The Amazing Spider-Man #13: Your Friendly Galaxy Spider-Man

‘Spider-Man in Space’ sounds like the exact kind of gimmick long-time readers of The Amazing Spider-Man have grown tired of. Whether it’s my own subjective tastes or the storytelling skill of Joe Kelly and Pepe Larraz, issue #13 has fully swayed me on the potential of this storyline going beyond the eye-rolling nature of its single-sentence pitch. Full of thrilling action and the kind of moral quandary that separates the web-slinger from his peers, this story still feels right at home for Peter, even if it takes place light years away from his concrete kingdom of New York City.

While the group setting is rich with the kind of fun, banter-driven character work the publisher has become beloved for, it also gives us an easy setup for the arc’s main themes and Peter’s pattern of growth. His interactions with his fellow captives, and their hodgepodge team-up, work great as a showcase for him as a leader and as a reminder of why he is Marvel’s premiere hero. Divorced from the ongoing drama of his social life and forced to grow stronger in order to thwart Hellgate, we get to see Peter at his developmental apex. That kind of stripped-back, growth-focused storytelling is deeply engaging and doesn’t feel the need to retcon its way into such a simple, raw place. Tying it all together is the brilliant use of Jonathan Hickman’s Imperial Initiative, which gives the Marvel cosmic side a real sense of lawlessness that allows Peter’s character archetype the room to stand out.

The rest of the crew surrounding Peter is a joy to read as well. Kelly writes them all with a distinct, cutting humor that comes from each of their unique personalities. Rocket makes for an excellent ride-along character, his twisted sensibilities the perfect kind of stressor for Peter’s straight-and-narrow. Symbie, the breakout ‘Baby Yoda’ archetype of this new era, was quite humorous and utilized sparingly, which kept the character’s presence in the exact sweet spot needed to keep them from becoming nothing more than an annoying, made-for-Funko stopgap.

Having Pepe back on the title gives this arc the extra oomph it needs to feel just as fresh and grand as the initial five issues of this run. While Romita Jr. and Ed McGuinness have a place in my heart, they are too tied to the character’s past to really let this era have the room to be different in all the right ways. The fluidity in Larraz’s work, which mostly comes from his ability to remain both loose and incredibly detailed, helps to keep Spider-Man acrobatic in environments that don’t necessarily demand it. On that same token, it also keeps the alien, almost Moebius-like nature of Marvel cosmic feeling truly abnormal.