Fighting Crime, Spinning Webs: Reviewing ‘The Spectacular Spider-Men’ #1

Grab the web shooters and get swinging, as Miles Morales and Peter Parker make some friend time in their chaotic lives. Too bad the world and their wild stable of villains have other plans for the coffee-seeking duo.

Action and quips are the name of the game in The Spectacular Spider-Men #1 from Greg Weisman, Humberto Ramos, Victor Olazaba, Edgar Delgado, and Joe Caramagna.

It’s about time Marvel let their tag-team duo of web-head friends bounce around together in a book.

Lucky for us, Comicon also has a tag team duo of spider friends. The spectacular Tony Thornley tackles everything Amazing Spider-Man for our site. At the same time, the friendly neighborhood Scott Redmond (that’s me!) handles everything to do with Brooklyn’s own Miles Morales.

So, what better way to cover a book featuring both Spider-Men than to let both reviewers review the book? Exactly. We’re glad you agree. Living up to the tag team designator, we’ll be switching off this book every other issue to bring you all the best coverage that we can Double the spiders, and double the awesome reviewers sounds like a good deal.

Let’s get started then.

It’s great that we got a book that is just two bros, bro-ing around town and not worrying about anything spider-related. Ha, that was a good laugh. As if these guys could ever go anywhere and not have something pop up that requires using that great power responsibly.

Weisman is, of course, no stranger to all things Spider-y, having been one of the minds behind The Spectacular Spider-Man animated series in 2008. Heralded, still to this day, as one of the best-animated adaptations starring the web-head. Those who know are guaranteed to already be singing the theme song in their head right now. I know I am.

There is still some of that Spider magic in his hands, as this is definitely living up to the idea of just a fun series with the Spider-Men. We’ve needed a book like this for far too long. Ever since Miles was brought over from the defunct previous Ultimate Universe, the two Spider-Men have spent criminally little time together. Little guest spots here or there, but nothing significant.

Until now that is.

For a little extra spice, there is a wacky time element going on here. By that I mean the story is being told out of order, starting so in medias res that it even has a caption stating that on the very first page. Our Spiders are battling a hulking version of the Jackal, intercut with various scenes flashing back days or hours (some even maybe weeks) showcasing every beat of hanging out that led them here.

Placing them in a spot at the very end which sets up where the book will go from here. Someone or something died in the lab where this Jackal broke out. Surely there won’t be any sort of clone-type shenanigans with Jackal/Miles Warren involved. As well as the appearance of his younger brother who was also Peter’s high school teacher.

Spider-Men has had a lot of artists over the decades. Some are far more synonymous with the characters than others. One that probably makes a lot of folks think about Spider-Man somewhat, because he has done so much, would be Ramos.

Gosh, I just love Ramos’ work. When I was younger, I didn’t really gel with it because I had this whole “the artwork should be as realistic as possible” mindset for some reason. Silly younger me. Ramos’ work has so much weight, power, and tangible realness to it while still being so stylistic. Proportions are not 100%, things are rough, twisted, and so whimsical.

Just the first page of the Spider-Men swinging, and wall-crawling is a showcase of how comic books are so damn fun.

Olazaba’s inks bring a lot of that heavier weight, as the overall artwork just has so much detail. Pairing that with the fluid paneling is perfect. Spider-Man as a character is kind of chaotic, because of the way he moves through a space. It’s bouncing, jumping, swinging all over the place. Things are not from a head-on perspective, and the panels represent this. All the best Spider-Man artists tend to understand this dynamic and allow their work to fully embrace that fluid chaos.

Put the Spider-Men sideways moving through the air and right away it feels like I’m swinging with them or that they are swinging right at me.

Ramos and Delgado worked together on Strange Academy a series that I not only reviewed for the site but is one of my favorite modern books. Seeing them together here sold me on a book I was already sold upon.

Unlike that book where things were a lot more magical, this of course has a more street feel. Either way, Delgado just rocks the colors. Plenty of darker tones and shadows are to be found, adding some extra weight to everything, but also lots of vibrant superhero tones. Colorful costumes that stand out whether it’s night or day, and those times of day feel fully accurate in lighting and atmosphere.

While the characters and some concepts are flashy and bright, the overall spaces are kept very natural. Toned down compared to the heroes so that the cityscape behind and around them always provides the grounding energy. It’s the real space, that feels familiar to us, making it easier to be amongst all the stranger things.

A book full of quips and character riffing needs a letterer that lets those rapid-fire beats breathe while striking the audience as they are hot. Caramagna is one of the perfect letterers to handle this. He always finds ways to make sure the right energy is felt with each word we see on the page. Framing them so smoothly, never letting them take control or become overwhelming. Miles and Peter are such different characters, and it shows in a lot of ways including their voices.

Caramangna captures all the intricacies, letting emotions and the moment soak through.

Two Spider-Men means lots of Thwips and other amazing (I promise I’ll stop at some point) sound effects. Big, bold, colorful, and right there in our faces. Just livening up the place and making sure we hear every single blow or moment as we should.

This was a lot of words to say, I loved the issue, and can’t wait to see what’s next. You’ll have to wait to hear my next thoughts to issue three, cause next month it’s Tony’s turn.

The Spectacular Spider-Men #1 is now available from Marvel Comics.