Like Dust In The Wind — Reviewing ‘Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider’ #1

Moving sure is a pain. Especially when one has to suddenly leave behind their family, friends, and their entire dimension.

Gwen Stacy, the Ghost-Spider, truly has become her namesake as she tries to find her place within the 616 universe in Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #1. Nothing is easy for the hero in this debut issue from Stephanie Phillips, Federica Mancin, Matt Milla, and Ariana Maher.

Being stuck in a place where the natural version of yourself died in a very notable way a long time ago is a very comic book situation. Trapped alone, not allowed to be a hero, stuck with a fake alias, Gwen is naturally struggling. Her family and friends don’t know why she’s suddenly gone from their lives, and all her 616 friends are not supposed to know she’s on their world. Of course, in that typical Spider-hero way, she breaks all the rules, and everyone knows she’s around.

Including a classic Marvel Spider-Man rogue that makes their impact very felt by the Ghost-Spider.

Right away, there are pros and cons to this story.

We’ll start with the pros. Phillips writes an engaging Gwen and doesn’t shy away from the impact the dead 616 Gwen has on her universal doppelganger. We’re given a number of fun classic style hero beats from a bank robbery (some shades of Spider-Man 2 at one point) to a runaway truck.

Even the Kraven appearance, and the reveal of an antagonist that shed their costumed past, flows pretty well. Rarely do we see these villains get one over on a hero at this point, because their battles are pretty much routine now.

There is promise to this series. Even if Gwen being shoved into another universe without her supporting cast feels like a bummer. Especially since there are so many Spider related heroes on this world (as the story makes sure to poke at repeatedly).

Okay, guess I threw a few of the minor cons out. There is just one major one, that isn’t really a deal-breaker.

We’re just thrown into the deep end of Gwen being here and this deal with O.B. from the Time Variance Authority. Turns out this big change happened in a one-shot (Web of Spider-Man #1), instead of happening in the intro issue. Sure, a lot of Spider fans and normal comic book readers might know that and have gotten that issue just because of their love of Spider stuff. On the other hand, a debut issue (and really most issues) should be viewed as potentially someone’s first ever issue.

Not that you can’t do a big arc but assume that new people might have come in and make sure there are ways for ease of access. Some might find this easy, but others will be lost, having never read previous Gwen books, let alone this side one-shot.

Out of all the kinds of artwork that can be found in a Spider character book, it’s the ones that most understand what that should feel like that work the best. These characters are swinging, bouncing, and crawling all over the place. Fight scenes with Spider characters, and even some general scenes, should feel fluid and just a bit chaotic. Mancin is no stranger to nailing this feeling, having done some recent work over on Miles Morales’ solo series.

Every bit of energy for Gwen is captured perfectly here, as is the world around her. Buildings, streets, etc. all feel weighty and have an impact. This is the world outside the window, well lived in and right in your face. Panels slip and slide around, keeping our eyes moving through the page at an ordered but frenzied rate. Mancin has a firm and emotional style that has just a bit of whimsical energy that lets it stand out a bit.

Being a lighter book, in some respects, Milla brings an appropriate color touch to the page. All the super elements, as well as some background ones, have more eye-popping vibrant hues to them. Letting us feel the outlandish aspects of the world, paired next to those of a more grounded variety. That’s where the heavier darker and more neutral, or toned-down, parts of the color palette come into play.

It lets those aforementioned buildings, streets, and the rest feel accurate. Also gives the more vibrant stuff a good backdrop to bounce against, just like the title character.

Seeing Maher’s name in any book means a great time when glancing at any of the lettering. Colorful, bold, font shifted, static, dynamic, all of the above in rotation to get the point across. Pumping every letter on the page with the right energy to let emotions and thoughts just burst on the page. Precisely placed to maximize the space and never overwhelm or clog up the rest of the artwork. Slipping in environmentally accurate and friendly SFX that captures the attention instantly.

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #1 is now available from Marvel Comics.