Cataclysm: Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #2 Review
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Dave Marquez
Colors: Justin Ponsor
Letters: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover: Dave Marquez & Rainier Beredo
Review by Scott Keys
Cataclysm: Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #2 hits the ground running and gives the Miles Morales fans something we’ve been looking forward to (or dreading, depending on your outlook) for awhile now.
Bendis, Marquez, and Ponsor give us yet another chapter in this brilliant Miles Morales story. If there is one thing that Bendis does well, it’s character development. This issue gives us a glimpse of what Tandy and Miles were doing 2 years prior when the “evil mutants” flooded New York. Just outstanding character work here with the conflict between children and their parents, a timeless struggle with a new coat of paint – superheroes.
And just as well as Bendis writes characters, Marquez is equally amazing on the art! Each character looks distinct, not cookie cutter. Such a wide range of emotion is captured, from shock and awe, to broken down and scared. Of course, Ponsor’s colors really make these scenes (character and action) pop and gives the scenes more depth and emotion. This is a truly stellar creative team!
You thought I forgot about the “good stuff,” huh? Well, here you go. We left off with Cloak and Dagger catching their first glimpse of Galactus. Well, after Tandy’s flashback of her mom not wanting to “get involved,” she was determined to help and wanted Cloak to teleport them to Galactus’ face! Meanwhile, Spider-Man and Spider-Woman are helping the Ultimates and come across a playground of children. This makes Miles remember when his family was trying to leave New York during Ultimatum, and his dad made the comment that he’d basically hate Miles if he turned out to be a mutant (more on that later).
After Bombshell’s ex-boyfriend gets killed in the chaos, she decides to join up Spidey and Spider-Woman. Bombshell then stops some looters and gets to feel what it really feels like to be a hero for the first time. Miles was able to reunite one of the children with his father, which lead Miles to seek out his father. Meanwhile, Cloak narrowly escapes from Galactus’ eye beams and decides to start rescuing victims instead of taking on a giant villain all alone. Now, remember when I said Miles was seeking out his father? Well he finds him and finally unmasks in front of him, revealing that he is… (Sorry, you’re going to have to read it to find out)! WHAT?!? Of course, that’s the end of this issue, and we have to wait a whole month for resolution.
Cataclysm: Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #2 was more action-packed, character-driven goodness from one of the best creative teams in comics today! Go check this book out!
Art: 5 / 5
Story: 4.5 / 5
Overall: 4.5 / 5
Scott Keys is a father, Butler University grad, pharmacist, and full-time comic nerd. You can follow his adventures around the spinner-rack and his Incoherent Comic Book Ramblings on:
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