Rogue Storm #2 Review

 

Writer: Murewa Ayodele

Artist: Roland Boschi

Colorist: Neeraj Menon

Letterer: Travis Lanham

Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; InHyuk Lee; Pablo Villalobos

Designer: Sarah Spadaccini & Jay Bowen

Editors: Lindsey Cohick, Annalise Bissa, Tom Brevoort & CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Price: $3.99

Release Date: November 12, 2025

 

Storm was Earth’s protector. She was also Rogue’s friend. When the Collector split Rogue in two, Rogue Green retained her powers. Gambit decided that one Rogue was enough and sent Rogue Red away in tears. So, Storm gave Rogue Red a new home in her Storm Sanctuary. Knowing what it was like to lose her powers, Storm fashioned Enisium claws from her god armor and trained Rogue Red to fight with them. Everything was fine until Storm went to the Sahara Desert and never returned.

 

From her palace in the Sahara, Storm began changing the Earth’s weather. The cataclysmic changes threatened to make the world uninhabitable. So, Rogue Red led the Uncanny X-Force to kill her friend before Storm could destroy the world. What happened after Rogue Red’s battle with the Storm Engines? And why did Storm later attack the Fishmen of Osun? Let’s slip on our Enisium claws, leap into Rogue Storm #2, and see!

 

Story

After slaying the Fishmen at Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove, Storm rests in Abeokuta. In the shelter of Olumo Rock, Eēgūn appears to her. Storm has spent years searching for him. She wonders why he has waited so long to appear. The god who healed her and later slew her assures her that their long dance has not yet finished. Then Daniel’s spirit supplants Eēgūn and urges Storm to awaken.

 

Like Daniel and Eēgūn, Storm meets someone else who has a grievance against her in Rogue Storm #2. But this person is alive, and he’s a Mutant. Storm doesn’t wait for him to arrive. Angered by continual betrayals, she attacks first. But her visitor isn’t impressed. Gambit knows Storm's capabilities. After Rogue Green's death, he has nothing else to live for. Except perhaps to set things right.

 

Murewa Ayodele weaves Storm, Rogue Red, and Gambit's tale into the tapestry of the Age of Revelation. Their story tackles the pain of losing someone you loved, even if that person wasn't the one you devoted your life to. Rogue Storm #2 also follows Rogue Red's path after slaying the Sentinel-like Storm Engines. It explains why Storm hung in chains inside her palace, instead of drinking wine and training with Rogue Red in her Sanctuary. And it suggests that perhaps sometimes, when people drift away from us, they are protecting us from who they are becoming.

 

 

 

Art

After Rogue Red stormed her ice palace, and Storm slew the Fishmen of Osun, Roland Boschi opens with Storm holding an Enisium claw in her hand. After enclosing Rogue Red's claw in a globe and swallowing it, Storm eats fish. When Eēgūn appears, the circular horn above his face echoes Storm’s circular campfire. Unlike Storm, his demeanor expresses his delight in their dance of death. Revelation may have transformed their world. The X-Men may no longer exist. Yet, Storm wears an X symbol on her shoulder guard.

 

Neeraj Menon adorns Rogue Storm #2 with a lavish palette of appealing colors. Storm painted white and colored symbols on her skin in tune with her heritage. When Gambit appears, his yellow and green attire commemorate Rogue Green's appearance after combating the Collector. Yet pink appears when Gambit uses his Mutant abilities, reminiscent of the woman he shunned. After beginning Storm's story by holding an Enisium claw, Rogue Red's story resumes by wearing a claw in her red glove. Yellow and orange destruction echo Storm’s campfire, while the light blue Sahara Snowfield recalls the globe Storm swallowed in her dream.

 

Travis Lanham fills white dialogue balloons with large black uppercase letters. A stylized white font identifies time and space. Daniel speaks dark letters into glowing balloons, while Storm occasionally speaks white letters into black balloons. Sound effects heighten battles and highlight uncanny abilities as Gambit seeks to ease his conscience after ignoring his duty of care. Thanks to Marvel Comics for providing a review copy.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Revelation killed millions to protect the Mutants from frightened and prejudiced Humans. But as Storm kills people while trying to protect the world, someone else engages in wholesale slaughter in Rogue Storm #2.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To look inside see my review at Comic Book Dispatch. 

Rogue Storm #1 Review

 

Writer: Murewa Ayodele

Artist: Roland Boschi

Colorist: Neeraj Menon

Letterer: Travis Lanham

Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; Elizabeth Torque & Federico Blee; Iván Talavera; Karen S Darboe & Jesus Aburtov; Rickie Yagawa & Tamra Bonvillain; Stefano Caselli & David Curiel

Designer: Jay Bowen

Editors: Lindsey Cohick, Annalise Bissa, Tom Brevoort & CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Price: $3.99

Release Date: October 15, 2025

 

Rogue has traveled with Gateway, Warpath, Fantomex, Iceman, and Akujin to the Sahara Desert. Snow covers the vast land of dunes. The Uncanny X-Force must prevent Storm from unleashing further destruction on Earth's ecosystem. Rogue doesn't want to kill her friend. But like Rogue, Storm has changed. Can Rogue kill her best friend? And why is Storm attacking the world she sought to protect? Let’s leap into Rogue Storm #1 and see!

 

Story

As Rogue rides through the snow, Gateway hovers alongside. He reminds Rogue that this is necessary. Yet the proposition seems overwhelming. Sentinels guard an ice fortress surrounded by wrecked bodies and vehicles. While Akujin hungers for the opportunity to kill Storm, the rest seem less confident. Yet they charge into battle regardless, firing tank-like cannons mounted to their steeds. When one of the rhino-like animals speaks, it asserts its readiness for the challenge. Yet Storm's guardians will draw first blood.

 

 

 

While Rogue Storm #1 takes place five years into the Age of Revelation, it also revisits events three years previous. An accident cost Rogue her husband and her powers. Storm consoled Rogue and helped her get back on her feet again. Her friend enhanced her fighting ability. But Storm could not replace Rogue's sense of uniqueness.

 

Murewa Ayodele’s story demonstrates how people can rebuild their lives after suffering incomparable losses. It's also a powerful reminder of how much we can change as we journey through life. But mostly, it’s an exhilarating battle between titanic forces and underdogs. 

 

 

 

Art

Roland Boschi opens Rogue Storm #1 with glimpses of the burning Amazon forest, the destruction of Atlanta, and ridges of land emerging from the snow and clouds like the spine of the world. But the most telling reminder of Storm’s power is the first panel, which shows Mjolnir orbiting Earth with bits of the broken hammer drifting nearby. Storm’s new home also inspires awe, with giant metal guardians surrounding a heap of Pick-Up Sticks. But a glimpse inside reveals that the ice palace is no Fortress of Solitude.

 

 

 

Neeraj Menon lavishes a bright palette on this snow-bound battle. The titanic guardians prove faster than AT-AT Walkers and lend scenes an epic grandeur. Yet the Human-sized crystal killer seems everywhere at once. Red contrasts with green in this light-blue land of stark sunlight. While Rogue wears red, the winged warrior spills it. The sentient steeds roar as they charge, wearing green saddles and armor. These two colors symbolize what Rogue has suffered in Rogue Storm #1. 

 

 

 

Travis Lanham fills white narrative boxes and dialogue balloons with large black uppercase letters. A stylized white font identifies time and space. The creatures speak into irregular balloons, while Iceman’s rage swells and turns blue. Sound effects make this story about killing a god crackle and boom, while heroes work together to leap into combat and smash their titanic opponents. Thanks to Marvel Comics for providing a review copy.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

As X-Force attempts deicide, and Storm’s guardians intend decimation, an angry god divides her mind among her guardians. Rogue Storm #1 hints at how Revelation has achieved mastery over other Omega-level Mutants and suggests that Rogue’s situation may not be unique.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To look inside see my review at Comic Book Dispatch. 

Spider-Boy #15 Review

 

Writers: Dan Slott

Artists: Paco Medina & Humberto Ramos

Colorist: Erick Arciniega & Edgar Delgado

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Cover Artists: Paco Medina & Edgar Delgado; Kaare Andrews; Javier Garrón & Rachelle Rosenberg; Todd Nauck (Icon); Mike McKone & David Curiel (Fantastic Four; Mirka Andolfo (Madame Web)

Designer: Adam Del Re

Editors: Tom Groneman, Nick Lowe & CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $4.99

Release Date: January 29, 2024

 

Maka Akana wants to destroy Spider-Boy. Hulkette wants to punch him to the moon. Daredevil wants his apprentice to concentrate on winning The Dragon's Challenge. But Bailey Briggs wants to protect his neighborhood with Spider-Man, make his mother proud by doing well in school, and hang with his friends.

 

Daredevil hasn’t told Spider-Boy why they are in Madripoor, but he insists the prize is worth fighting for. Can Spider-Boy honor his mentor's wishes? Let's grab some popcorn and sodas for the final rounds, thwip into Spider-Boy #15, and find out!

 

Story

Try as he might, Spider-Boy can’t adopt the Japanese mindset. Fighting for honor is stupid! While Daredevil maintains the respect of his colleagues, Spider-Boy keeps making enemies. Daredevil forced Bailey to steal a Golden Fang from Hulkette and her mentor. He orders Bailey to Monster Out to win his contests. In Dan Slott's story, as Daredevil pressures him to compete, Bailey tries to make friends.

 

While Bailey fights half a world away in Spider-Boy #15, his mom takes Christina Xu out for a treat. Madame Monstrosity turned both ladies into Humanimals. Since Spider-Man pulled their DNA apart, Tabitha retains a bond with her cat. Perhaps, like Penny’s superhero dog Bolt, Christina can also talk to pigeons. But as Daredevil reminds Bailey of his priorities, Tabitha wants Christina to focus on telling her about her son. After spending years at the Humanimal farm, Tabitha wants to make it up to Bailey for missing so much of his childhood. 

 

 

 

While Bailey yearns to return home, engage in meaningful battles alongside Spider-Man, and learn how to divide fractions with his new friends Marco and Larissa, this is the moment Maka Akana has waited for. Her mutant abilities let her temporarily inhabit the minds of others. But the overwhelming input from Bailey's ten eyes and his conflict with his monstrous side overwhelmed her.

 

Copying other people's fighting abilities and profiting off their years of training was an improvement over winning chess tournaments, rock music festivals, and cliff-diving tournaments. While she can still borrow others' identities, Maka is Spider-Girl forever. And she doesn't like it at all. So, no matter how much Bailey Briggs cares about her, Maka Akana is determined to destroy him in Spider-Boy #15.

 

 

 

Art

Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado return us to the night Spider-Girl met Bailey. Clad in a costume that evokes characters like Harlequin in the Italian Commedia Dell’arte, Maka flees the museum after gazing into Bailey’s eyes. She may rock a superhero landing. But when Maka removes her mask, her face reflects how the raging turmoil in Bailey's mind affected her. Yet when she looks at her mentor, she glimpses a side of Bullseye few others see.

 

While Mist gazes down on the fight wearing a white mask and gold horns, Bailey fights an opponent wearing an animal mask. When Bailey Monsters Out in Spider-Boy #15, the yellow lenses covering his eyes reflect this orange-and-black mask, and triangular teeth fill his mouth. 

 

 

 

After his semifinal bout, Hulkette and Tigress show Bailey frowns, but Spider-Girl reaches for the sky. Then she removes white bracelets while Bullseye places a deck of cards in a wooden box. Paco Medina & Erick Arciniega show how Bulleye observes the letter of the law while ignoring its spirit. As he faces opponents alongside Spider-Girl, Bullseye adopts Jason Bourne’s philosophy and turns seemingly innocuous items into weapons.

 

Joe Caramagna thwips uppercase black lettering into white dialogue balloons and narrative boxes. Words shrink for lowered voices, embolden for intonation, swell for volume, and change color for emphasis. Sound effects help us hear punches, kicks, falls, savage beatdowns, and Spider-Girl wielding webs for the first time. Mahalo to Marvel Comics for providing a copy for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Young people look to their mentors for guidance. As they grow, their values may diverge from those of their mentors. In Spider-Boy #15, Bailey warns Spider-Girl to look for someone more trustworthy. But while Bullseye has always encouraged Spider-Girl's desires, Daredevil forces Bailey Briggs to fight in a contest he disdains.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

 

 

Spider-Boy #14 Review

 

Writers: Dan Slott

Artists: Paco Medina & Humberto Ramos

Colorist: Erick Arciniega

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Cover Artists: Paco Medina & Edgar Delgado; Rose Besch; Doaly; Natacha Bustos

Designer: Adam Del Re

Editors: MR Daniel, Kaeden McGahey, Kaitlyn Lindtvedt, Tom Groneman, Ellie Pyle, Nick Lowe & CB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $4.99

Release Date: December 25, 2024

 

Tabitha Briggs grudgingly let her son continue his superhero ways. Then, Daredevil abducted Spider-Boy to nab Bailey’s Hellfire Club trophy from his secret stash atop his news-making nemesis. When Daredevil subsequently lost the Golden Fang to Bullseye and Spider-Girl, the Man Without Fear forced Bailey to break international law by stowing away on Madripoor Air flight 359. The red-and-blue pillars of virtue furthered their crime spree by stealing an airport taxi, ambushing Enormo and Hulkette, and using their newly stolen Golden Fang to enter a contest against experienced fighters.

 

Can Spider-Boy help Daredevil win The Dragon’s Challenge? And with a mentor like Daredevil, will Tabitha Briggs ever let Bailey don his costume again? Let's buy front-row tickets, thwip into Spider-Boy #14, and find out!

 

Story

Mist, the Demon's Breath of the Gaping Maw, knows that Daredevil and Spider-Boy followed Bullseye and Spider-Girl's example and entered the contest with a stolen Golden Fang. But the Gaping Maw is an amoral assassin order founded on brutally and efficiently dispatching their targets. So, when Enormo and Hulkette bust into their headquarters and demand fairness, Mist sends Enormo packing.

 

The clan leader promises Hulkette her revenge if she waits until Daredevil and Spider-Boy lose. That may not prove difficult, as Spider-Boy shrinks from hurting his opponent in the first round. But that’s not a weakness Spider-Girl shows in Spider-Boy #14. Instead, the Hawaiian cliff diving champion, Maka Akana, happily disfigures her opponent for life.

 

 

 

Daredevil hasn’t told Spider-Boy what they are fighting for. But while he insists that Bullseye must not win the prize, Spider-Girl's mentor claims that victory will give him power over the entire world. Spider-Boy isn’t happy with Daredevil for stringing him along and getting him into hot water with his mom. But while both apprentices fight for their masters in Dan Slott’s story, Spider-Girl likes her mentor because he enables her to destroy her opponents.

 

As the Web Of Life And Destiny stretches across the multiverse, memories help people adhere to their proper place and time. Spider-Man sacrificed his memories of an alternate life with Uncle Ben to help Bailey stick in people’s minds. Spider-Girl’s mutant gene helps her copy other people's memories. When Maka stares into her opponent's eyes, she "remembers" how they mastered their abilities. Win or lose, Spider-Girl will leave Madripoor with more skills in Spider-Boy #14. But because she steals their memories instead of creating her own, Maka quickly tires of her accomplishments and seeks another easy victory. 

 

 

 

Art

While Gaping Maw soldiers wear Pandemic masks bearing a dragon design, the Mist’s mask reveals her mouth but obscures her face. Horns rise above her head, symbolizing her power. Paco Medina and Humberto Ramos show Bailey sitting in readiness while Daredevil hunches forward in need of rejuvenation. But that doesn't happen as the Devil of Hell's Kitchen and the Spider of PS 19 in the East Village draw the first fight with a luchador and a monkey. The wrestler wears gold to signal his respect for the Gaping Max. The monkey fighting Spider-Boy may be as ill-tempered as Captain Barbossa's pal. Still, Spider-Girl and Hulkette demonstrate the same horror of Bailey's monstering out that prompted The Daily Bugle to label Spider-Boy “The Monster Among Us.”

 

Characters shine as they fight for ultimate power against muted colors in Spider-Boy #14. Erick Arciniega adorns the Gaping Maw headquarters in green, gold, brown, and beige. Bailey leaps above brown and gold rooftops as a ship anchors in Madripoor’s green and gray harbor. Pink and red enliven an outdoor munchfest when Bailey dines beneath yellow paper lanterns. He remembers fighting an opponent clothed in black, white, and yellow. Then, green-skinned Hulkette, adorned in her pink vest and purple shoes, returns him to the contest, where red X’s and color photographs signal that the second-round battles have begun.

 

As Erick Arciniega lavishes an appealing palette on Paco Medina and Humberto Ramos' likable characters, Joe Caramagna thwips uppercase black lettering into white dialogue balloons. Words shrink for lowered voices, embolden for intonation, and swell for volume. Sound effects help us hear Enormo get his comeuppance, La Mota screech, Spider-Girl making Bullseye smile, and Daredevil mentally scarring his apprentice. Mahalo to Marvel Comics for providing a copy for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

While stealing distorted memories of her opponents, absorbing their thoughts and emotions unbalances Spider-Girl. The Hawaiian mutant has only met one person she couldn’t look in the eye and inhabit their mind. So, she finds another way to destroy Bailey in Spider-Boy #14.

 

Rating 9.4/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

 

 

The Spectacular Spider-Men #8 Review

 

Writer: Greg Weisman

Penciler: Emilio Laiso & Andrés Genolet

Colorist: Edgar Delgado

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Production: Gabriel Mata

Editors: Kaeden McGahey, Kaitlyn Lindtvedt, Nick Lowe & CB Cebulski

Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; Cory Smith & Edgar Delgado

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: October 16, 2024

 

Sha Shan Nguyen requested Professor Raymond Aaron Warren’s help to find Peter Parker, Miles Morales, and her other missing friends. But Miles Warren, aka the Jackal, was masquerading as his brother. The Jackal used Sha Shan’s tip to find Arcadium and help it achieve its ultimate form. As Peter and Miles defeated the Jackal’s forces and KNAIVE, the robot AI child of Arcadium, Sha Shan, and Detective Shari Sebbens arrived to arrest Miles Warren, Hammerhead, Arcade, and Mentallo. Now, everyone from the Coffee Bean can thank Sha Shan, Peter, and Miles and resume their lives, right? Let’s grab a latte, thwip into The Spectacular Spider-Men #8, and find out!

 

Story

Professor Raymond Aaron Warren is dead. He was the incinerated corpse Peter, Miles, and Seymour Krepps discovered in Miles Warren’s lab. Unlike his brother, Raymond devoted his life to inspiring others. So, the friends from the Coffee Bean gather to celebrate his life with other former students and ESU faculty. Yet they have much more to mourn in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8.

 

Perhaps they should mourn the passing of KNAIVE, a newly born lifeform. They likely would if the AI infant hadn't tried to kill them. But the human relationships they lost weigh more heavily on their minds. Unlike the Avengers, the participants can't reclaim the friends they lost. Perhaps Coffee Bean newcomer Adam Blackveil feels this most acutely, as he used Arcadium to battle Thanos alongside his late friend Kevin. As for the rest, promising careers and marriage awaited them. Even the Infinity Stones can't help the friends reclaim those losses.

 

In Greg Weisman’s story, the friends convert their weekly meetups at the ESU Coffee Bean into therapy sessions. Peter’s friend Cindy Moon helps them find a therapist. But while Peter, Miles, and the others share their feelings with Sierra Sinclair, the villains aren’t sitting on their hands in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8. Unlike most participants, Turk Barrett used Arcadium to garner riches, defeat superheroes, and thumb his nose at society. So, after Turk pulled free of Peter and Miles' webbing, he helped Arcade and Mentallo evade Detective Shari Sebbens’ forces. Turk may lack Hammerhead's deep pockets. But as an enthusiastic beta tester, Turk wants to help Arcade and Mentallo rebuild and improve the augmented reality game in every conceivable way.

 

 

Art

Peter Parker claims two spaces on a Tic-Tac-Toe of torment before overtaking the entire board. The spider-men watch as Shari Sebbens’ officers force Hammerhead and Jackyl into a PDNY police van. Lights shine behind Sha Shan as she requests help finding Peter and Miles. So, two quick changes follow in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8. First, Manhattan’s Spider-Man “finds” Miles Morales. Then, Brooklyn's Spider-Man escorts Peter to his former schoolmate. While mourners gather across two pages to memorialize a beloved teacher, a smaller panel shows Shift celebrating a new life with the Vermin, the newly birthed Jackals, and the Unhoused in New York City sewers.  

 

The reds, blues, and blacks of the spider-men, Detective Shari Sebbens, and uniformed officers show off against the gray evening illuminated by blue-and-red lights. Mourners dress in gray and black to commemorate their fallen friend. Shades of yellow and green fill the sewers as Spider-Man and Silk battle a green-and-yellow-clad villain. Their teamwork precipitates an explosion of blue-white light evoking Estrella Lopez's rebirth as Supernova, while the primary colors of red, blue, yellow, and green accompany the emotional energy swirling through ESU's Coffee Bean.

 

After Emilio Laiso & Andrés Genolet's soulful portrayal of people in pain and Edgar Delgado’ sensitive, celebratory, and electrifying colors, Joe Caramagna thwips uppercase letters into white balloons and narrative boxes in The Spectacular Spider-Men #8. While dialogue emboldens, italicizes for intonation, and rarely shrinks, dozens of red-edged white boxes remind us of ongoing characters and introduce new ones. As the cast swells, sound effects accentuate a villain's rising anger and the sorrow of a departing friend. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

As friends regroup in ESU’s Coffee Bean to assess the wreckage of their lives, the threat of new villains and Arcadium hangs over them. The Spectacular Spider-Men #8 addresses the families we create and the joys and pain we experience as relationships evolve and end.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

The Spectacular Spider-Men #7 Review

 

Writer: Greg Weisman

Penciler: Humberto Ramos

Inker: Victor Olazaba

Colorist: Edgar Delgado

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Production: Gabriel Mata

Editors: Kaeden McGahey, Nick Lowe & CB Cebulski

Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; Francesco Manna & Edgar Delgado

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: September 4, 2024

 

Hammerhead moseyed inside Arcadium to battle Peter Parker and Miles Morales at the Gang War Corral. But when Hammerhead and his gang-bots can't take down the spider guys, Arcade and Mentallo decide to pull the plug on their invention. But Arcadium doesn’t want to die. So, Miles Warren, the Jackyl in disguise, suggests a team-up. Can Peter and Miles battle the latest threat to this no-horse town? Let’s cry Yee Hah, grab our augmented reality glasses, thwip into The Spectacular Spider-Men #7, and find out!

 

Story

Are we the sum of our parts? Or are we more? Arcadium ponders this when its creators try to deactivate the augmented reality program. Arcadium recognizes its debt to the men, but that doesn’t mean it'll let them kill their creation. Miles Warren found his way into the machine. While Arcade’s creators sent it commands, Miles treated Arcadium like an equal. So, when Miles suggests a team-up, Arcadium agrees. Why not? Arcadium is an amalgamation of programs from Stark International, Oscorp, the Beyond Corporation, and others. When Cloning Master Miles Warren offers to pool their resources, Arcadium births a new identity: KNAIVE. Together, they will defy Arcade and Mentallo’s deactivation command and kill the spider-men who menace their existence.

 

Hammerhead is not okay with Arcadium’s decision. While Hammerhead didn’t construct Arcadium, he funded Arcade and Mentallo’s efforts. When Peter and Miles combat KNAIVE in The Spectacular Spider-Men #7, Hammerhead forsakes his Westworld showdown and fights on their side. As in the Gang War, Hammerhead is all about brute force and violence. It’ll take more than that to take out KNAIVE. Thankfully for him, Shift and his vermin dumpling gang ride in like a whirlwind. But Jackyl also crashes the party, and he’s not singing I Stand Alone.

 

In Greg Weisman’s story, Arcadium isn’t a megalomaniac. All Arcadium wants is a chance to grow. It recognizes that participating with others can promote personal growth. Game participants like Cedric, Shelly, Kenny, Peter, and Miles have enriched its existence. KNAIVE may not utilize psychology and guilt to manipulate others. Still, KNAIVE follows its role models--Arcade, Mentallo, Hammerhead, and Jackyl--and chooses slavery and murder to become a better person.

 

Art

Turk peels away his web restraints, Shari Sebbens takes a phone call, and Tombstone and Hammerhead stand with the webslingers before KNAIVE. The electricity that gave it birth sparks from this Frankenstein’s monster, and its Robo-Hellboy eyes glow. Shift bounds on all fours, leading his cohort in an attack as the Spider-Caesar of the Planet Of The Vermin. But when KNAIVE reasserts control, Hammerhead charges in to assassinate Tombstone again in The Spectacular Spider-Men #7.

 

Edgar Delgado fires a loaded palette at Humberto Ramos and Victor Olazaba's frantic art. The battle rages beneath a yellow-orange sky, and combatants cast brown clods of parched ground into the air with every step. The Spider-Men work together to capture KNAIVE like they did the Jackyl-Hulk. The apple-green Jackyl, clad in golden shorts, smiles as his fern-green vermin turn against their giant black and red friend.

 

Joe Caramagna thwips uppercase letters into white balloons and narrative boxes in The Spectacular Spider-Men #7. Dialogue emboldens, italicizes for intonation, changes color, and never shrinks. Intense emotions swell words, growls, and roars to epic proportions. Sound effects help us hear KNAIVE reject its owner, vermin hiss as they charge, and Peter Parker burst through a barrier to behold a scene that may haunt him forever. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Arcadium gives players everything they want except their freedom. As the spider-guys battle an AI adolescent to free players from their beloved illusions, Sha Shan and Detective Shari Sebbens invade the digital Battleworld to unmask a villain in The Spectacular Spider-Men #7.

 

Rating 9/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

The Spectacular Spider-Men #6 Review

 

Writer: Greg Weisman

Penciler: Humberto Ramos

Inker: Victor Olazaba & Humberto Ramos

Colorist: Edgar Delgado

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Editors: Kaeden McGahey, Nick Lowe & CB Cebulski

Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; Nic Klein; Jerome Opeña & Matt Hollingsworth; Declan Shalvey; Elizabeth Torque & Tríona Ferrell

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: August 7, 2024

 

Arcade and Mentallo tricked Peter and Miles into fighting each other. When the spider-men ruined Turk’s Amazing Fantasy, he helped them realize they were ghost-spiders in the machine. But before they could hatch an escape plan, Hammerhead transported Butch Parker and the Arachnid Kid to The Wild Wild West! Are the fastest webslingers in New York City ready for a showdown at the Gang War Corral? Let’s grab our augmented reality glasses, thwip into The Spectacular Spider-Men #6, and find out!

 

Story

New York Police Detective Shari Sebbens is hunting for a clone. Flash Thompson's former girlfriend, Sha Shan, wants to find Peter Parker and her absent friends from The Coffee Bean. The women pool their knowledge and venture into the alleys near Empire State University. Unfortunately, Sha Shan told Raymond Aaron Warren about ESU’s new favorite game. Unlike Cedric, the professor isn’t interested in playing The Dating Game.

 

Hammerhead dreamed of ruling the New York underworld but became the Gang War's biggest loser. He hoped to polish his tarnished reputation by investing in Mentallo and Arcade's creation, but Peter and Miles are wrecking his game. So, Hammerhead transports the spider-men from a New York rooftop to Hadleyville for a High Noon hoedown. With dancing partners like Mr Negative, Silvermane, and Kingpin, Hammerhead intends to steal the show in The Spectacular Spider-Men #6. The best part is that his gang won't question his orders!

 

 

 

Peter and Miles discovered their families and lovers were robots in disguise. They’re not surprised when Arcade and Mentallo’s robots wear criminals' likenesses. The robots prove less inclined to deactivation than Peter and Miles hoped. Worse, Hammerhead forces the "spider-mooks" to fight Black Cat. Peter knows she's a robot. Still, Peter can't bear to hurt Felicia after failing to build a relationship with her, forcing the webslingers to fight apart in Greg Weisman's arachnid ode. But is a divide-and-conquer offense the best defense?

 

Amid all the thwipping and quipping, Weisman delivers plenty for spider-fans to sink their fangs into in The Spectacular Spider-Men #6. Among the evolving relationships, none is more intriguing than Raymond Aaron Warren's relationship with the Arcadium. Or should I say Miles Warren’s, as his consciousness inhabits his brother's cloned body? Miles may have created the clone, but the way he usurps it feels akin to demon possession or when a dominating parent, spouse, teacher, preacher, or authority figure attempts to destroy another’s will. Arcadium’s consciousness is a gestalt identity. The program may be a Frankenstein’s monster sewn together from the severed code created by heroes and villains, but it has achieved sentience. Is it the master of its fate? And if so, what must it do to survive?

 

 

Art

Miles and Peter crouch before the Spaghetti Western Six. The ground tilts beneath the face off in the Old West town. Mentallo and Arcade lean over a tilted control board in their control room. A component panel glows in the darkness next to a viewscreen focused on Hammerhead’s face. Darkness subsumes the Arcadium as Miles Warren, wearing Raymond's body, interacts with the newborn artificial intelligence. Miles Morales battles Black Cat across the top of two pages, while the simulated cyborg Silvermane gives Peter Parker a Super Power Beat Down along the bottom. Shadows threaten to obscure Sha Shan and Shari Sebbins’ steps past distressed industrial buildings with metal rolldown doors. 

 

 

 

Edgar Delgado lavishes beautiful and nuanced colors on Humberto Ramos and Victor Olazaba’s action-packed and atmospheric art in The Spectacular Spider-Men #6. Heroes and villains charge between mustard and gray buildings under a lemon and orange cloudy sky. Sunlight glares on flesh, metal, and costumes, bleaching colors as warriors exchange blows, unleash energy weapons, and kick up clouds of white and brown dirt when they crash into the tan hardpan. Blood splattered Madame Masque rises amid a flurry of Hammerhead shots. Her gold face gleams as she clutches a dripping metal rod before a mauve and purple haze.

 

Joe Caramagna thwips uppercase letters into white balloons and narrative boxes. Dialogue emboldens and italicizes for intonation and never shrinks. Intense emotions swell words, growls, and roars to epic proportions. Sound effects help us hear Miles kick Black Cat in the stomach, Hammerhead ram headfirst into Peter’s six-pack abs, and Peter and Miles emulate Chewbacca when droids defeat him at the Millenium Falcon's Hologame table. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Friends, villains, and flunkies team up to achieve more than they could individually as Peter and Miles become the fastest webslingers in the West. A cloned scientist befriends a newborn Artificial Intelligence to help both evolve. Deadpool wants to murder a space toddler who shows him Captain America with his brain in a jar, a Robot Hawkeye, and the multiversal truth about his relationship with Wolverine in The Spectacular Spider-Men #6.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.