Ultimate Spider-Man, Volume 18: Ultimate Knights

Ultimate Spider-Man (Collected Editions)

by Brian Michael Bendis (Writer), Mark Bagley (Illustrator)

Ultimate Daredevil attempts to enlist Spider-Man in a crusade to bring down the Kingpin permanently. But with his Aunt's life hanging by a thread, and his serious girl problems with MJ and Kitty Pryde, crimebusting may be the last thing on young Mr. Parker's mind.

Collecting: Ultimate Spider-Man 106-111

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Spider Man, Comic Book, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics

144 pages, Paperback

First published September 26, 2007

About the author

A comic book writer and erstwhile artist. He has won critical acclaim (including five Eisner Awards) and is one of the most successful writers working in mainstream comics. For over eight years Bendis’s books have consistently sat in the top five best sellers on the nationwide comic and graphic novel sales charts.

Though he started as a writer and artist of independent noir fiction series, he shot to stardom as a writer of Marvel Comics' superhero books, particularly Ultimate Spider-Man.

Bendis first entered the comic world with the "Jinx" line of crime comics in 1995. This line has spawned the graphic novels Goldfish, Fire, Jinx, Torso (with Marc Andreyko), and Total Sell Out. Bendis is writing the film version of Jinx for Universal Pictures with Oscar-winner Charlize Theron attached to star and produce.

Bendis’s other projects include the Harvey, Eisner, and Eagle Award-nominated Powers (with Michael Avon Oeming) originally from Image Comics, now published by Marvel's new creator-owned imprint Icon Comics, and the Hollywood tell-all Fortune and Glory from Oni Press, both of which received an "A" from Entertainment Weekly.

Bendis is one of the premiere architects of Marvel's "Ultimate" line: comics specifically created for the new generation of comic readers. He has written every issue of Ultimate Spider-Man since its best-selling launch, and has also written for Ultimate Fantastic Four and Ultimate X-Men, as well as every issue of Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, Ultimate Origin and Ultimate Six.

Brian is currently helming a renaissance for Marvel’s AVENGERS franchise by writing both New Avengers and Mighty Avengers along with the successful ‘event’ projects House Of M, Secret War, and this summer’s Secret Invasion.

He has also previously done work on Daredevil, Alias, and The Pulse.

Reviews

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bendis really knows how to up the ante and he does it again this time pitting Pete up against Kingpin and I love the way it starts with Daredevil forming the knights and then sending MK undercover as Ronin but the plan goes awry and we see Fisk had an inside man there too and its so cool and the ramifications of it and what it leads to and finally we see what happens when Pete confronts Kingpin and the evil he faces in the form of corporate evil and how Pete deals with that and finally the big story of how he and Matt take down this Kingpin and it makes for an epic story especially with the "morals" and "codes" of being a hero and its fun and you get to see Pete evolve in such a great manner! And finally the long overdue talk between him and May about being Spider-man!!

Its such a great volume and really wraps up things nicely which started way back and great focus on Daredevil and particularly May and Peter and I am interested to see where this book goes from here as the threats seems to be multiplying and the stories getting epic..

Also this is Bagley's final arc I think and it was epic and I have loved it throughout!!

[Sesana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another Kingpin story. I have to be honest, I was getting a little sick of this guy. But I did love the idea that he'd picked up the licensing rights to Spider-Man's likeness. I didn't really care for the giant team-up that makes up most of this trade. To be honest, I don't care much about any of the heroes that join Spider-Man. Creativity points for the finale, though. That said, the last issue in this collection is fantastic: Aunt May and Peter's long overdue heart-to-heart about him being Spider-Man and his guilt over Uncle Ben's murder. This is what makes the book, for me, the moments when Peter is Peter, and not Spider-Man.

The last issue in this collection was also the last one with art by Bagley. He'd had more than 100 issues on the book, which is a pretty good run. And at some point, I'd gotten to like his art. Maybe he'd improved that much as an artist, or maybe I'd just acquired a taste for it. But it no longer struck me as quite so grimace-filled as it had at first. Bagley's art so defined the look of Ultimate Spider-Man that I'll miss him.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

NYC-based street level heroes (plus a Doctor Strange who is a mainstay on the late night talk circuit?) have a fear-and-loathing team up to putatively take down Wilson Fisk but there are wheels within wheels, of course.



Peter also has to deal with a turbulent personal life, including the repairs on his family home and Aunt May in hospital not to mention the fallout of his brief relationship with Kitty Pryde, so there's plenty of grist for the mill. A good volume, if not transcendental.

[James DeSantis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great volume.

MJ and Peter are back together, helping Aunt May back on her feet. While that's happening Daredevil has had ENOUGH of Kingpin. So he decides to form the Marvel Knights which is him, Shang-Chi, Iron Fist, Spider-man, Dr. Strange, and Moon Knight. This rowdy bunch must work together to take down Kingpin but Kingpin isn't as stupid as he looks.

A really great volume focusing on world building. I love to see Bendis tackle all these street level characters and give them all their own flares. Even Moon Knight worked really well here. Peter trying to be the hopeful hero that he is amongst the rougher and tougher adult heroes is great. Also the last issue is both uplifting and heartbreaking, and wonderful too all at the same time with Aunt May being the best Aunt May in any universe.

A 4.5 out of 5.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. I’m just tearing through this book at this point. Ultimate Spidey started... badly. That’s the reason I dropped it after six issues or so back in 2000; it got off to a really weak start. By this point, though, it is absolutely on fire! It makes me wish I’d stuck with it eighteen years ago. Oh, well; thank goodness for Marvel Unlimited...

[Nicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stuff in this volume involving the other superheroes didn't interest me much -- except maybe Daredevil; I don't think I realised before that he's blind, and that intrigues me -- but the end of this volume is pretty spectacular: Peter and Aunt May finally have a long discussion of who he is and what he does, and she reiterates that he is her son and she's proud of him. I love that focus on realistic stuff like the issues between these two and her unconditional support of him. The focus on the issues between Peter and Mary Jane, and Peter and Kitty Pryde, are getting a bit old, though. I just... such drama!

Though, I really want Kitty Pryde, Mary Jane and Peter to have a good long heart to heart and fix things and support each other. *crosses fingers*

[Marloges · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I can comfortably give this five stars simply because this is so high above most of the other Ultimate universe stuff I read so far. "The Talk" was an amazing chapter, and the Ultimate Knights arc was really well done, too. Kingpin is a great villain and the way this chapter went was pretty awesome. Just all around a good book if you're into spidey action. And damn, the final Mark Bagley issue... What a bang he went out with!

[Adrienna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the same cover but same issue number.

[Mikey Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was fun, but issue #111 knocks it out of the park. We finally see the talk between Peter and Aunt May, and god damn does it live up to expectations.

[Shane Stanis · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Ultimate Year #18

The main Knights story is a solid street level tale, with Spidey, DD, and some friends taking on the Kingpin (again). The final issue, The Talk wraps up Bagley’s 110(and a half)(!!) issue run, and introduces the incredibly talented Immonen to the roster. This story is where the book really shines, and pushes the volume to 5 stars. We get he heart we had in the first couple volumes of the USM run, and a perfect departure for Bagley.

[Wing Kee · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting arc that absolutely face plants itself on the finish.

World: This is the last arc for Bagley and I will say that as much as I am not a fan of the style in terms of character facial expressions it has grown on me and I don't see the series being possible without him. The world building here was very strong as per Bendis. Pieces are put together to make a tale bugger than the sum of it's parts. This Kingpin part of the MUU is fertile ground and we got a truly wonderful stage to play this arc.

Story: The talk issue was absolutely wonderful and I really enjoyed that we got a full issue for something this important. It shows how much Bendis and crew respect how important this truly is. The Knights arc was also very strong, a fun team up with good dynamic and character building and moments and some true emotion. The monologue by Kingpin us absolutely wonderful and I will say that at that moment Bagley's art merged with the writing. I won't spoil the story except one thing, the end, I hate deus ex endings they annoy me and this is an absolutely classic example of writing unto a corner and having that invisible highly visible hand fix it for the writer. The stuff with Spector annoyed because how was he able to wall away was simply impossible so yeah that ruined the ending.

Characters: The Talk had really wonderful character moments and was quite heartwarming it was great. The dynamic of the family and the mixed and all over the place emotions make sense here cause at the end of the day May is human and she's processing it her way (plus it adds drama). One thing I left until here is Kitty. Her being where she is is great drama but the stretch is a bit much and I am not liking how she's turned into the next MJ, seriously the female characters need a lot of work here. Fisk was great and a force of nature which served it's purpose but the emotions in the end was also earned good stuff. So yes there is a lot of good and some bad but overall we end up in the black.

A fun and interesting and emotionally arc that is a fitting send off for Bagley. The end was terrible but the rest was enjoyable.

Onward to the next book!

[Saoki · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first one I hadn't read back then and it has Daredevil! How the hell did past me manage to avoid the lure of Daredevil? He's probably the superhero I've read the most and I've been reading superhero comics on an off for the last *checks note* 28 years. Hell.
Anyway, I was way too excited to read a brand new Daredevil story so I guess I know what backlog* I'll be hitting after I finish reading All Of Ultimate Spider-Man And I Mean All Of It.

Ultimate Knights was a great multi-hero story, though I imagine Iron Fist fans might have a different opinion. It is fast paced, has some great action and our boy Spidey gets to be Wiser Than His Years, which is one of my favourite points** about his character. Bendis does that thing of his in which he pulls threads from several stories into one big yarn


* Only 5 years worth or so. I kinda have previously already read all of Daredevil, minus some specials and such.
** That and the fact that he is absolutely the moral compass of the whole Marvel Universe (regardless of the universe) and as long as he is being heroic everyone else also gets to be.

[Andy Tamayo]

It was a really good comic. It had a lot of twists that left me mind blown Such as the fact that King Pin wasn't the main Villan. Which I thought he was from the beginning. Due to the history between Spider-Man and King Pin. Turns out it was one of the Warriors that was minipualating everything.

[Jeff Raymond · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do like me some Spider-Man. I’m still along and nearly caught up, and it’s worth my time and I like it. So there.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

very, very good

[Andreas Framke · Rating 4 out of 5]

#DieultimativeSpiderManComicKollektion19UltimativeHelden
#Comic
#Comickritik

Wertung 80%

#DieultimativeSpiderManComicKollektion19 - #UltimativeHelden ist ein amerikanischer Superhelden - Comicband, die Comicbände von 2007 zusammenfasst. #BrianMichaelBendis schrieb die Story und #MarkBagley zeichnete die Panels. #UltimateSpiderMan (#DerultimativeSpiderMan) erscheint seit 2000 und interpretiert die #Comics um #SpiderMan neu. Diese erscheint seit 1962 von Stan Lee und Steve Ditko.

In "#UltimateKnights" (#106–110) und "#TheTalk" (#111) geht es um eine Gruppe von Superhelden, die #Kingpin ausschalten wollen. Der Verbrecherkönig hält aber einige Zügel in der Hand. So wird es für die Ultimate Knights schwer untereinander zu vertrauen.

Brian Michael Bendis ist seit Anfang der Reihe der kreative Kopf dieser Reihe. #Bendis schreibt seit 1991 im Comicbereich und von 2000 bis 2018 für #MarvelComics. Sein Stil ist erfrischend. Hier schreibt er eine erwachsenere Story, die eher dramatisch wird. Aber auch wenn er ganz interessante Helden zusammenbringt, schöpft er dessen Potenzial nicht ganz aus, hier hätte mehr drin sein können. Dennoch ist es eine spannende Geschichte mit einigen guten Ideen und Wendungen.

Mark Bagley verabschiedete sich mit dem Story Arc und holte nochmals alles raus. Er ist seit 1987 aktiv und seit dem mit der Marvel Materie vertraut. Dies merkt man auch bei den vielen Charakteren, die im Band vorkommen. #Bagley, der in Deutschland geboren wurde, setzt einen klaren Fokus auf die Story in den Panels.

Spider-Man (#PeterParker) steht natürlich im Fokus. Diese Variante existiert seit 24 Jahren und hat an Charme nichts eingebüßt. Als diese Ausgaben erschienen schwang sich Tobey Maguire in Spider-Man 3 durch New York. Unter den unterschiedlichsten Helden erkennt man die freundliche Spinne, weniger hart und abgeklärt und eher auf Frieden bedacht. Er ist integer, jung und versucht der Kraft der Worte mehr Gerechtigkeit zu geben.

Kingpin / #WilsonFisk ist hier der große Gegner in diesen Handlungsbogen. Im #UltimateMarvel agiert #Fisk seit 2001, eingeführt von Bendis / Bagley (Original: 1967 von Stan Lee und John Romita senior). Michael Clarke Duncan spielte ihn vier Jahre vor dem Erscheinen der Kollektion 2003 im Film Daredevil. Der Kingpin ist imposant. Nach außen wirkt er wie ein philantropischer Geschäftsmann doch in Wahrheit ist er ein harter Mafiaboss. Er kalkuliert knallhart und sortiert auch seine Gang eiskalt aus. Er wirkt fett und behäbig, ist aber muskulös und schlägt hart zu. Hier wollen viele Helden, denen er geschadet hat, ihn ausschalten. Dabei spielt er alle aus.
#Daredevil / #MattMurdock ist der Anführer des Teams Ultimate Knights. Diese Version gibt es seit Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra aus dem Jahr 2002 von Greg Rucka und Salvador Larroca (Original: 1964 von Stan Lee und Bill Everett). Bei Erscheinen war der Auftritt im Film Daredevil von 2003 von Ben Affleck am bekanntesten. #Murdock ist eher ein Antiheld als ein Held. Er greift auch mal härter zu und hat als erwachsener Anwalt bereits viel erlebt. Dies veranlasst ihn dazu als Daredevil Persona härter durchzugreifen als es das Gesetz schafft. Nahezu grimmig und nur mit wenig Hoffnung für das Gute streift er durch die dunklen Gassen.

Der Comic war gut, blieb aber hinter meinen Erwartungen und den Vorgängern. Die Motivationen der Helden wird nicht ganz klar und deren Stärken zu wenig präsentiert. Aber wenn Spider-Man auf Kingpin trifft, dann noch mit Daredevil, das ist spannend und dramatisch.

Die ultimative Spider-Man-Comic-Kollektion: Bd. 20: Tod eines Goblins veröffentlichte dann Geschichten aus 2008. Hier dann "Death of a Goblin" (#112–117). Danach ging es bis 2011 weiter.

[Henry Blackwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goddam, Danny Rand is a punk bitch and definitely one of my least favourite heroes. I hated him in the Netflix series and throughout Ultimate spidey, hes been a drain on my life.

Reading this - I never thought I’d be giving this trade a 5 star rating, and I admit I feel a little weird about it, but I still feel like it deserves it (or at the very least 4.5).

I haven’t loved the way Bendis has written his Kingpin stories on ultimate Spider-Man so going into this knowing it was going to be Kingpin heavy felt like I was walking into a slog. But i can say without a doubt that this is the best Bendis has written Kingpin (on Ultimate Spidey). I loved the team up, I loved the betrayal and how Bendis worked that, and I loved how DD snapped after Danny Rand was a rat bitch, and almost broke Vanessa’s neck. But most of all, was how they worked around getting Kingpin to actually be beaten. Because DD raised a great point: the only language Kingpin understands is hitting where you live so that was really the only way to deter Kingpin into doing what they wanted in the first place, but instead of ending it there, instead of wrapping the story where it is where Kingpin could easily able to come back and wreak havoc again; they ended it with the Moon Knight little plot. Which was beautiful. I mean I would much rather them have DD snap Vanessa’s neck so they could really explore that more but where it ended was still immensely satisfying.
And I didn’t even mention the movie licence and likeness that Kingpin owned on Spider-Man. That is so fucking evil I loved it, Kingpin really made a bitch out Spider-Man and the whole Ultimate Knights even though he won.

This is Bendis in great form.

I also can’t believe this is the last trade with Bagley! I can’t believe it, I’ve grown to love his art. Especially in Annual #1

ÉDIT: ok, ive dropped the rating down a star not because it’s bad in anyway whatsoever, just because I feel like it’s not a five star story. If they had dd kill Vanessa and explored the fallout of that it would be but instead it’s a four and a half stars definitely. One of the best spidey and Kingpin stories ive ever read. And probably the hardest story to rate I’ve read so far.

[Rick Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spider-Man survives the Clone Saga to now have to face a more grounded threat in the Kingpin. He's plagued Spidey before, but here we see the villain's impact on New York's other crimefighters like Daredevil, Moon Knight, Shang-Chi and Iron Fist. Daredevil recruits Spidey to join his band of "Ultimate Knights" to take down the Kingpin, but what he really means is kill the Kingpin. It's a departure from the Daredevil of the mainline 616 universe to be sure, as he and the other heroes are all completely in favor of a more permanent solution. It's only the youthful optimism of Spider-Man that keeps this murderous impulse at bay as he tempers their more violent approach.

Daredevil isn't the only character written out of sorts in the Ultimate Universe - Moon Knight also draws the short end of the stick. Here, his multiple personality disorder is treated as him simply being insane, which is disparagingly reductive. I get it - it's a Spider-Man book, not a Moon Knight book, but Bendis simply can't write the character given his own lukewarm stretch on the title. It's lazy writing here that is made to elevate Spider-Man above the other heroes, and the design is very transparent. Otherwise, the crime story elements work well enough, but Bendis does have enough credibility on that front.

This also marks the end of the Bendis and Bagley collaboration as Bagley drops off the title at the end of issue #111. Stuart Immonen will take over for the final stretch of the title, but it's well worth recognizing the feat that the Bendis and Bagley team achieved having earned the crown of longest tenured creative duo on a single title (previous record was held by Lee & Kirby on Fantastic Four). Bagley is solid here as always, particularly with how he juggles the designs of several superheroes in one book.

[Jack Herbert Christal Gattanella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much of this book frankly is 3 stars, maybe 3 1/2. Some of the extra superhero stuff is entertaining, as is anything with Kingpin, but there's a lot of tension that doesn't come off as believable as the stuff just from the title character (Daredevil is fine, the others... Eh. Doctor Strange isn't any better here than he was previously in Ultimate Spider) in some of the writing (also Moon Knight is a character in this series I have trouble feeling much for either way). But then... That final issue of this collection, #111, the last drawn by the creative and humorous but many times wonderfully melodramatic artist Mark Bagley, where Peter and Aunt May just sit down and have a long talk comes around and it's one of the most emotionally rich things Bendis has or will ever write (another couple of tears over a Spider-Man comic? Eh sure). So we get this rating thus.

Another critique: Why all that Mutantphobia at the high school right away when Kitty Pryde arrives? Seemed forced.

[Kieran Westphal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm at a critical crossroads with the Ultimate Universe. On the one hand, of you're doing a separate continuity with the same characters, things should be a little (or a lot) different. Having a series that puts its stake in the ground at Peter being in high school forever isn't a bad thing in itself. On the other hand, it feels cheap to have recognizable characters show up just to be a plot point and then killed off.

One thing I'm certain of is that I prefer for Spider-Man to be going up against a full web of disconnected villains and threats rather than only wondering whether Osborn, Shield, or the Kingpin is going to be giving him trouble this time around. The scope of the storytelling feels limited.

Ultimate Spider-Man isn't all its cracked up to be either way, especially after the first few arcs.

[pscheg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven’t read much of the the Ultimate Spider-Man series, and this was a volume that I picked up when I was around 8. I’ve re-read this thing a couple of times since then, and it’s still pretty cool. The last issue in this is probably my favorite. I just love the Peter and May dynamic and their heart to heart. The simplicity of that is my favorite.

The main story here with Daredevil’s team is fairly interesting. It introduced me to so many characters when I was first getting in to comics. I really like Daredevil’s portrayal, but the other members don’t get to shine as much. In general, Kingpin’s a great adversary for Spider-Man and Daredevil; maybe it’s because I haven’t read the other volumes, but he’s a little underwhelming here. I’d probably give this volume a 3.5/5, but it looks like I can only do full stars on here.

[K · Rating 1 out of 5]

So you're telling me Kingpin has Spiderman captured, but he's not killing him on the spot because he wants to earn a few bucks on the Spidey merch. And he can't run prints to learn his identity because Nick Fury will find out. I don't know, idiot... you have his face and his school so how about asking a fellow classmate "Have you seen this boy?" or following him home after school?
And then instead of killing the planted mole - Moon Knight himself, he leaves it to his incompetent henchmen who botch the kill by MISSIN A POINT-BLANK HEADSHOT. Moon Knight walks into a police station blowing his secret identity and acuses Kingpin of attempted murder even though Kingpin already walked once when they had him killing a guy ON TAPE and this time he wasn't even on the scene. Yeah, this time it'll work.

Everyone in this comic acts like a retard and Bendis isn't a very good writer.

[Adam Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

The final volume with Mark Bagley is a beautiful ending to several important Ultimate Spider-Man storylines. Character twist after plot twist after reveal unfold and refold and unfold again as a large chunk of the Ultimate Spider-Man cast have their lives changed by different but related events.

It's also still fun.And a great check in with Ultimate Daredevil, Moon Knight, Iron Fist, Doctor Strange, and Shang-Chi.

It's one of the best books from The Ultimate Universe run, definitely worth the read if you like any Spider-Man or Defenders books.

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm pretty sure the end is near. Ultimatum is on the horizon, and while the book continues under a new title for a while, it will end very soon after.
But I even if I didn't know this, I would probably still feel it because it really feels like Bendis is wrapping up his arcs.
I don't know a lot about what comes next, but this feels like the end of the Kingpin story and a fairly worthy end. It's really good with a few surprising twists.

Bagley also leaves with this book, and I'll miss him. After having his art for the last 111 issues, it will take some adjustment.

[Logan Harrington · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10:
I feel like I’m being really harsh on this collection, but the main story was just so underwhelming. The time spent with Moon Knight only added more questions about his character(s), Iron Fist felt wildly out of character, and Shang-Chi felt so underutilized and ignored.

That final issue though, with Peter and May having such a deep conversation literally brought me to tears. I love those two and I’m excited to see Spider-Man’s story continue now that Aunt May knows Peter and Spider-Man are one and the same.

[Rix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sort of feels like this should be the end of this run? I guess I get to find out if the rest of the book is worth it going forward.

There's a lot of interesting stuff here but honestly it's one of those crossovers that would have benefitted HUGELY from taking just a smidge more time to actually introduce the rest of the Ultimate Knights. I need a little more investment in their story to care about a lot of what's happening here.

[Bryan Fischer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid entry in the series. I felt like this was a better intro to moon night (and some of the other characters too) than we previously had in this series.
The last issue was not tied into the rest, but it was a great issue nonetheless and built upon peters and May’s relationship.
This is also the final book/issues with the original artist, so I’m curious to see how the new art style works in the next books.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fairly decent.

Kitty continues to get the crazy girl treatment, Peter and MJ continue to patch up and rebuild their relationship and separately the Daredevil hatches a plan to pull together disparate heroes to take on the Kingpin, a plan which goes horribly wrong.

This volume is full of twists and turns and puts Peter in some very difficult situations.

It's good, damn good, but doesn't always hit the high notes.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ultimate Knights (106-110). An excellent conclusion to the Kingpin saga last touched upon in "Warriors". We get great characterization for all of our warriors, particularly Moon Knight and Iron First, plus a satisfying ending to a story that Bendis had been writing for years [5/5].

The Conversation (111). Like the _other_ conversation (by JMS in ASM),, this is a great and touching heart to heart [5/5].

[Greg Callahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daredevil and a wildly formed crew to take down the Kingpin once and for all? Yes please. I know I said I was getting tired of the team-ups, but as long as Spidey is still front and center as he is here, I'm happy. Good story, nice twists and drama, fun action, and a killer final issue featuring a much needed conversation between Peter and Aunt May. Quite enjoyable volume.