Reading guide · 2000–11
Ultimate Spider-Man (2000): reading order and where to read it
Everything you need to read Ultimate Spider-Man (2000): the issues in order, what it is about without spoilers, why it matters, and the books in print today.
Start with Ultimate Spider-Man #1 (2000) and read straight through. The first 13 issues are in Ultimate Spider-Man Epic Collection: Learning Curve. The run ends with the Death of Spider-Man (2011), which leads straight into Miles Morales.
- Published
- 2000–11
- Length
- More than 150 issues
- By
- Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Bagley and others
- Good for new readers?
- Yes. It was built for new readers: it starts Spider-Man over from the bite, with no history to learn.
- Start with
- Ultimate Spider-Man Epic Collection: Learning Curve
Reading order
In this order. The notes are spoiler-free.
| # | Read | Year | What happens |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ultimate Spider-Man #1–7 | 2000–01 | Power and Responsibility: the origin, retold for a new century. |
| 2 | Ultimate Spider-Man #8–13 | 2001 | Learning Curve: Peter takes on the Kingpin. |
| 3 | Ultimate Spider-Man #33–39 | 2003 | Venom: a new origin for the symbiote, tied to Peter's own father. |
| 4 | Ultimate Spider-Man #111 | 2007 | Mark Bagley's last issue, after 111 in a row with Bendis, a record for a Marvel creative team at the time. |
| 5 | Ultimate Spider-Man #156–160 | 2011 | The Death of Spider-Man. |
| 6 | Ultimate Fallout #4 | 2011 | The aftermath, and the first appearance of Miles Morales. |
What it's about
In 2000, Marvel started Spider-Man over in a new universe, Earth-1610. Peter Parker is fifteen again, bitten by a spider from Norman Osborn's company, and his story is told for readers who had never picked up a comic. Brian Michael Bendis writes Peter as a real teenager, with the dialogue to match, and Mark Bagley drew the first 111 issues in a row.
Why it matters
It was a sales hit that brought a generation into comics, and the Marvel films borrowed heavily from it. It also ends the way the main universe never could, with Peter Parker gone, which made room for Miles Morales.
The big twist (spoilers)
Show the spoilers
Peter Parker dies in Ultimate Spider-Man #160 (2011), saving his family from the Green Goblin and the Sinister Six, and Miles Morales takes up the name in his honor.
Where to read it
Where to start
Ultimate Spider-Man Epic Collection: Learning Curve
Collects: Ultimate Spider-Man #1–13
Paperback, 352 pages (March 2025). The first two stories, in one book.
Later volumes in the same Epic Collection line continue the run.
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Who would win?
The characters at the heart of this story, rated one-on-one under this site's fight rules.
- Ultimate Peter vs. Green GoblinPeter Parker (Ultimate Universe, Earth-1610)Ultimate Peter wins 57%
- Ultimate Peter vs. KingpinPeter Parker (Ultimate Universe, Earth-1610)Ultimate Peter wins 78%
- Ultimate Peter vs. VenomPeter Parker (Ultimate Universe, Earth-1610)Ultimate Peter wins 37%
What to read before and after
- Miles MoralesRead next · 2011–Dozens of issues
- Ultimate Spider-Man (2024)Read next · 2024–2624 issues
Questions and answers
Where do I start reading Ultimate Spider-Man?
Ultimate Spider-Man #1 (2000). The first 13 issues are collected in Ultimate Spider-Man Epic Collection: Learning Curve.
Is Ultimate Spider-Man good for new readers?
Yes. It was made for them: it retells Spider-Man's story from the beginning in a separate universe, so no other comics are needed.
When does Ultimate Peter Parker die?
In the Death of Spider-Man, Ultimate Spider-Man #156–160 (2011). Miles Morales first appears soon after, in Ultimate Fallout #4.
All Spider-Man reading guides · The essential Spider-Man comics, in order