10 Comics You Need to Read If You Miss the Original Ultimate Spider-Man

Marvel Comics brought readers back to their roots with the launch of the Ultimate Universe. This perfect publishing initiative allowed Marvel to maintain their long-running stories on Earth-616, which took place in the Amazing Spider-Man title while introducing a new, younger Peter Parker in the Ultimate Spider-Man comic.

Ultimate Spider-Man presented a new spin on Spider-Man‘s origins, taking what readers already knew about Peter Parker and his supporting cast and injecting new mysteries and intrigues. With the addition of Miles Morales, the original Ultimate Spider-Man was incredibly beloved and missed to this day. While a new version of Ultimate Spider-Man is currently captivating readers, plenty of other high-quality books may help fill the original Ultimate Spider-Man-shaped void.

10 Miles Morales Stars In His Own New, Modern Spider-Man Comic

Miles Morales had starred in his own Spider-Man comics before. After the events of Secret Wars in 2015, elements of the Ultimate Universe had either disappeared or merged with Earth-616, including Miles himself. The series that followed is crucial to Miles’s character development, but he’s found his footing in the two recent volumes of Miles Morales: Spider-Man.

Now firmly a fixture of Earth-616, Miles Morales: Spider-Man has a lot of great story arcs spread across its two volumes. Miles found a potential romance with Starling, teamed up with the Prowler just in time for the release of Across the Spider-Verse, and even experienced his own Clone Saga thanks to Selim, an evil clone of Miles.

9 Peter Parker Before Spider-Man

The Ultimate Spider-Man comic recontextualized Spider-Man’s origins in a new universe. The Ultimate Universe allowed Marvel to alter their characters without affecting the continuity they’d built over decades. The Marvel Knights imprint allowed Marvel to do something similar. Spider-Man: With Great Power took readers back to when Peter Parker had just acquired his spider powers.

Uncle Ben still lives, and many of Peter’s high school supporting cast members also appear. With Great Power is the perfect book for readers who miss Peter Parker’s high school days and particularly miss Ultimate Spider-Man‘s reimagining of those events.

8 What If Miles Morales Was Thor? Captain America? The Hulk?

What if Miles Morales gained the super-soldier serum, or was exposed to gamma radiation, or became worthy of wielding Mjolnir? What If…? Miles Morales was a pretty wild miniseries that presented versions of Miles Morales from other universes who became notable heroes such as Captain America, the Hulk and Thor.

The What If…? miniseries is pretty distinguishable from most other Spider-man books, but it does star Miles Morales in alternate universes, which was appealing in the original Ultimate Spider-Man series. Fans who miss Ultimate Spider-Man, particularly Miles, should get a kick out of What If…? Miles Morales.

In Ultimate Spider-Man, Peter Parker was a teenager again, which was one of the biggest appeals of the series–taking Peter back to his roots in the 21st century. Fans enjoyed reading about a contemporary Spider-Man. In Chip Zdarsky’s run on Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man, fans got the best of both worlds… literally.

In the “Amazing Fantasy” arc, modern-day Peter Parker, Teresa Durand, and J. Jonah Jameson time-traveled and met Earth-616 Peter Parker in high school. “Amazing Fantasy” was a blast from the past and a glimpse at what might have been had the Amazing Spider-Man met the Ultimate Spider-Man before his death.

6 Spider-Girl Is Peter Parker’s Daughter In The MC2 Universe

The MC2 universe was the main alternate Marvel universe before the Ultimate Universe. In this alternate world, Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson remained married and had a daughter. “Mayday” Parker grew up, inherited his father’s spider-powers, and became Spider-Girl.

The MC2 universe was so cool. Readers met alternate versions of the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus and spent time with a Mary Jane who had grown incredibly wise and mentoring in her middle age. It’s almost a shame that the Ultimate Universe became popular when the MC2 universe was relegated to a few books that didn’t last nearly as long.

5 Peter Parker & Mary Jane Watson At Their Best

In the alternate world of Ultimate Spider-Man, Marvel’s writers and artists focused heavily on Peter and MJ’s relationship. Whereas Peter and MJ had split in Marvel’s 616 due to the events of “One More Day,” the young couple of the Ultimate Universe experienced highs and lows in high school.

In the alternate universe of Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, Marvel reconnected Peter and MJ, and the couple even had a daughter, Annie, who became the hero, Spiderling. Renew Your Vows is a huge win for Peter and MJ fans, but it could also be a huge win for Ultimate Spider-Man fans looking to read more about a Peter and MJ who can take on the world together.

4 Amazing Spider-Man Meets Ultimate Spider-Man

Spider-Men is a classic at this point. Fans of the original Ultimate Spider-Man comic series should always revisit this book when they’re missing the old series. Before Miles Morales officially entered the mainstream Marvel comic universe, he had a crossover with Peter Parker’s Amazing Spider-Man.

In Spider-Men, Peter Parker takes readers on a wild ride back to the Ultimate Universe, where he meets younger versions of Aunt May and Gwen Stacy, still mourning the death of their young Peter Parker. Spider-Men is fan-service at its best and a love letter to the Ultimate Universe.

3 Peter, Miles & Hundreds Of Spider-People In Spider-Verse

Love it or hate it, Spider-Verse changed Spider-Man comics forever. Spider-Man was now a multiversal hero, and there was a version of Spider-Man for just about every situation. Miles Morales and the Amazing Spider-Man teamed up again, this time joined by Spider-Gwen, the Superior Spider-Man, and about a hundred other Spider-People.

Spider-Verse is epic and quite the nostalgic trip for longtime Spider-Man fans. Writer Dan Slott included as many alternate versions of Spider-Man as he could, except, of course, the young Ultimate Peter Parker who died before Miles assumed the Spider-Man mantle.

2 Peter Parker & Miles Morales In Their Own Ongoing Spider-Man Comics

Fans of Ultimate Spider-Man––and Spider-Men, by extension––should pick up the new, ongoing Spectacular Spider-Men series. The new Spider-Men book perfectly blends Peter Parker and Miles Morales’s worlds. This time, they are not worlds apart but mere neighborhoods.

Miles Morales debuted in the Ultimate Universe, and his appearances in the Spider-Verse animated films have skyrocketed his popularity. The Spectacular Spider-Men is a natural continuation for both Peter and Miles. Two Spider-Men occupy Earth-616’s New York City. They should naturally work together.

1 Ultimate Spider-Man Returns!

The Ultimate Universe is back! Well, it’s not the original Ultimate Universe. Peter became Spider-Man much later in life, after he married Mary Jane Watson and started a family. Still, all the lore changes, like Harry Osborn’s role as the Green Goblin or Uncle Ben’s business partnership with J. Jonah Jameson, remind readers of the changes Brian Michael Bendis made to Spider-Man lore over two decades ago.

Jonathan Hickman’s new Ultimate Spider-Man series almost acts as a “what if?” for the original Ultimate Spider-Man comic series. What if Ultimate Peter Parker had survived his final encounter with the Green Goblin? What if he and MJ stayed together and had children? What if they found happiness? Marvel fans have certainly found happiness in the new Ultimate Spider-Man comic.