It doesn’t take a genius to realise about whom Mark Waid was (somewhat snarkily) talking when he recently said “[Spider-Man]’s dialogue is a joy to write, and if you don’t have your readers chuckling or even laughing out loud a few times per issue, you should go write Thor or something”. But either way, it’s certainly not an accusation that can be levelled at Brian Michael Bendis. One of the absolute cornerstones of his run on Ultimate Spider-Man has been in providing character-driven moments and dialogue that can, on occasion cause you to laugh out loud. It’s one of the reasons why it’s managed to remain so (almost entirely) consistently great for 120 issues and counting, and why it can still on occasion feel fresh.

It’s also the case that some of the very best issues of the series so far have been individual, done-in-one vignettes (it means Bendis can’t have a fight scene last three issues, or whatever), and ones that focus on Peter’s life away from the mask. And what we’ve got this month is an excellent example of that formula. In class, Peter is asked to explain why the dummy baby he and Kitty had been looking after as part of a project has turned up charred and destroyed - it was, of course, because of a supervillain attack, although ironically enough this occurred at the Daily Bugle, and so he’s able to tell the story “as” Peter as if he’d been there watching.

It’s a neat little trick (although more than a bit “Hey, where did Clark Kent disappear to?”), and as Peter’s talking about himself, we’re able to view a fairly by-the-numbers fight sequence (with the faintly ludicrous-looking Omega Red) from something of an outsider’s perspective. If anything, it’s just a shame that Peter’s narration only pops up in a couple of panels - I would have really liked to have seen a bit more of his “describing” Spidey and the battle.

But this shines, as most of Bendis’ best USM stories tend to, primarily because it’s funny. Something about featuring Peter either at high school or the Bugle (or, in this case, both) just brings out the best in him, and after 120 issues of this stuff he can still pull out the trademark Spidey wisecracks (the opening one about personal ads is a classic). Flash Thompson, meanwhile, gets some amusing exasperation at the continued suggestion that he might be Spidey. It’s also neat to see Ultimate versions of Betty Brant and Ned Leeds show up - I honestly can’t remember if they’ve been around before, nor indeed if we already knew that Betty was a reporter rather than a secretary; but it’s good to see, and I wonder if it’s sewing seeds for something.

Immonen continues to bring a vibrancy to his art that has been a major factor in rejuvenating the series lately, and he’s really getting a handle on some consistent character designs - they differ from Bagley’s in places, but they are all recognisable individuals (in fact, when it comes to the high-school kids, they’re arguably more distinct than Bags’ versions). Overall, the feel is still of a team running high on confidence, and continuing to turn out solid, consistent, entertaining superhero work. Despite the early optimism of the Slott/McNiven Brand New Day arc, I’d still put my cross next to Ultimate as the best Spidey book going.