Ultimate Comics Spiderman #20 review by Wolverine12

[Ood Omega]

If Bendis was smart he could have made another huge "with power comes great responsibility" plot. But instead he just continues to let Miles use the venom blast. What would have been great is if Miles stopped using the venom blast because he thought he killed his uncle with it but that was over before it even started without any hesitation.

I thought exactly this was going to happen then I saw a panel with Miles thinking basically "Oh I forgot I had this power", which is pretty disappointing. Maybe it would have worked better if the revelation that The Prowler's equipment malfunction came later on or if Miles was absent from that conversation. He could have went on feeling guilty and being reluctant to use the Venom Blast but the reader would still have known Uncle Aaron's death wasn't Miles fault. Overall though I still enjoyed this issue.

[Wolverine12]

Put your pride aside and drop it cause again you're disliking it more then liking it going by your posts

I'm going to continue to support the UU as a whole until it ends, most likely regardless of how I feel about the stories. I don't think you have any place to tell me how to spend my money, or what to be proud about.

No he solved mostly everything with a punch to the face or by smashing something( with a scientific mind that has been shown that Miles does not have but if he did we'd hear more complaining that he's like Peter ) and again no one says anything but when Miles does it oh people fall over each other to make that first post to complain

We read those issues very differently, just like we are doing now. You clearly enjoy a different type of comic as I do.

He's new to this and his battles haven't really lasted that long, what's more interesting is knowing that sooner or later( sooner by now ) he will run into someone who will take him past his low battle time limit and we've already seen two villains get up from the venom sting. It's funny how some people have different expectations for characters where for one they want instant results while other characters they are ok with the long road.

Do you have any evidence that somebody will take Miles past his limits soon? All evidence in the comics including this issue says otherwise. If you know something I don't please educate me.

Again those few times are far out weighted by the constant dislike you've had towards it going by your posts

Again, you don't really have any say in how I spend my money or what comics I buy. If you don't like my reviews than don't read them or make a post about what you enjoy about the comic instead of telling me I should stop reading. What if I took your advice and the next issue is fantastic? Will you send me your copy?

I have no problem with you or anyone having a different opinion but again it's been basically almost pretty consistent with disliking the book and I just generally wanted to know why pay to support something you don't like but you stating why is far better then those who seem to every month start a new thread about "why Peter died and we got Miles" and that after a while sucks the "fun" of even wanting to come around here

I pay to support the entire UU, like I said I want it to do well. If I quit buying that means it is one reader closer to being cancelled. When that line is eventually reached it won't be because of me. I'm sorry you don't like the "Peter v Miles" threads, I too find it tiresome to see that thread pop up every month. I have either simply ignored them or had minimum input and it doesn't affect my overall enjoyment of this board.

That's cool, I found Ult. Spidey extremely boring before hand and only liked Ultimates 1/2( 3 only because of Joe Mad's art ) and tuned out everything else about this universe. Now for me Ult. Spidey is arguably the best Spider book and I dropped Ultimates after the last issue since it had been riding a wave of meh since Hickman left

Earlier you stated that Peter's story mirrored Miles in terms of how it played out, only Peter used a punch to the face instead of a venom blast. I don't agree with that, but I find it curious that you find the two beginning runs similar but you find Peter boring and Miles entertaining, can you tell me what you like about Miles first 20 issues vs what you didn't like about Peter's first 20? I am genuinely interested in what you have to say. I agree that Ultimates has been bad since Hickman left.

Different of op as for me before hand the UU was bronze at best and that was thanks to Millar's first Ultimates run

I found Millar's Ultimate X-Men to be the best title in the UU. Second was his Ultimates. Third was Bendis's Spidey. Marvel called the UU the gold standard, I didn't come up with that.

For me the high point of this issue was the stuff with Miles's dad which I believe since the run in with Hydra Bendis has been working on building up what goes on with him since he's been pretty anal about keeping on the straight and narrow and making sure no one knows of his criminal past. With Miles we now have the addition of how is he going to make more web fluid( which is a far cry from the days here where folks non-stop asked when is he going to get the web shooters ) to being battle tested( dudes who wear the costume tend to take a lot of lumps and again I don't recall a lot of people crying about O'Hara's initial lack of beat downs and his first victory was as randomly;y lucky as you can get )

I didn't read 2099 so I can't comment on how lucky Miguel O'hara is. Miles doesn't really seem to show a lot of wear and tear from his battles. Sure he gets knocked around a bit, but he doesn't seem to have any type of injury at the end of the fight. Recently Miles was knocked out by a giant women, he woke up moments later completely fine and beat her with the venom blast. Some of the more interesting stuff I enjoyed about Peter was that he had to hide his many injuries from Aunt May. Can you imagine if Miles went to bed fine and showed up to class the next day with a bullet wound or a black eye, that could make for some crazy song and dance with him trying to hide his identity as a super hero at a school where he should be being monitored 24/7.

I'll tell you now that I plan on buying the next issue, and if nobody else does one I plan on doing a review of the issue. I welcome you to post your opinion of the issue even if you completely disagree with what I have to say.

[SpiderX]

Keep on doing those reviews Wolverine12. Btw Technically he kicked her in the face to take her down. Venom Blast just put her face in range. On a different note are you going to review the Ult Wolverine mini? I felt kind of burned by the Ult hawkeye mini so I'm cautious but if the first issue sounds good I might pick it up.

[Robbie_Jee]

Again those few times are far out weighted by the constant dislike you've had towards it going by your posts

So what?

(10char)

[Genki Sudo]

I'm going to continue to support the UU as a whole until it ends, most likely regardless of how I feel about the stories. I don't think you have any place to tell me how to spend my money, or what to be proud about.

No I don't and the fact you enjoy spending money on something you don't like is all fine and dandy but don't get mad when someone asks why are you buying something you don't like which is a legit question, I liked the Batwing book until it was no longer good so I dropped it but now there's a new set creative team and I'll check that out since sometimes publishers do things to get books back up when sales dip

Do you have any evidence that somebody will take Miles past his limits soon? All evidence in the comics including this issue says otherwise. If you know something I don't please educate me.

The recent AIC featuring Bendis leads to some upcoming developments with a time skip, it's also natural to assume at some point Miles would have a fight that lasted more then a couple panels to a single issue

Again, you don't really have any say in how I spend my money or what comics I buy. If you don't like my reviews than don't read them or make a post about what you enjoy about the comic instead of telling me I should stop reading. What if I took your advice and the next issue is fantastic? Will you send me your copy?

No I don't have a right to tell you what to do with your money but when you're not liking something maybe you could use that $$$ to find something that you will like? This goes far beyond your review threads as you do this in others threads, if you want to review this so badly and say why you don't like it then why not start a blog, there's a poster in the Avengers thread who does just that but then he reviews things he likes and if he doesn't like a comic anymore he moves on. After 20 issues deep and a 616 crossover the odds of you finding any upcoming issue mind blowingly awesome are slim to none

I pay to support the entire UU, like I said I want it to do well.

Flip side is you let them think what you don't like is good

If I quit buying that means it is one reader closer to being cancelled. When that line is eventually reached it won't be because of me.

The other flip side is if sales go down then they might think maybe we need to change things for the better

Earlier you stated that Peter's story mirrored Miles in terms of how it played out, only Peter used a punch to the face instead of a venom blast. I don't agree with that, but I find it curious that you find the two beginning runs similar but you find Peter boring and Miles entertaining, can you tell me what you like about Miles first 20 issues vs what you didn't like about Peter's first 20? I am genuinely interested in what you have to say. I agree that Ultimates has been bad since Hickman left.

Never compared their runs I only compared their fighting style, I can tell you what I didn't like about Pete's run is that it is stuff I had already read that was done in far more interesting ways outside of instead of going left Bendis went down a little side street while Miles is the exact opposite of Peter

I found Millar's Ultimate X-Men to be the best title in the UU. Second was his Ultimates. Third was Bendis's Spidey. Marvel called the UU the gold standard, I didn't come up with that.

Marvel say a lot of things, it wasn't that long ago people where calling fowl over Joe Q's comments about a UU/616 crossover and then one could argue that the UU now is just a afterthought currently

I didn't read 2099 so I can't comment on how lucky Miguel O'hara is. Miles doesn't really seem to show a lot of wear and tear from his battles. Sure he gets knocked around a bit, but he doesn't seem to have any type of injury at the end of the fight. Recently Miles was knocked out by a giant women, he woke up moments later completely fine and beat her with the venom blast. Some of the more interesting stuff I enjoyed about Peter was that he had to hide his many injuries from Aunt May. Can you imagine if Miles went to bed fine and showed up to class the next day with a bullet wound or a black eye, that could make for some crazy song and dance with him trying to hide his identity as a super hero at a school where he should be being monitored 24/7.

616 Peter rarely shows any injuries unless it's a quick story beat and no one ever says a thing( I could go even further with Batman in that his injuries only surface if it's story related ), we also don't know how much time passed from that ko Miles had to when he came too under the giant woman. Until Bendis makes a point of having it said/done in story we'll never know outside of speculation

I'll tell you now that I plan on buying the next issue, and if nobody else does one I plan on doing a review of the issue. I welcome you to post your opinion of the issue even if you completely disagree with what I have to say.

At this point now we will just have to agree to disagree every time a new issue comes out, granted it would be hilarious if they day there's a issue that blows you away it's the issue I find to be utter crap

I also wanted to keep liking Ultimates so bad but after that last issue I couldn't hang in any more

[akumasan]

So basically "we need to see the hero struggle for once"

[Wolverine12]

Keep on doing those reviews Wolverine12. Btw Technically he kicked her in the face to take her down. Venom Blast just put her face in range. On a different note are you going to review the Ult Wolverine mini? I felt kind of burned by the Ult hawkeye mini so I'm cautious but if the first issue sounds good I might pick it up.

I'm going to review the crap out of that mini! I haven't been this excited for an UU book in awhile.

So basically "we need to see the hero struggle for once"

That would certainly add to the story.

[Wolverine12]

No I don't and the fact you enjoy spending money on something you don't like is all fine and dandy but don't get mad when someone asks why are you buying something you don't like which is a legit question, I liked the Batwing book until it was no longer good so I dropped it but now there's a new set creative team and I'll check that out since sometimes publishers do things to get books back up when sales dip

I wasn't mad when you asked why I bought the book, but I found it off putting that you told me I should set my pride of ownership aside because I dislike the book.

The recent AIC featuring Bendis leads to some upcoming developments with a time skip, it's also natural to assume at some point Miles would have a fight that lasted more then a couple panels to a single issue

I honestly hope you are right and Bendis changes the fight sequencing for Miles. To this point I am basing my opinion on actual story content instead of speculation and interviews.

No I don't have a right to tell you what to do with your money but when you're not liking something maybe you could use that $$$ to find something that you will like?

This is what I usually do, the UU is a special case for me. Unless there is some type of monetary constraint that prevents me from buying comics all together I plan on owning the entire UU from start to finish. Assuming it finishes in my life time.

This goes far beyond your review threads as you do this in others threads,

What's your point? I don't tell people that they aren't allowed to like a book I don't like why should I not be able to express my opinion here?

if you want to review this so badly and say why you don't like it then why not start a blog, there's a poster in the Avengers thread who does just that but then he reviews things he likes and if he doesn't like a comic anymore he moves on. After 20 issues deep and a 616 crossover the odds of you finding any upcoming issue mind blowingly awesome are slim to none

I don't really have the desire or the time to start a blog. Maybe someday, but now I work two jobs and usually only have one day off a week (conveniently it's Wednesdays). For now I enjoy coming on here and doing these reviews, I may not like the book but I like doing the reviews, why would you ask me to stop doing what I enjoy? I don't know how you could possibly assume I won't like Ult. Spiderman down the road. There are over 160 issues of Bendis's Ult. Spidey that I have enjoyed, this includes some of Miles stories. There are far more stories I liked than I didn't like.

Flip side is you let them think what you don't like is good

I let them know I don't like it in my reviews. We have whole threads where the writers interact with the posters here such as Nick Spencer, Brian Wood and Nathan Edmonson. Do I think my review will change what Marvel has planned, absolutely not but I do think that people involved with these books visit this site and these boards and are aware of how the vocal minority feel.

The other flip side is if sales go down then they might think maybe we need to change things for the better

History with the UU would say otherwise. Sales have been down since Ultimatum and they haven't done much to change things for the better. Or if sales drop much lower than there is a real chance they could cancel the whole universe. Again it won't be on me if the UU gets cancelled.

Never compared their runs I only compared their fighting style, I can tell you what I didn't like about Pete's run is that it is stuff I had already read that was done in far more interesting ways outside of instead of going left Bendis went down a little side street while Miles is the exact opposite of Peter

Their fighting styles aren't the same at all. Peter was much more graceful and in control, Miles just kind of dives in head first and hopes for the best, I don't think this is bad as he has little training and is only 13 but he certainly doesn't fight like Peter. Peter didn't have a camo ability or a venom blast. Saying their fighting styles are the same is like saying Miles and Cap fight the same because the both throw punches. Could you elaborate on how Miles is the opposite of Peter?

Marvel say a lot of things, it wasn't that long ago people where calling fowl over Joe Q's comments about a UU/616 crossover and then one could argue that the UU now is just a afterthought currently

I was simply pointing out that I didn't coin the phrase "gold standard." When Marvel was calling the UU this, it was because one of the titles was usually the #1 book for the month and the others were in the top 10/20. I am one of the people that called foul on the UU/616 crossover, if Marvel wants to stick to their guns with the UU than they should do it. Not only do it when it is convenient.

616 Peter rarely shows any injuries unless it's a quick story beat and no one ever says a thing( I could go even further with Batman in that his injuries only surface if it's story related ),

I already said I don't read any Spidey besides the UU, but if I'm not mistaken currently 616 Spidey is "dead" and his body is being controlled by Doc Ock. Batman is notorious for doing this, that doesn't mean I give it a pass. It doesn't make it okay for Miles because it happens in other books. I'm not even saying I want to see him be hurt for an extended period, but I think it would add some depth to the character if he seemed more human and less invincible.

we also don't know how much time passed from that ko Miles had to when he came too under the giant woman. Until Bendis makes a point of having it said/done in story we'll never know outside of speculation

Fair enough, but speculation works both ways. I turned 1 page and Miles was zapping the heck out of the giant women, didn't give the sense a lot of time had passed to me.

At this point now we will just have to agree to disagree every time a new issue comes out, granted it would be hilarious if they day there's a issue that blows you away it's the issue I find to be utter crap

I also wanted to keep liking Ultimates so bad but after that last issue I couldn't hang in any more

I am good with this, I actually think that Ultimates is worse than UCSM.

[charliehustle415]

Just read it, man I feel they are making comics shorter and charging more. I feel like I can read Miles' story from issue one to now in like 45 minutes. It's the art that keeps pulling me back.

[Bookem Danno]

I couldn't disagree more, I loved this issue. I found it very funny, loved the little easter egg (the cops saying "we have a 616" when seeing Venom) and, at least for me, it had a little bit of everything: action, humor, emotional stakes.

The fight was cool and I liked how Miles can be thinking a thousand things at the same time, I laughed when he was thinking about his accent (although it would've been nice to know where this come from, maybe an earlier issue should've established him as a Doctor Who or Spike- from Buffy- fan or something).

About him feeling guilty, it was pretty clear that Venom was looking for the new Spider-Man, and he was very close to finding out about Miles, he only got confused (at least Venom said that Miles looked bigger in videos). So I can understand him feeling guilty.

As I was guessing (and some others too) the webs weren't really useful, and I loved the "this...this also looked more impressive on TV".

I do agree with the Venom blast thing, but I'm okay with it only bringing Venom down for a second, I'm pretty sure that in their next encounter Venom won't go away when Miles tries to use the Venom Blast.

I loved this issue, overall I give it a 8.5 or 9/ 10.

Agreed. It was a joy to read. This #20 issue was a visually fantastic!!!! Every panel was awesome, especially the wide shots had refreshingly different POV angles and were particularly mood setting in the best of ways and many had refreshing. Just went back and re-read it as a Nuff Said, pretending there were no words - fantastic. And that is no slight against the script, too, which was fantastic for all the reasons you cited. It is hard to believe that this same storyteller level he still can't quite hit, of late, in the 616 titles. Even the lettering f/x and Venom's word balloon earn a kudo. I do not follow UU per se and yet really look forward to next issue now.

[Plawsky]

I think this issue is one that is probably great on its own or will do really well when reading in trade. However, it just really doesn't do it for me in monthly format. I've been loyally reading Ultimate Spider-man month-by-month for years, and I'm having a much harder time anticipating the next issue with this story than in the past. For instance, the Kitty Pryde story in USM #9 and 10 had me in agony having to wait for the next issue. But now, it's more of an "oh, USM came out this week. I forgot that was happening." It's just not gripping me.

[nightfolk]

I also think it's safe to say that there is only ONE Venom in this story at this point, and the title of the story arc really doesn't make much sense... How is it a Venom war? Unless It's because you have Venom the character vs. Miles' Venom Blast...

Bahahhawaaahaaaaaa that would be funny but I would nt be amused

[President Kang]

Man, that Venom redesign was freakin' awesome-sauce. I loved how at various points Venom's head would just get sliced off or whatever.

[Ikonic]

I don't think Bendis is oblivious to this venom blast usage. It feels like its leading up to something. Possibly to whatever this status quo change has to deal with.