The Ultimate Universe is one of the hottest in comics these days, which is why Free Comic Book Day 2025: Amazing Spider-Man/Ultimate Universe #1 will be on many people’s pull list. If you don’t know, FCBD is today, and you can pick up a variety of comics from Marvel, DC, IDW, and more! Free Comic Book Day 2025: Amazing Spider-Man/Ultimate Universe #1 offers three tales giving readers a taste of what the Spider-Man office, the Ultimate office, and the symbiote office are up to.
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Kicking things off is a story by Joe Kelly and John Romita Jr. featuring Spider-Man facing off against an assassin. The story directly plays off a backup story in Amazing Spider-Man #1, which adds some nice synergy between the two.
The banter is strong, the dynamic art by Romita is as good as it has been in the last five years, and there’s even some romance. Love or hate Peter and Shay, you can’t argue that Kelly nails the cute vibes between the two, who are at the start of a relationship.
Maybe the only negative of this story is it’s more of a taste tester than something you must read, which reduces it’s need to be read no matter what. It’s a fun fight, though!
Next up is a story by Cody Ziglar and Deniz Camp with art by Jonas Scharf that directly leads to Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion. This story is a great primer on where Miles Morales is at these days, from the gods he’s involved with to his new energy sword. Montaging helps get a lot of story across, and the cliffhanger is a big reveal regarding how Miles, and even why, he’s headed to the new Ultimate Universe. There’s some good action by Scharf as well, keeping you invested.
Wrapping things up is a story told in full-page splashes by Kelly, Al Ewing, Charles Soule, and Cafu. Again, this is more of a primer on Carnage, Spider-Man, Venom, and a new threat looming. Surprisingly, the Venom page doesn’t reveal the identity under the symbiote, likely to avoid leaks, but all in all, this is a good way to catch up on what is going on. Cafu crushes on these pages, making each a poster-worthy piece of art.
Free Comic Book Day 2025: Amazing Spider-Man/Ultimate Universe #1 is a well-crafted sampler that delivers exciting teases from three of Marvel’s most buzzworthy lines. From Joe Kelly and John Romita Jr.’s charming Spider-Man opener to a major Miles Morales reveal and a visually stunning symbiote universe preview, there’s something for every kind of Marvel reader here. While none of the stories are essential reads, they each succeed in building anticipation for what’s next – exactly what a Free Comic Book Day issue should do.
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