Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #10: With a Little Help From My Friends

This may not be the Spider-Man we deserve but it’s damn sure the Spider-Man I’ve always wanted. Taylor has taken Peter Parker’s classic mantra of “with great power comes great responsibility” and redirects it away from the classical superhero narrative towards real world issues that are, ultimately, actually solvable problems if those in power were to make a stand. Peter notes early in this issue, during a conversation with Stark, that money isn’t important to him. In some ways, this line can be glossed over, easily forgotten, yet in other ways, it is really at the heart of this series.

While most of us don’t have enough money to affect change on a global or national scale or maybe even local scale, any action at all, whatever you find in your power to do, affects change of some sort. Maybe it’s only for one person– a family member, a stranger on the street, or even yourself– but many small changes in the lives of people add up to something greater. The notion of crowd-funding speaks volumes towards the power of the collective on the lives of the few. Yet here, we see how easily manipulated this system can be. In bringing such a concept to the light, Taylor and company simultaneously expose a systemic issue that can be fought at multiple levels while highlighting the power of the people, united, to change the world they live in, even if it is just for one other person.

I still am a reluctant to say I like Lashley’s art style. That is simply to say that it doesn’t aesthetically appeal to me personally in general. But in this particular instance, the overly detailed moments, the ragged lines, the heavy inks, all of these elements combine into a style that perfectly conveys the tone of the issue. Here, there be monsters and sometimes, the world is an ugly place, but maybe, just maybe, one person can do something about that.