In a world obsessed with asking the question, “What if Superman was, like, evil?” only Marvel’s Ultimate Universe dared ask the same of Reed Richards!
If you’re thinking “Woah, spoiler!” I see you, but I promise, it’s impossible to talk about The Maker without acknowledging he’s an alternate universe Reed Richards. This development occurs a near decade into Marvel’s original Ultimate Universe, though, meaning there’s a whole lot of classic (well, teen) Reed in Ultimate Fantastic Four prior to this point. If you’re an absolute maniac, you can start your journey into Reed’s descent with all the Ultimate Fantastic Four comics, but I assure you, that won’t be necessary.
Instead, I’m going to focus on the origins of The Maker, and their build up as one of the most interesting and significant villains in Marvel Comics of the 2010s and beyond, including in the New Ultimate Universe 2! You’ll find that complete reading order below.
The Maker Fast Track Reading Order
The easiest way to get into the character of The Maker is to stick almost entirely to the comics written by Jonathan Hickman, since he’s the one who had Reed return as The Maker in the first place and has treated him like a creator-owned villain ever since. That said, there are basically three main writers who’ve taken swings at The Maker – Jonathan Hickman, Al Ewing, and Donny Cates – and they’re pretty unquestionably three of Marvel’s best in recent years, so you can’t go too wrong with the whole platter.
The Ultimates by Hickman and Esad Ribic
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The Ultimates #1 to #12 marks the debut of the Maker, in Hickman and Ribic’s instant classic that ended way too soon!
I’d argue it’s inessential, but The Maker does continue to play a role in late-stage Ultimate Comics Ultimates on through the Cataclysm event.
This is the trickiest part of a fast track because Hickman and collaborator’s journey through New Avengers / Avengers and 2015’s Secret Wars sets up my favorite Marvel Comics event of all time. It is absolutely recommended reading. But if you’re just here for The Maker in holistic slices, you don’t need to read the entire three-year run.
Al Ewing’s Maker
Ewing is a Marvel continuity maestro (not to be confused with Marvel’s Maestro), so it’s no surprise that he took the post-Secret Wars puzzle of the Maker, and integrated him into work across New Avengers and Ewing’s own Ultimates (not to be confused with comics actually set in either Ultimate Universe!). Shouts here too to the Jeremy Whitley written Future Foundation which does very interesting things with the Maker that the rest of the Marvel Universe goes on to seemingly ignore.
There’s two ways to approach Ewing’s Maker:
- Start both New Avengers and Ultimates from the beginning, and keep reading either based on how much you enjoy them! In New Avengers you’ll see Al’s Maker pretty quickly, whereas in Ultimates, it won’t be until the end.
- Skip to the big wild Maker Ultimate Universe shenanigans at the end of Ewing’s Ultimates2. This will be kind of confusing since you’ll be jumping to the finish line, but it will be the most Maker focused.
Either way, these are the relevant comics:
New Avengers: A.I.M. Vol. 1: Everything is New
Collects: New Avengers #1 to #6
New Avengers: A.I.M. Vol. 2: Standoff
Collects: New Avengers #7 to #11
New Avengers: A.I.M. Vol. 3: Civil War II
Collects: New Avengers #12 to #18
Ultimates: Omniversal Vol. 1: Start With the Impossible
Collects: Ultimates 1-5, Avengers 0
Ultimates: Omniversal Vol. 2: Civil War II
Collects: Ultimates 7-12
Ultimates 2 Vol. 1: Troubleshooters
Collects: Ultimates 2 (2016) 1-6
Ultimates 2 Vol. 2: Eternity War
Collects: Ultimates 2 (2016) 7-12
Venom by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman
Venom? For real? I know, it’s surprising, but Cates and Stegman do a nice job leaning on the mad science elements of The Maker in their very good reinvention of the symbiote mythos. Again, if you’re just here for the Maker, you don’t need to read the full Venom run, although the opening arc is quite good and Maker-free!
Venom by Donny Cates Vol. 2: The Abyss
Collects: Venom #7 to #12
Collects: Absolute Carnage #1 to #5
Outside of those issues, the most essential Maker moments happen in Venom #20 and Venom #26 (this one is especially tantalizing!).
Maker in the New Ultimate Universe Reading Order
Jonathan Hickman returns to The Maker and Bryan Hitch returns to the Ultimate Universe with this four issue set-up series that kicks off the fantastic Ultimate 2niverse. For the rest of the Maker’s story you’ll have to click on that New Ultimate Universe link in the previous sentence! Enjoy the comics!
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