Spider-Man India #1: What Makes Us Unique

Adam Kubert takes charge of the cover and does a wonderful job setting up some important things within it. First of all, this is not the same Spider-Man India that everyone saw in Across the Spider-Verse. Kubert makes it immediately apparent that this Spider-Man India is very much more visually similar to the 616 Spider-Man with some minor costume differences such as the pants, fingerless gloves, and footwear. Kubert also has this Spider-Man bursting out of the page. This explosive entrance immediately shows audiences that this Spider-Man is something worth checking out. Overall, this cover does a great job of solidifying and setting expectations, while also pushing for an exciting new series. 

For the uninitiated, Pavitr Prabhakar is Spider-Man India, the hero of Mumbai. This introductory issue wastes no time in setting up this version of Spider-Man, using exposition between Pavitr and 616 Peter Parker and Miles Morales to explain the redundant details. That’s the thing about Pavitr, his story is much more like a DC Elseworlds tale than other iterations of Spider-Man that are depicted in the various Spider-Verse tales. Because of this, his stories can come off as overly redundant. Thankfully, Nikesh Shukla is well aware of this and uses this to his advantage with this new story.

Spider-Man India #1 builds on the premise set up way back in Dan Slott and Olivier Coipel’s original Spider-Verse, where Pavitr somehow becomes self-aware that his story is not unique, and that he may just be a derivative of Peter Parker. While the readers know just how true that is, Pavitr is put in a position where he must define what makes him wholly unique. In this case, the issue pivots to a point where Pavitr sincerely starts to question why he has to be Spider-Man. More so than Peter’s inner turmoil, Pavitr starts to question the last words of his uncle. This creates a fun dynamic that finally pushes Pavitr out of Peter’s shadow, giving him an identity and a crisis that sets this story in motion.

Abhishek Malsuni pencils this issue in a classic style, giving this book a 90’s feel; Scott Hanna’s inks ties that together, making the art very reminiscent of Mark Bagley. This familiar style helps bridge the gap between what most people would attribute to Spider-Man and the flair that comes with a story taking place in Mumbai, India. This art shines the most when the issue introduces this universe’s version of The Lizard, a more dinosaur-like take on the classic Spider-Man villain. The nearly-full page splash highlights the immense size and veracity of this villain, immediately showing his disastrous nature. 

Neeraj Menon’s colors are the strongest in the depiction of Spider-Man. Whereas Peter usually has a strong red color in his costume, Menon portrays Pavitr’s costume in a much more subdued manner. The red is much duller in comparison yet it highlights the life of Mumbai. When shown in panels with Peter’s costume, it looks a bit odd, but within Mumbai, Pavitr’s Spider-Man feels right at home.

Joe Caramagna, a veteran in the lettering industry, brings this issue full circle, keeping the speech bubbles in positions that allow the art to flourish. Caramagna also uses onomatopoeia to great effect, emoting the characters in a strong manner that brings them out of the page in a fun way.