Post by Dead Man Wade on Nov 11, 2006 16:48:12 GMT -5
for those of u who dont read them heres the info
Ultimate Spider-Man was the first series to be published in the Ultimate Marvel line. Publisher Bill Jemas wanted to reinvent the Marvel Universe because he felt that, with over 40 years of backstory, it had become inaccessible to new readers, and he wanted to start with a reinvented Spider-Man. Initially, Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada was skeptical because 1998's Spider-Man: Chapter One, a previous attempt at re-envisioning Spider-Man's early adventures, failed both critically and commercially[4]. Marvel writer David Mack suggested indie writer Brian Michael Bendis, whom Jemas and Quesada chose to write the new series[5]. Marvel approached veteran Spider-Man artist Mark Bagley, who initially was not interested in joining the project and turned it down several times before signing [6].
In the first storyline, "Power and Responsibility" (Ultimate Spider-Man #1-7), Bendis presents a revamped version of the Spider-Man origin story first printed in Amazing Fantasy #15. Fifteen-year-old Peter Parker is less lonely than in the original story, but he is bullied. Orphaned as a child, Peter is raised by hipper, more assertive versions of Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Peter is a pupil at Midtown High School, a classmate of Mary Jane Watson, Liz Allen and Harry Osborn. Harry protects Peter against bullies Flash Thompson and new character Kenny "Kong" McFarlane. Harry's father Norman Osborn owns the laboratory where Peter is bitten, and in trying to duplicate the drug's effects becomes Spider-Man's villain.
The original Amazing Fantasy #15 story is only 11 pages long, but Bendis retells it as a 180-page, seven-part story arc in which Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man only after issue #5. Bagley was at first wary of Bendis' notoriously slow pace in advancing plot, describing it as a "real shock" at first [7]. Previously, Jemas intended the comic to feature single-issue stories only, but Bendis chose his own way [8].
"Power and Responsibility" was greeted with enthusiasm from fans and critics, sold well, and gave Ultimate Marvel a boost in credibility. After the release of Ultimate Spider-Man, Quesada and Jemas broadened the Ultimate Marvel line with Ultimate X-Men, The Ultimates and Ultimate Fantastic Four. Ultimate Spider-Man #1 was voted the "ninth-greatest Marvel Comic of All Time" in 2001 by readers of Wizard: The Guide to Comics. In addition to critical success, Ultimate Spider-Man grew to outsell the flagship Spider-Man title, Amazing Spider-Man. Following "Power and Responsibility" is "Learning Curve" (Ultimate Spider-Man #8-13), in which Spider-Man fights the Kingpin and his henchmen, the Enforcers and Electro. Bendis describes issue #13, in which Peter tells Mary Jane his secret identity, as his favorite issue because it shows the trust the Ultimate Marvel office had in him [10]. In the "Double Trouble" storyline (Ultimate Spider-Man #14-21), Peter meets J. Jonah Jameson and gains employment as a web designer, rather than as a photographer, for The Daily Bugle; fights Doctor Octopus, Justin Hammer and Kraven The Hunter; and meets a tough, street smart Gwen Stacy. In "Legacy" (Ultimate Spider-Man #22-27), Peter fights the monstrous, mutated Norman Osborn again, assisted by Nick Fury. Reception and sales stayed strong, helped by the fact that Bendis and Bagley quickly found chemistry and liked working with each other [11].
In "Public Scrutiny" (Ultimate Spider-Man #28-32), a Spider-Man copycat killer terrorizes the public, and Gwen's father is killed, retelling his death from Amazing Spider-Man #90 (1970). Bendis, disliking the mainstream Venom and its extraterrestrial origin, completely reinvents the character in "Venom" (Ultimate Spider-Man #33-39). [12] Peter meets Eddie Brock, a bright but irresponsible student who owns an experimental Venom balm that Eddie's and Peter's fathers invented while working on a cure for cancer.
In "Irresponsible" (Ultimate Spider-Man #40-45), Spider-Man meets the X-Men and fights the first original Ultimate Spider-Man villain, a mutant pyrokinetic named Geldoff. "Cats & Kings" (Ultimate Spider-Man #47-53) features two stories. The first reimagines a plotline from Amazing Spider-Man #91 (1970), about a corrupt politician named Sam Bullit; the second features Elektra and Black Cat. Bagley considers his artistic work on the depictions of the two women as among the finest he has done on this series [13]. Ultimate Spider-Man #46 is a prelude to Ultimate Six, a limited series about the Ultimate version of the Sinister Six and a crossover with The Ultimates. The "Hollywood" (Ultimate Spider-Man #54-59) storyline is a parody of the then-upcoming movie Spider-Man 2. In the story, an unauthorized film is in production about Spider-Man with Doctor Octopus as the main villain. The film's male lead Tobey Maguire, Bruce Campbell, director Sam Raimi and Marvel-movie head Avi Arad appear in cameo roles.
In "Carnage" (Ultimate Spider-Man #60-65), Bendis reinvents the Carnage character, writing him as a vampiric monster derived from a blood sample from Peter Parker. Carnage murders Gwen Stacy, and Peter blames himself for it. Bendis states that killing Gwen brought him a lot of hostile fan reactions, even surpassing the animosity when he killed off Hawkeye in Avengers Disassembled [14].The story also introduces the NYPD Captain Jean DeWolff.
"Superstars" (Ultimate Spider-Man #66-71) depicts Peter meeting Doctor Strange, Johnny Storm and Wolverine. In "Hobgoblin" (Ultimate Spider-Man #72-78), Peter fights Harry Osborn, who becomes the Hobgoblin.
"Warriors" (Ultimate Spider-Man #79-85) features a gang war in which Hammerhead, Iron Fist, Shang-Chi and Moon Knight are embroiled. Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1 (October 2005) introduces a romance between Peter Parker and Kitty Pryde of the X-Men.
"Silver Sable" (Ultimate Spider-Man #86-90) introduces the female mercenary of the same name. This arc ties in to another Spider-Man product, the Ultimate Spider-Man video game that came out at that time
"Deadpool" (Ultimate Spider-Man #91-94) features Deadpool and his Reavers, and "Morbius" (Ultimate Spider-Man #95-96) features Morbius and Blade. Miles Warren appears as Aunt May's love interest. Morbius also shows up along the way.
"Clone Saga" is a reference to a controversial mainstream Spider-Man story arc. A mysterious Spider-Woman and two duplicates of Peter Parker (one in a Scorpion costume) make appearances. A disfigured version of Peter kidnaps Mary Jane and attempts to give her super-powers. Meanwhile, Peter visits his old house and discovers Gwen Stacy, alive and well. Unable to explain this strange occurrence, Peter finally confesses to Aunt May that he is Spider-Man. Aunt May tells him to leave but is unsurprised when Peter bumps into his father, Richard Parker, on the way out the door. Richard Parker explains that he was not on the plane that killed Peter's mother and the Brocks. Since the crash he has been working underground for the CIA. However, his reappearance precipitates a confrontation with Nick Fury and SHIELD, during which the resurrected Gwen Stacy is revealed to be Carnage.
In Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #2 Peter battles the Kangaroo, the Punisher, Moon Knight and Daredevil. The Kingpin returns and Captain Jean DeWolff is shot down by the Punisher. Also featured is a team-up between Daredevil and Moonknight.
The Ultimate Knights have formed in the group of Doctor Strange, Daredevil (Who arranged the gathering), Shang Chi, Iron Fist, Moon Knight and eventually Spider-Man. However, it is revealed that Iron Fist is feeding information to The Kingpin about their plot to overthrow him. Now they decide that they need someone to pose as Kingpin's bodyguard and he hires Moon Knight who took the persona Ronin. Now though, the problem exists that Ronin defeats Moon Knight in the shared mind, now it seems Ronin is the evil, domininant mind. He attacks Peter's school and when Spider-Man shows up, Ronin defeats Kitty who was defending her ex-Boyfriend and he kidnaps Peter.
Ultimate Spider-Man was the first series to be published in the Ultimate Marvel line. Publisher Bill Jemas wanted to reinvent the Marvel Universe because he felt that, with over 40 years of backstory, it had become inaccessible to new readers, and he wanted to start with a reinvented Spider-Man. Initially, Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada was skeptical because 1998's Spider-Man: Chapter One, a previous attempt at re-envisioning Spider-Man's early adventures, failed both critically and commercially[4]. Marvel writer David Mack suggested indie writer Brian Michael Bendis, whom Jemas and Quesada chose to write the new series[5]. Marvel approached veteran Spider-Man artist Mark Bagley, who initially was not interested in joining the project and turned it down several times before signing [6].
In the first storyline, "Power and Responsibility" (Ultimate Spider-Man #1-7), Bendis presents a revamped version of the Spider-Man origin story first printed in Amazing Fantasy #15. Fifteen-year-old Peter Parker is less lonely than in the original story, but he is bullied. Orphaned as a child, Peter is raised by hipper, more assertive versions of Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Peter is a pupil at Midtown High School, a classmate of Mary Jane Watson, Liz Allen and Harry Osborn. Harry protects Peter against bullies Flash Thompson and new character Kenny "Kong" McFarlane. Harry's father Norman Osborn owns the laboratory where Peter is bitten, and in trying to duplicate the drug's effects becomes Spider-Man's villain.
The original Amazing Fantasy #15 story is only 11 pages long, but Bendis retells it as a 180-page, seven-part story arc in which Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man only after issue #5. Bagley was at first wary of Bendis' notoriously slow pace in advancing plot, describing it as a "real shock" at first [7]. Previously, Jemas intended the comic to feature single-issue stories only, but Bendis chose his own way [8].
"Power and Responsibility" was greeted with enthusiasm from fans and critics, sold well, and gave Ultimate Marvel a boost in credibility. After the release of Ultimate Spider-Man, Quesada and Jemas broadened the Ultimate Marvel line with Ultimate X-Men, The Ultimates and Ultimate Fantastic Four. Ultimate Spider-Man #1 was voted the "ninth-greatest Marvel Comic of All Time" in 2001 by readers of Wizard: The Guide to Comics. In addition to critical success, Ultimate Spider-Man grew to outsell the flagship Spider-Man title, Amazing Spider-Man. Following "Power and Responsibility" is "Learning Curve" (Ultimate Spider-Man #8-13), in which Spider-Man fights the Kingpin and his henchmen, the Enforcers and Electro. Bendis describes issue #13, in which Peter tells Mary Jane his secret identity, as his favorite issue because it shows the trust the Ultimate Marvel office had in him [10]. In the "Double Trouble" storyline (Ultimate Spider-Man #14-21), Peter meets J. Jonah Jameson and gains employment as a web designer, rather than as a photographer, for The Daily Bugle; fights Doctor Octopus, Justin Hammer and Kraven The Hunter; and meets a tough, street smart Gwen Stacy. In "Legacy" (Ultimate Spider-Man #22-27), Peter fights the monstrous, mutated Norman Osborn again, assisted by Nick Fury. Reception and sales stayed strong, helped by the fact that Bendis and Bagley quickly found chemistry and liked working with each other [11].
In "Public Scrutiny" (Ultimate Spider-Man #28-32), a Spider-Man copycat killer terrorizes the public, and Gwen's father is killed, retelling his death from Amazing Spider-Man #90 (1970). Bendis, disliking the mainstream Venom and its extraterrestrial origin, completely reinvents the character in "Venom" (Ultimate Spider-Man #33-39). [12] Peter meets Eddie Brock, a bright but irresponsible student who owns an experimental Venom balm that Eddie's and Peter's fathers invented while working on a cure for cancer.
In "Irresponsible" (Ultimate Spider-Man #40-45), Spider-Man meets the X-Men and fights the first original Ultimate Spider-Man villain, a mutant pyrokinetic named Geldoff. "Cats & Kings" (Ultimate Spider-Man #47-53) features two stories. The first reimagines a plotline from Amazing Spider-Man #91 (1970), about a corrupt politician named Sam Bullit; the second features Elektra and Black Cat. Bagley considers his artistic work on the depictions of the two women as among the finest he has done on this series [13]. Ultimate Spider-Man #46 is a prelude to Ultimate Six, a limited series about the Ultimate version of the Sinister Six and a crossover with The Ultimates. The "Hollywood" (Ultimate Spider-Man #54-59) storyline is a parody of the then-upcoming movie Spider-Man 2. In the story, an unauthorized film is in production about Spider-Man with Doctor Octopus as the main villain. The film's male lead Tobey Maguire, Bruce Campbell, director Sam Raimi and Marvel-movie head Avi Arad appear in cameo roles.
In "Carnage" (Ultimate Spider-Man #60-65), Bendis reinvents the Carnage character, writing him as a vampiric monster derived from a blood sample from Peter Parker. Carnage murders Gwen Stacy, and Peter blames himself for it. Bendis states that killing Gwen brought him a lot of hostile fan reactions, even surpassing the animosity when he killed off Hawkeye in Avengers Disassembled [14].The story also introduces the NYPD Captain Jean DeWolff.
"Superstars" (Ultimate Spider-Man #66-71) depicts Peter meeting Doctor Strange, Johnny Storm and Wolverine. In "Hobgoblin" (Ultimate Spider-Man #72-78), Peter fights Harry Osborn, who becomes the Hobgoblin.
"Warriors" (Ultimate Spider-Man #79-85) features a gang war in which Hammerhead, Iron Fist, Shang-Chi and Moon Knight are embroiled. Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1 (October 2005) introduces a romance between Peter Parker and Kitty Pryde of the X-Men.
"Silver Sable" (Ultimate Spider-Man #86-90) introduces the female mercenary of the same name. This arc ties in to another Spider-Man product, the Ultimate Spider-Man video game that came out at that time
"Deadpool" (Ultimate Spider-Man #91-94) features Deadpool and his Reavers, and "Morbius" (Ultimate Spider-Man #95-96) features Morbius and Blade. Miles Warren appears as Aunt May's love interest. Morbius also shows up along the way.
"Clone Saga" is a reference to a controversial mainstream Spider-Man story arc. A mysterious Spider-Woman and two duplicates of Peter Parker (one in a Scorpion costume) make appearances. A disfigured version of Peter kidnaps Mary Jane and attempts to give her super-powers. Meanwhile, Peter visits his old house and discovers Gwen Stacy, alive and well. Unable to explain this strange occurrence, Peter finally confesses to Aunt May that he is Spider-Man. Aunt May tells him to leave but is unsurprised when Peter bumps into his father, Richard Parker, on the way out the door. Richard Parker explains that he was not on the plane that killed Peter's mother and the Brocks. Since the crash he has been working underground for the CIA. However, his reappearance precipitates a confrontation with Nick Fury and SHIELD, during which the resurrected Gwen Stacy is revealed to be Carnage.
In Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #2 Peter battles the Kangaroo, the Punisher, Moon Knight and Daredevil. The Kingpin returns and Captain Jean DeWolff is shot down by the Punisher. Also featured is a team-up between Daredevil and Moonknight.
The Ultimate Knights have formed in the group of Doctor Strange, Daredevil (Who arranged the gathering), Shang Chi, Iron Fist, Moon Knight and eventually Spider-Man. However, it is revealed that Iron Fist is feeding information to The Kingpin about their plot to overthrow him. Now they decide that they need someone to pose as Kingpin's bodyguard and he hires Moon Knight who took the persona Ronin. Now though, the problem exists that Ronin defeats Moon Knight in the shared mind, now it seems Ronin is the evil, domininant mind. He attacks Peter's school and when Spider-Man shows up, Ronin defeats Kitty who was defending her ex-Boyfriend and he kidnaps Peter.