Spider-Gwen #1-5
Originally released in 2015
Written by Jason Latour
Art by Robbi Rodriguez
Spinning off from the Spider-Verse event, Spider-Gwen took the comic world by storm - she was so popular that a series of variant covers were made where a bunch of heroes and villains were given Gwen variants, and one of those (Gwenpool) became her own separate character. This series doesn't cover her origin, which seems to be depicted elsewhere; basically, Gwen was bitten by the radioactive (or genetically modified; not sure which origin they went with here) spider instead of Peter. Peter was still constantly bullied, without the outlet that being Spider-Man gave him, so inspired by Spider-Woman, he decides to use his scientific knowledge to make himself special, becoming this universe's version of the Lizard in the process. Peter dies in a fight with Spider-Woman, and the death of her friend seems to have scarred her for life.
As is Spider-person tradition, Gwen has to juggle her social life (in this case, her band, the Mary Janes, where she's the drummer), her school, and her time as a superhero. Interestingly, George Stacy already knows Gwen's identity, which helps her out in the long run. As a superhero, Gwen's rogues gallery is lacking at the moment, even if she helped save the multiverse in the Spider-Verse series - her "archnemesis" is the Bodega Bandit, who dresses like the Hamburglar and has no powers whatsoever beyond an unnatural desire to exclusively rob independent convenience stores.
Some characters are similar to what we're familiar with in Gwen's universe, while others are very different. On one hand, the Vulture is still Adrian Toomes, an elderly man with a desire to get the fame and fortune that he feels like he deserves after being screwed over by his business partner, while Wilson Fisk is still the kingpin of crime, albeit one who's behind bars at the moment. On the other hand, Matt Murdock is Fisk's lawyer and chief enforcer, while Black Cat is a black French thief whose band rivals Mary Jane and Gwen's band.
One of Gwen's most persistent foes is Frank Castle, a police officer who's rabidly dedicated to arresting Gwen. (he hasn't gotten to the point of homicidal tendencies yet - the fact that his family's still alive likely helps) However, a bigger problem in Gwen's life is grief - she still feels responsible for Peter's death, and it causes her to throw herself into being Spider-Woman and push her friends away.
This was an enjoyable mini-series, though as a result of the 2015 version of Secret Wars, it doesn't have much of a conclusion - much like the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (and, almost certainly, plenty of other Marvel series), it stops and restarts with a new number 1 issue a few months later. (even the Vulture's plot doesn't get a resolution) Still, what I got out of these five issues was an interesting perspective flip on the main Marvel canon, with some solid art. (the covers are a highlight, looking like watercolour paintings)
No comments:
Post a Comment