Writer: Zeb Wells
Artists: Joey Vazquez & Julian Shaw
Colorists: Bryan Valenza
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Cover Artists: John Romita Jr, Scott Hanna & Marcio Menyz; Sweeney Boo; Nick Bradshaw & Rachelle Rosenberg; Joey Vasquez
Publisher: Marvel
Price: $5.99
Release Date: November 29, 2023
Hammerhead has thrown the criminal families of New York City into chaos. With her father in the hospital and her fiancé Randy Roberson publicly arguing that Wilson Fisk's antivigilante law benefits Big Crime, Janice Lincoln's ready to throw in the towel, invest in her supervillain status, and protect Tombstone's turf. Can Spider-Man take down Hammerhead and reunite the lovebirds? Let’s thwip into Amazing Spider-Man: Gang War First Strike #1 and find out!
Story
Peter Parker’s doing a team-up. That’s right, the Spider-Men are in the house! This time, they're taking down Slyde. After his recent partnership with Blade and Bloodline, Miles Morales delivers the decisive blow to the sleek-streak. But then Miles slays Peter with guilt. Yikes!
Can you ghost someone when drowning and barely keeping your head above water? Miles thinks so. Still, Miles has also been drowning lately. Sometimes friends can’t be there for you, no matter how much they want to be.
Janice and Randy lived a lie. It was a beautiful self-deception. With the crime families drooling over Harlem, she won’t let them carve up Tombstone’s legacy. Randy's calling for a crackdown on crime, so Janice has to choose. Hammerhead says: If you're eighty-sixing Randy, prove it!
Grooving up old grievances has made the crime lords come together. They look to old Flat Top for leadership. Amazing Spider-Man: Gang War First Strike #1 reunites the axis of evil from ASM #31 with a few intriguing differences. Zeb Wells has built his deck of cards into a skyscraper. This issue asks: How might it become a towering inferno?
Art
Joey Vazquez and Julian Shaw use motion lines, dots, and haze to show air friction and speed. Their inked lines suggest shadows. Camera angles sustain interest. Even if some features look exaggerated, body language conveys poise and power. The tag team fuels Amazing Spider-Man: Gang War First Strike #1 with anger, energy, and power.
Bryan Valenza lavishes a vast spectrum of color on Wells’ drama- and action-packed story. Whether the action occurs in the boardroom, the hospital, or the streets, colors heighten the fury. The Beetle contrasts wonderfully with Randy, as does Spidey with Luke Cage. Combinations only simplify to ratchet up a panel's effectiveness.
Zeb Wells dishes out the dialogue in Amazing Spider-Man: Gang War First Strike #1, and Joe Caramagna delivers it with black letters in white balloons and boxes. Despite minor skirmishes of tiny text, normal Spidey-size rules these ASM streets. Most of the color, size, and style text changes involve Randy. When a player sweeps another off the game board, Caramagna’s sound effects ensure we notice.
Thanks to Marvel for providing this issue for review.
Final Thoughts
Criminals learn that no one is essential, and heroes forget their friends have difficulties to overcome in Amazing Spider-Man: Gang War First Strike #1. This crucial chapter of the Gang War saga is about love, loyalty, and responsibility, with the odd double-cross thrown in for good measure.
Rating: 9.6/10
To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.
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