Review: Spider-Verse Team-Up #2
Previously in The Amazing Spider-Man #11
This Team-Up issue features two stories of Spider Totems traveling to other dimensions with the hopes of convincing that world’s Spider-Man (or woman or animal) to join the fight against The Inheritors.
First, in Too Many Spider-Men, Miles Morales (Ultimate Spider-Man) and Ultimate Spider-Man from TV travel to recruit ’67 Spider-Man. When the two webslingers are spotted, J. Jonah Jameson instructs his Peter Parker to go out there and get photos. Of course, Peter’s pleased to be put on the case so she can learn who the new spiders are.
After a three Spider showdown with a few villains, ’67 Spidey is ready to go, but first he needs to quickly tell Aunt May and his boss he’ll be gone. To save time, Ultimate Spider-Man pretends to be ’67 Peter in order to get time off approved from Jameson.
The best part of this is at the very end when Miles Morales removes his mask to reveal he wouldn’t have been of much help in pretending to be Peter. And ’67 Spider-Man’s reaction is perfect.
In A Spider in the Dark, Spider-Gwen (from Earth-65) travels to Earth-21205 and finds that universe’s Spider-Man rides a hover-craft and, to me, he looks kinda like the Green Goblin. When he sees Gwen, he’s tormented by the fact that he was unable to save his Gwen. She carries the same guilt since she blames herself for the death of her universe’s Peter Parker.
She can’t change his past, but she offers to change his future by taking him with her to the others. Before he can agree to go, Verna and her hounds attack, and he sacrifices himself to save Gwen. She vows revenge on Verna before teleporting away, and Verna laments over the loss of a good meal.
Overall Thoughts:
- This issue really worked for me because it showed (just like the last Team-Up) both sides of what occurs when these Totems risks their lives to find others - not every ending is a happy one.
- The Inheritors are ruthless and there’s no reasoning with them. Spiders are food. Period. That’s what makes them such good, and terrifying, villains. The way Verna calmly interrupts Spider-Man’s trash-talking to kill him was chilling.
- Spider-Man from ’67’s reaction to Miles Morales is one of my favorite scenes in the Spider-Verse so far.
