Customer Reviews

Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 12: Superstars

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Ultimate Spider-Man, Volume 12: Superstars" reprints issues #66-71 of the Marvel comic book, which is unusual from the previous volumes because these six issues do not represent one major story arc against a particular villain such as the Green Goblin or Doctor Octopus. Instead you have a trio of two part stories pairing up Spider-Man with other Marvel superheroes in the Ultimate universe. The cover (from issue #66) gives away one of the three and puts together two of the most popular Marvel superheroes together to help promote sales.

Kicking off the adventures is what is proudly and unashamedly the weirdest Ultimate Spider-Man story to date. When you see that the two issues are entitled "Even We Don't Believe This" (#66) and "Jump the Shark" (#67) those are your first clues that this story is, to put it mildly, out there. Brian Bendis the writer of the comic book even shows up, so to speak, to warn the reader that this is not a classic superhero story. The hook will either sell you or repel you: Peter Parker and Logan wake up and discover they have switched bodies. That means Wolverine's alter-ego is dealing with Aunt May, Mary Jane, and high school while Spider-man is trying not to freak out because there are claws popping out of his hands. The intent here is to be funny and I think Bendis along with penciler Mark Bagley and inker Scott Hanna pull it off, mainly because the humor is character driven. Of course there is the question as to why this is going on and while the revelation merely ends the episode rather than provide a great punch line, Mary Jane takes care of that. There is nothing wrong with a little silliness like this, especially after Peter was rocked by the death of Gwen Stacy.

"Popular" (#68) and "Meet Me" (#69) has the other members of the Fantastic Four (who have yet to appear in public in the Ultimate universe) convincing Johnny Storm that he has to go back to high school and get his diploma while keeping his flame power a secret. It would be interesting to see which would be harder to Johnny when he enrolls at Midtown High, where Peter Parker goes to school. At a beach party at Coney Island, Johnny accidentally flames on and the payoff is that Spider-Man shows up to have a talk with the Human Torch. Having been dictated to by Nick Fury about what his life as a super-powered character will be like, this is a chance for Spider-Man to have a talk with somebody in a similar situation. Unlike a previous conversation with the X-Men, this one gets a bit more personal. After the insanity of the previous storyline, this is a much quieter little story.

The two-part story "Strange" (#70-71) starts to set up the next major "Ultimate Spider-Man" story arc. Peter and Mary Jane's relationship is going so well they decided to treat themselves to dinner at an exclusive Manhattan restaurant. But because he goes along with "Daily Bugle" reporter Ben Urich on an assignment to interview Dr. Stephen Strange, Peter suddenly finds himself trapped in a nightmare that distorts reality. The Master of the Mystic Arts, who is no longer a stuffed shirt in the Ultimate universe, has to do most of the work in this one while Spider-Man deals with the nightmares, but there is an important development here that will be significant in the next storyline since Peter is now convinced that because she knows his secret, Mary Jane is going to end up dead.

These are three totally different types of stories and make for a nice buffer between Spider-Man having to deal with Venom killing Gwen in Volume 11 and facing Harry Osborn as the Hobgoblin in the next tradepaperback collection. Obviously this is not an epic storyline, but then that is not what "Ultimate Spider-Man" is about. This comic book restarted Spider-Man from the beginning for the 21st century and the objective is to make everything old new again. Coming up with a true epic comporable to what we had with the "Amazing Spider-Man" in issues #31-33 with Doctor Octopus or #39-40 with the Green Goblin is not possible. These are solid stories in a tale that is well-told, in part because it is taking its time.

While I am a fan of the Ultimate Spiderman series, this is the weakest trade paperback I've read yet. The story with Wolverine is an interesting premise but sloppily resolved. The stories with the Human Torch and Doctor Strange are a little better but not up to the high level of this series. I applaud the creators for diverting from the standard Spiderman vs. supervillian plot but ultimately did not enjoy reading this as much as the others. Recommended for completists only.

First book since death of Gwen, and there is a serious change of pace here. Spidey and Wolverine does a Freaky Friday? Wow, really dumb. Human torch comes to Peter's school, not bad. Last story is best as Peter and MJ go on a hot date until something happens with him and Dr Strange...

I'm a huge fan of Bendis and Bagley's work on the Ultimate Spider-Man books. Even their weak stories are better than 99.9% of the rest of the comic marketplace.

That said, this is a collection of pretty weak stories.

Each two-issue "chapter" seems to be to simply help promote other titles or characters in the Ultimate Universe. X-Men (mainly Wolverine...OF COURSE), The Fantastic Four (mainly the Torch), and the Ultimates (with a huge cameo by Dr. Strange) all show up in stories that you'll forget faster than your Boss' Birthday.

Save your money and buy other titles in the Ultimate Spider-Man TPB series, you'll have a better time there.

Spider-man, Wolverine, Human Torch and Dr. Strange. Leave it to Brian Michael Bendis to tie all of these bad boys together. First story was very fun and creative, while the other two walk deeper into the tunnel of drama.

I won't reveal a lot, but all three stories are successful entertainment. I think Wolverine's story will be remembered throughout issues and issues as being the Ultimate Crossover. Human Torch brought some new dilemmas to the mix, and managed to bring the volume closer to the spider-man story. This was my first introduction to Doctor Strange, and my introduction was well made. I loved the nightmares of Peter Parker, and it was especially liberating to step outside of the box for these three stories. I really found something different and new, and with Bendis I can almost expect that everytime.

The Human Torch's sister Sue decides he needs to finish his high school diploma. They pick a different school to the one he was at originally, and it just happens to be the one Peter Parker goes to.

The Torch is still having trouble controlling his abilities, so he freaks out a bunch of kids having a bonfire at the beach. He does manage to put out a fire in a rescue, however.

Spidey also talks to the second generation Doctor Strange.

Ultimate Spidey, to me, has been consistently one of the best comics out there for years now, and, in terms of humor, it is unmatched. Set now in contemporary times, we are again priveleged to witness Peter Parker run thru his trials and errors as he juggles adolescence, high school, and superhero life. Past trade paperbacks chronicling this Ultimate version of Peter Parker have been must-have collections, and, while Ultimate Spider-Man, Volume 12: Superstars doesn't offer the same depth, it's still very much worth checking out.

Volume 12 is a team-up TPB, reprinting issues #66-71 and co-starring, respectively, Wolverine, the Human Torch, and Dr. Strange. The first two-part story is really weird and amusingly channels Freaky Friday. It begins with Peter Parker and Wolverine awakening to discover that they had somehow switched bodies. This was a gut-busting funny team-up tale as both parties try to get to the bottom of things, while coping with unfamiliar powers and unfamiliar environments. Peter, stuck in Wolverine's hairy, hygiene-challenged body and persistently losing control of his claws, as he continues to bemoan the grossness of the X-Man's body, made me laugh long and hard, as did the sequence of Wolverine (as the web-slinger) attempting to web swing. Needless to say, Peter and Logan have a great Odd Couple chemistry going on here.

The second two-parter kicks off the traditional unofficial partnership between Spidey and Johnny Storm. The switch is that, in the Ultimate Universe, Spidey debuted before the World's Greatest Team. Thus, going into this story, Johnny is actually star struck with the more experienced webslinger. Spidey giving advice to a downcast Johnny was a nice, quietly effective buddy moment to savor. The Dr. Strange mini-arc, on the other hand, left me cold, and I only even mention it here for the plot-advancing ending of that story.

So, no, this isn't the best of Bendis and Bagley. But after all the heavy, emotionally-wringing stuff they've been churning out, they're allowed a breather every now and then. These six issues are, more or less, fillers, but the first four, at least, are worth dropping your hard-earned dimes on. And, to me, the hilarious Spidey-Wolverine team-up alone is worth the price of this TPB.

So far I have loved every one of the books in this series! Hard to put down.

ultimate spider-man by bendis and bagley is one of the best series out there. not as much action and non-stop bad guy fighting, but a good mix of that and a lot of peter parker being a teenager with problems (girls, bullies, being grounded, etc.) along with his spidey life.
the series is great great great. only a few minor things that could be better:
1. i don't like how nick fury comes in and tells spider-man he's going to work his whole life for him and shield. the idea of peter being...trapped in a web? haha...well it isn't too cool. superheroes need to fight the good fight because they want to, not because shield will go and take away their superpowers (as fury has threatened) if they don't comply. plus the issues where the ultimates come in aren't that great, the whole series gets hijacked by them and not a lot of spidey. imo, the ultimates are easily the worst part of the ultimate universe. beyond ultimate spider-man and the ultimate fantastic four the ultimate universe isn't too great.
2. bendis needs to cut down on the tuchas talk. seriously if parker grew up in nyc today he'd more likely speak spanglish than yanglish.
3. geldoff.