Marvel Just Revived the Ultimate Universe in Its Most Shocking Twist Yet

After the Ultimate Universe recently came to a shocking end, Marvel is already planning to bring it back for another adventure — but with a twist. The new What If...? Secret Wars #1 will see Peter Parker dealing with the aftermath of his universe's destruction.

Marvel recently released the solicit and a preview of the interior for What If...? Secret Wars #1. "Goodbye, Marvel Universe! Starring Peter Parker, our beloved friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, as he is forced to survive in a not-so-friendly neighborhood after losing everything! What becomes of the original Ultimate Universe in a post-Secret Wars landscape? How did they defeat the Beyonder? And who does Spider-Man become after losing everything?"

Marvel's Ultimate Universe Returns in New What If...? Story

What If...? Secret Wars #1 is written by Alex Paknadel with art by Cafu and cover art by Lucas Weneck. It goes on sale July 1, and ahead of its release, Marvel gave fans a sneak peek at the actual interior artwork, kicking off with The Watcher asking the hypothetical question: What if the original Ultimate Universe survived Secret Wars?

Things kick off in Manhattan, on Earth 1610 a.k.a. the Ultimate Universe. Peter Parker arrives at the desk of Ben Urich, Editor-in-Chief of The Daily Bugle. "You're thinking of calling security, but you won't," Spider-Man warns. "Because it doesn't matter what your nameplate says - you're a reporter...and you're going to want to know how I broke the world."

Urich then references events from Miles Morales: The Ultimate Spider-Man (2014), with the issue showing a shot of the Bugle's 'Spider-Man Dead' headline. "Not me," Peter confirms to him. "That kid's off somewhere living his best life, and good luck to him. Despite appearances to the contrary, he had it rougher than I ever did."

Peter then recounts the events of his home planet and Doctor Doom's evil plan, which saw him and Miles Morales working together to put an end to it back in Secret Wars. "Armies. Chaos. War. It was the end," Spider-Man recounts. "Until somehow, it wasn't."

He then wakes up with Miles at his side, but the two quickly realize something is amiss. "This isn't your world," Miles warns Peter just as the preview pages end, setting the story up to further explore the alternate reality The Watcher is examining.

Marvel Already Has Bigger Plans for the Ultimate Universe

On June 24, Marvel released the Ultimate Universe: Finale one-shot, officially giving the universe one final goodbye story. The lineup ran from 2023 to 2026, though the new What If...? story actually looks at the 2000-2015 imprint of the line, with both taking place on Earth-1610, which features slightly different versions of Marvel's iconic heroes in an alternate universe.

While the 2026 finale issue was teased to be the concrete ending to the recent reboot, Marvel left the ending a bit more ambiguous, with the last page declaring: 'The Ultimate Universe will return.' No exact details about the future of the universe have been announced at this time, but stories like What If...? Secret Wars #1 certainly allow fans to spend more time outside of Marvel's main continuity and in the Ultimate Universe.

The recent events from the Ultimate Universe will also have their own impact on the main Marvel continuity. The Avengers: Armageddon plot, which takes place on Earth-616, will see Miles Morales delivering the Ultimate Universe's dangerous Origin Boxes to his home planet, potentially opening up a path for more Earth-1610 plot lines in the future.

What If...? Secret Wars #1 goes on sale on July 1 from Marvel Comics.