Marvel’s 87-Year-Old First Superhero Gets an Ultimate Revamp That HomagesMarvel’s 87-Year-Old First Superhero Gets an Ultimate Revamp That Homages an Avengers Classic

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This section highlights exciting new comics. Today, we’re focusing on how Deniz Camp brilliantly combined three classic Avengers stories into one fantastic issue of The Ultimates.

With the recent conclusion of a project, I had the chance to ask someone involved how it felt to be the lead creator on a significant comic book story like Ultimate Endgame. It’s well-known in the comic book world that there’s a special feeling associated with being chosen to write a major crossover event.

I realized Camp is the kind of person who really values that—he’s a huge comic book fan. He understands and respects comic book history, and while he definitely has his own unique style and doesn’t feel bound by existing storylines, it’s clear he has a deep appreciation for the classic comics of the past.

This week’s issue of The Ultimates brilliantly combined elements from three classic Avengers stories into one cohesive narrative with the introduction of the Ultimate Vision. It didn’t feel like a simple rehash of old ideas; instead, it was a fresh and exciting take. However, readers familiar with Avengers lore will find the experience even more satisfying.

Issue #20 of The Ultimates is written by Deniz Camp, with art by Phil Noto, colors by Edgar Delgado (who usually handles coloring for his own artwork), and lettering by Travis Lanham. It continues the story right after the exciting ending of the previous issue.

For a long time, it was believed that Janet Van Dyne, also known as the Wasp, was secretly a spy working against the Ultimates. She was thought to be working for H.A.N.D., an organization similar to S.H.I.E.L.D. led by Nick Fury (who was actually a lifelike robot duplicate of the real Fury). H.A.N.D. acts as the enforcers for the Maker’s Council. As we learned recently, Janet had a life with Hank Pym, whose intellect was deliberately damaged by the Maker to keep him from reaching his full potential. They quietly ran a pest control business until Iron Lad gave them the powers they were meant to have.

The last issue ended with a shocking reveal: Ultimate Vision killed Nick Fury. We also discovered Jan had been a triple agent all along, secretly working for Vision. And the biggest surprise? Vision was actually the original Human Torch – the very first Marvel superhero!

How was the Vision the Human Torch when the Human Torch is on the Ultimates?

You may have realized the Human Torch has been with the Ultimates all along. However, it turns out Tony Stark actually sent the original Human Torch back in time, creating two versions in the past. One of these joined the Ultimates team, while the other secretly worked to oppose the Maker.

Jim Hammond gradually replaced all of his original components with new ones, ultimately becoming the being known as the Vision. He then sought out young Janet Van Dyne and convinced her to work for him as a triple agent!

The real issue is that the Wasp continued to collaborate with Nick Fury, ultimately causing the destruction of the Ultimates’ space station and the deaths of many heroes. Fortunately, Vision has the ability to rebuild the entire Ultimates network on his own.

In a charming scene, the Wasp frees a collection of prisoners that H.A.N.D. had captured – a quirky group of lesser-known Marvel characters like Howard the Duck, Hit-Monkey, and Squirrel Girl.

It turns out Vision has been secretly constructing a massive robot in Detroit, built from the city itself. Jim Rhodes is among those assisting in piloting this device, which is designed to oppose war…

What an awesome reveal.

What classic Avengers stories are homaged by this story?

Everything happening is really exciting, especially learning that the Wasp isn’t a bad guy – though her husband likely still believes she is, which adds to the conflict. The writer is great at subtly introducing ideas that later connect in satisfying ways. It’s worth noting that this storyline is cleverly built on elements from several classic Avengers tales.

Interestingly, Vision’s first encounter with the Wasp was very similar to how he was originally introduced in the Avengers comic book (#57, by Roy Thomas, John Buscema, and George Klein). In both instances, he appeared by phasing right through a wall where the Wasp was.

So that is already a cool homage, but it obviously gets more interesting than that!

In the famous “Celestial Madonna” story arc, Kang was determined to father a powerful cosmic being by finding the right female Avenger. Meanwhile, the Vision, who was in a relationship with the Scarlet Witch but questioning his own existence, traveled through time and learned a surprising truth: he was originally created from the materials of the Golden Age Human Torch!

He learned the truth in Avengers #135 (by Steve Englehart, George Tuska, and Frank Chiaramonte)…

There were clues earlier that Vision was older than he seemed. When Ant-Man entered Vision’s body to try and save him, he discovered some of Vision’s components were actually made before World War II.

Later on, John Byrne reintroduced the original Golden Age Human Torch, clarifying that the Vision wasn’t actually the Human Torch, but was instead created using components from the original character.

Kurt Busiek and Roger Stern’s acclaimed Avengers Forever storyline revealed that Immortus had been secretly manipulating the Avengers for years. He feared their potential to conquer the universe and sought to control their destiny. In Avengers Forever #8, it was shown that Immortus created a time-altered version of the Human Torch, who became the Vision while still existing separately. This was all part of a larger scheme to hinder the Scarlet Witch and prevent her from reaching her full power.

As expected in Ultimates #20, there were two versions of the character: one Vision who previously existed as the Human Torch, and another character entirely as the Human Torch!

This is a really clever use of established story elements, even though it doesn’t actually affect the plot. It’s excellently executed!

This isn’t a feature where readers directly participate, but I wanted to share some recent comics that I really enjoyed. If you have any recommendations of your own, I’d love to hear them – we might have similar tastes! Feel free to email your suggestions to brianc@cbr.com.

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2026-01-16 04:43