Spider-Men II
For a miniseries that effectively heralded the end of the Ultimate Universe, the original “Spider-Men” was still pretty fun. The plot, involving Peter Parker and Miles Morales teaming up to fight a dimension-hopping Mysterio, was pretty inconsequential, but it was still a great demonstration for how Bendis could write Spider-Man in any universe and the considerable talents of its artist, Sara Pichelli. It featured an ending that teased a sequel, yet managed to do it in the most eye-rolling way possible as Peter Parker, back in his own universe, Googled Miles Morales’ name and was shocked (SHOCKED!) by what he found.
That was a better set up for a meme than it was an actual cliffhanger. All we know is that Peter was shocked by what he found and that could’ve been anything. The smart thing to do would’ve been a one-page follow-up that had Peter finding out that, “My god! Miles Morales is a more common name than I had any right to suspect! Why would I even think that Googling his name would get me any kind of answers,” and resolve things that way. Bendis didn’t see it that way and now we’re “blessed” with this follow-up that seeks to answer a question that no longer has any relevance, “Who is the Miles Morales of the Marvel Universe?”
The reason this question is no longer relevant is because there’s no Ultimate Universe to contrast it against. Backing up for a bit, in allowing for a continuity-free approach to re-creating familiar characters the Ultimate Universe could also present different takes on them as well. Sometimes it was a simple twist like turning Gwen Stacy into a bit of a riot grrl or making Frank Castle an ex-cop instead of an armed forces veteran. Other times there were more drastic departures, such as having Eddie Brock be a childhood friend of Peter’s. Then you have the instances where the Ultimate version of an established character is basically a whole new one, like when everyone’s favorite caucasian spider-clone Ben Reilly, wound up as an African-American physician’s assistant.
A good portion of the fun the Ultimate Universe provided was seeing how these familiar characters would be re-imagined for it. While it was still around, that is. Now that its best and most interesting parts have been cherry-picked to continue on in the Marvel Universe we can safely say that the Ultimate Universe has passed on after a good run. Of course, the big thing at the end of the original “Spider-Men” was effectively the reverse of the “Ultimization” of a character. So what Bendis is doing here is still possible even if the idea behind it has been stripped of all its charm. It could even turn out to be compelling if the “Miles Morales of the Marvel Universe” tells us something interesting about the Miles we’ve come to know and love.
That’s not what happens here. The “Miles Morales of the Marvel Universe” is a nasty scarred-up gangster, who happens to be good friends with Wilson Fisk, and is still nursing the grief he feels over his dead wife. Bendis has effectively created a brand-new character in this reverse-Ultimization approach. While he very much wants us to think that Marvel Miles is some kind of dark mirror of this character we’ve come to know it’s an argument that fails to persuade. There’s no indication that these characters have anything in common at all beyond their name so neither’s actions should reflect on the other’s at all. It’s just rotten luck that our Miles happens to share his name with a criminal. This whole setup of a connection shared through characters having the same name is marginally less silly than the “Martha” moment from “Batman vs. Superman,” and that’s the nicest thing I can think to say about it.
So if the core of this miniseries is pretty much a lost cause, how does all the stuff surrounding it fare? Better than you’d expect, thankfully. Bendis rarely disappoints when writing Spider-banter and that’s true again here. As with the previous miniseries, he has Peter and Miles bouncing off each other to good effect, even with the dropping of an unnecessary drama bomb on the former’s part early on. That’s eventually walked back by the end with Miles coming to an interesting realization about what it takes to be a Spider-Man as well.
As for the “Miles Morales of the Marvel Universe,” he’s not all that interesting in and of himself. He’s a mobster whose wife died early and now he’s trying to find a new version of her in another dimension. Whatever. There is one thing his character winds up being useful for in the context of the story, and that’s how he brings out a side of Wilson Fisk that we don’t see all that often. The Kingpin’s ruthlessness is well known and often demonstrated in the stories he features in, but he does have a more compassionate side that’s usually only wheeled out as a precursor to spotlighting that bad side even more. That’s the side of the character we see in his interactions with this Miles, from their time together in prison to Fisk comforting his friend at his wife’s funeral. While the Kingpin seen here is still very much a bad guy, he bites off another character’s nose at one point, it’s actually kind of refreshing to see him interact with this Miles on friendly terms. Compared to how we usually see him in skull-crushing villainy mode.
Sara Pichelli returns to provide art for this miniseries and it’s something of a mixed bag. While I’ve enjoyed her work in all of her previous collaborations with Bendis, there’s something off about the art here. Pichelli’s art has always been marked by an appealing crispness, and that’s missing here. The characters and buildings look softer and less distinct. It’s still fine work when it comes to conveying action and character, but it’s not on the same level that I’ve come to expect from the artist.
The bottom line with “Spider-Men II” is that it’s deeply skippable unless the cliffhanger from the previous miniseries struck a chord with you and you’ve been dying to find out who the “Miles Morales of the Marvel Universe” is after all these years. To the creators’ credit, this probably would’ve worked better as an arc in the “Spider-Man” ongoing series as that would’ve alleviated any expectations regarding the reveal and allowed this story to be judged as just another arc in that title. It works out just fine in that regard. In delivering a new miniseries that seeks to make a mini-event out of a years-old cliffhanger, however, “Spider-Men II” just delivers a mighty impressive faceplant.