Spider-Men #3 SPOILERS/Discussion!

[Codah]

This issue was just "good" for me. That last page was brutal but everything else was almost "meh". Seemed like the first half should have been shorter and the second half should have been a little more drawn out. I really liked that store owner.

[Balfro]

A few things made me think that this story takes place BEFORE Divided We Fall:

A) Iron Man is still wearing his stupid movie armor

B) Captain America is nowhere to be seen

C) Bendis said that we will find out how Miles gets webs in #14, which is during Divided We Fall. Since Miles does not have webs that means this takes place before

So as far as I'm concerned this takes place between #12 and #13 of Ultimate Spider-Man.

Other than the fact that Pichelli got Thor completely wrong (old harness and wrong hammer) I LOVED this issue! It's so refreshing to see a story that has both emotion and good action.

[MagSeven]

That doesn't apply to every one. The ultimate universe is different enough that it isn't an alternate 616 but it's own universe and all similarities are coincidental. Ultimate ben reilly is a black man, Osborn doesn't have that ridiculous hair-style. It is highly unlikely that 616 peter would confuse someone with his appearance.

Yeah it doesn't apply to ALL of them, just the vast majority. You are right there are a few exceptions, but the younger, "cooler" (depending on how you look at it) variation of the 616 version's appearance seems to be the norm.

[Ballard Blues]

It was awful. I liked the first two issues but this read like fanfiction. What was the purpose of all that fighting? We would also have no reason to believe 616 parker looks anything like Ultimate when you remember Nick Fury doesn't, Aunt May, Uncle Ben , Mary Jane don't. All they share is a name.

If Spider-Men was fanfiction, there would be no set up. There would be a paragraph vaugely describing the actions of either Peter or Miles and then sudden, bam! Its a crossover, Miles and Peter meet, crazy stuff is happening, characters will not resemble their canon personalities, an OC love interest is bound to be featured, and throughout it all there is hardly any elaboration on the part of the writer in either the environment, actions or emotions of the characters. And there's a great chance that it will never be completed. That, my friend, is what a comic book fanfiction crossover is. Spider-Men is the very opposite given that their taking their sweet time with everything, battles, set up, interaction and character.

And you have heard of the sameface mentality that's plagued comic books/artists since, like, their inception right? Everyone looks like somebody else, male and female alike. It's not a stretch that 616 Parker resembles what Ultimate Peter might've looked like if he reached the age of 30 or however old this guy is.

[HolySock]

A few things made me think that this story takes place BEFORE Divided We Fall:

A) Iron Man is still wearing his stupid movie armor

B) Captain America is nowhere to be seen

C) Bendis said that we will find out how Miles gets webs in #14, which is during Divided We Fall. Since Miles does not have webs that means this takes place before

So as far as I'm concerned this takes place between #12 and #13 of Ultimate Spider-Man.

Other than the fact that Pichelli got Thor completely wrong (old harness and wrong hammer) I LOVED this issue! It's so refreshing to see a story that has both emotion and good action.

Makes sense I suppose.

[nosocialize100]

Weakest issue yet. Most of it was a waste of a battle and then a lead up to the next issue. Meh.

[Plawsky]

After the great second issue, I was really hoping for more from this one. Don't get me wrong, it was still a good read, but it was lacking a bit in the story department for me. As has become expected over the past decade, Bendis has some really solid Spidey writing; I loved the internal monologue from Peter at the end of the book.

However, this story is now over halfway through. And, to be honest, it hasn't been that significant yet. Peter hasn't really given Miles any training or anything, there haven't been any big emotional moments (though those are certainly coming next issue), and Mysterio is still mostly unexplained. I know that it's not over yet, but this hasn't yet become the huge story it's meant to be.

All that said, this is still a heck of a fun book. I just wish there was more meat to it. Ultimate X-Men #14 blew it out of the water today, no question. That was some great plot set up and character development. Hopefully the last two issues change my mind, but this story just isn't living up to its potential. The ending was easily the best part of the issue, so #4 will hopefully continue that and really give us some good character moments.

The art, on the other hand, is still flawless. Sara Pichelli is a goddess.

That doesn't apply to every one. The ultimate universe is different enough that it isn't an alternate 616 but it's own universe and all similarities are coincidental. Ultimate ben reilly is a black man, Osborn doesn't have that ridiculous hair-style. It is highly unlikely that 616 peter would confuse someone with his appearance.

It's also a comic book. If Peter can get powers from a spider, he can look like his alternate-dimension self. And, as others have said, he's not the only one. Wolverine, Tony Stark, Xavier, the Thing, etc all look like their 616 selves.

So as far as I'm concerned this takes place between #12 and #13 of Ultimate Spider-Man.

That's what I'm thinking, too, but I'm not sure if that's really possible. Granted, Bendis never did care much for an accurate timeline, but it's a bit frustrating nonetheless.

Other than the fact that Pichelli got Thor completely wrong (old harness and wrong hammer) I LOVED this issue! It's so refreshing to see a story that has both emotion and good action.

Eh, I can chalk the harness up to artistic differences, but I agree that the hammer is a bit of a bummer. Though, it's always possible that the speculation of Thor getting the old hammer back comes true and this takes place after United We Stand. But then Iron Man's armor would be wrong (granted, he can wear whatever he likes). These kinds of inconsistencies never bother me too much, as long as they're not drastic like Ultimates 3.

[LJ-90]

Did Miles said "It's Misterioso"? Cause...that's either a mistake or Miles is using a little of spanish. That would be cool

[Number_5]

Did Miles said "It's Misterioso"? Cause...that's either a mistake or Miles is using a little of spanish. That would be cool

I think it's just Miles not quite remembering Mysterio's name...in spanish.

[Apothecary]

If Spider-Men was fanfiction, there would be no set up. There would be a paragraph vaugely describing the actions of either Peter or Miles and then sudden, bam! Its a crossover, Miles and Peter meet, crazy stuff is happening, characters will not resemble their canon personalities, an OC love interest is bound to be featured, and throughout it all there is hardly any elaboration on the part of the writer in either the environment, actions or emotions of the characters. And there's a great chance that it will never be completed. That, my friend, is what a comic book fanfiction crossover is. Spider-Men is the very opposite given that their taking their sweet time with everything, battles, set up, interaction and character.

And you have heard of the sameface mentality that's plagued comic books/artists since, like, their inception right? Everyone looks like somebody else, male and female alike. It's not a stretch that 616 Parker resembles what Ultimate Peter might've looked like if he reached the age of 30 or however old this guy is.

You just generalized all fanfiction there and good fanfiction does exist. I said it read like fanfiction and that is what I meant. Go back and read the Rapid-Fire dialogue between the Ultimates.

One of the major rules of visual fiction is that what you see isn't necessarily what happened. Pichelli also doesn't sameface.

[Apothecary]

Yeah it doesn't apply to ALL of them, just the vast majority. You are right there are a few exceptions, but the younger, "cooler" (depending on how you look at it) variation of the 616 version's appearance seems to be the norm.

My point is that the younger versions of the 616 characters don't look like their Ultimate counterparts. All similar characteristics are only there to remind you what character they are supposed to be. Ultimate wolverine is a half-foot taller but still has the sideburns.

[Dr. Chaos]

Gwen Stacy.

This is the first time he's seen a living and breathing version of her that wasn't a clone in forever.

Wonder what kind of advice he can give her? "Never go near a bridge" would be the first words out of my mouth.

[Gold Rhapsody]

Gwen Stacy.

This is the first time he's seen a living and breathing version of her that wasn't a clone in forever.

Wonder what kind of advice he can give her? "Never go near a bridge" would be the first words out of my mouth.

But this Gwen is a clone. She has been through a load more than the Gwen in 616. I mean Ultimate Gwen has dealt with the death of her father, figuring out that her best friend killed her father and has super powers, soon after was killed by a red beast we call Carnage, returned to life by being cloned through the same red beast, held captive by SHIELD, released by Norman Osborne, and returned back to normal life after Venom absorbed her Symbiote. Not only that, but she watched Peter die. But only the death of Peter Parker will be brought up in the next issue nothing about her roller coaster past.

[Phantom Roxas]

Well, I don't read regular Marvel so I suppose this falls down to a lack of communication between Bendis and whoever wrote Ends of the Earth. But as I reckoned up top, Mysterio seems different in the UU because he's not in any immediate danger. If his avatar is destroyed it's more of an annoyance and setback rather than a prison/death sentence. He can let loose and have a bit of fun without worrying about the repercussions of mortality.

Slott has mentioned that he's talked with Bendis about Spider-Men, although I think it might have boiled down to "Sure, Brian, you can do your thing and I'll do mine, but I'd like to help if this crossover ever happens again." As for the avatar, yeah, that I can believe, but when he showed up in the first issue, he seemed like a madman rather than the theatrical villain that he was in Ends of the Earth. I'm not saying either characterization was bad - both are actually very entertaining characterizations in their own right - but it results in inconsistent characterization. Issue #2 had a nice little "Webipedia" introduction, and it had a tab for "Timeline" listed, so I was curious if that was shown in this issue.

Somewhat okay story but something about this book doesn't feel right. Feels like a story that corporate suits ordered this happen and Bendis is working backwards from there.

To say for years that the two universes would never meet and then just to casually have this story happen...feels off to me.

Actually, I think it was the other way around. I think Marvel was starting to change their mind on letting it happen, and then Bendis showed up with a pitch for the story, which they approved. This also isn't meant to be casual, it's supposed to be a celebration of the fiftieth anniversary. I think it could also work for Miles because this team-up can lead him inheriting the mantle. I think it would have been more meaningful if he received Ultimate Peter's blessing rather than the mainstream one, but this really does mean something for the Ultimate Universe.

[Dr. Chaos]

But this Gwen is a clone.

If I'm not mistaken, wasn't the ultimate verdict was that she was in fact still the original ultimate Gwen, even after Carnage got to her? Some weird science to her having been absorbed and then her taking back control or something.

But I'm shabby on my Ultimate history, I read USM off and on so I'm probably missing something.