Everything comes to an end, and nothing makes that more clear than Marvel Comics’ latest one-shot, Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1. As popular as the line is, Marvel is shuttering the Ultimate Universe and going out with a bang in the upcoming event, Ultimate Endgame. Fans have been trying to wrap their heads around Marvel’s decision to end the Ultimate Universe, many convincing themselves it must be a marketing gimmick. But Marvel has made it clear that this is no stunt or trick and that this world’s time is rapidly running out.
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But maybe that’s okay. At least, that’s what the creative team behind Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 believes. This story brings back the Ultimate Guardians of the Galaxy, who are going for broke as they try to save everything they can. But the truth is, they’re just as powerless to stop the inevitable as any of us. Now, don’t think this is a story about hopelessness. On the contrary, the creative team behind this comic delivers an amazing tale about loss, acceptance, and why we press on in the face of inevitability.
Rating: 4 out of 5
| PROS | CONS |
| Amazing message | The differing art styles can be distracting |
| The Daredevil scene makes the issue | Still kind of a downer |
The Guardians of the Galaxy Shine in a Story That Captures Our Feelings About Ultimate’s End
Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 comes from the writing team of Deniz Camp and Alex Paknadel, while art duties are handled by Patrick Boutin, Phil Noto, Francesco Mann, Lee Ferguson, and Javier Pulido. This one-shot focuses on the Ultimate Guardians as they travel through space-time, trying to rescue their allies and find some way to undo the Maker’s hold on the Ultimate Universe. There’s a recurring theme of hope in this book, as the team’s vessel runs on it. But as failures start to mount, hope wanes, as does the Guardians’ fighting spirit.
The Guardians have to leave friends behind; they find teammates who have either died or completely lost it, knowing the apocalypse that awaits them. There’s an amazing scene where the Ultimate Daredevil (a Beyonder in this universe) attempts to preserve as much of the Ultimate Universe as possible via a Hyper-Cube, but it reads less like a heroic act and more like a desperate fan trying to cling to nostalgia while the future comes barreling down the track. Now I know a lot of stories in the Ultimate Universe are dark, but this book felt downright bleak at times.
But it doesn’t end on a bleak note. Yes, the book outright says that the Maker is all but impossible to beat and that there really is no way for the Guardians to fix the world or stop the universe’s approaching end. But as Star-Lord saving Ultimate Maddrox proved, it’s not always about saving the universe; it’s about doing what you can. And so, the Guardians rediscover the hope they need, and even though they can’t save the day, they head out to face danger as they would in any other story.
Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 is the Message of Acceptance Fans Need
What I find so neat about this story is how it plays with the reader. Sure, this is a story about the Guardians on a rescue mission throughout time and space. But it’s also about a group of people processing grief and loss. The world they love is being taken from them, and they can’t do anything about it any more than a hardcore Marvel stan can convince the publisher not to release Ultimate Endgame. Camp has been a huge part of the Ultimate Universe’s success, and here, he’s telling us that ‘yes, it’s ending, but the stories go on’.
The story features a lot of great art, too. I particularly liked the scene where the Guardians take on Ultimate Daredevil, who, thanks to his Beyonder powers, is able to twist and turn around the negative space on the comic pages to his advantage (and that’s just scratching the surface of his powers). I will say the art switches up every few pages, and I wasn’t the biggest fan of that. But I think some will really like the variety, as it does switch to styles that match the tone of each scene.
What really works about this story is its earnestness. In the scene where Captain Marvel and Nullifier discuss the state of the Ultimate Universe, the creative team makes it clear that this world, as much as it has captured the minds and hearts of fans everywhere, was always on borrowed time. It approaches the inevitability of the Ultimate Universe’s end with acceptance. I know most of us want the Ultimate Universe to continue, but everything comes to an end. And just like how the Guardians accepted the way of things, the one-shot asks us to accept it as well.
Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 could have been a lot more bitter, used as a vehicle to express the unfairness of an untimely end. Instead, it’s a meditation on acceptance and a reminder that just because things end, that doesn’t mean hope has to. Marvel Comics might be closing down this beloved line, but if the Guardians of the Galaxy can take on what’s coming with a smile on their faces and hope in their heart, I don’t see any reason why we can’t, too.
How do you feel about the Ultimate Universe’s upcoming end? Let us know below or share your thoughts on the ComicBook Forum!
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