Review: ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #200
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Dave Marquez, David LaFuente, Sara Pichelli, Mark Brooks, Mark Bagley & Andrew Hennessy
Colors: Justin Ponsor
Lettering: VC’s Cory Petit
Publisher: Marvel Comics
The Ultimate Universe version of Spider-Man has reached a milestone with it’s 200th issue. To commemorate, writer Brian Michael Bendis has joined up with many of the former artists on his Ultimate Spider-Man run to celebrate Peter Parker on the two-year anniversary of his passing.
What I Liked
Bendis really pulled on the heart-strings with this issue. All the major players in Peter Parker/Spider-Man’s life came together to remember him. Miles Morales, Gwen Stacy, Mary Jane, Aunt May, Kitty Pryde, Jessica Drew, Johnny Storm the Human Torch, and more all showed up to the gathering. Bendis was able to juggle the extra-large cast and allowed each person to have their moment. They spanned the entire Ultimate Universe.
The artists credited on this issue are a who’s who of Marvel’s greats – current artist Dave Marquez did the bulk of the work. Special pages and stories were provided by former contributors David LaFuente, Sara Pichelli, Mark Brooks, and the man who helped launch Ultimate Spider-Man with Bendis, Mark Bagley. So it’s safe to say this is one pretty comic book. It is heavy on exposition, so it was up to Marquez and the others to convey each character’s emotional state through their pencils.
Everyone shares their own stories involving Peter Parker as Spider-Man, which is where we get to see each individual artist play in the Spider-Man sandbox. That was fun to see. Plus each narrator has their own view of Peter that differs from the others.
Final two positive thoughts: 1) Go Ganke! 2) What is going on in that final page?
What I Didn’t Like
This is a very small gripe, but with so many characters with matching hair colors and body types, it was hard to distinguish the girls from one another. I couldn’t tell if I was looking at Jessica Drew or Kitty Pryde, or Liz Allan or Gwen Stacy.
Summary
What a great way to celebrate not only the life of Peter Parker, but of Ultimate Comics Spider-Man overall. We got a look at the past, present, and possibly future. Peter Parker may be dead, but the Ultimate version of Spider-Man will continue to live on.
Rating: 5 out of 5
This review is written in partnership with Pop Culture Network. They can be found at their website http://www.popculturenetwork.com/
Timdogg
#ComicBookChronicles @CBChron founder. Editor-in-Chief of @thekliqnation. Comic book reviewer, podcaster #RABBLERABBLE
