Giant-Size Spider-Man #1: Venom Returns!

Giant-Size Spider-Man #1 marks the beginning of a series of celebratory Marvel releases, aiming to commemorate the publishing line’s 50th anniversary. Cody Ziglar, continuing his excellent work in Miles Morales: Spider-Man alongside the esteemed artist Iban Coello, had raised expectations to match the quality of the aforementioned Spider-Man title and the solicitations’ promise of something spectacular. Unfortunately, this book turns out to be a dull mortar shell dropped at the start of the year, continuing Marvel’s trend of reviving dead publishing ideas through inoffensive and cover incentive filler work.

While the writing and art on display aren’t bad, they don’t stand out either. Initially, the book holds some intrigue with its plot setup but loses its impact by the end, attempting to do too much within the surprisingly limited page count of the main story. Apparently, the title ‘Giant-Size’ doesn’t accurately reflect the value in this issue. Yes, the solicitations acknowledge that what you’re paying for includes a full issue reprint in the back. However, when that reprint arguably diminishes the main story’s value and pacing, it’s easy to feel cheated.

The strongest aspects of this issue are Ziglar’s continued excellence in dialogue and characterization. Ziglar captures a natural cadence for Venom that is both endearing and somewhat threatening. The plot, however, struggles to carry weight. As mentioned earlier, the setup about mysterious weapon shipments potentially tied to Rabble was intriguing but ultimately serves as a setup for an issue of Gang War releasing on the exact same day as this one. Therefore, its impact in building excitement for Miles’ role in that event is muted, as the cliffhanger has zero time to settle in before being immediately resolved.

So, the issue still has the Miles/Venom team-up to fall back on, but there’s nothing particularly satisfying about their interaction or time together. It boils down to a straightforward crossover that doesn’t do much with either character. Ziglar tiptoes along the surface of the puddle when it comes to their differences as vigilantes but doesn’t delve into it. The current Venom being a teenager and interacting with a young Spider-Man like Miles, who would struggle with Dylan’s idea of justice, should make for an interesting story of conflicting ideals between two young people shouldering complicated legacies.

It’s a story that nearly writes itself, and yet, nothing substantial is done with it here. The book plays it too safe, and as a result, its giant-sized price barely justifies itself as a worthwhile read, containing mostly fluff and reprinted material easily accessible in other forms. Iban Coello’s art is passable, with the coloring washing out its finer edges and leaving his pencils looking dull. The panel format includes some solid action sequencing to break up the mundanity.