Writer: Stephanie Phillips
Artists: Paolo Villanelli
Colorist: Matt Milla
Letterer: Ariana Maher
Cover Artists: Mark Brooks; Mirka Andolfo; Zulema Scotto Lavina & Edgar Delgado
Design & Production: Carlos Lao
Editors: Kaeden McGahey, Jordan D White & C B Cebulski
Publisher: Marvel
Price: $3.99
Release Date: January 1, 2025
Jessica Jones encouraged Gwen Stacy to pursue a relationship with the man she met at Bear Coffee. But Gwen doesn’t know that Fabian is the Black Tarantula. Still, when Mr Fear unleashes his latest concoction on New York City, Gwen’s symbiote suit can't filter out the toxin. When he saved her from Mr Fear, Gwen asked for his help. Is Gwen playing along with Black Tarantula until he leads her to Judge Barbour? And can she save the corrupt judge before Fabian's father and the citizens of New York deliver their verdict? Let's thwip into Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #9 and find out!
Story
Fabian wants to honor his father but knows Carlos La Muerto is not a good man. Still, his dad has tried to turn his life around. Mayor Cage's government needed the embezzled funds to treat the city's ills. Everyone in New York suffers from Judge Barbour's theft. So, Fabian helped his dad stoke people's distrust of government, not knowing that Mr Fear would capitalize on his actions.
While Gwen owns the title of Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #9, Fabian dominates Stephanie Phillips’ story. He carries her to an abandoned building where a nurse attends Gwen. Yet Fabian’s would-be lover is unaware of this. All the people she left behind on Earth-65 taunt and accuse Gwen. What made her so special that OB from the TVA brought her to Earth-616? Shouldn't Gwen have remained behind and helped her friends and her father fight to survive as her world died?
The younger Black Tarantula sees her suffering. Fabian sensed Gwen’s uneasiness each time he met her at Bear Coffee. He can't do anything about Gwen's longing for lost loved ones. But like Fitzwilliam Darcy, he feels he needs her to complete him. So, Fabian races outside to collect a sample of Mr Fear's toxin, hoping the nurse can synthesize an antidote. But this only amplifies his tenuous situation. Fabian works for his father despite disagreeing with his methods. Now, Mr Fear is building on Fabian’s actions. How different is he from Mr Fear? Is Fabian destined to become another villain like Mr Fear and his father?
Art
A black spider looms over the Spider-Men, Spider-Woman, Silk, and Jessica Jones. Her father and her bandmate from Earth-65 also hang in its web. Yet the spider's eyes glow pink, and a white cape covers its head. Spider-Woman becomes a silhouette before the spider's giant maw, reminding Gwen how often she relied on their support, only to drain their energies and demand more sacrifices and assistance.
Matt Milla lavishes a bright palette on Paolo Villanelli’s dramatic art in Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #9. The traumatic memories jolt Spider-Gwen on her sickbed in an abandoned building. Dark boards cover the windows. Liv's green nurse’s uniform and the medical equipment’s green display enliven the dark and purple room. After facing off with his helper, Black Tarantula races out to find drones spewing green gas. Mr Fear’s gray costume is almost as dark as Fabian’s, underlying the commonality between their actions. And after an explosive encounter, Black Tarantula stands surrounded by a cloud of green.
Ariana Maher thwips uppercase black letters into white dialogue balloons with long white arrows and places rouge words in white narrative boxes outlined with turquoise. Black Tarantula injects white words into black boxes while light-blue clouds invade Gwen's dreams. The text grows bold for intonation and enlarges for raised voices. The sounds of hissing gas, splintering wood, and fierce blows accompany a young man’s struggle to forge his destiny in Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #9. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.
Final Thoughts
A nursery rhyme about the fight to live a satisfying life interweaves with Gwen's fears of failing her friends and a would-be hero's desire to honor his father while doing the right thing in Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #9.
Rating 9.6/10
To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.
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