Broken Frontier

A day after it went on sale, Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1 has sold out at Diamond and the response to the return of Marvel Annuals has been incredible.    

In a stand-alone story that ties into the monthly title, Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #1 finally reveals who will be Spider-Man’s new girlfriend.  Written by monthly scribe Brian Michael Bendis with pencils by Mark Brooks, this double-sized issue is sure to have everyone talking about the new woman in Peter Parker’s life.

“Wow.  Thanks so much to our loyal readers. Making a big change like this in Peter's life is a scary proposition and I can't thank everyone enough for being so open to it,” says Brian Michael Bendis.  “Look forward to all kinds of new story possibilities in the months ahead.”

Bendis also thanked his co-creators for crafting such a memorable issue. “Mark Brooks has been on my “must-have” list for a while now. I think he's an amazing penciler and he destroyed on this comic book. Congratulations to him, award-winning colorist Dave Stewart, and the entire art team.”

Every Ultimate Annual will have immediate ramifications on their monthly counterpart titles, which was the plan all along according to editor Ralph Macchio.  

“We intended for the Ultimate Spider-Man—and all the Ultimate Annuals-- to continue the tradition set by their monthly counterparts: Top creators giving the readership solid stories, beautifully illustrated,” says Macchio.

“It’s a tribute to writer Brian Bendis, penciler Mark Brooks and the rest of the team, that this annual has sold out,” adds Macchio.  “I’m so gratified Ultimate fans have rallied around this very special once-a-year event. And, of course, we’ll continue to deliver on the monthly Ultimate Spider-Man book everyone enjoys.”

Annuals were once a yearly tradition for all Marvel titles and now it has made its successful return with two Ultimate Annual sellouts in as many weeks. And the Ultimate Annual action doesn’t end there as Ultimate X-Men Annual #1 and Ultimate Fantastic Four Annual #1 are all set for release over the next few weeks.  

Let the Annual tradition begin!

Be sure to pick up these upcoming Ultimate Annuals:

ULTIMATE X-MEN ANNUAL #1  (JUN051988)
Written by BRIAN K. VAUGHAN
Penciled by TOM RANEY
Cover by STUART IMMONEN
48 PGS./T+ SUGGESTED FOR TEENS AND UP …$3.99
On Sale – 8/24/05

ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL #1  (JUN051987)
Written by MARK MILLAR
Penciled by JAE LEE
Cover by GREG LAND
48 PGS./T+ SUGGESTED FOR TEENS AND UP …$3.99
On Sale – 9/7/05