Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Ultimate Spider-Man #10! Spider-Man isn’t just one of Marvel Comics most iconic superheroes of all time, but his comic book franchise has spawned a number of other heroes as well over the years, and some of them are downright shocking. From the likes of Venom and the Punisher, to even Miles Morales (who’s arguably become even more popular than Peter Parker for modern fans), Spider-Man has spun-out some pretty notable heroes. And now, the comic franchise has done it again, and this one’s been 61 years in the making.

In Ultimate Spider-Man #10 by Jonathan Hickman and David Messina, readers are given a deep-dive into advanced investigative journalism at the highest level. Ben Parker and J. Jonah Jameson started their own online publication in this universe (simply called The Paper) after the Daily Bugle was bought out by the Kingpin, who wanted to turn the paper into a disingenuous media outlet.

Ben and Jonah are working on a story involving the sale of Stark/Stane, which leads them to discover that the company was bought by a subsidiary of Oscorp. The two journalists connect the dots between the tech previously developed by Stark/Stane and the new tech-heavy the Maker’s Council - and Ben and Jonah start writing up the story.

In order to gain readership while doing the leg-work on this massive investigative piece, Ben and Jonah primarily used The Paper to report on the latest adventures of Green Goblin and Spider-Man. But, while those stories got their subscription and readership numbers up, both Ben and Jonah hated doing them. And now that they have more than they could ever hope to get from their investigation, the two journalists are ready to move forward with the story of a lifetime - which is especially significant for Marvel’s new hero, J. Jonah Jameson.

J. Jonah Jameson is Finally a Legitimate Hero in Marvel Comics

JJJ was Introduced 61 Years Ago in The Amazing Spider-Man #1, & Now He’s Finally a Hero

While Ben Parker is just as much a hero as J. Jonah Jameson is in this Ultimate Spider-Man run, this is the first time readers have spent any significant amount of time with Ben, meaning Jonah is the one receiving the bulk of the character development. In the past, Jonah had been little more than a blowhard editor who valued sensationalist headlines over hard news. In fact, it didn’t seem as though Jonah cared about the news at all, as he seemed obsessed with selling papers however he could - which he did by making Spider-Man look like a ‘masked menace’.

The Ultimate Universe version of J. Jonah Jameson literally quit his job at the Daily Bugle because of his journalistic principles. He decided to stand on his own rather than stay with a safe paper and print garbage, then he immediately backed up his actions with his skills. J. Jonah Jameson got to show what a great journalist he actually is in Ultimate Spider-Man #10, working side-by-side with Ben to unravel a conspiracy originally woven by the Maker himself, and doing so fearlessly.

Jonah knows good and well that the story he and Ben are working on could get him killed, but he’s charging forward with it anyway, because that’s where his convictions as a journalist lie. What makes his heroic turn that much more pronounced is how much Jonah despises doing stories about Spider-Man. In Earth-616 (and even Earth-1610), Jonah couldn’t get enough Spider-Man, as every story he printed was a guaranteed paper sale. But now, Spider-Man is the last thing Jonah wants to write about.

J. Jonah Jameson was a Borderline Villain in Marvel’s Prime Reality

JJJ’s Heroic Turn in the Ultimate Universe is Even More Dramatic Considering His ‘Villainous’ Past

While it’s great that J. Jonah Jameson has proven himself to be a hero in the new Ultimate Universe (and has even dropped his obsession with Spider-Man), that was not the case during his earliest appearances in The Amazing Spider-Man. In fact, in The Amazing Spider-Man #20, JJ funded the creation of the villain Scorpion, and even tried to lure Spider-Man into a trap once Scorpion was created.

Not only did Jonah literally create a supervillain for the sole purpose of killing one of the world’s greatest heroes, but he committed the most damning sin any journalist could: he became the story. The original J. Jonah Jameson was so far removed from anything that could be considered a ‘good journalist’ that he became a borderline villain just to craft a false, preconceived narrative about Spider-Man.

Indeed, J. Jonah Jameson has come a long way since his debut 61 years ago. Not only has he let go of his Spider-Man obsession to the point where he doesn’t even want to publish stories about the wall-crawler (let alone create a supervillain to kill him), but J. Jonah Jameson has also proven himself a fantastic journalist who isn’t afraid to put his life on the line to expose corruption and inform the people - making this iconic Spider-Man character a true hero.

Ultimate Spider-Man #10 by Marvel Comics is available now.