Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse changed superhero pop culture. It turned Miles Morales into a household name, along with the very idea of a multiverse full of spiders. Since then, Marvel has made numerous entries into the world of Spider-Verse. The latest, Spider-verse, in name at least, tries the hardest to grab onto that popularity.
The plot of the story certainly fits the title. The comic opens with Miles Morales beating up on the supervillain, 8-Ball. A splitting headache draws Miles away to a rooftop, where a mysterious voice calling itself Spider-Zero, calls to him. Spider-Zero pulls Miles into the multi-verse. The journey bounces Miles across the multiverse. He sees spider-gangs, Monsterhattan, a Mad Max world, and a few others. Miles visits one fellow Spider-Totem from the Spider-verse comic events. The story culminates with the reveal of the Spider-Zero character and what the final mission will be.
The story jumps around for most of the issue without ever really digging in. Because we see so many worlds, the story never invests in what occurs around Miles. Much of the issue felt like a Marvel Encyclopedia of Earths instead of a story line. The title of the story and the final pages make it clear the mini-series will continue this pattern. While I enjoyed the portions of the story involving the plot, the majority of the comic felt superfluous. The worlds were enjoyable, but the constant bouncing around prevented any real interest from growing.
The story leaned into the multiversal feel by utilizing a long list of artistic teams. The gambit resulted in many worlds which felt unique and special. The art always fit the Earth. I would love to see more of those teams developing those worlds.
Verdict: Pass. While the story certainly has potential, the constant movement though different worlds and sub-plots prevent the reader from investing into any particular aspect of the story. By the end, the comic feels like a list of Earths in the Spider-Verse, not a complete story.