Gwen is Facing a Whole New Set of Problems in Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #8
Gwen has been making leaps and bounds in her life as of late. She’s holding it together after the aftermath of Spider-Geddon, she’s working on a work/life balance, and she might even have a boyfriend. But she’s still got one major lesson left to learn when it comes to being an outted superhero.
Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider has been working hard to reinvent Gwen’s character subtly. They’re pushing the boundaries of her character while also trying to make her more relatable. It’s an interesting balance, but it’s working.
Gwen’s quest to understand her powers continues in Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #8. But unfortunately, the villains aren’t content to wait while she figures everything out. And honestly, this is something that all superheroes seem to be forced to experience in their lives.
Writing
It’s easy to forget that Gwen is one of the only superheroes on Earth-65, but Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider has done a decent job of constantly reminding us. It doesn’t hurt that while the heroes may be fewer, the villains are still numerous (though, thankfully, there don’t seem to be as many supervillains).
Seanan McGuire has been working hard to keep the pace of the series going forward, and it shows. It seems like Gwen is coming up against new obstacles every turn she takes. Of course, this is bad for her but great for us readers.
Thinking about it, what happens in Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #8 makes complete sense. Heroes are always a target; it’s why we classically see so many of them try to keep their identities a secret. Gwen doesn’t have the luxury, though, as McGuire has repeatedly pointed out in her series. Now it’s become clear that she has been building up for something big.
While a large plot has arrived, I’d like to point out how Seanan McGuire cleverly introduced a few new plot points that could be picked up later. I prefer this flow in comics, as it makes events feel more organic and less forced.
This issue does end off on a cliffhanger, but that does tend to happen with longer-running plots. Watching Gwen try and sort out her life has been fun, but I’m excited to see something larger get kicked off.
Art
Takeshi Miyazawa and Ian Herring teamed up again for Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #8. Miyazawa provided the lines for this issue, and you can see his clean work and the preference for understatement when possible.
Meanwhile, Herring, the colorist, went with solid blocks of color, frequently sneaking in bolder colors for the simpler panels. It makes for a nice balance and keeps things interesting. The bright background enhanced the fight scene in this issue, making it appear more dramatic while complementing Miyazawa’s drawing style.
I’d also like to say that I’ve been really enjoying how they’ve drawn Gwen’s suit lately. Or, more accurately, the way it transitions between outfits. They seem to prefer two different methods here: a more stylized one and a spider one. Both look fantastic in this art style.
Conclusion
Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #8 was an interesting read, as it took some events that have been building up for the last few issues. It let that buildup explode into something larger, and hopefully, it’ll be a longer-running plot.
I’m looking forward to seeing how this plot is going to progress. And I promise I’m only partially saying that because of the cliffhanger-esque ending here. The series could use an explosive plot now that we’ve had time to recover from the last major event Gwen was in.
This review was originally written for Word of the Nerd, but has been ported over to Quirky Cat’s Fat Stacks now that the site has shut down.
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