A Spider-Man Podcast

Spider-Man 2099 #7 – REVIEW

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Long before we dipped our toes into the edge of “Spider-Verse,” cynics warned that this story could cause event fatigue. The idea that “every Spider-Man ever” would appear was all the ammo that nay-sayers needed to predict an unsatisfying story. However, it’s not the number of characters that have bogged down the event; it may be the number of issues. Spider-Man 2099 #7 seems to be a superfluous issue that neither impact the main “Spider-Verse” narrative, nor does it add to the understanding of its main characters.

Story-wise, Miguel’s head is simply not in the game here. He has Daemos trapped in a force field, but Miggy blows it by mentioning that the energy IMG_0556could kill the Inheritor. That’s all Daemos needs to know to figure out his escape. Miguel may be forgiven for not knowing about the Inheritors cloning capabilities, but after reading Amazing Spider-Man #12, it appears Team 2099 knows all about the source of their immortality.  However, Miguel should NOT be forgiven for his next mistake: letting inter-dimensional jumping technology get into the hands of Alchemax.  This could become as disastrous as bringing an alien symbiote back to Earth from Battleworld.

Miguel’s biggest blunder may be one of the heart.  At the peak of their crisis, Miggy runs off to a bio-lab, presumably to get a cure for his janitor’s leukemia, who’s back in 2014.  That’s right; there’s an existential Spider-Crisis literally closing in on them, and Miggy is still thinking about some girl in his building!  My initial fear was that Miguel wouldn’t want to return to 2014 now that he’s home.  But this is worse.  Daemos is chomping at the bit to take a bite of him, and Miggy has his mind on Tempest, a woman he barely knows!  If anything, he should be using this time to gather a 2099 arsenal, especially since those big guns seem to be the best weapons against the Inheritors so far.

The coolest action in the book doesn’t even come from a Spider.  Peter David brought back another character from the 2099 Universe: The Punisher Jake Gallows.  You really get a feel of the Inheritors’ strength when you watch Daemos shake off Barry Bonds-sized swings to the IMG_0558face from The Punisher.  I love how Punisher is armed to the teeth, but his Plan B after losing his giant blaster is a titanium bat (FYI: Pun is a Lefty).  Punisher even throws in a little Wile E. Coyote gag.  This sequence lasts six pages, and while it’s very cool, I wish there was just a few more panels devoted to character.

We do get a couple nuggets of interesting characterization in this issue, like when Miguel blows off Lady Spider in front of Tyler Stone.  This isn’t the first time Miggy has had problems with his manners when it comes to women.  He’s already fantasied about killing Liz Allen twice in this series.  Unfortunately, Steam Punk Lady Spider received no similar moment in the spotlight.  She’s just here to explain the technology.  Even Daemos gets a character-defining moment by showing that he’s willing to take the pain and absorb a lethal amount of energy.  And unlike Morlun, who abandoned the fight after his last death, Daemos is instantly back for more.  It’s a brief look at his rage, power and determination that, on some level, deserves the respect of a warrior.

There’s a moment in this book, or rather a lack of a moment, that actually made me angry as a reader.  In Amazing Spider-Man #12, we learn that Team 2099 has discovered something significant about The Inheritors’ DNA.  But that moment never pays off in Spider-Man 2099 #7.  It’s understandable that the editors want most of the plot to happen in the pages of the main title, and I give them credit for juggling dozens of characters, across multiple stories lines throughout a number of titles.  But this almost feels like an editing error.  Because, if they purposely included this tease in Amazing, with no intention to pay it off in 2099, then those are the types of decisions that will cause readers to give up on a title.  The cliffhanger is also a tad on the weak side.  It reveals information that’s already a month old with no good reason to be excited for the next issue.

IMG_0560Will Sliney’s art continues to be solid.  His faces continue to be one of his biggest strengths.  I really love the little details, like the reflection from the fire in The Punisher’s eyes and the twisted looks on Daemos when he takes those hits from the bat.  But since most of the issue takes place in an operating room, Sliney doesn’t get the opportunity for a lot of Spider-action.  There’s also a lot of light blues in this issue, because of Daemos’ energized holding cell, so we don’t get to enjoy the usual bold colors that Antonio Fabela has become known for in this series.

When it comes to this series, I’m starting to look forward to the end of “Spider-Verse,” and the return to Miguel’s story.  Spider-Man 2099 #7 feels like the plot is in a holding pattern, waiting for events to play out in the flagship title.  Maybe it was just an excuse to reintroduce Punisher 2099 for a moment.  More importantly, the details of the Inheritors’ DNA had better be important, or Miguel may have just failed ‘every Spider-Man ever.’

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