(writer) Brian Michael Bendis
(artist) David Marquez
(colorist) Justin Ponsor
There's no getting around this; last issue both Ultimate Norman Osborn and Ultimate Peter Parker came back from the grave, and the timing couldn't be worse for current Ultimate Spider-Man, Miles Morales, who is still reeling from the fact that his dad has dropped off the face of the earth after finding out his secret identity, and is struggling with the decision of whether or not to tell his girlfriend, Katie Bishop, his secret as well. Worse still, there are a couple of masked, superpowered crooks who appear to have the powers of Spider-Man hijacking dock shipments. The last issue ended with Miles actually meeting someone who appears to be Peter, and this issue, things get a little ugly.
It's been a little over three years since Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley put Ultimate Peter Parker in his grave and replaced him with the controversial half-African-American, half-Puerto-Rican Miles Morales as Spider-Man. A lot has happened to Miles since then; he's fought his uncle or the Ultimate Prowler, Ultimate Venom, Ultimate H.Y.D.R.A., he's met the "616" Peter Parker and even fought alongside him, he's lost his mom and taken part in an effort to save his world from being eaten by Galactus. In short, he's no rookie. Still, not even all of his experience as Spider-Man could have prepared him for the shock of meeting the boy he replaced. After all, not only was Peter buried; just two issues back (Ultimate Spider-Man #200) all of Peter's supporting cast held a memorial for him. This is not the "616" universe, after all, where, since the resurrection of Jean Grey in 1985, death has virtually ceased to mean anything. Here, main characters tend to stay dead (so far), so Peter's reappearance is a big thing, although Miles most likely called it right when he guessed the reason for Peter's apparent resurrection, which I will not spoil.
It's a nice, meaty issue in terms of developments in the story. Sure, it's a slow burn, but the good news is that a lot still happens here; Bendis is pacing himself well with this particular arc. Also, I genuinely enjoyed the depiction of the confrontation between old and new Ultimate Spider-Man; the feelings were genuine, and even though, naturally, the reader is meant to root for Miles, we cannot fault Peter for his actions, at least not for the moment. There is no doubt in my mind that this character is not what he appears to be, and it's to Bendis's credit that he totally has me interested in finding out what he really is.
Again, I cannot praise David Marquez's work enough. I was ready to drop this title after issue #200 but the guy just keeps me coming back for more. I was never a fan of Ultimate Peter Parker's look, whether it was drawn by series pioneer Mark Bagley or even his successor David Lafuente, but Marquez's take manages to look distinct from the "616" version while at the same time making him recognizable somehow as Peter. Marquez's action sequences are incredible, and I really, really look forward to the inevitable showdown between Miles and whoever the ultimate villain of this story turns out to be, because it's looking really crowded so far, which makes things all the more interesting.
9/10
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