Ultimate Spider-Man #3 went on sale today and delivered a big step forward for Peter Parker's transformation into a wall-crawling superhero.
In the new Ultimate Universe, The Maker prevented a radioactive spider from biting the young Peter and likewise stopped other superheroes from being created; in their place, he formed a secret council to rule the world from the shadows.
In Ultimate Spider-Man #1, Peter, now a married father of two, received the spider which should have bitten him from Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Lad. The time-traveller also sent him a picotech suit and a warning about those really in charge.
Since then, we've seen the new Spider-Man get to grips with his powers, all while a new Green Goblin takes aim at the villainous Kingpin of Crime (who, along with acquiring The Daily Bugle, is a pawn of that secret council).
In the latest issue, Peter's daughter gives her seal of approval to his chosen suit design which, as you can see below, brings him line with his Earth-616 counterpart. Later, Spidey battles Bullseye in a reluctant team-up with the Goblin which ends with the assassin being soundly defeated.
His fellow vigilante is able to hack Peter's suit (it appears to be Oscorp tech rather than a Symbiote) and unmasks him before doing the same. With that, Peter and Harry - who were best friends in the regular Marvel Universe before the latter went insane - meet for the first time and may be about to become allies.
It's an interesting direction to take things in and we recently learned that Ultimate Spider-Man #4 will introduce us to Harry's wife, Gwen Stacy.
Whether the Goblin can be trusted in the long run remains to be seen, particularly as he's already used some pretty brutal methods in his war with Wilson Fisk. There's also the risk that he'll eventually go mad, bringing the Green Goblin more in line with the villain who Spidey typically goes toe-to-toe with on the page.
Check out some key moments from Ultimate Spider-Man #3 below. How do you feel about these latest developments?
PETER PARKER'S NEW LIFE GETS EVEN MORE COMPLICATED... Spider-Man sizes up the new hero Green Goblin! As they team up to fight a new super villain, secrets about the corporations running North America are revealed... And you'll never guess who discovers Spider-Man's secret identity!
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #3
Written by JONATHAN HICKMAN
Art & Cover by MARCO CHECCHETTO