It’s a great time to be a Spider-Man India fan thanks to the new comics series by Nikesh Shukla and Abhishek Malsuni, but also the major character introduced in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. The character in the major motion picture was great, but how does the new miniseries stack up?
Spider-Man: India #1 is a refreshing comic that leans into the culture and uniqueness of the characters. The first issue acts as a good lead-in for casual readers who may not know the character well, throwing them into a battle that involves Miles Morales and Peter Parker. All three are facing a powered-up version of Mysterio, which explains why Spider-Man India is in the 616 universe at all.
From there, Shukla dives right into a fun conversation between the three Spider-Men. Getting a snack after their battle, it’s nice to see them connect. We also clearly understand Spider-Man India’s heroic mantra and how it differs from Peter’s. We learn it’s about self-service to the community, an idea that plays a significant role in the story’s main villain, introduced later in the issue.
After the invigorating start, the story zips back to Earth-50101, where we get introduced to Pavitr’s aunt, friend, and rival. These scenes reveal the villain wants to eradicate the slums–a part of the city Spider-Man protects–and he has to go through Pavitr. He seems to accomplish this goal.
Mysterio gets an upgrade.
Credit: Marvel
This villain ends up going full monster once we reach the cliffhanger. It’s a nice twist on a villain, but he gets one over Pavitr a little too conveniently. Given that Pavitr has a Spider-Sense, it’s disappointing to see how he’s trapped, revealing a plot device to move things along. It’s also a pretty heavy sequence, with Pavitr getting injected with something, chained up, and tested with sciencey stuff.
If you’re a fan of alternate takes on villains, this issue has the gloriously fun Mysterio to start and another villain that’s a slight variation on a classic Spider-Man villain. Malsuni does a great job rendering both, keeping the action fun. Malsuni’s street-clothed character drawings are top-notch and a real strength of the issue.
Fans unfamiliar with this version of Spider-Man are in for a treat. The creative team is firing on all cylinders capturing his uniqueness, leading us into his world with a good introduction, and setting up a new villain that’s a fun twist on a classic—a well-written issue from cover to cover. Don’t pass up on this fun twist on Spider-Man that totally deserves an ongoing series.
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