Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) #6 review: A hero is born

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) kicked things off with five amazing issues that perfectly fit the wall-crawler even if they throw away many common tropes readers expect of his stories. Jonathan Hickman's run modernizes the character in a way that's very fresh and yet respectful to the hero Stan Lee created back in 1962. With that in mind, issue #6 had the difficult task of wrapping the opening arc in a way that did justice to everything that came before it. So did it manage to succeed? Or did it fall short in the process? Well, let's find out, shall we?

Cage match

One of my few minor nitpicks of the first five issues of Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) is that they didn't feature many explosive set pieces. It's bound to happen, given that we're witnessing the origin story of this version of Peter Parker. Exposition must come first, and action second. However, that's finally rectified in issue #6.

Remember how Peter Parker's first fight in comic book pages was against Crusher Hogan in a boxing ring? Well, Sam Raimi's first Spider-Man movie took things a step further by adapting this moment as a cage match - which is exactly what readers find here. Sure, at this point in the Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) run, Spidey has already fought Bullseye (very briefly) and sort of... talked to Shocker. However, Peter's first big confrontation ultimately comes in issue #6 against The Kingpin, with the three of them (including the Green Goblin) enclosed in a cage.

It's nice to see this version of the wall-crawler finally face a major villain in a dire situation. Best of all; instead of defeating the Kingpin, he needs to escape in order to keep his life. It's worth remembering that, by this point, Peter doesn't have much experience being a superhero, which is why readers need to see him lose. Besides, it's a perfect representation of the good old "Parker luck". Peter is defeated by the same man who is now his new boss in the Daily Bugle. Worse of all; his injuries are so great he can't keep them from his family, ultimately giving away his secret identity. But that's where the best moment of issue #6 kicks in.

Isn't it obvious? He's Spider-Man

As we mentioned in our previous review, Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) presents a human story first and a superhero epic second. Fortunately, issue #6 continues with this trend even if takes the action to a whole new level. It was nice to see Mary Jane fully support Peter in his mission to save the world when she finds out about his secret life. Even if everything else goes wrong for the friendly neighborhood hero, it seems his family will be there for him unconditionally - which is a nice change of pace for someone who's kicked by the whole world when he's down.

It's then that Mary Jane - who's a PR and marketing expert in this universe - finally gives Spider-Man his name. I cannot overstate how impactful this moment was, and how it brought the biggest smile to my face. Just like May Parker played an important role in defining Spider-Man's identity by picking his suit's color palette, M.J. does the same here. A defining trait of this version of the wall-crawler is his family, and it's nice to see that reflected in his superhero persona. Jonathan Hickman, please keep playing your cards this right.

A comic perfectly brought to life

While issues 1 to 3 of Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) had artist Marco Checchetto bring Spidey's stories to life, that changed in issues 4 and 5. David Messina took his place, and while he did a great job by all means, his illustrations aren't as detailed. So it was nice to see Marco come back to bring closure to the opening saga of this amazing run. His art perfectly sets a tone of despair in Kingpin's fight while painting a hopeful picture (literally) when M.J. and Peter swing across the New York skyline in the comic's final panel.

Overall, issue #6 of Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) perfectly builds upon everything that came before it to cement the saga as a must-read for superhero fans. Sure, it may have been nice to linger a bit more on the moment Peter's family reacted to discovering his secret identity. But even then, this comic book is everything we could've asked for and more.

We'll review issues #7 and #8 in the upcoming days in anticipation of the release of issue #9. After that, we'll review each new entry on a release basis. So make sure to stick around Whatever A Spider Can for everything Spider-Man-related!