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I read two Marvel and DC volumes this month (Ultimates Vol. 3 and Absolute Superman Vol. 2) that won’t make the list of recommendations below (they’re both very readable with some strong moments, just not among my favorites), but they did inspire some larger thoughts on Ultimate 2niverse vs Absolute Universe. First off, it’s a wild time to be alive when the go-to thinly-veiled real world inspiration for Superman and Avengers comics is fighting the rise of authoritarianism in America. The metaphors are not subtle, my friends! Ultimates was a little ahead of the curve on how deliberately Camp was able to finetune Hickman’s premise into commentary on guerilla resistance with the deck stacked against you, but it does now seem to be the stock-in-trade of any relevant superhero work (see also: The superior Absolute Batman Annual #1 for the best example on either side of the ball). And it’s interesting to find Ultimates – seemingly built for this moment – losing significant steam, as Absolute Superman wields the fears of the zeitgeist for its own narrative growth.

Big picture, the dueling trendlines (Ultimates on the downswing, Absolute Superman rising) illustrates the overall impression of the lines. Absolute is built for a longer haul, whereas the Ultimate 2niverse was always built for an 18 month adrenaline shot (it’s quite literally in the premise of the Maker locked in his lil’ sci-fi dome for 18 months!). I aggressively disliked the first volume of Absolute Superman (admittedly, a lot of this was driven by comparisons to Absolute Batman and Absolute Wonder Woman), but the second volume’s showdown with Ra’s Al Ghul trying to Big Daddy supes (and Rafa Sandavol’s continued evolution into a talent worthy of the Absolute format) has me fully on board with the series. It’s still lower rung, but that means there are 5 of 6 Absolute titles what I am truly excited to read (of all the Absolute titles, Absolute Flash is certainly the 6th of them!). That’s a wonderfully strong position as these books hit one of the most dangerous moments in any superhero titles life (their 20s!).

Meanwhile over on the 2niverse, Ultimate Endgame is in the midst of a semi-controversial conclusion, and the flagship Ultimates suggests the timing is right. Camp is simply doing more compelling work now for the competition, whether its Absolute Martian Manhunter or the freshly relaunched Vertigo work with Stipan Morian. I’m still very interested in reading new Ultimates collections as they release (I’ll save my Hickman/Checchetto Ultimate Spider-Man conclusion thoughts for the trade write-up!), but not quite to the degree of anything in Absolute, and far less than I was when the first volume of Ultimates had me thinking the book was among the best in *all of current comics*. And then when you consider the rest of the line, Ultimate X-Men remains a fascinating Peach Momoko project with borderline zero shared DNA with the universe, Ultimate Wolverine is steady but unremarkable, and I’ll forget Ultimate Black Panther by the time I finish writing this… where was I?

It’s been cool to see competing universes at DC and Marvel really gunning for some “best in superhero comics” heights. But who won? Right now, it feels Absolutely clear (bazinga!).

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