We are closing in on one full year of the new Ultimate Universe. As we get closer to that milestone Ultimate Spider-Man #10 provided us some hints at where things could go during year two. That came in the way of the spotlight on Harry Osborn and Gwen Stacy got during the most recent Ultimate Spider-Man. This was all thanks to our favorite Ultimate Universe investigative journalist J. Jonah Jameson and Uncle Ben. Let’s take a look at what this could mean for the Ultimate Universe.
ULTIMATE GWEN STACY MORE THAN SUIT?
As soon as Gwen Stacy was introduced in the Ultimate Universe she was established as a powerhouse. Even before she appeared her husband Harry Osborn hyped up the fact that Gwen was the brains behind Oscorp as the CEO in Ultimate Spider-Man #4. Gwen quickly established herself as a no nonsense business woman throughout the dinner she had with Harry, Peter, and MJ. Gwen even has a relationship with Harry where he knows he can’t keep anything from her and knows everything about her husband using the Stark Industry tech they purchased to become the Green Goblin. She would then easily convince MJ to let her be the backer for The Paper start-up media company MJ was helping J. Jonah Jameson and Ben Parker launch.
Gwen getting into the news business as an investor was something she would go on to possibly regret. That is shown in Ultimate Spider-Man #10 as in investigating what happened the Stark/Stane Industries assets it led Jonah and Ben to Oscorp. Being the proper investigative journalist Jonah and Ben hold nothing back when interviewing Gwen about Oscorp purchasing the Stark/Stane Industries through several shell companies owned by Oscorp. Gwen did not take kindly to being questioned in this way and quickly kicked Ben and Jonah out while also demanding the money she invested in the company back.
Through all her appearances Gwen has certainly being established as the ultimate business person. And like so many successful business people Gwen though she could invest in something like a media company and get more money. What she clearly didn’t realize was that Ben and Jonah are actual journalist who properly investigate the biggest stories they discover. Oscorp purchasing the assets of Stark/Stane Industries through such shady means is one of those stories.
This development thus set up the possibility for Gwen to become a major character for Ultimate Spider-Man moving forward. Thus far she has been a side character at best with her few appearances. This kind of attention being brought to Oscorp will likely cause her to keep an even closer eye on what Harry is doing with Doctor Otto Octavius. She was already not fully in on the whole Green Goblin thing. Getting this type of attention will further drive home the concerns she had about what Harry wanted to do with the Stark/Stane Industries tech.
OSCORP THE ULTIMATE UNIVERSE X FACTOR
With how Ben and Jonah questioned her it is not surprising that Gwen would tell Harry about it. It’s already been established that Harry and Gwen don’t keep secrets from each other. Gwen telling Harry about her interview with Ben and Jonah was a subtle way to show that they do in fact share everything with each other.
This in turn does show why Gwen is the CEO of Oscorp and not Harry. Because rather than simply announcing he is pulling the funding from The Paper, Harry threatens Ben and Jonah to stop their story. In the process Harry let’s himself be cornered by Ben and Jonah to reveal he is the Green Goblin. Being checkmated in such a made Harry ultimately decide to hand over information about Wilson Fisk he found in the Stark/Stane Industries files to help Ben and Jonah’s story.
This move by Harry, and by extension Gwen, shows that Oscorp gaining the Stark/Stane Industries is going to be an important subplot. There are many secrets buried thanks to Howard Stark and Obadiah Stane having worked closely with The Maker before all three of their deaths. This move of handing over secret information about Fisk being the Kingpin of Crime is an example of that.
It is a power that is sure to bring a lot more attention to Oscorp when The Maker’s Council discover that Harry help spread information abut their secret machinations. Even though they are being kept busy by The Ultimates now the Maker’s Council will likely put even more pressure on Kingpin to destroy Spider-Man and Green Goblin. This could in turn can set-up Oscorp to be a key part in whatever the next big Ultimate Universe event will be.
STAGE SET FOR ULTIMATE SPIDER-MA VS GREEN GOBLIN
With each passing issue of Ultimate Spider-Man we are seeing more and more how different Peter Parker and Harry Osborn are. That difference was shown best with how differently Spider-Man and Green Goblin approached defeating Black Cat Walter Hardy in Ultimate Spider-Man #9. In that issue Spider-Man is still very much showing he has a traditional superhero mindset of capturing the villain. On the other hand, Green Goblin did not hesitate to blast Walter Hardy off the roof of the building they were fighting on when it looked like he was going to make a move against him. While it appears that Walter survived the several story fall this move showed Green Goblin is not holding back in using lethal force.
Adding to the difference between the two was the fact that Harry did not hesitate to attempt to use force in order to stop Ben and Jonah from publishing their Oscorp story in Ultimate Spider-Man #10. This action drove home that Harry is going to use all the tools available to him to bring down anyone he sees as the opposition. Even though things were sorted out, just like with blasting Walter Hardy off a rooftop, Harry has these darker impulses, something the voice of his father, Norman Osborn, being his suits AI isn’t helping.
All of this further sets up how eventually we will see a breakdown of Peter and Harry’s friendship to get us to the classic Spider-Man vs Green Goblin story in the Ultimate Universe. This is a story that appears to be the long-term plan as right now both are going to be dealing with Kingpin Wilson Fisk and the Sinister Six. This battle against Kingpin and the Sinister Six will likely add more fuel to the fire of what will burn down the friendship between Peter and Harry. This in turn can add to how Oscorp is being positioned as an important company within the Ultimate Universe.
As we get closer to the end of the year Jonathan Hickman and company will continue to development major plotlines for the greater Ultimate Universe in Ultimate Spider-Man. What this will end up meaning for the Ultimate Universe will be something to watch the rest of this year and in 2025.
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