Spider-Boy #2: Ho-Ho-Oh Boy It’s Spider-Boy!

Spider-Boy #2 picks up with another day in the life of Spider-Man’s forgotten sidekick, the enigmatic and jubilant Spider-Boy. Garnering a lot of criticism from online communities, this series had a lot of people to win over; however, after a fun filled first issue Spider-Boy seems to have its own sort of rhythm going. Spider-Boy #2 sees Bailey Briggs teaming up with Captain America on a standard adventure that allows his relevance within the Marvel universe to grow. The backup sees another retoconned story – that exists within Bailey’s forgotten past – where Spider-Boy gets to team up with none other than Santa Claus. 

The main plot of this issue revolves around Bailey having a vision from his advanced spider sense that warns him of an attack from Taskmaster. This leads to him running into Captain America, and teaming up with him to take down the supervillain. This seemingly innocuous team up then leads to some fun character work and bonding between the two heroes as Captain America compares Bailey’s missing time to when he was frozen after World War II. Writer Dan Slott shows some genuine care to this story by highlighting the obvious comparison that most fans would have just glazed over, creating a heartfelt and fun issue. 

The only odd part of how Slott writes here is the voice he gives Captain America. Sometimes Captain America says some hokey things, reminding everyone that he is from the 1940s; however, the way Slott writes him almost feels like an old Stan Lee and Jack Kirby Avengers issue. Slott is not incredibly well known for writing Captain America so the voice he gives him seems almost overdramatized, yet it does fit in with the way a child like Bailey may think a man that old would speak. Regardless of what Slott was going for, it was definitely an odd choice to be sure.

Paco Medina delivers an always top notch job in the art here, giving this series a much needed flair. Spider-Boy looks great on every page and Medina gives the world that authentic, “world outside your window” feel. Some artists tend to make younger characters feel older and more mature; however, Medina makes Bailey truly feel his age, which gives this book more of a unique feel when compared to its sister series from Slott, Superior Spider-Man. 

The backup is honestly what everyone is going to write home about, seeing as though the canon mutant Santa Claus makes his triumphant return while teaming up with Spider-Boy in a flashback on Thanksgiving. This was honestly one of the sleeper hits of the holiday season, showcasing the kind of fun that Santa Claus can bring when a writer like Slott goes all in on hokey Christmas themed puns. This is made all the better by Ty Templeton and Dee Cunniffee who genuinely do an excellent job in capturing the youthful joy within Spider-Boy as he teams up with Santa Claus. DC may be having a blast with their Batman / Santa Claus: Silent Knight series; however, an issue like this may give them a run for their money when it comes to some classic, Christmas joy.