Review: ‘Spider-Woman #2’ Gets A Little Complicated, But No Less Fun

Spider-Woman’s problems in the present stem from ghosts of her past as she discovers what is causing her recent illness. With her life on the line, Jessica Drew must run through a gauntlet of tests and perform a heist for a very particular item if she hopes to survive. That puts her on a collision course with faces she’d prefer to forget.

I’m going to admit that the plot for Spider-Woman is more than a little complicated. The title character jumps through a series of increasingly elaborate hoops in order to get to certain points in the plot. This isn’t to say that the book isn’t enjoyable. All of these obstacles come through at a brisk pace. It’s hard to believe so much is packed into only the second issue of this story. It’s just that there seem to be several ways to cut to the chase, especially with the players involved.
For example, Jessica’s benefactor is a rich pharmaceutical CEO. Despite all of the money, power, and connections at his disposal, he resorts to poisoning Spider-Woman to try and find a cure for what ails his daughter. We all know how corporate America works. You’re telling me he didn’t have another connection in corporate America?

Despite the complicated nature of the setup, letterer Travis Lanham guides us through the dialogue with ease. There’s a lot of information to sift through, but it never feels overwhelming. It moves quickly.
Jessica’s personality really shines through in this issue. Writer Karla Pacheco works wonders here, showing the character almost in disbelief that this is her life and this is the kind of crap she has to go through. I wasn’t as familiar with the character before outside of appearances in Bendis‘ New Avengers and the recent Captain Marvel books. This comic shows off her fun nature and the unique perspective she brings to the Marvel Universe.

I also really dig the design for the new costume. Artist Pere Perez makes it look great in action. Where Perez excels is in the fight scenes towards the end of this issue. The layout is super dynamic and flowing, adding to the excitement of the sequence. If this was a movie, these would be all quick cuts. Instead, we’re able to see every image on the page, however small and soak it all in.
Colorist Frank D’Armata amplifies this intensity, contrasting the sleek blacks and reds of Jessica’s costume with the yellow energy that blasts from her hands and the electric shocks coming from her enemy’s weapon. It’s pretty cool.

Spider-Woman’s adventures are as varied as they are intense. She handles it well, with a mix of determination and humor. Despite everything working against her, Jessica Drew tackles the new obstacles in her life head on. This makes for a fun super hero title.
Spider-Woman #2 from Marvel Comics is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.