Ultimate Spider-Man Volume 2: Learning Curve by Brian Michael Bendis is a re-imagining of Spiderman’s origin with some things changing and some staying the same. In the comics at this time Spiderman was in his 30’s and was past issue 500 of The Amazing Spider-Man, The Ultimate Spiderman is a fresh new take on Spiderman in High School for the new millennium. This volume titled Learning Curve will focus on Spiderman learning the ins and outs of being a superhero. I like how Parker’s job at the Bugle has been updated he’s not just a photographer but also an IT problem solver for the newspaper’s website. The main villains are the Kingpin and The Enforcers. I was happy that both sets of characters stayed pretty much the same. There was an arc of the Enforcers leader being the crime boss the Big Man that takes 20 issues in The Amazing Spiderman to reveal who the Big Man is and in this run, it takes an issue. Peter Parker confides in one character that he is Spiderman which was a shock to me just how long it took for that reveal in the original, but I’m intrigued with where this will go. Ultimate Spider-Man Volume 2: Learning Curve collects Ultimate Spider-Man issues 8-13. Ultimate Spider-Man Volume 2: Learning Curve was published on September 1, 2002.

Plot Summaries: Peter Parker has just learned of a new opportunity to take pictures of Spiderman. He puts on the costume and takes some candid photos in action. He brings them to the paper with most of them being crap with one nice photo he was going to get sent out of the door with a hundred bucks when the computer for the Daily Bugle website starts messing up. Peter jumps on the computer and fixes the problem while telling them what to do only to be stared at by blank face he gets a job as a photographer and to fix the computer issues. Peter uses his time at the Bugle to research Uncle Ben’s killer and discovers he was close to The Enforcers under the Kingpin. He decides to take the Kingpin down and starts with the Enforcers.

What I Liked: I thought that most of the changes and updates to the new story were great. I liked the update on the job at the Daily Bugle to do tech/photography instead of just photography. The quips were good. There was one about Carson Daly that I laughed out loud, it was Spiderman being funny when questioned by the Kingpin and says Carson Daly requested me. Then after Spiderman is dealt with Kingpin asks his men to find out everything on this Carson Daly. I liked the reasoning behind Kingpin not going to jail by investing in all the newspapers. Kingpin is vicious, and no-holds-barred as he murders a couple of people almost Spiderman. I love the Mary Jane and Peter Parker relationship as he tries to go on a date, and I also like the scene where Aunt May thinks they are starting to have sex, but in reality, they almost kiss for the first time and make noise at something shocking.

What I Disliked: The Big Man subplot of him trying to take over and using Spiderman’s help was way too fast and they cut everything interesting from the Big Man reveal. I would have cut this from the book even though I do appreciate the reference to the old Amazing Spider-Man comics. Spiderman has had his identity revealed to three people one friend and 2 villains. I liked the one villain and one friend, but I thought the Kingpin Spiderman unmask was too much.

Recommendation: I thought this was a good updated comic with a fun narrative that condensed a lot of Spiderman stories into one. It is like The Amazing Spider-Man is the long drawn-out Dragonball Z version where The Ultimate Spider-Man is updated and condensed while keeping the same characters but changing the narrative as Dragonball Z Kai did. I have read over 200 issues of the Amazing Spider-Man comics and find Ultimate Spider-Man fun and refreshing. I recommend you check this series and Volume out.

Rating: I rated Ultimate Spider-Man Volume 2: Learning Curve by Brian Michael Bendis 4.1 out of 5 stars.