the Wasp with whom he has had a tense relationship in the last few months. While dancing, Janet does something that ends this first Ultimates series on different yet still sentimentally adorable note as the MCU did.
Created by writer Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch, the Ultimates were a reimagined version of the American superhero team that originally earned their worth by helping to a risky intervention by the Hulk.
In Ultimates #13, the world celebrates the Ultimates' victory as the heroes see their profile and legitimacy elevated to higher heights than ever before. This culminates in an official party held at the White House, full of politicians and celebrities and attended by most of the heroes. Although it isn't exactly traditional, Janet van Dyne asks Steve Rogers to dance and the two laugh as they both apologize about their behavior regarding the incident with former Ultimates member Hank Pym. Janet its that it meant the world to her that Steve got involved in the first place and she kisses him. This public display of affection surprises both of them as they continue to dance despite the awkwardness.
In the MCU, Steve's dance with Peggy is the culmination of a reference that had first been made in 2011's Captain America: First Avenger. This serves as a sweet conclusion to the decade of Marvel movie story building that fans and critics loved, although many still debate the logistics and legitimacy behind it. The Ultimate version of the last dance is the direct opposite as it comes out of nowhere from a couple that nobody was rooting for. The last time they were together alone, the hospitalized Janet heavily criticized Steve for tracking down and beating the hell out of her abusive ex-husband Hank Pym, stating that his old fashioned knight in the shining armor routine doesn't work anymore. It takes surviving the Chitauri invasion for Janet to realize her self worth, shutting down Hank's attempt to apologize and reconcile over the phone, and she takes another risk by asking her fellow teammate to dance, the only person who doesn't care about public relations or how this will affect the Ultimates' potential.
The idea of waiting for the right person to dance is an old fashioned concept that seems appropriate as Captain America has always been depicted as a man out of time, sometimes trying to look at the world from an outdated context or in the MCU, trying to hilariously catch up on everything he's missed. In Avengers: Endgame, he is finally able to get what he always wanted and in the Ultimate universe, Nick Fury speaks for everyone, readers included, when he expresses relief that Steve is finally getting some. Given that both characters have just saved their world from world-ending threats, it is the least the universe (and the writers) could do.
