Writer: Dan Slott
Artists: Mark Bagley, John Dell & Nathan Stockman
Colorist: Edgar Delgado
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Cover Artists: Mark Bagley & Edgar Delgado; Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado; Skottie Young; Doaly
Publisher: Marvel
Price: $5.99
Release Date: November 15, 2023
While Doctor Octopus wants to remember his past, Spider-Man wants to forget it, and Spider-Boy wishes everyone could remember him. How might the three help each other achieve their desires? Let’s thwip into Superior Spider-Man #1 and find out!
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Story: Mistaken Identity Crisis
It’s team-up time, with the webslinger mentoring his junior wallcrawler. Mirage suffers from Multiple Body Disorder and a thirst for villainy. Spider-Man realizes Spider-Boy can tackle the jewelry thief, so he lets Bailey take the hits and sort out which Mirage is real. Freed from her containment, Supernova breaks up a spidey-bonding-break over ice cream. She blames Spider-Man for imprisoning her and means to get even. Little does she realize that Doc Ock, who recently released her, once occupied Spider-Man’s body.
As the villain who imprisoned her follows her trail of fire, his Ocktoids disperse and record the battle from multiple vantage points. Observing Peter’s solution to Supernova’s Spider-Hunt awakens a dormant memory. The resultant flood of remembrances delivers his fondest desire: how he mastered sustainable nuclear fusion when he was the Superior Spider-Man! In his first story for Superior Spider-Man #1, Dan Slott reminds us of Peter and Bailey’s pain. While Peter lost his Spider-Man abilities, he regained his Uncle Ben. With the Web Of Life And Destiny restored his uncle’s death hits him afresh. As for Bailey, he finally convinced Peter to let him be his sidekick. Now Spider-Boy must prove himself all over again. Peter’s solution to Supernova’s Spider-Hunt seems odd, considering how he recently tried to enhance his spider-sense. Still, perhaps it will give him time to heal.
Story: Negative Reinforcement
Dan Slott’s second story belongs to earlier days when Otto Octavious’ consciousness inhabited Peter Parker’s body. Spider-Boy rejoices in the increased trust his mentor has placed in him. Eager to prove his worth, Spider-Boy patrols the streets even though Spider-Man orders him to take the evening off. But when he finds a strange mask, it warns him that Spider-Man threatens its owner.
In this second tale in Superior Spider-Man #1, Dan Slott explores how our tactile senses shape our perception. Touch can reveal things sight alone cannot perceive. Touch can alter willpower and induce others to do one’s bidding. Sadly, touch can also hurt others and scar them physically, emotionally, and mentally. As in Mistaken Identity Crisis, Negative Reinforcement also speaks to what Spider-Boy has lost. Spider-Man trusted Spider-Boy with web shooters and let him tackle more than D-list villains before the Web Of Life And Destiny played its cruel trick upon him.
Art
Penciler Mark Bagley and inker John Dell impart an Old School appearance to characters. Yet Doc Ock and his Ocktoids look as if they’ve stepped out of the pages of recent Amazing Spider-Man issues. Their art in Mistaken Identity Crisis also showcases Spidey battling the elements, as he did when Peter recently tried to enhance his spider-sense. Backgrounds never suffer, and the artists populate crowd scenes with expressive faces. They even add a touch of humor by altering the name of a Broadway show displayed in Times Square. Nathan Stockman’s characters elicit modern appeal, and his backgrounds are highly detailed in Negative Reinforcement. Spider-Boy looks less in control, while Spider-Man demonstrates perfect poise and defined musculature. Spider-Boy’s attacks look zany, while Otto’s childhood memory proves more haunting than a demonic mask.
Edgar Delgado lavishes bold, vibrant colors upon both stories in Superior Spider-Man #1. While he gives memories limited coloring, a jubilant Doc Ock looks indomitable amid a double-page flood of remembrances. Perhaps Spider-Boy’s psychic revelations look bleached, and gray infuses the ground and night sky more in the second story. But the colors of our heroes’ costumes stand out, and the substitute members of the Fantastic Four are equally eye-catching. Joe Caramagna places uppercase dialogue in white and colored balloons in Superior Spider-Man #1. Character thoughts inhabit colored narrative boxes. Dialogue rarely shrinks for lowered voices, and raised voices are large and colorful. A flurry of energetic and expressive sound effects helps us hear web shooters, explosions, and Ocktoids Assemble. Yet Spider-Boy’s embattled dialogue balloon, struggling to choose between black and white, speaks volumes. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.
Final Thoughts
While loss and memory haunt Doc Ock, Spider-Man, and Spider-Boy, the pint-size wallcrawler demonstrates surprising resilience in Superior Spider-Man #1.