The release of the original Marvel Comics Final Universe came with a single purpose: to update/invigorate Marvel’s greatest heroes and stories for modern readers. Since the first Ultimate title was released in 2000 (Ultimate Spider-Man), this meant that Earth-1610 was filled with everything imaginable related to the early 2000s – culture, style, language, etc. But most of all, the Ultimate Universe proved to be exactly that: definitive.
Every aspect that Marvel Universe fans knew about Earth-616 has been heightened. The team was literally called ‘The Ultimates’. While every corner of the Marvel Universe has experienced these updates, there have certainly been a few characters in particular that have stood out from the rest as being the most “definitive.” Here they are 10 of the Most Powerful Heroes From Marvel’s Original Ultimate Universe!
10
Rick Jones, aka Captain Marvel, single-handedly defeats Galactus
Hunger by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Leonard Kirk
Although Rick Jones from the Ultimate Universe made his debut some time before this story arc, Hunger that’s when he became Captain Marvel, which also reached the height of his power. Jones was chosen as the Herald of the Watchers, and as such was given cosmic abilities similar to Earth-616’s Nova. Jones was tasked with patrolling and protecting the universe from cosmic threats, using his teleportation (and flight), energy projection, and cosmic consciousness powers to do so.
Rick Jones became Captain Marvel after the original died fighting Galactus when the World Eater crossed over to Earth-616 and merged with his Ultimate Universe counterpart, Gah Lak Tus. With Captain Marvel’s additional abilities, Rick destroyed Gah Lak Tus and sent Galactus running with just one shot.proving his immense strength.
9
Elliot Boggs, also known as the Wizard, is a reality-warping mutant with no known limit
Last X-Men #66-74 by Robert Kirkman and Tom Raney
After his debut, Boggs accidentally kills his parents, which alerts SHIELD and Nick Fury himself to his threat level. Fury then took Boggs to the X-Mansion, where he quickly became a member of the X-Men – very quickly. Boggs didn’t actually kill his parents, Nick Fury had never heard of him, and the X-Men didn’t choose to put him on their team.
Due to the Wizard’s powers, reality revolves around himeffectively reshaping the world to suit his every whim, whether he wants to or not. This manifests as new villains to fight during missions, old bad guys launching attacks that make no tactical sense, and even getting girls he likes to flirt with him. Boggs faked his death and left the X-Men to try and learn how to control his powers, and there is currently no known limit to them.
8
Tesseract, the man from everywhere, has god-level interdimensional powers
Final Fantastic Four #33 by Mike Carey and Pasqual Ferry
Tesseract is a member of Seed 19 from a higher dimension, whose goal – along with the other members of Seed 19 – is to destroy Thanos and stave off the villain’s cosmic expansion. In fact, Seed 19 only formed because of Thanos’ tireless march through his dimension, as Thanos had in his possession the Cosmic Cube (before losing it). However, when Thanos saw the Tesseract, he knew he could use its divine power to replace the Cosmic Cube and continue his evil expansion.
Tesseract is known as the Man of Everywhere because it has the ability to combine all the powers of its variants throughout the multiverse. In fact, there’s a reason why Thanos thought the Tesseract could replace the Cosmic Cube, and why his debut story arc is called “God’s War,” since the Man From Everywhere is unfathomably strong.
7
Ultimate Universe Vision Makes Original Look Pathetic
Final Nightmare by Warren Ellis, Trevor Hairsine and Steve Epting
In the Ultimate Universe, Vision is an alien android built for the sole purpose of warning planets across the universe about the coming of Gah Lak Tus. She is billions of years old, has undergone countless upgrades from the grateful planets she has visited, and possesses many of the same abilities as the original Vision, such as density control and super-fast flight. However, the Vision’s greatest power may be its most underrated: universal communication.
As Vision herself explains, various life forms that exist in the universe do so under the most adverse conditions imaginable and at a level that the human mind cannot comprehend. The way these alien life forms communicate could cause gravitational flow, shoots microwave radiation and can burn up space-time itself. Furthermore, their pheromones and telepathic communication abilities are so powerful that they can influence life forms (including humans) on a planetary scale.
6
The Thing gets a major update in Ultimate Universe
Final Enemy by Brian Michael Bendis and Rafa Sandoval
In the main Marvel Comics universe, Ben Grimm was hit by cosmic rays, just like the other members of the Fantastic Four, transforming him into a hulking, rocky version of his former self. This granted him super strength, but also permanently changed his appearance. However, in the Ultimate Universe, the Thing’s rocky exterior was not the final form of his mutation, but rather something similar to a cocoon. Underneath, the Thing’s body was transforming into pure energy.
This update allowed Ben Grimm will change his appearance at will between his rock form, energy form and human form. This also meant that Ben was able to maintain his superhuman strength and durability no matter what form he took, which is a huge improvement over his Earth-616 counterpart.
5
Hulk is absolutely unbalanced in the final universe, making him even more deadly
The latest by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch
The original Hulk is physically one of the strongest characters in the entire Marvel Universe, and the Ultimate Universe version almost exactly matches the original’s strength, with one extra thing that makes the Ultimate Hulk even more deadly: he’s totally unbalanced. Of course, Ultimate Hulk has experienced growth throughout his history, but one of his first appearances in The latest shines a rather frightening light upon the Jade Giant.
In The latestthe Hulk is able to easily defeat all members of the Ultimates, both individually and when they attack him together. People like Iron Man, Captain America and even Thor couldn’t keep up with the Hulk as he was absolutely cruel. And the most disturbing part? He kept threatening to eat them. The Hulk is a cannibal in the Ultimate Universewhich is just an extension of how unhinged this angry alternate universe monster really is.
4
Ultimate Iron Man had 1 Earth-616 armor Tony Stark didn’t: Iron Man Six
Finals 2 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch
The original and Ultimate Tony Starks are more or less identical. Both are billionaires whose families made money from manufacturing weapons, both founded their respective ‘Avengers’ teams, and both became the superhero Iron Man. However, one thing that sets Ultimate Iron Man apart from his Earth-616 counterpart, and what makes him a true force to be reckoned with in the Ultimate Universe, is one armor in particular: Iron Man Six.
Iron Man Six is a giant space station equipped with repulsor cannons so accurate that it can hit a human-sized moving enemy from orbit without breaking a sweat. Iron Man Six also houses a fleet of Iron Legion Drones that Stark can control from the cockpit, while continuing to take down individual enemies who have no way to counter Iron Man Six’s immediately fatal attacks.
3
Ultimate Cyclops Gets a Huge Power Boost with a Mutant Enhancement Drug
Last X-Men #95 by Aron E. Coleite, Clay Mann and Brandon Peterson
Cyclops’ concussive optic beams are incredibly powerful, no matter which universe he is present in. However, Cyclops as a whole has never been more powerful than in the Ultimate Universe (except when he was briefly the Phoenix in 616, of course). The reason for Cyclops’ massive increase in power is a mutant growth hormone called Banshee, which is a highly addictive and sometimes fatal drug designed to increase a mutant’s power.
In the case of Cyclops, he won flight, super strength, super hearing, and voluntary control of eye rays. Cyclops basically became a mutant Superman in the Ultimate Universe, and while the means by which he obtained these upgrades weren’t ideal, the results speak for themselves.
2
Jean Gray becomes more united with the Phoenix in the Ultimate Universe
Last X-Men #21 by Mark Millar and Adam Kubert
Jean Gray merged with the Phoenix Force on Earth-616, but her connection to the Phoenix in the Ultimate Universe is arguably more meaningful and personal, while remaining equally powerful. When the idea of Jean Gray merging with the Phoenix was introduced in the Ultimate Universe, it was teased that the Phoenix was not an entity from space, but rather Jean’s growing mutant power, sort of like the fan version of the Phoenix. the film X-Men: The Last Stand.
Of course, the Phoenix in the Ultimate Universe ended up being a cosmic entity of life and destruction, just like on Earth-616, but even so, it still felt more personal to Jean than in the original continuity. While this point can be debated, what is indisputable is Jean Grey’s immense level of power possessed by the Phoenix in the Ultimate Universe.
1
Ultimate Thor gained a new ability after facing a horrible tragedy
The latest #4 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch
Thor from the Ultimate Universe made his debut in The latest #4, and for the most part, he was virtually identical to his Earth-616 counterpart. There were some differences, of course, including Ultimate Thor’s reliance on Asgardian artifacts to unleash his full power (as opposed to just the connection to Odinforce 616 that Thor sports), but generally speaking, they’re comparable – including when it comes to his incredible cosmic power. However, Earth-1610 Thor gained an extra ability after Asgard was decimated and all Asgardians were killed: Thor “became” Valhalla.
Thor “becoming” Valhalla is a vague description of what happened, as he mostly gained the ability to see, speak, and know the knowledge of every Asgardian who died. This, mixed with his feats of almost unparalleled power, proves why Ultimate Thor is one of the top 10 most powerful heroes in the original Marvel Comics. Final Universe.