Ultimate Endgame Preview Puts Spider-Man’s Family to the Test

It doesn’t matter what universe he’s in, Spider-Man is subject to the ol’ Parker luck. Peter Parker loses jobs, lets down his family, and gets turned down for dates, all because great power comes with great responsibility. For a while, though, Earth-1610 seemed to be different. In this new Ultimate Marvel Universe, Peter may have lost his Aunt May, but he still had Uncle Ben and a steady job. Moreover, he had a loving marriage with Mary Jane and two great kids in Richard and May. But that may all be coming to an end.

In the first preview pages for Ultimate Endgame #1 (via AITP Comics), Peter and his family say goodbye as Spider-Man prepares to battle their world’s conqueror, the Maker. Although teen Richard tries to come along, citing the Symbiote-esque black costume he’s been using in the pages of Ultimate Spider-Man, Iron Lad refuses, forcing Peter to say goodbye. As he leaves, Peter shouts, “I’ll be home soon,” but none of us expect that to be true.

Then again, the current Ultimate Universe has been all about defying expectations. Where the original Ultimate Marvel Universe, which ran from 2000–2015, mostly started its familiar heroes from scratch and recreated classic storylines like the Galactus Saga, the new Ultimate Universe was built around a daring conceit. The Maker, Reed Richards from the original Ultimate Universe, who turned evil as he lost his connection to his fellow members of the Fantastic Four, creates his own perfect reality, in which he rules as its god.

To prevent any interference by Marvel’s mightiest heroes, the Maker interferes across time, preventing Peter from being bitten by a radioactive spider, letting most of this world’s Fantastic Four die in space (while brainwashing their Reed Richards into becoming Doom), and turning Bruce Banner into an enlightened despot. Yet, with the help of a teenaged Tony Stark who calls himself Iron Lad, powers were restored to some heroes, resulting in both fresh takes on established heroes, such as the married with children Spider-Man, and a world-wide resistance movement called the Ultimates.

For the most part, this Ultimate Marvel line has been a hit. While some of the books have failed to excite readers, namely the plodding Ultimate Black Panther and the bleakly unimaginative Ultimate Wolverine, the majority have given us exciting takes on classic concepts. Written by Jonathan Hickman, Ultimate Spider-Man gives us a Peter who chose to take on the mantle as a mature adult. Ultimate X-Men by Peach Momoko reads like a manga about mutant powers manifesting among Japanese children. And The Ultimates, written by Deniz Camp, is a true superhero story for our times, with the Avengers reimagined as radicals advocating for leftist causes.

Yet, successful as it has been, the most surprising part about the Ultimate Universe is that it’s coming to an end. Hickman, who spearheaded the entire project, has announced that he’s closing the line on his own terms. In the miniseries Ultimate Endgame, the Maker will return to the world he created, and all its heroes gather in a final attempt to fix what was broken.

What does this mean for this happier version of the Parker family? We don’t know, but Hickman is optimistic. “I’m very happy with how the whole thing has come together, and if it lands the way I think it will, I believe that this will be a book that people will be reading for years. So, fingers crossed,” he told AIPT.

Fingers crossed and, hopefully, some non-Parker luck that it will all work out for Peter and co.

Ultimate Endgame #1 hits comic shelves on December 31, 2025.