Amazing Spider-Man #11
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Olivier Coipel & Justin Ponsor
Cover: Olivier Coipel & Justin Ponsor
Spider-Verse has been firing on all cylinders since its beginning, and even with the occasional hiccup in this issue, all of that continues here! Slott has been able to maintain a great sense of cohesion while juggling all of the various Spider powered beings from across the universes. Each one has had their time to shine and contribute to the story in some way. But now it’s time for Peter to face the Superior Spider-Man who took over his body along with a year of his life. The battle is a brief one, but with just a few lines of dialogue Slott shows that there is no better Spider-Man than the original Peter Parker. We’re also treated to a moment that Peter has been avoiding ever since finding out one of the Spider-Women is actually Gwen Stacy. It’s a brief exchange, but again, Slott gives so much in just a few panels that this tender moment doesn’t seem out of place in this very intense issue. Intense because we find out the important Spiders the Inheritors are looking for, and the “Safe Zone” isn’t so safe anymore as the Patriarch of the Inheritors, Solus, enters the battle. Not to spoil anything here, but the poop hits the fan! But the story isn’t all death and life forces being drained, as there’s several lighter moments added to the story. Like having the animated Ultimate Spider-Man: Web Warriors Peter team up with Miles Morales as they search for reinforcements in other universes.
Coipel is still doing a fine job on the artwork, and it’s nice to see him change up his style to accommodate the various looks of some of the Spiders. It also makes you appreciate all of the unique variations of Spider-Man’s costume, so you really never get tired of all the red and blue and sometimes black. Apart from drawing some fantastic looking Spider characters, Coipel delivers one great looking panel of Solus entering the battle. It’s just an imposing image that lets you know he’s there to end everything! This made his fight with one particular Spider Totem one of the highlights of the issue. However, at times those hiccups that were spoken of earlier are all too noticeable in the artwork. This was mainly in the close-ups of Peter and Spidey/Ock right before their fight. Their faces didn’t look expressive, but stretched out and very odd. It was pretty jarring when compared to how good the rest of the issue looked at times, and how well the visuals moved the story.
Spider-Verse continues to be a great event and an alternative to any Spider-Man fan who isn’t too keen on Marvel’s current big event going on. It’s self contained within the Spider-Man lore of the Marvel Universe, but Slott makes sure his story has something for those longtime readers as well as anyone who came along more recently. Slott has shown once again that he can take a classic character like Spider-Man and give fans something different and fun!
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