Spider-Verse

The term “event” in comic books means a massive plotline that affects everything in the aforementioned comic book universe. The Final Crisis DC event was a game-changer because heroes died. Not the “come back to life next issue” deaths comic books are infamous for. They actually died. People were erased from existence. An entire universe, gone like a puff of smoke, supplanted by a new reality. Today’s article will discuss the currently-ongoing Spider-Man “event” entitled “Spider-Verse.”

Way, way back in June 2001, legendary sci-fi wunderkind J. Michael Straczynski created a new Spider-Man foe named Morlun. Morlun’s sole purpose was to hunt down and consume beings with arachnid-like powers. Like DC villain Doomsday, Morlun actually kills his arch-rival . . . well, almost. Arrogant, Morlun dropped his guard and paid for it when Peter (in a near-death delirium) bit his head off.

But you can’t keep a good villain down. Fast forward to “present” day: Morlun returns as Spider-Man’s antagonist, but this time he’s not alone. He has an entire family at his side. Oh, and they have the power to cross parallel universes. They’re on a mission to kill every Spider-Man in existence.

Spider-Man’s going to need an army to repel Morlun. Fortunately, he’s getting one. Various Spider-Men are crossing time and space to recruit their “brothers” for the fight against Morlun and his family. But this is easier said than done. Each of the Spider-Men, all products of different circumstances and choices, find themselves at odds with their other selves. Some want to kill Morlun. Others want to reason with him. Others think they’re better off on their own. It’s going to be hard to unite such different people to one cause. But they have to. The alternative is death.

Parallel universes are fascinating because they show what characters could have turned into had they made different choices under altered circumstances. The Spider-Verse event takes it to a whole new level. Case in point: the Assassin Spider-Man. Instead of accepting the fact that being Spider-Man makes targets of his loved ones, the Assassin Spider-Man abandons his family (for their safety). Taught how to kill by Wolverine, the Assassin Spider-Man became desensitized to murder, and has no problem with shooting first and…well, not asking questions. Ever. The Assassin Spider-Man is the killer every superhero fears they’ll turn into.

The word “event” holds a special meaning in comic books. Events are game-changers. Events turn the universe on its head. Granted, comic books wouldn’t be entertaining without cosmic stages and universal stakes. But the consequences never seem to hold: heroes are reborn issues later, or villains thought dispatched are retroactively revived years later to bolster profit margins. But “events” are permanent. No rebirth, no mysterious returns. When the smoke clears, people must move on without their heroes to protect them. I can’t wait to see how the Spider-Verse event turns out.

 

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