The continued success of DC’s Absolute Universe proves how much hunger there is for accessible, standalone superhero universes that don’t play by the old rules. Which is why we’re still a little perplexed that Marvel opted to sunset the equally popular Ultimate Universe after just a few short years. But the good news is that Marvel has a brand-new line in store called the Midnight Universe, one that reimagines iconic properties like Spider-Man and the X-Men through a horror lens.
Marvel is putting plenty of weight behind the Midnight line, even going so far as to ensure that Midnight X-Men #1, Midnight Spider-Man #1, and Midnight Fantastic Four #1 are their only new comics hitting stores this week. As such, we figured the time was ripe for a review of all three first issues. Read on to see our full thoughts on these three comics and find out which of the three Midnight Universe comics is most worth your money. Because there is a clear winner here.
Midnight X-Men #1 Review
Midnight X-Men #1 Preview Gallery
Creative Team: Jonathan Hickman & Matteo Della Fonte
This is easily the most immediately appealing of the various Midnight Universe books. Who wouldn’t like to see House of X/Powers of X writer Jonathan Hickman take another crack at the X-Men franchise? The vampire-heavy Midnight X-Men doesn’t immediately sink its teeth into you the way House of X did (pun intended), but the first issue stands as a respectable start.
For better or worse, Midnight X-Men #1 plays out like a fairly straightforward alternate universe story. In this world, Storm has become the vanguard of a new breed of mutant/vampire hybrid known as Empyres. Traditional vampires are at war with these Empyres, leaving humanity and mutantkind alike caught in the middle. It’s all a decent enough premise, but there’s just not quite the same sense of excitement or grandiosity that fueled House of X #1. This could just as easily be the start of a self-contained miniseries as the multiyear epic Hickman apparently has planned.
Still, the story works well enough. It’s fun seeing familiar X-Men heroes and villains thrust into sometimes drastically different roles. Who would have ever expected to see Nightcrawler and Reverend Stryker fighting for the same cause? And it must be said that Hickman gets what makes Cyclops cool as a character more than any other writer at Marvel. The first issue’s biggest success is in subverting what we expect from the traditional X-Men character dynamics.
Matteo Della Fonte’s art complements the script well. It’s cinematic, atmospheric, and just detailed enough to capture the horror vibe of this universe, all qualities that suit a dark and somber take on the X-Men franchise. Della Fonte’s pencils and inks pair nicely with Arthur Hesli’s moody colors. The one complaint to be leveled against the book visually is that there isn’t a great deal of variety in the facial expressions. Characters don’t emote as well as they should.
Again, Midnight X-Men #1 a fun read, just not one that meets the admittedly high expectations surrounding the series. Not yet, anyway. But there’s plenty of room to grow here.
Midnight Spider-Man #1 Review
Midnight Spider-Man #1 Preview Gallery
Creative Team: Phillip Kennedy Johnson & ScieTronc
Without burying the lede, Midnight Spider-Man #1 is far and away the biggest success story out of this initial lineup. That comes down to both the talented creative team and the fact that the book feels like the most thematically rich and coherent of the trio.
If the classic Spider-Man is defined by his mantra “With great power must also come great responsibility,” this new version lives instead by a different creed – “Power makes monsters.” Those words permeate the book on every level. This isn’t just about giving Peter Parker’s origin story a more body horror-flavored makover, though that’s certainly part of the equation. Midnight Spider-Man is also an exploration of unchecked capitalism and the futility of one man trying to stand up to a monolithic corporation. It’s very much a book for the current age.
Writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson and artist ScieTronc deliver a very satisfying and ambitious overhaul of a familiar origin story here. The central Peter/Uncle Ben dynamic gives the series all the emotional meat it requires, and recasting Peter as a social media-savvy scientist crusader is a fun touch. The best I can say for Midnight Spider-Man is that this would be a captivating reboot even without the horror elements in play.
ScieTronc quirky art style also greatly benefits the book in this first issue. It’s impossible to overstate how much the Absolute Universe’s manga influences have helped fuel its success, and if Marvel hopes to replicate that success here, it seems only fitting they also lean into a more Eastern brand of visual storytelling. There’s a real kinetic energy to the characters and their world. There’s also a palpable darkness that comes through whenever ScieTronc prioritizes the body horror, which is pretty often. It all makes for a winning combination that should appeal to fans of Peach Momoko’s Ultimate X-Men in particular.
There is one bizarre panel worth calling out, though. At one point, ScieTronc opts to frame an interaction between Peter and Felicia Hardy (who herself has been given quite the intriguing overhaul) from the vantage point of Felicia’s breasts. That panel is kind of interesting from a purely technical standpoint, but it’s also just a plain weird storytelling choice.
That small quirk aside, this is a terrific start for the new series. Midnight Spider-Man is very much the proverbial “if you can only afford one Midnight Universe comic…”
Midnight Fantastic Four #1 Review
Midnight Fantastic Four #1 Preview Gallery
Creative Team: Benjamin Percy & Kev Walker
Midnight Fantastic Four is kind of the odd man out in the initial Midnight Universe lineup. It’s obvious why Marvel would prioritize reboots of the X-Men and Spider-Man, but why make the FF the third pillar of this new line? After reading the first issue, I’m still not quite sure. It’s a series with a great visual style but, but one that feels fairly hollow beneath that.
Artist Kev Walker is the main draw here. Walker has the sort of detailed but slightly distorted style that makes him a natural fit for a horror universe like this one. Midnight Fantastic Four is all about infusing Marvel’s First Family with a healthy dose of Lovecraftian cosmic horror, and Walker clearly understands the assignment. His Reed Richards is suitably unhinged in appearance and demanor, and the hints we get at the horrors lurking within the Negative Zone are thrilling.
Unfortunately, apart from Reed himself, the characterization in issue #1 falls a bit flat. Benjamin Percy reinterprets Reed himself as a reckless uber-genius blind to the dangers his research poses. That in itself works pretty well, but the rest of the book’s ensemble cast feels thin and underdeveloped. There’s no familial bond uniting these characters, and supporting players like Victor von Doom are ushered in and out of the spotlight abruptly. It’s tough to really connect with anyone apart from Reed, and that’s not great for a Fantastic Four comic.
Compared to Midnight Spider-Man’s masterful handling of Peter Parker and his supporting cast, Midnight Fantastic Four can’t compare in the characterization department. And plot-wise, the first issue settles for teeing up the same sort of origin story we’ve seen many times, just with more cosmic horror in the recipe. For now, this series feels like the one with the most untapped potential.
For more recent IGN Comics reviews, check out our roundup of the Archie Comics reboot titles and our review of the X-Men/Fantastic Four crossover DNX #1.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket byfollowing @jschedeen on BlueSky.
