This week Luke and Devin talk Marvel Zombies, Ultimate Namor, Orange Goblin, and Inhumans in this mega sized episode!
Issues Covered:
- Ultimate Fantastic Four Vol 1 #21-26
- Ultimate Spider-Man Vol 1 #72-78
- Ultimate Fantastic Four Annual #1
Check out the image gallery and notes below!
Ultimate Fantastic Four 21-26
Writer – Mark Millar, Pencils – Greg Land, Inks – Matt Ryan, Colors – Justin Ponsor, Letters – Chris Eliopoulos
Ultimate Fantastic Four #21-23 – Crossover
The Fantastic Four start off spread across the distant past with Sue and Reed confronting some Chrono-Bandits who threatened to destroy all of history if they didn’t get paid. Upon their return the Ultimates are there waiting for them to follow up and when everything is fine the team is swarmed by the news agencies that Johnny alerted to their presence. The leave heroes with Reed remarking his concern that the new powered people is the sign of the start of a trend and they return to find home.
Professor Storm is frustrated about the risks that Reed seems to be taking (along with the investors) because Reed hasn’t been delivering the profitable inventions he promised. He forces Reed to promise to get back to work on other things but Reed crosses his fingers and ends up working on his N-Zone portal.
Sue catches Reed when he didn’t show up for a date working on the portal and chastises him before Sue Storming out of the room but the alternate universe Reed says it happens and that they’ll end up together and even shows him Franklin. They’ve been talking and exchanging information and Reed expresses that he’s unhappy being forced to work on projects for other people. Luckily for Reed he finished his teleporter to the other universe only to find that he has ended up in the post-apocalyptic ruins of the Marvel Zombies universe, confronted by the zombie Fantastic Four.
We find out how the Sentry appeared as a zombie and started infecting people including the Fantastic Four who lured Reed so they could feed and Reed escapes only to be caught by Spider-Man and surrounded by a horde of zombies. They get interrupted before they can feed by the Hulk who they make room for before Magneto appears and assaults the street with a barrage of vehicles.
Back in the Ultimate Universe, Ben, Sue and Johnny go looking for Reed and find his teleporter.
Magneto and Reed escape to the base where they’ve been living for the past three days since the infection started where he also gathered Officer Kelly Ridge a police officer, Danny and his diabetic daughter Mindy Glidewell. Reed explains that he came from another universe which is why he isn’t a zombie and also he realizes they have to return home immediately when we see that zombie Fantastic Four have entered the Ultimate Universe. The Ultimate FF work with the military to quickly lock away their zombie counterparts.
Back in the zombie universe, Reed returns to the base from recon with some diabetes medication and the news that they are surrounded. They try to make a plan but Wolverine tracked Reed and the zombie heroes break into their base and give chase quickly overwhelming the survivors. Luckily Sue and the Ultimate Fantastic Four show up and blind the zombies and work to escape until Hulk appears leading to a Thing and zombie Hulk showdown with the Thing stomping him down.
They reach the teleporter but need Magneto to magnetically generate energy to power the device so he decides to sacrifice himself so they can leave and he can close the portal after and the team and the survivors get home safe as Professor Storm appears with big news for Sue and Johnny – their mother is alive.
Ultimate Fantastic Four #24-26 – Tomb of Namor
We get a flashback to 15 years back when Dr. Storm told his kids that their mother, Mary, died in a car crash. In actuality she got hired for a secret project for 1 million dollars annually to look for Atlantis. She’s worked with Molekevic on it in the past and then six weeks ago they found it thanks to Molekevic. She tries to faux apologize like she regretted what they did but either the art doesn’t sell it or the words aren’t good but either way Sue is upset.
Ben and Sue discuss the turn as they go to look at the zombie Fantastic Four who believe they will still escape and call him out for not killing them and simply delaying the inevitable.
Mary Storm goes to talk to Sue who rightfully calls her out for showing up out of nowhere and asks what she wants and Mary cuts the charade and says she needs their powers to get through and Sue agrees if she leaves their life after.
Later in the mid-Atlantic during a bad storm, Johnny is stuck on the boat watching porn while the rest of the team is in the sub and his parents are in the room. When Sue, Reed and Ben reach the ruins which is just Egyptian stuff in good condition and no reasonable signs of erosion. Anyway they find a lock on the building and once again completely ignoring the most rudimentary egyptology find the King in the tomb is named Namor who is released from the tomb.
His rise starts kicking up the storm and Johnny attacks Namor while Sue and Johnny’s parents believe the rest of the team to be trapped below the sea. Namor knocks Johnny into the boat causing it to explode and starts to drown him after until Sue, Reed and Ben resurface, capturing Namor who they return to the Baxter Building in bonds.
Reed warns that while they captured him, he may have only been defeated because of muscular atrophy from being stuck for years. Namor wakes up, having learned English completely since being captured because he’s very advanced and Namor explains that Lemuria attacked and destroyed Atlantis. Mary tries to ask questions but Namor is uninterested, he escapes the bonds and says he could kill them if he wanted and Sue, who he expressed interest in, asks them to go together.
Reed meanwhile works while Johnny goes out driving, Ben is with friends and Mary starts hitting on Reed while asking him for help translating.
Sue goes out with Namor protected by HERBIE mechs until he flies her away and he tries putting the moves on her, she rejects him, force blasts him away and he assaults her and destroys the robots who followed. And then Reed discovers Namor wasn’t in a tomb, he was in a prison!
Ben and Johnny easily get battered by Namor while Dr. Storm and Mary try to get help unsuccessfully from other superhero teams who are all busy. That’s when Reed appears in the Fantastic Oh-Five, a robot that copies the powers of the Fantastic Four giving emergency services the time to evacuate. Namor still overpowers it so Reed has to pull out a helmet that projects hard light holograms – first of Mary Storm in underwear and then the Ultimates but the power required is too intense and Reed has the helmet power shut off. Sue traps Namor in a force box, has Johnny go supernova and then Ben smashes him with a bus but Namor refuses to surrender.
Instead, Namor summons a giant monster but promises to back down if Sue gives him a kiss which she does, Namor is satisfied and then leaves. Mary checks in with Sue to say she’s proud of her kids, for some reason, Sue is interested in reconnecting now (which is very unearned) but Mary reveals she has new work for her company and Sue asks if she is working for Victor Von Damme now which Mary gaslights Sue about as she walks away in a backless dress with a large mind control dragon on it.
Ultimate Spider-Man #72-78
Ultimate Spider-Man 72-77 – Hobgoblin
Writer – Brian Michael Bendis, Pencils – Mark Bagley, Inks – Scott Hanna, Colors – JD Smith, Letters – Chris Eliopoulos
We start off with the aftermath of Peter being bit by the Spider and shifting over to Harry Osborn visiting MJ after Peter went to the hospital and find out Harry considered himself in a relationship with MJ but didn’t want to publicly acknowledge it and he even gets angry when he’s called out about it and they kiss.
We move back to the present as Killer Shrike, who has Spider-Man knocked out, is threatening to kill Spider-man unless the scientists give him adamantium. Spider-Man seeing nobody was going to step up, takes Shrike out and leaves, frustrated that he still hasn’t given up being Spider-Man and he’s behind on other things in his life.
When he returns to school though, he sees that Harry is back and immediately warns MJ to stay away. She wants to know why and Peter is angry that she doesn’t trust him and MJ is angry that she feels like he doesn’t trust her. When Peter gets home, Aunt May is working on packing because they’re moving to get out of the house where so many people died. When Peter goes downstairs to pack, he finds Harry waiting for him and he’s frustrated about what has happened since Peter became Spider-Man – his dad killed his mom, his father went insane, and he’s dating MJ, Harry’s girlfriend.
We flashback then to Nick Fury checking in on Harry a week ago when he was back in a recovery center under witness protection. Harry wanted to know what happened to his father and family but Fury is forced to keep quiet and Harry is still dealing with the brainwashing that he underwent. Fury tells him that he will fall under the care of his grandfather and recommends he keeps getting therapy but that he has all of his family’s resources. Harry came back in secret initially, spying to see what was going on but is now struggling to know what to do, especially with the property that remains.
He ended up being visited by Mr. Shaw, Norman’s hired gun who initially tried to kill Spider-Man and who now has to show Harry his father’s secret lab and activates him with the key phrase Cellar Door, returning all of Harry’s memories – including Norman attacking Spider-Man and attacking the White House and how he was betrayed – and Harry is given the keys to his father’s legacy that were hidden from SHIELD.
Peter in the present is shocked to hear about MJ and then Harry leaves after saying Peter is going to help him. At school MJ tries to talk to Peter who ignores her and then when she pushes he snaps and angrily asks about Harry and she denies they were dating and she didn’t think it was important and Peter is still upset about her not listening to him and he says he regrets telling her who he is and leaves.
When MJ runs into Harry she confronts him and he tries to play it off like Peter took it the wrong way when he was joking. She tries to express her feelings and he tells MJ that Spider-Man killed his dad.
Spider-Man meanwhile stops a stickup and Peter almost kills the robber and ends up taking him to the hospital and says he will wait for the police. Police Captain Jeanne De Wolfe, who he met at the investigation of Gwen’s death and the showdown with the Gladiator confronts him. He explains he wants to be stopped because he hurt the guy when he lost control and Jeanne says he has to relax, he barely injured the guy, and she gives him her card.
When he gets home Aunt May talks to him about MJ being upset but they’re interrupted by a call from Harry telling Peter to bring the costume.
Harry it turns out was brought to his father’s secret lab where there was a stash of OZ Formula and Harry tried to run forcing Mr. Shaw to knock him out and bring him home where he woke up. Shaw tells Harry to make Peter tell him where Norman is and that Fury lied about what Norman did, and that Norman is dying and they have to save him. Shaw needs Harry to do this so he can stay hidden but Peter will help since he’s a friend which led to Harry calling Peter.
Aunt May forbids him from going and wants to talk about it and to let him avoid Osborn drama so he doesn’t go. Peter continues to ignore MJ at school until she finds him during lunch to try and apologize and she brings up what Harry said about Spider-Man killing Norman. Peter blows up at the allegation and because MJ was talking to Harry even though he warned her.
Back at school Shaw is threatening Harry for not going to school when Spider-Man shows up and Spider-Man can’t see Shaw. Shaw tells Harry to show Spider-Man who he really is and we get a flashback to the lab explosion that turned Norman into the Green Goblin and see for the first time that Harry was there and he turns into an orange version of the Green Goblin.
The Orange Goblin starts attacking and Spider-Man is having issues fighting his friend who is also overpowering him and the fight spills out into the streets of New York.
Back at school, Peter and MJ’s teacher notices they are both missing.
Peter tries to talk to Harry but the illusion of Mr. Shaw tells him to keep fighting as MJ gets closer to the fight. The Orange Goblin sees MJ and dives at her, keeping him from finishing off Spider-Man who moves to trip the Orange Goblin and then web off with MJ, dropping her off on a roof. He tells her to run as the Orange Goblin follows and the duo end up back down on the street as Spider-Man launches a vicious assault and the Orange Goblin asks to be killed. Spider-Man offers to help but Shaw makes Harry turn against him and throws Spider-Man back at the same time that the police show up and start shooting.
Meanwhile at the Triskelion, Fury is giving an interview about the growth of threats following the appearance of heroes like the Ultimates when the Orange Goblin shows up on the tv. Fury requests an update from his handler who we find died, and Fury orders in the Hulkbusters, suiting up as they try to figure how they missed this.
As they approach, Harry is ready to be killed and Spider-Man gets in the way trying to save his friend but Harry knocks Spider-Man out of the way and he gets blasted.
Spider-Man is pissed at Fury for letting this happen, why his friend was asking to be killed and Peter decks Fury in the face and gets zapped. Fury tells Peter to leave and when he’s gone he says he plans to remove Peter’s powers.
Back at home, MJ is waiting for Peter and she tries to apologize for not listening but Peter breaks up with her and leaves, saying he can’t be near her.
Ultimate Spider-Man 78 – Dumped
At school, Liz Allen checks in MJ after she vanished from class and leaves. In class the teacher is upset that the class couldn’t even watch a movie for homework. When Peter goes to leave the teacher tries and fails to stop him and Liz says she plans to take MJ out that afternoon.
At the mall MJ is unable to focus and plans to leave when Flash and his friends show up and try to talk. Flash introduces her to Mark Raxton, a senior in a band with a crush on MJ. Liz heads over with MJ and the pair talk while MJ is not really paying attention until the topic changes to Peter Parker and Mark confesses that dudes can be awful and they start to warm up. Mark has to leave but invites her to his band, Molten Man,’s show.
Liz and MJ go with Kenny, because he can drive, and MJ runs into Mark who offers her a ride home and they talk about Will Eisner making the graphic novel and how he wants to be inventive with music and asks what MJ wants. She confesses that she wanted to be an actress once but now looks up to teachers and they briefly kiss. MJ pulls back and Mark asks why they broke up and she explains vaguely enough that she couldn’t give him what he needed and while she loves him, she can’t help him but wants to win him back because he’s everything to her.
Ultimate Fantastic Four Annual #1
Ultimate Fantastic Four Annual #1
Writer – Mark Millar, Art – Jae Lee, Letters – Chris Eliopoulos, Colors – June Chung
In the mountains a pair of mountain climbers reach Attilan when they run into Gorgon of the Inhumans and are killed.
Back in Manhattan, Reed and Ben are shrunk in Dr. Storm working to remove cancer in his body, while Reed supervises and Johnny is partying in the club. As he leaves, he sees a woman behind followed by two other cloaked figures and follows only to get knocked out by the figures but not before he calls on the Fantastic Four. Before he can be killed, Lockjaw shows up and scares them away and the inhuman woman, Crystal, brings him back to the Fantastic Four and heals him with her super technology.
She explains they were guards sent in to track her, and gives the rundown of how Black Bolt is the king, her sister Medusa is married to him and his other sister Gorgon is very strong and they along with her cousins Karnak and Triton are the royal household and she ran away to avoid marrying her fiance Maximus so Lockjaw brought her to New York City to have fun.
Crystal is captured and Johnny chases after but is stunned and Johnny wants to chase her thinking he’s in love.
Back at Attilan, Crystal is dressed down for acting unbecoming and committing a crime, unaware that the Fantastic Four teleported in. In Attlian Sue hides the other members with invisibility and they see a Terrigenesis where a new Inhuman emerges as Tri-Clops who sees the Fantastic Four and stops their invisibility so the team is forced to fight. The Royal Family hears about the fight and steps in and the fight escalates quickly, ending when a massive statue is knocked over and Sue fights to keep it from crushing people but actually Crystal stops it. Crystal is upset that they came and as a result the Royal Family destroys Attilan because it is ruined. Johnny and Crystal kiss goodbye and then the Inhumans go to live on the moon.
Ultimate Fantastic Four Vol 1 #21-23 – Crossover
Ultimate Fantastic Four Vol 1 #24-26 – Tomb of Namor
Ultimate Spider-Man Vol 1 #72-77 – Hobgoblin
Ultimate Spider-Man Vol 1 #78 – Dumped
Ultimate Fantastic Four Annual #1 – Inhuman