Celebrate The Architect Of The Ultimate Marvel Universe, Brian Michael Bendis’s Birthday!

Brian Michael Bendis was born on August 18, 1967, in Cleveland, Ohio. He is no stranger to acclaim, as he has already won 5 Eisner Awards over his illustrious career. To be honest, though you might know his Marvel works most of all, having been the primary architect of the Ulitmate Marvel Unviverse, as well as Secret War, House of M, Secret Invasion, and Age of Ultron!

Here are some facts about Brian Michael Bendis:

  • He primarily designed the concepts of the Ultimate Marvel Universe, along with Bill Jemas and Mark Millar
  • Bendis considers his inspirations for his comics mainly come from traditional film and television mediums, rather than comic books.
  • Bendis is one of those people who can do, and still teaches! He taught courses on Graphic Design at Oregon and Portland State Universities.
  • He inked the mascot for Golden Apple Comics, a Los Angeles chain of comic book stores, in the series of Flaxen based on Playmate Susie Owens.
  • Bendis has worked for Caliber Comics, Image Comics, Oni Comics, Marvel Comics, DC Comics, and now Dark Horse!
  • Bendis got his start doing caricatures before ultimately working on comic books.
  • Let’s talk about some of the characters he created!

    Nick Fury
    Ultimate Marvel Team-Up #5 (August 2001)
     
    For some comic book fans, they may only remember Nick Fury as a David Hasselhoff looking man, Hasselhoff actually played Fury in a stand alone TV movie. However, when Bendis worked on the Ultimate Universe comics, he took the opportunity to recreate the character in the form that we know him as now. When he first appeared in Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, he was not the man we know today still, but halfway there. When he resurfaced in The Ultimates though, he had a fully shaved head and highly resembled Samuel L. Jackson. In The Ultimates #2, Fury even mentions that Jackson would play him in a movie.
     
    When the Ultimate universe concluded, it was stated that the original Nick Fury had fathered a son with an African-American woman, Nick Fury Jr. When the original Fury retired, he handed S.H.I.E.L.D. to Nick Fury Jr. and while not the same Ultimate character, the intent was clear on Marvel’s part.
    Jessica Jones
    Alias #1 (November 2001)
     
    Originally created for the Marvel Max series of comics, the primary stories dedicated to the character prior to the Netflix series, was Alias, The Pulse, and the self titled Jessica Jones comic. The character has had many super hero names including Jewel, Knightress, and Power Woman as she was married to Luke Cage. I guess you get to take his superhero name too.
     
    Originally Alias was going to focus on Jessica Drew, Spider-Woman, but the story was so off book for the character, that Jessica Jones was created specifically to play the lead role of the series. When Bendis incorporated Jones in his “Ultimate” universe, she was a senior high schooler in the background of Ultimate Spider-Man #106.
    Miles Morales
    Ultimate Fallout #4 (August 2011)
     
    Miles Morales takes up the mantel of Spider-Man when Peter Parker dies in the Ultimate universe at the age of 13. Morales is the son of a Black father and a Puerto Rican mother. The character is not without controversy as right leaning political pundants, including those at Fox News, attacked the character as pushing political correctness. Despite the controversy, the stories were viewed positively by reviews and fans.
     
    A lot of characters in the Ultimate universe did not survive the end of the run, but when they returned to the man storyline, Morales was brought into the normal Marvel Universe in 2015, the same year the Ultimate storylines ended. Morales was a well loved figure and only gains more and more attention and screen time as he even has his own major movie franchise with a sequel on the way (Into the Spider-Verse).

    You can learn more about Brian Michael Bendis and his newer projects at his own website JinxWorld!

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