Check Out The New Cover And Interior Artwork From Jonathan Hickman And Stefano Caselli's Ultimate Universe #1

[JayC]

This week, readers witnessed the worlds-shaking conclusion of Jonathan Hickman and Bryan Hitch’s ULTIMATE INVASION limited series where a new generation of heroes was born to save the future! Their saga continues in November’s ULTIMATE UNIVERSE #1 where Hickman will team up with Stefano Caselli to lay the groundwork for a new line of Ultimate Comics. In this extra-sized foundational one-shot, enter a new age of Ultimate storytelling filled with bold takes on iconic Marvel characters and special previews of upcoming Ultimate titles, including the recently revealed Ultimate Spider-Man and more.

"What made the Ultimate Universe originally really interesting was that it was a reflection of the world outside your window, in the moment that you were living in. What does it look like in the world we’re living in now?" Hickman said. "It’s kind of shocking how much the world has changed in that period of time. The idea of what it would be like to see the genesis of Super Heroes in a brand new world is a really fascinating exercise."

Check out never-before-seen interior artwork as well as Bryan Hitch’s newly revealed main cover that features the line’s all-new trade dress. Check with your local comic shop regarding availability and preorders for this milestone issue and learn more about Hickman’s Ultimate Spider-Man and the future of the Ultimate Universe next month at the Marvel: Next Big Thing Panel at New York Comic Con!

ULTIMATE UNIVERSE #1 – 75960620801200111
Written by JONATHAN HICKMAN
Art by STEFANO CASELLI
Colors by DAVID CURIEL
Cover by BRYAN HITCH
On Sale 11/1

[McHogan]

So the art looks fantastic..but ugh.. just die already Ultimates Universe!!

....guess I still hold some residual bitterness on how this version of Marvel was forced down our throats in every medium (comics, Ultimate Avengers cartoons, Ultimate Alliancw default suits...)

Then of course Marvel ruined their own cash cow with terrible writing and decisions....

[TheArrow]

Right from the start I've always though that the Ultimate Universe was an exercise in brand confusion because it was "different" but not different ENOUGH.   They kept referring back to and comparing itself to the mainstream  Marvel Universe. They then based the movies off a hybrid between the Ultimate and mainstream Universe and it became even more confusing.
AND THEN they tried to close shop with the Ultimate Universe and tear it all down.............and then again........they tried to bring it all back.

Sorry, but.........personally speaking, this just gives me BS fatigue.  It's like the New Universe all over again.........and again, and again and.......it's a worse play than what DC did with all their Crisis stories.
it's muddled, confusing and dare I say.........impenetrable, because what the attractive appeal about diving into an utter mess??

I read some of the Ultimates stuff early on. The characters were frequently ugly and malicious and that made any progression in the stories to be bleak.  Sure, they could be cinematic, hence basing the MCU on a lot of it....but a lot of the time they weren't heroes----they were more psychos or monsters.  That turned me off the line and there was never any draw back to it.

[Atlantis]

On 9/30/2023 at 7:08 PM, TheArrow said:

Right from the start I've always though that the Ultimate Universe was an exercise in brand confusion because it was "different" but not different ENOUGH.   They kept referring back to and comparing itself to the mainstream  Marvel Universe. They then based the movies off a hybrid between the Ultimate and mainstream Universe and it became even more confusing.
AND THEN they tried to close shop with the Ultimate Universe and tear it all down.............and then again........they tried to bring it all back.

Sorry, but.........personally speaking, this just gives me BS fatigue.  It's like the New Universe all over again.........and again, and again and.......it's a worse play than what DC did with all their Crisis stories.
it's muddled, confusing and dare I say.........impenetrable, because what the attractive appeal about diving into an utter mess??

I read some of the Ultimates stuff early on. The characters were frequently ugly and malicious and that made any progression in the stories to be bleak.  Sure, they could be cinematic, hence basing the MCU on a lot of it....but a lot of the time they weren't heroes----they were more psychos or monsters.  That turned me off the line and there was never any draw back to it.

Well said. I did like the first iteration of the Ultimates; the new approach, the artwork etc was fantastic... but ultimately (no pun intended) it just couldn't sustain itself.

Old fashioned, perhaps, but I find superheroes at their best when their motivation is "I have abilities and I'm using them to fight for justice" or that kind of thing. These characters are just there to show off, to act out, to play to their egos. Maybe that's a reflection on who's writing these stories. 

[RoMe00150]

Don't let Nick Lowe see this

[AndyL]

On 10/3/2023 at 11:46 AM, Atlantis said:

Well said. I did like the first iteration of the Ultimates; the new approach, the artwork etc was fantastic... but ultimately (no pun intended) it just couldn't sustain itself.

Old fashioned, perhaps, but I find superheroes at their best when their motivation is "I have abilities and I'm using them to fight for justice" or that kind of thing. These characters are just there to show off, to act out, to play to their egos. Maybe that's a reflection on who's writing these stories. 

You are speaking 100 my friend. All these writers know how to do is self insert themselves into our beloved characters. They care nothing or know nothing about what the readers want. All they do is get the reigns and do what they think is cool from their own perspective. Nothing made that more apparent than Children of the Atom. No creativity in building any characters. They were all just cheap imitations of existing characters mixed with a lot of contemporary fads. We want to see superheroes do superhero stuff but instead we get to read about their adventures in cosplay and Reddit and Mutant Music. Like what does that even mean? Total amatuer hour.

At least the art looks good.

[TheArrow]

There was a moment waaaay back in the original Ultimates--the Chitauri arc--that set a "tone" with me for the title and brand as a whole:
IIRC, SHIELD or some soldiers and the Ultimates had thwarted some Chitauri incident, it's in the aftermath, and so kid looks on the soldiers with what is drawn as a bit of awed expression.

And they mockingly push the kid to the ground.

I looked back at that story and immediately picked up a mean-spirited under-current throughout, and I know enough about writing to know that something like that isn't accidental. It was subtle, but it was sure there if one read a bit between the lines and the panels.
Subliminals are either parody, or something the writer is trying to convey beyond parody. 
I don't know if the new series will contain the same tugly one, but it really tainted my impressions of the whole Ultimates brand.