The Maker stole their future, but the Guardians of The Galaxy aren’t about to give up. They’ll save everything. Your Major Spoilers review of The Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 awaits!

THE ULTIMATE UNIVERSE: TWO YEARS IN #1

Writers: Deniz Camp and Alex Paknadel
Artists: Patrick Boutin, Phil Noto, Francesco Manna, Lee Ferguson, and Javier Pulido
Colorists: Federico Blee, Phil Noto, Guru-eFX, Erick Arciniega, and Javier Pulido
Letterer: VC’s Travis Lanham
Editor: Wil Moss
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $5.99
Release Date: December 3rd, 2025

Previously in The Ultimate Universe: Two Years In, The Maker crafted a universe to his liking, but in doing so, destroyed the future that was home to The Guardians of The Galaxy. Some members eventually found each other and set out to find the rest of their team and maintain hope.

IN SEARCH FOR HOPE

The Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 starts off with The Guardians of The Galaxy attempting to enact a bold plan to restore their future and home, when things go wrong. After licking their wounds, the team sets out to try and find members of their team that have been scattered across time and space. This includes a stop in the distant past where a version of Ultron is observing humanity’s form. A planet where the last member of the Nova Corps landed, and the teachings of the group have been corrupted. The team encounters a version of Daredevil who has regressed to the base components of his surprising origin. With things not going well, one member of the team begins to consider enacting a plan to deal with the pain that The Maker has caused in a drastic and dramatic way.

A FUN DETOUR, BUT ULTIMATELY DIRECTIONLESS

With the Ultimate Universe heading towards its big culminating event, Endgame, most of the titles have been on a breakneck pace to wrap up and put everything in place for the supposed conclusion. While Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 is certainly part of that setup, it comes off as having lower stakes and is really more about quick examinations at corners of this universe that never got a chance to shine. For the most part, these little vignettes are fine and tap into some serious pathos, which helps with the overall arc of the issue; some of them just don’t have enough context to be anything more than a novelty. With one of the major focuses of this issue being a showcase of the weird versions of these characters, it’s unfortunate that some of them come up short. The Daredevil reveal is fun, and this iteration of Ultron is intriguing; many of these other incarnations are pretty uninteresting. As for that overall feel of the issue, that is the best part of the issue. While individually the scenes can be lacking, they come together in a way that delivers on the character motivations as well as the themes that become more apparent by the end of this issue. With that being said, this issue is the perfect dose for these characters.

VARIED AND IMAGINATIVE

The art in this comic switches up a couple of times as the settings and characters change, and all the different styles work really well in the scenes they are used in. The best example of this is the sequence featuring Daredevil, which has the biggest departure in style from the rest of the issue. It features a throwback style that also utilizes some light fourth-wall breaking, which plays right into the themes of the scene. The colors especially stand out for me here. They’re bright and vibrant and accentuate the wild, imaginative, and strange settings hidden in the cosmic recesses of this version of the Marvel Universe.

BOTTOM LINE: A NICE BREAK, BUT NEEDED MORE

The Ultimate Universe: Two Years In #1 acts as a nice rest stop before this lineup of titles heads into their final issues and big ending event. While it could’ve been a collection of fun little stories, it goes the extra mile and establishes some deeper themes and then delivers on them. The one downside is that a lot of this issue feels like it’s missing just a bit more context that the reader needs to truly connect with the characters and their plights. A solid array of art styles makes this an enjoyable comic to look at, and some of the wilder swings they take hit every time. 4 out of 5 stars.

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