The day has finally come for Spider-Boy to reveal his direct connection with Spider-Man. We got a tiny bit of detail about Spider-Boy in Edge of Spider-Verse #3, but rest assured, Dan Slott and Mark Bagley dish big-time in Spider-Man #11. I know many dislike the very idea of this character, but the creative team captures a lot of the joy and discovery of early Spider-Man comics in this issue.
This issue picks up where we left off, as Peter has had enough of Spider-Boy, and he wants him to stop with the lying and the tagging along stuff. Peter doesn’t want a sidekick and hardly believes this kid was somehow his sidekick in the 616 universe. As it turns out, somehow Spider-Man and the rest of the universe have forgotten about him and his role as a sidekick, but after Spider-Man #11, you might be thinking, maybe he was.
This issue doesn’t hold back on the Spider-Boy reveals, which is saying something since he’s been mostly teased until now. Slott gets to reveal how he got his training, hint at a larger story concerning how he got his powers, and even dig into who made his costume. Throw in that there aren’t just one but two Spider-Man and Spider-Boy team-up adventures, and this issue has a lot of entertainment value.
There’s a classic feel to these flashbacks that could easily fit into a Stan Lee-written comic. Slott cleverly weaves in different heroes to add to Spider-Boy’s origin. This makes sense since Peter isn’t much of a teacher and integrates him more fully within the universe. The villains used are nice B-listers, too, which helps mix things up. There’s even a good reason why Spider-Boy doesn’t fight A-List Spider-Man villains.
It makes sense Spider-Man would enlist Daredevil to teach him.
Credit: Marvel
Art by Luciano Vecchio with colors by Edgar Delgado is sharply rendered with good details. There’s a slight cartoony look to the issue that suits a young-hero adventure like this one. There’s also a lot to draw, and nothing looks unfinished or rushed. There are also some tricky things to pull off, like Spider-Boy’s unique vision or agility.
The bottom line is, Spider-Boy is a lot of fun and delivers big-time on a classic fun feel comics need more of. Throw in satisfying answers to how Spider-Boy started his superhero adventures, and I’m sure many — especially kiddos — will be on board for more Spider-Boy adventures. If you have any doubts about Spider-Boy, pick up Spider-Man #11, and hopefully, Marvel Legends will get us an action figure by Christmas.
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