Ultimate Spider-Man #3 talk.

[BuraddoRun]

My feeling that someone close to Peter is destined for the grave grows with each issue. This last issue was really well done too. Harry removing the mask was hilarious. And refreshing to see a Peter out of depth, but he knows it as well so it’s fun to watch him attempt to learn in real time. I can’t wait for next issue to see what Harry has been up to. What all does he know about how the world works ?

I feel the same. But wait, he did lose May, right? It's just that it hasn't been deeply explored at this point. I'm definitely enjoying this series a whole lot, and I love seeing a happy Peter where he's together with Mary Jane. But the loss of Ben was a big part of what shaped the original Spider-Man of 616. Who is Peter without a loss like that? Would he be the same person? I don't think so, but this Peter feels like 616 Peter, yet without that loss. So yeah, unless they go more into May, I think we're losing somebody. It kind of scares me. LOL

[Garlador]

I feel the same. But wait, he did lose May, right? It's just that it hasn't been deeply explored at this point. I'm definitely enjoying this series a whole lot, and I love seeing a happy Peter where he's together with Mary Jane. But the loss of Ben was a big part of what shaped the original Spider-Man of 616. Who is Peter without a loss like that? Would he be the same person? I don't think so, but this Peter feels like 616 Peter, yet without that loss. So yeah, unless they go more into May, I think we're losing somebody. It kind of scares me. LOL

Obviously we can't say until the arc is over, but at this point we have Peter going out and doing the right thing even without an overt tragedy being the instigating incident for his "awakening".

And... I'm enjoying that. I've never liked the idea that a character is beholden to some sacred traumatic loss to motivate them towards heroism. Superman doesn't need to experience tragedy to know that using his powers to help people is the right thing to do.

This goes back to the themes of Across the Spider-Verse, and whether Miles (or ANY of them) has to experience certain "canon events" to be a "true" Spider-Man, and the rejection of that idea that one should allow the tragedies of the past to determine the fate of others. While there is a nugget of truth to those timelines, and Peter B says "most of us wouldn't be here without Uncle Ben", that doesn't mean that ALL of them would fail to rise up to the call when needed.

So far, and I might gush harder about this in a podcast or retrospective down the line, the idea that this Peter is spurred into action NOT by great loss but by great LOVE, driven by a responsibility to make this a better world for the family he already has and loves and cares for, is fascinating and refreshing. While I expect setback and loss, Peter is trying to do good in a world where Uncle Ben's loss didn't spur him on, but rather his enduring life and wisdom shepherding him into a man of integrity and strong character.

Just as Gwen's continued existence didn't force Mary Jane out of the picture. Just as his daughter was once despised by editorial as a weight around the book, here she's THE reason Peter sticks with it. The comic right now is so compelling because so much of it succeeds in the face of arguments made to the contrary, tackling them one by one and saying "no, he can not only still be Spider-Man with the classic tropes removed, he can SOAR."

I have no qualms about saying he's Spider-Man, through and through, despite all the alterations to the "sacred canon". If anything, it challenges perceptions and defies labels in a way that only Hickman can really do, and I'm all for more of it.

[ARkadelphia]

My feeling that someone close to Peter is destined for the grave grows with each issue. This last issue was really well done too. Harry removing the mask was hilarious. And refreshing to see a Peter out of depth, but he knows it as well so it’s fun to watch him attempt to learn in real time. I can’t wait for next issue to see what Harry has been up to. What all does he know about how the world works ?

My sources are telling me that MJ does and Peter is forced to juggle his roles as a working stiff, single father, and Spider-Man

[Frontier]

Obviously we can't say until the arc is over, but at this point we have Peter going out and doing the right thing even without an overt tragedy being the instigating incident for his "awakening".

And... I'm enjoying that. I've never liked the idea that a character is beholden to some sacred traumatic loss to motivate them towards heroism. Superman doesn't need to experience tragedy to know that using his powers to help people is the right thing to do.

This goes back to the themes of Across the Spider-Verse, and whether Miles (or ANY of them) has to experience certain "canon events" to be a "true" Spider-Man, and the rejection of that idea that one should allow the tragedies of the past to determine the fate of others. While there is a nugget of truth to those timelines, and Peter B says "most of us wouldn't be here without Uncle Ben", that doesn't mean that ALL of them would fail to rise up to the call when needed.

So far, and I might gush harder about this in a podcast or retrospective down the line, the idea that this Peter is spurred into action NOT by great loss but by great LOVE, driven by a responsibility to make this a better world for the family he already has and loves and cares for, is fascinating and refreshing. While I expect setback and loss, Peter is trying to do good in a world where Uncle Ben's loss didn't spur him on, but rather his enduring life and wisdom shepherding him into a man of integrity and strong character.

Just as Gwen's continued existence didn't force Mary Jane out of the picture. Just as his daughter was once despised by editorial as a weight around the book, here she's THE reason Peter sticks with it. The comic right now is so compelling because so much of it succeeds in the face of arguments made to the contrary, tackling them one by one and saying "no, he can not only still be Spider-Man with the classic tropes removed, he can SOAR."

I have no qualms about saying he's Spider-Man, through and through, despite all the alterations to the "sacred canon". If anything, it challenges perceptions and defies labels in a way that only Hickman can really do, and I'm all for more of it.

On the one hand I don't think every hero needs a tragedy to spur them into action or to be a hero.

At the same time I feel like tragedy and a sense of loss that could have been prevented, that shows the meaning behind ones' true responsibility, is kind of the ethos of Spider-Man. Or at least Peter's Spider-Man. Like a lot of what defined him is that he made a mistake and was forced to grow up faster than he should have because of that and how that skewed his life and worldview while living up to an ideal.

Obviously we're seeing a version of Peter that got to have a more stable and normal childhood and grow into adulthood without that baggage, so he has those ideals but without the breaking point that defined him in 616.

So to me I feel like Ultimate Pete is in some regards lacking in the weight of being a hero that 616 Peter has. He's got a happy family, he's got a relatively stable job, he's settled into himself as an adult, and now he's trying to play Superhero on-top of that but it hasn't defined him like it did 616 Spider-Man. It feels like to me that he's playing the part rather than it becoming such a part of him as it did in 616 because it's coming so late into his life and he has, in some regards, an entirely different life experience even if the ideals are the same.

Also Superman is an inherently good person but we are still talking about a guy who lost his entire planet and culture as a baby (and that's not even getting into "should the Kents be dead?" debate) .

[Hurricane Billy]

On the one hand I don't think every hero needs a tragedy to spur them into action or to be a hero.

At the same time I feel like tragedy and a sense of loss that could have been prevented, that shows the meaning behind ones' true responsibility, is kind of the ethos of Spider-Man. Or at least Peter's Spider-Man. Like a lot of what defined him is that he made a mistake and was forced to grow up faster than he should have because of that and how that skewed his life and worldview while living up to an ideal.

Obviously we're seeing a version of Peter that got to have a more stable and normal childhood and grow into adulthood without that baggage, so he has those ideals but without the breaking point that defined him in 616.

So to me I feel like Ultimate Pete is in some regards lacking in the weight of being a hero that 616 Peter has. He's got a happy family, he's got a relatively stable job, he's settled into himself as an adult, and now he's trying to play Superhero on-top of that but it hasn't defined him like it did 616 Spider-Man. It feels like to me that he's playing the part rather than it becoming such a part of him as it did in 616 because it's coming so late into his life and he has, in some regards, an entirely different life experience even if the ideals are the same.

Also Superman is an inherently good person but we are still talking about a guy who lost his entire planet and culture as a baby (and that's not even getting into "should the Kents be dead?" debate) .

Yeah, even if this Peter somehow manages to not suffer any sort of permanent tragedies throughout the entirety of the run, I do think there's something to be said that Peter will need to have something of a wake up call as the story progresses that leads to him fully understanding and appreciate the scope of the responsibility he's taken on for himself. Now how that wakeup call could happen, we'll have to wait and see for now. It could be that Jonah dies. It could be the dissolution of his newfound friendship with Harry and the subsequent status of them as foes at odd with each other.

I don't believe for a moment that Hickman will kill off MJ, Ben or the kids. I think the Parker family as they currently stand will all survive the entirety of the run. But something tragic is going to happen that raises the stakes of Peter's endeavors and impresses upon him the importance of this responsibility.

[GalaxyHarpoon]

I was also wondering if it could be an Osborn child that gets hurt. Would be an inversion of Gwen and Harry's fathers dying and would immediately set up tensions between the couples.

The Ben and Jonah dynamic also seems way too good to drop, but we'll see.

An Osborn child as opposed to a Parker one, when Peter's daughter is already in on the secret?

I don't know I feel like this is just diverting the tragedy to a non visible party because you rather nothing happen.

[Morgoth]

If someone gets killed, it's either Ben or Jonah.
Hickman is not killing MJ or one of kids. The family is the main selling point of this run, it's the thing people have been asking for years, it makes no sense to take a risk with that.

[godisawesome]

The interesting question regarding Peter, trauma, and responsibility here is how much has he already matured as an adult and father, and how much any potential "obligatory tragic event/natural fall out of living a dangerous life in a dangerous world" would impact him the same as it would impact a young hero... or how differently it would impact a married father.

[Frontier]

The interesting question regarding Peter, trauma, and responsibility here is how much has he already matured as an adult and father, and how much any potential "obligatory tragic event/natural fall out of living a dangerous life in a dangerous world" would impact him the same as it would impact a young hero... or how differently it would impact a married father.

I think there's something to be said for Peter being a lot less neurotic because he didn't have to be Spider-Man and a breadwinner at 16, not the least of which having had his biological parents around until his teen years, though can he get as scrappy as his younger self?

[Speed Force League Unlimited]

It might be cliched and corny, but I wonder how the scene would play had Peter said "I think he's a show off, but he could be friendly to the neighborhood" instead of "I think he's a man of the people".

Thinking about his line to Ben and Jonah now; it sounds similar to the dinner talk in Amazing Spider-Man 1 with movie George and the Stacy family. I like it.

[Huntsman Spider]

It might be cliched and corny, but I wonder how the scene would play had Peter said "I think he's a show off, but he could be friendly to the neighborhood" instead of "I think he's a man of the people".

Thinking about his line to Ben and Jonah now; it sounds similar to the dinner talk in Amazing Spider-Man 1 with movie George and the Stacy family. I like it.

That was an interesting talk, though. On one side, the dangers of permitting vigilantism. On the other, the idea, if not reality, that sometimes, that law does not always bring or coincide with justice. Of course, in the end, both of them end up reevaluating their prior stances and that's how they come together to save the city, even though it doesn't exactly turn out well for George. I could see something similar happening when Peter's new second identity gets exposed to Ben and Jonah, with Jonah being more critical on principle of being against vigilantism, period, and Ben likely calling out Peter for putting himself and his family at risk, especially after May's death, though with the stakes being what they are, and May's true murderers still at large and in power . . .

[Daibhidh]

It might be cliched and corny, but I wonder how the scene would play had Peter said "I think he's a show off, but he could be friendly to the neighborhood" instead of "I think he's a man of the people".

I think the fact that Peter chooses 'a man of the people' as part of how he'd like to be seen says something about his values. If the Spider-man / Green Goblin relationship doesn't degenerate into enmity straight away it's a possible point of contention with Harry who seems to be in full control of a major corporation.

[Huntsman Spider]

I think the fact that Peter chooses 'a man of the people' as part of how he'd like to be seen says something about his values. If the Spider-man / Green Goblin relationship doesn't degenerate into enmity straight away it's a possible point of contention with Harry who seems to be in full control of a major corporation.

Yeah, that would make sense.

[SturdyMike89]

I think there's something to be said for Peter being a lot less neurotic because he didn't have to be Spider-Man and a breadwinner at 16, not the least of which having had his biological parents around until his teen years, though can he get as scrappy as his younger self?

I think we will see Peter struggling to win at first holding back. But when something bad happens like Bullseye killing Uncle Ben for instance, we will see him cut loose and get really scrappy. The one cover shows an intense fight between Kingpin and Spidey in the works that I think we will see happen in the comic itself. Hickman may even have Peter fight so viciously in his anger that he may kill in the heat of anger putting a new wrinkle on the power and responsibility theme.