Ultraman: Along Came a Spider-Man is a solid start for an Ultraman and Spider-Man that hits most of the notes you would expect.

The premise here is simple enough and totally in keeping with crossover tales of this sort. Spider-Man is fighting alongside the Avengers when some multidimensional hijinks ensue, and he is whisked away to another world – a world inhabited by Ultraman and monstrous kaiju. Doctor Doom is also brought to the Ultraman universe and begins working towards his own ends, gathering power in the shadows while Spider-Man attempts to come to grips with this new reality he's been thrust into. It's a classic fish-out-of-water tale. While the concept won't win any awards for originality, it's a genre staple for a good reason. We're up and running relatively quickly, and in no time, Peter Parker and Shin Hayata are interacting with one another, which is the most important thing.

I'm an avid fan of cape comics and kaiju media, so the premise piques my interest on both counts. Though I am admittedly a much bigger fan of Ultraman than Spider-Man, I'm an appreciator of everyone's favorite web-slinger. I think fans of either or both characters will find plenty of interesting contours to this particular work that help make it interesting beyond the pure novelty of the team-up.

The timing and characterization of both Peter Parker and Shin Hayata are very interesting. Spider-Man and Ultraman have many iterations across the years across media, so which versions an author picks can be as important as the characters themselves. This version of Ultraman is his original 1966 iteration, with Shin Hayata as the host body for the being of light. Spider-Man is the Peter Parker of the recent Marvel Cinematic Universe iteration, younger and a member of the Avengers.

The contrast between which versions of these heroes were selected is interesting within the text and beyond it. Peter is doubly inexperienced because he's a very young man still learning his way in the world, as he is no longer in his home dimension. Peter must learn about the world he inhabits, learn about Japan, and try to make sense of battling kaiju (who are a bit larger than his usual opponents). Hayata comes off as more stoic and professional, with the homefield advantage of being in his place and time with the support of groups like the Science Special Search Party (SSSP) and friends/coworkers. It's clear why this setup works within the narrative as Hayata and friends try to guide Peter to help him get acquainted with his new situation.

Outside of the text, it makes for great food for thought as well. The characters are quite close in age, both having come out in the 1960s, but Spider-Man predates Ultraman by about four years, and both have had numerous iterations in the ensuing decades. Peter Parker is such an effective youthful hero that he is fated to be the perpetual youngster, it seems, guided by more experienced mentors in perpetuity. Also, the manga portrays him as an Avenger without any preamble, which is obviously a result of the modern films, but as a long-time comic reader, I still find myself struck by Spidey being an Avenger almost by default. It's not a criticism at all, mind you, just a funny observation on how these characters morph over the years – in my mind, Spider-Man is one of the consummate solo heroes, friend to many but on his own in most instances. To modern audiences and creators, his status as an Avenger is at minimum non-controversial, and for many, just an assumed norm.

There's also some great character interactions between Ultraman and Spider-Man that set this apart as its own distinct work. Firstly, when Peter arrives, he goes through a bit of “oh wow look at that” recognition: Mount Fuji, mistaking a school girl for a magical girl, etc. When he sees Shin Hayata, he has this moment where he takes him to be a samurai because of the way Hayata is carrying himself, and I find that very interesting as an Ultraman fan. Now again, this may be my own editorializing, but I've never quite thought of Shin Hayata Ultraman as being in the mold of a samurai.

He has, in my mind, always been more associated with the science fiction aspects of the world, and been like more of a conflicted protector and explorer, encountering the unknown and being forced to battle it to protect others, but also learning to understand other creatures. Shin Hayata is not fully human after all, as he is the host of one of the beings from the Land of Light, and so a big theme for Ultraman has always been this interaction between humans and other creatures or species they do not understand. The tension of incompatibility that might lead to misunderstanding and violence, or perhaps learning and growing closer together, is one of the defining conflicts in the series, as far as I'm concerned. None of that is inherently incompatible with the concept of samurai, of course. But it is an angle that I found surprising, at least, a novel look at the character from a literal outsider perspective.

It's also nice seeing Spider-Man and Ultraman as being on the same wavelength in terms of wanting to save everyone. There's a clear distinction made between the sort of grim math of doing what's practical and acceptable losses espoused by Iron Man in the beginning, versus Ultraman's desire to protect everyone even at the cost of his own safety. In this, Spider-Man and Ultraman are kindred spirits, and I'm not quite sure what I expected their connection to be, but I like this angle as a way to bridge these two very different characters.

The art and pacing are terrific as well. I'm unfamiliar with Tomo Hirokawa's work, so this was my first outing with their style. I have to say it's very clear and clean, with elegant renditions of well-established and beloved characters. Their rendition of Ultraman is particularly striking, and I think this might be my favorite version of the character in manga form. There are a few blips here and there – for example, Uncle Ben looks a bit too soft and almost cutesy to the point where it detracts a bit from his death scene – but these are incredibly minor complaints. The truth is, whenever an artist has to draw well-known characters that they themselves did not create, there is always going to be someone who has an issue with how one or more characters cross over. By and large, the art looks great, the action moves swiftly, there's good variety in the scenes and locales, and it's a crisp-looking manga.

The only real downside I can think of is that this volume only has three issues in it. It's not so much that it's a bad value proposition; there's a lot to like here. It's just that once the team has done all the necessary setup, a few big fights, and helped establish the stakes… It's over. It's an “everything's good so far” type situation, and I'm certainly looking forward to more. But it's such a small sample of the manga, and there's all the necessary time dedicated to establishing the world and the characters, which means there are not many opportunities to really differentiate from the norm. As it stands, I feel like I've watched a strong opening 30 minutes to a superhero crossover movie – maybe a touch generic, but all the pieces are in place to take off and do something great. Only time will tell, but I'm eager to check out the next volume.