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This Marvel Team Needs to Return, And the Ending of the Ultimate Universe Can Make It Happen
None of us is happy about it, but Marvel’s Ultimate Universe is coming to an end. Despite how well books like The Ultimates and Ultimate Spider-Man have been selling, Marvel Comics has been quite clear that the imprint is done once its big finale, Ultimate Endgame, wraps up next year. It’s hard to believe that just as we’ve really started to see this universe thrive, it’s ending, and there are so many characters we haven’t been properly introduced to yet.
But just because it’s winding down, that doesn’t mean Marvel can’t introduce a few more characters, right? We know we’re getting the Ultimate Daredevil in just a few weeks in Ultimate Universe: Year Two #1, and given the stakes, there’s sure to be some surprises in Ultimate Endgame. There’s still time to introduce one more team and give it the revamp that could ensure that this amazing period in Marvel Comics history lives on long after the Ultimate Universe ends.
Now’s the Time to Revive Marvel’s Squadron Supreme
Seasoned Marvel Comics fans know all about the Squadron Supreme. If this motley crew of heroes looks familiar, it’s because they were all designed as pastiches of the Justice League. Over the years, Marvel Comics has taken numerous cracks at the Avengers’ biggest comic book rivals with the Squadron Supreme, reinventing them every so often. Originally appearing as villains named the Squadron Sinister, the Squadron Supreme was reinvented as a team of heroes that live on Earth-712. However, this incarnation wouldn’t be the only riff on the Justice League that Marvel Comics would make.
Marvel eventually introduced another variant of the Squadron Supreme from Earth-31916, following them in Supreme Power and its various spin-off books and crossovers. And while this version had numerous experiences across the multiverse (including a confrontation with the original Ultimate Universe), Marvel would later bring another Squadron Supreme to life, this time, one that operated on the main Earth-616. This time, they were all composed of variants from different universes. As you can tell, Marvel’s never really been shy when it comes to periodically reinventing this team.
And that’s why now’s the perfect time to introduce an Ultimate Squadron Supreme before Ultimate Endgame brings the line to a close. The Ultimate Universe has gotten a lot of mileage out of experimenting with Marvel lore, reinventing heroes, their legacies, and even their teams. I think Marvel has a really great opportunity here. If the publisher is serious about ending the Ultimate Universe (and at this point, it seems like it is), it could create a new Squadron Supreme, but one made up of survivors from Earth-6160.
Marvel’s Ultimate Heroes are Too Good to Lose
None of us is happy about the Ultimate Universe ending. Many of these stories have so much to work with, and heroes like Ultimate Venom, Maystorm, and Iron Lad have really captivated fans in the last year and a half. If Marvel Comics really wants to end the universe, so be it. But if Miles Morales and the Maker can live on after the death of the original Ultimate Universe, I see no reason why they can’t grab a handful of fan-favorites from the new one and have their adventures continue as a new team.
Of course, having these characters live on is one thing, but do they need to be the new Squadron Supreme? Well, they’d have a huge similarity with them, being survivors from a world that’s no longer there. And if there’s one thing that the new Ultimate Universe, it’s taking names and legacies and giving them new, modern tweaks. What better name to give a small collection of multiversal survivors that also sounds incredibly badass and intimidating?
In a perfect world, the Ultimate Universe would just live on. But all signs point to it ending. At this point, the only thing we can hope for is that Marvel does give some fan-favorites a chance to live on, either in the main Marvel Universe or some other parallel reality. And if that turns out to be the case, I really think that’s the best time to reinvent these survivors as the Ultimate Squadron Supreme. They might not have their world, but they’d have a hell of a team Marvel fans would get on board with.
Do you like the idea of an Ultimate Squadron Supreme? Let us know below!
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