitated; Black Cat breaks up with Spider-Man after discovering his age; it is revealed that every move has been subtly controlled by Kingpin's trusty pawn, the corrupt Jean De Wolfe.
- First appearances: Moon Knight, Hammerhead, Shang-Chi, Iron Fist
- Notes: According to the letters section of Ultimate Spider-Man #83, this story arc occurs before Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1; the video game was published in this time (September 2005)
Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1
- Published in: October 2005
- Artists: Bendis / Mark Brooks / Isanove
- Plot outline: Peter and Kitty Pryde from the X-Men become a couple.
- Notes: In both Ultimate Spider-Man and Ultimate X-Men, Kitty's crush on Peter was well-documented.
Silver Sable (#86-90)
- Published between: February 2006 - April 2006
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Flash Thompson gets kidnapped by Silver Sable, who think he is Spider-Man, who is wanted by the Roxxon Corporation for questioning; Spider-Man confronts Silver, but he is captured and brought to the Roxxon Corporation; the the Vulture swoops in and is subdued by Spider-Man and Silver; the Tinkerer (Tinker-er) is revealed as the culprit
- First appearances: Silver Sable, Wild Pack, Vulture, Tinkerer, Spider-Slayers, Omega Red, Wrecking Crew, Damage Control
Deadpool (#91-94)
- Published between: May 2006 - July 2006
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Deadpool and his Reavers abduct Spider-Man and the X-Men to Genosha to Krakoa for a reality TV show in which they hunt down heroes; the X-Men and Spider-Man defeat them; back in New York, Aunt May has a good date with Miles Warren
- First appearances: Deadpool, Reavers, the Ringer
Morbius (#95-96)
- Published between: July 2006 - August 2006
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: In the past, Spider-Man has encountered Blade; Ben Urich does research on vampires after a woman called Jennifer Grünwald was bitten; Grünwald then bites Urich; Morbius jumps in and saves the day
- First appearances: Blade, Morbius, Jennifer Grünwald (named after the Marvel editor of the same name).
Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #2
- Published in: October 2006
- Artists: Bendis / Mark Brooks
- Plot outline: Jean DeWolfe wants Spider-Man to fight a thug called the Kangaroo; suddenly Daredevil, the Punisher and Moon Knight appear and fight each other; Punisher kills Jean DeWolfe, and it revealed she was indeed a corrupt pawn of the Kingpin
- First appearances: Kangaroo
The Clone Saga (#97-105)
- Published between: August 2006 - February 2007
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: Peter's immediate family is caught in a strange conspiracy involving the Fantastic Four, the Ultimates, the X-Men, Nick Fury, Otto Octavius, a resurrected Gwen Stacy, and several newly introduced or resurrected individuals who turn out to be clones made from Peter's DNA.
- First appearances: Scorpion, Spider-Woman, Spider-Girl, Tarantula, 'Mystery Figure'
- Notes: Retelling of the controversial Clone Saga; Gwen Stacy mysteriously reappears alive and amnesiac, which also happened in the regular comics (Amazing Spider-Man #144, 1975); OZ is the drug Norman Osborn used to turn himself into the Green Goblin. As with Amazing Spider-Man 100, the Hundredth issue features a Spider-Man with six arms. As of October 2006, Ultimate Spider-Man was the top selling Marvel comic.[5]
Ultimate Knights (106-111)
- Published between: March 2007-July 2007
- Artists: Bendis / Bagley
- Plot outline: As of issue 106, Spider-Man, Moon Knight, Dr. Strange, Iron Fist, and Shang Chi have enlisted with Daredevil; the Kingpin has sought to regain his wealth upon discovering that he owns the Merchandising rights to the Movie filmed in the 'Hollywood' arc, and thus owns the merchandising rights to Spider-Man; and Kitty Pryde, having left the Xavier Mansion as a result of actions perpetrated by Cable in Ultimate X-Men, is moving in with her mother in Queens and enrolling at Midtown High, one of two new Students; the other being Jessica Jones. This sets up the love triangle that Brian Bendis originally predicted would be set up as a result of the preceding Clone Saga arc. Daredevil gathers his team of Ultimate Knights and they plan to attack Kingpin. Moon Knight volunteers to secretly spy on the Kingpin as his new persona, Ronin. This worsens Moon Knight's already fragile mental condition, bringing his Ronin persona to reality. He crashes a bus into Peter's school. He defeats Spider-man and brings him to the Kingpin. The Kingpin reveals to spidey that he owns his name. He then beats up Ronin. Spidey confronts Daredevil about him being a traitor. The traitor is then revealed- Iron Fist.
- First appearances: Jessica Jones, Ronin, the Ultimate Knights team
Ultimate Spiderman issue 111
- Published: August 2007
- Artists: Bendis/Bagley/Immonen
- First appearances: Spot
Death of a Goblin (112-?)
- Published between: September 2007-?
- Artists: Bendis/Immonen
Bibliography
- Ultimate Spider-Man #1— ,1/2, Annual (October 2000— )
- Ultimate Spider-Man video game
Ultimate Spider-Man has been collected in the following trade paperbacks:
| Title | Material collected | ISBN |
|---|---|---|
| Volume 1: Power and Responsibility | Ultimate Spider-Man #1-7 | ISBN 0-7851-0786-X |
| Volume 2: Learning Curve | Ultimate Spider-Man #8-13 | ISBN 0-7851-0820-3 |
| Volume 3: Double Trouble | Ultimate Spider-Man #14-21 | ISBN 0-7851-0879-3 |
| Volume 4: Legacy | Ultimate Spider-Man #22-27 | ISBN 0-7851-0968-4 |
| Volume 5: Public Scrutiny | Ultimate Spider-Man #28-32 | ISBN 0-7851-1087-9 |
| Volume 6: Venom | Ultimate Spider-Man #33-39 | ISBN 0-7851-1094-1 |
| Volume 7: Irresponsible | Ultimate Spider-Man #40-45 | ISBN 0-7851-1092-5 |
| Volume 8: Cats & Kings | Ultimate Spider-Man #47-53 | ISBN 0-7851-1250-2 |
| Volume 9: Ultimate Six | Ultimate Spider-Man #46; Ultimate Six #1-7 |
ISBN 0-7851-1312-6 |
| Volume 10: Hollywood | Ultimate Spider-Man #54-59 | ISBN 0-7851-1402-5 |
| Volume 11: Carnage | Ultimate Spider-Man #60-65 | ISBN 0-7851-1403-3 |
| Volume 12: Superstars | Ultimate Spider-Man #66-71 | ISBN 0-7851-1629-X |
| Volume 13: Hobgoblin | Ultimate Spider-Man #72-78 | ISBN 0-7851-1647-8 |
| Volume 14: Warriors | Ultimate Spider-Man #79-85 | ISBN 0-7851-1680-X |
| Volume 15: Silver Sable | Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1; Ultimate Spider-Man #86-90 |
ISBN 0-7851-1681-8 |
| Volume 16: Deadpool | Ultimate Spider-Man #91-96; Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #2 |
ISBN 0-7851-1927-2 |
| Volume 17: Clone Saga | Ultimate Spider-Man #97-105 | ISBN 0-7851-1928-0 |
Ultimate Spider-Man also has been collected in the following hardcovers:
| Volume # | Material collected | ISBN |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ultimate Spider-Man #1-13 | ISBN 0-7851-0898-X |
| 2 | Ultimate Spider-Man #14-27 | ISBN 0-7851-1061-5 |
| 3 | Ultimate Spider-Man #28-39, 1/2 | ISBN 0-7851-1156-5 |
| 4 | Ultimate Spider-Man #40-45, 47-53 | ISBN 0-7851-1249-9 |
| 5 | Ultimate Spider-Man #46, 54-59; Ultimate Six #1-7, |
ISBN 0-7851-1401-7 |
| 6 | Ultimate Spider-Man #60-71 | ISBN 0-7851-1841-1 |
| 7 | Ultimate Spider-Man #72-85 | ISBN 0-7851-2148-X |
See also
References
- ^ Hamby, Alex (2002-03-27). "Never Say Never Again". Jinxworld. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Richards, Dave (2006-12-22). "Spinning the Final Web: Bagley Talks "Ultimate Spider-Man"". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Morales, Wilson (July 2005). "The Fantastic Four : An Interview with Director Tim Story and Avi Arad". blackfilm.com. Retrieved 2007-01-11.
- ^ Richards, Dave (2006-11-23). "With Great Powers Comes Great Responsibility: Bendis Talks "Ultimate Spider-Man" and "Powers"". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Arrant, Chris (2006-10-26). "Ultimate Immonen: Stuart Immonen Talks Ultimate Spider-Man". Newsarama. Retrieved 2007-01-11.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)