Spider-Gwen Vol. 1: Greater Power

by Jason Latour

Robbie Rodriguez (Artist), Jason LaTour (Script Writer), James Cordeiro (Illustrator), and Robbi Rodriguez (Cover Designer)

Gwen Stacy is back in the webs and has an All-New, All-Different mystery to solve: the reappearance of the Lizard! The Spider-Woman of Earth-65 was convinced that the Lizard's threat died in her arms along with Peter Parker. But a new reptilian rampage leaves her with doubts not only about Peter's life, but also his death. While her father, Captain George Stacy, struggles with Gwen's double life, troubles mount as the Osborns make their debut - and Gwen finds herself on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s most-wanted list! Perhaps Jessica Drew, the Spider-Woman of Earth-616, can offer some wise lessons about power and responsibility that might be handy when Gwen battles the Goblins! Plus: Discover who wields the shield as Earth-65's Captain America joins the fray - but will she be on Gwen's side? Collecting SPIDER-GWEN (2015B) #1-6.

• ISBN10: 0785199594
• ISBN13: 9780785199595
• Publish Date: 10 May 2016
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Out of Print: 29 September 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Marvel Comics
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 136
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780785199595

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

3 1/2 Stars.

Spider-Gwen is based entirely out of one of the alternate universes, so if you’re not a fan of those stories, I strongly urge you to veer away from this series. On Earth-65 Gwen Stacey is still alive, and not only that, she’s the one and only Spider-Woman (okay, she isn’t actually the only Spider-Woman, especially if you’re willing to count the ones in other universes). Needless to say she lives in a very different world than Earth-616 we’re used to seeing.



Spider-Gwen takes everything we know and were used to in the traditional (ie: Earth-616) Marvel Universe and flips it on its head. Pretty much any stabilizing feature you can think of will be the opposite, if not changed somehow. It’s a bit disorienting at first, but once you adjust to the ‘this is a different world’ bit it gets a lot easier.
Well, mostly. It’s still pretty weird seeing some of our favorite heroes be villains, though I don’t think we’ve seen the reverse yet? (I’m sure that’ll change with later volumes). At least Captain America is still a hero, though she’s a lot younger…and you know, a girl (I actually adore her, can we get a series focusing on her please? Or is that a thing and I totally missed it?). Falcon seems to function more as a sidekick that he has previously, which is probably due to his young age (I’d say barely a teenager, if you forced a guess out of me).
There are a ton of other cameos in this series, and we’re only one volume in. Spider-Woman AKA Jessica Drew makes an appearance (from Earth-616, so she’s unchanged); as does Mighty Thor (Again, from Earth-616), as well as Frank Castle (grey scale character that’ll likely turn villain), Matt Murdock (scumbag lawyer), Harry Osborn (S.H.I.E.L.D. agent? Or ex agent…not sure on that one), and Agent Carter (head of S.H.I.E.L.D.). The Bodega Bandit makes an appearance as well…but I don’t remember him, so he may be unique to this series? (Or I have a bad memory…).
As far as I’m concerned, the jury is still out on this series. It’s cool that they’ve flipped so many things, but it’s also almost cliché at times (like the Castle and Murdock ones). I think my opinion of the series will depend heavily (and vary accordingly) on the plot being told. The world itself has potential, but without a good story to carry it there’s no chance it’ll hold my attention.
I liked the artwork in the first four issues, but was less of a fan of the sudden art change in issues five and six. It was too abrupt and too different from the original style (which I quite liked, so I may be biased there). I hope they return to the original style, though I’d probably be able to adjust to the newer one with time.
I think I’ll continue reading the series for now (I also need to go back and read vol. 0, because I accidentally skipped that one, womp womp), because I’m curious about where it’ll lead. The series has potential, even if I do find myself wishing they’d stop focusing so hard on all the things they can make different (change for the sake of change isn’t always the best idea).


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[leahrosereads]

I'm definitely going to pick this up in Trade, but it was in at the comic store, so I decided to pick up the first issue.

I know absolutely nothing about Spider-Man or any of the different universes, and yes, I could look it up on Wikipedia or somewhere, but I haven't yet. I will probably check out some of the world building before the first volume comes out, just so I have an idea of what's going on and the different villains.

So, knowing nothing about the world or who Gwen Stacy really is, I enjoyed this issue. I thought her as the Spider-Woman of this universe was fun and different. I'm not sure about all the underlying issues between her and her father, but I get why the City seems to hate her and find her to be a vigilante. Again, I'm sure if I read up on the universe, I'll have a better understanding.


While I didn't find a the writing or the art exceptional, both are solid. I will say it was an absolutely brilliant decision to make use of negative space with Spider-Gwen's costume. It just felt fresh and inventive and very NOW. Sometimes costumes feel outdated to me, but not this one.


I'm definitely looking forward to checking this out later on when the first couple of volumes come out, and when I get home, I'll put some images of the comic in this, because that costume.



Complete Side Note: This is my first Marvel single issue, and I'm just recently collecting comics, so I'm not sure if this is normal, but it hasn't been with my current experience - WTH is up with all those ads in the issue? This says there are 32 pages, but it's really only 22 pages of Spider-Gwen content. I find that really ridiculous.