Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Ultimates #9!Luke Cage has undergone a number of changes over the years in the Marvel Comics canon, especially in regards to Avengers. Not only was he named an official member of the Avengers during the New Avengers plot, but Luke Cage most recently became mayor of New York Citygiving him political influence in addition to his physical power. But now, Luke Cage is being reinvented like never before, with a vital new purpose in the new Ultimate Universe.
In Marvel Comics’ request for The latest #9 by Deniz Camp and Chris Allen, it is revealed that Luke Cage will make his official debut on Earth-6160. The cover art offered (by artist Dike Ruan) shows Power Man standing behind prison bars, handcuffs secured in one hand and a familiar orb being held in the other, while Tony Stark’s Iron Lad looms over him.
LUKE CAGE AND THE FINAL PRISON! Chris Allen joins Deniz Camp to bring us the story and future of Luke Cage! Spider-Man isn’t the only Ultimates 1.0 success story… meet the man who has been silently sabotaging the Creators Council from behind bars!
As revealed in the issue’s official synopsis, Luke Cage is in prison, although that doesn’t stop him from fighting the Creator. Just like Spider-Man before him, Luke Cage received an orb containing the source of his superhuman powers from Tony Stark, which Stark and the Ultimates obtained after breaking into the Creator’s storage facility. Finals #9 promises to detail Luke Cage getting his powers, followed by how he’s using them to “sabotage the Creators Council behind bars”.
How the Ultimates are Undoing the Creator’s Efforts to Neutralize Luke Cage
The Creator used the Earth-616 Luke Cage story to ‘eliminate’ the Earth-6160 version
When the Creator traveled to Earth-6160 with the intention of molding it to his liking, he used the Immortus Engine’s time travel capabilities to travel through the timeline and neutralize all of the great heroes and villains that threatened his vision. After the events of Final Invasionthe Creator was trapped in a temporal prison, which will be opened two years after its closure. During this window, the Ultimates stole all of the Creator’s sources of superpowers and gave them to different heroes that the Creator stole them from – including Luke Cage.
On Earth-616, Luke Cage was wrongfully imprisoned and subjected to illegal experiments by an organization that was an extension of the Arma Plus Program. This resulted in Luke Cage developing unbreakable skin and super strength. So when the Creator arrived on the nearly identical Earth-6160, he knew he just needed to stop Luke Cage from being experimented on and keep the ‘super soldier serum’ variant for himself. This is why Luke Cage is still a prisoner in the Ultimate Universe. But once Tony Stark gives him the stolen ‘serum’, Luke Cage will regain the powers that were stolen from him.
What will Luke Cage’s future be like in the Ultimate Universe?
The request for The latest #9 reveals that Luke Cage (once he gets his powers) will be busy undermining the Creator Council from behind bars. But how? At this point, this detail is not entirely clear, with very little room for speculation. The Makers’ Council rules the world from the shadows, with satellite operations controlling certain key territories (including the Kingpin’s reign in New York as an extension of the Makers’ Council). So how will Luke Cage stop this global operation inside a prison? Only time will tell, but this prospect is extremely exciting.
Eventually, of course, Luke Cage will be released from prison – whether by escaping alone or with the help of a third-party ally – and will certainly join the Ultimates, just as he joined the Avengers on Earth-616. In fact, Luke Cage could even become a political leader in the Ultimate Universe, as well as on Earth-616, perhaps after the Kingpin is finally defeated. Whatever the Ultimate Universe has in store for this reinvented Luke CageIt’s already clear from this preview alone that he will be vital to the ‘Avengers”victory over the Creator.
The Ultimates #9 from Marvel Comics will be available on February 5, 2025.
Luke Cage is part of the Netflix Marvel TV series and follows the titular character from Harlem who fights crime to protect his neighborhood. After an experiment goes wrong, Luke Cage is imbued with superhuman strength and skin as hard as diamonds. Falsely convicted and on the run, Luke discovers an underground syndicate seeking to exploit the residents of Harlem. To protect them, Luke will come out of hiding to stop them, hoping to clear his name in the process.