The Ultimate Universe Returns this Fall in ULTIMATE UNIVERSE #1

By Dustin Gebel

on June 9, 2023

During a retailer summit on June 7, the team behind the upcoming Ultimate Invasion, Jonathan Hickman and Bryan Hitch, along with Marvel Editor in Chief C.B. Cebulski announced that the Ultimate Universe returns this fall. Ultimate Invasion, which launches later this month, will see Ultimate Reed Richards (aka the Maker) attempt to restore the alternate universe with dangerous results. It seems like his plans will succeed as it kick starts a new one-shot, Ultimate Universe #1.

Jonathan Hickman stated in the press release:

“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? 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.”

The one-shot, also written by Hickman with art from Stefano Caselli, is set to establish what this new Ultimate Universe looks like post Ultimate Invasion. Bryan Hitch, the artist who brought the first volume of Ultimates (the Avengers of this reality) to life with writer Mark Millar back in 2002, will illustrate the cover for Ultimate Universe #1 after providing the art for Invasion.

Hitch had this to say regarding the upcoming series:

“You don’t ever have to have read any of the Ultimate Universe to enjoy this. There’s some great comics in there, but this doesn’t need you to be familiar with that stuff. You just need to get in on page one and enjoy this because the story takes you where you need to go.”

The alternate universe stated in the pages of 2000’s Ultimate Spider-Man, and created as an opportunity to tell Peter Parker’s origins in a contemporary time period. It quickly ballooned thanks to the success of Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley’s Spider-title. It would feature full line-ups of superteams, go through catastrophic events and introduce new characters like Miles Morales while keeping a focus on the timely roots of the imprint.

The announcement specifies that a line of new series will launch from this one-shot, but no specific titles were named at this time. The Ultimate Universe as a result of 2015’s company line crossover event, Secret Wars, and the Maker and Miles Morales’s Spider-Man were the two highest profile survivors of the destroyed universe. Other elements, such as Ultimate Thor’s hammer and Wolverine’s son also survived but have since fallen to the wayside.

Marvel shared the covers for upcoming Ultimate Invasion and Ultimate Universe #1 along with the covers to each issue, all of which can be seen below: