10 Reasons Ultimate Spider-Man Is The GREATEST Spider-Man Run Ever

One of the selling points of the Ultimate Marvel Universe was that it would be re-inventing characters to varying degrees. Some changes are minor, such as Spider-Man himself, who is still the same old poor Peter Parker trying his best to juggle his double life. However other characters such as Mister Fantastic would get much more drastic changes, as across his time in the universe Reed Richards actually becomes a villain known as the Maker.

This redefining of characters holds true to the entire Spider-Man roster. First of all Peter Parker's supporting cast have never been better written. Whereas in the main series Aunt May is often nothing more than a burden to Peter, in the Ultimate Universe she still the caring Aunt, but is much more proactive in protecting Peter and even supports him as Spider-Man. The relationship between Peter and Mary Jane is still ultimately the same with their constant on-off dynamic, but MJ feels more realistic and her motivations feel more accurate to a young teenager.

Then you have the villains. Some villains stay relatively the same with a few minor tweaks, such as Kingpin and Doctor Octopus. However other villains are changed to keep things fresh. Shocker for instance isn't that different, but he's framed as nothing more than a petty crook who just annoys Spider-Man, until one day he's able to capture the web-head and tortures him with his gauntlets and even unmasks him. Norman Osborn is still the Green Goblin, but rather than using a combat suit and glider he literally turns himself into a large, green goblin monster.

Also, the Ultimate series has the best characterisation of J. Jonah Jameson to date. No spoilers, it's best to read it yourself.