It’s the last invasion. After this, there won’t be any more. Ever. From now on, people will only ever go anywhere politely...and even then, only if they’re formally invited. Seriously, though: it’s Ultimate Invasion #1. Writer Jonathan Hickman takes another look at the “Ultimate” Universe created by Marvel in the early 2000s. It is brought to the page with the aid of Ultimate artist Bryan Hitch. Colors come to the page from Alex Sinclair. As advertised, it’s the first issue of a whole new mini-series that finds the heroes of the Marvel Universe clashing with one of the few survivors of the Ultimate Universe in a conflict that is likely to have a few repercussions here and there. 

Miles Morales is in his bedroom when he gets a visit from a guy claiming to be his brother. The guy in question is wearing a skintight costume and a very weird-looking helmet. He was kind of rude, but it's not exactly dangerous, right? The gentleman claims to be one of the soul survivors of another universe. He claims that Miles is as well. He's going back. And he's inviting Miles. It's real nice of him and everything, but Miles is good. Not really interested in going anywhere. But he handed him a card anyway. Just in case he might change his mind. Then, he vanished in a flash of energy. Of course, there's nothing written on the card.

This sort of thing has been done before in a neighboring superhero comic book universe. And it's been done with Marvel before as well. The specific players are different. And the specific circumstances are different. And there's something really appealing about the Ultimate Universe, but it all feels like an echo of an echo of a shadow of a reflection. Hickman hasn't done much with the premise that hasn't been done better before. Of course, this is only the first issue of a 40-issue series, and it's possible that Hickman could do something new with it. But so much of what's covered here has been echoing through the DC and Marvel universes for a very long time. There are a lot of parallel dimensions. There are a lot of weird timelines. People get displaced. It happens. It sucks. And then everyone moves on.

Hitch’s art creates some degree of resonance for the premise. He fuses the fantastic with the dramatic to a very clever effect. So often, the fantasy outweighs the drama or vice versa. With Hitch, there is a lived-in feel about the cosmic and fantastic that makes the Marvel Universe feel very real. There are a lot of different people on the page. And there are a lot of different personalities. Hitch manages to hear everything in a way that gives it distinction. There's not just a big formless mass of heroes and villains on the page. It actually feels like there are a lot of individuals there. That's quite an accomplishment for any artist.

There really isn't much hope of this becoming any kind of major event. The summer is already too cluttered with different crossovers and things. And this sort of thing has happened so often before in the past. However, it's possible that there might yet be some original quality to this particular mega-crossover. There might be some flash of brilliance in it. Certainly, everything seems to be placed on the page in a way that could catch the reader's attention if everything goes well.

Grade: C-