Spider-Man #11 Review

Written by: Dan Slott
Art by: Luciano Vecchio
Colors by: Edgar Delgado
Letters by: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover art by: Mark Bagley, Edgar Delgado
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: August 16, 2023

Spider-Man #11 delves into the first meeting and the eventual partnership between Spider-Boy and Spider-man. If you wanted to know all about Spider-Boy, this is it.

Is It Good?

One of the lingering complaints coming out of the End of the Spider-Verse arc is the brusque, poorly-executed, comes-out-of-nowhere introduction of Spider-Boy as a sidekick character who was always there, but nobody remembers. In short, Dan Slott “borrowed” Sentry’s origin story. In Spider-Man #11, Dan Slott attempts to fill in Spider-Boy’s history to explain how he became a sidekick, winning over Spider-Man’s favor, and distance him from the Sentry comparisons with a backstory that’s as interesting but unique enough to set Spider-Boy apart. Does it work? No, not even a little bit.

Slot’s script centers on a heart-to-heart on an NYC rooftop as Spider-Boy recounts little swatches of his life as Spider-Man’s sidekick after he was rescued from Madame Monstrosity. Slott focuses on filling in all the basics by getting Bailey, aka Spider-Boy, to explain how his powers work, who trained him, how they handled villains together (or separately), and why he wants to continue to be a sidekick. Ultimately, Spider-Boy temporarily wins his mentor over for the foreseeable future.

Again, if you wanted the foundation of Spider-Boy, this is the issue for you. Everything from his powerset to his costume is covered, so Dan Slott can now claim the mystery of Spider-Boy is fully solved. Whether or not it’s a satisfying solution is another matter.

What’s great about this comic? Luciano Vecchio delivers light, airy, fun art to convey a sense of juvenile excitement to match Spider-Boy’s personality. Spider-Boy’s training montage with Daredevil is mildly entertaining. And Spider-Boy’s powerset has enough of a twist to make him like Spider-Man but different enough to stand apart.

What’s not so great about this comic? The down points of this issue boil down to two problems.

First, Bailey’s personality is annoying and underdeveloped at the same time. Although mentioned briefly, you never see Bailey interact with his family or express a range of emotions beyond that of a constantly yapping puppy. Slott doesn’t crate any life experience for Bailey more than just sidekick, so he comes off as one-dimensional. Spider-Man doesn’t connect with Spider-Boy because he isn’t given a reason to connect with Spider-Boy in any emotional capacity. Spider-Man only seems intent on keeping Bailey out of trouble, and that’s all, so there’s no meat to their relationship.

Second, Bailey’s succession of stories about how he was first rescued on through to the point of becoming Spider-Man’s sidekick reads as rushed, lazy, and perfunctory. With only a little effort, you can practically pick out the plot points as boxes on a checklist that Dan Slott and Marvel Editorial decided needed covering to fill out Bailey’s Wikipedia page. How did they meet? Check. How do his powers work? Check. Who trained him? Check. Describe their first mission together. Check.

ChatGPT A.I. is getting a lot of attention these days as a threat to writers, with the expected pushback against its use within publishers because A.I. can’t (yet) capture the human element. If you told me the script for this comic was written by ChatGPT, I would believe you because it is so formulaic, basic, and lifeless.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

Spider-Man #11 tells you almost everything you need to know about Baily, aka Spider-Boy, in preparation for his forthcoming solo title. However, Dan Slott fills in all the blanks in the laziest, most basic, perfunctory, lifeless way possible to deliver a primer that may as well have been written by A.I.