It’s safe to say by this point we all know Spider-Man’s origin story as well as Batman’s: Highschool science nerd gets bitten by a radioactive spider, gets wicked cool spider powers instead of getting sick, Uncle Ben gets shot, Peter can never buy a certain popular easy cook rice brand ever again, and so on. But this ever popular, iconic origin story is the story of Peter Parker – created by Steve Ditko and Stan Lee in 1962 and first appearing in Amazing Fantasy #15. So, what about Miles Morales? Since his first appearance in 2011, Miles has gone on to take over the web-clad tights and spandex, star in his own Spider titles, and made appearances more recently in video games and the hit animated feature film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse from which he gained a significant boost in main-stream popularity. And with the “All-New, All-Different” PlayStation 5 Spider-Man: Miles Morales out, no doubt he’s found himself an even greater fanbase than ever before. Here’s hoping we get to see a live-action version before long…
It’s important to recognise that one of the reasons our eight-legged themed – yet thankfully bipedal – teen is so popular is because Spider-Man is relatable. He’s the “everyman” who you can easily read yourself in. Peter Parker’s super identity felt like the escape from reality we all wished we had at one point or another. The Spider-Man identity has become a symbol to represent the outsider, and Miles Morales evolved the super-identity in a way that makes him arguably one of the most important comic book and pop culture icons of the 21st century, alongside fellow Avenger Kamala Kahn, helping to reaffirm the positive value and importance of multicultural representation in comic books and pop culture as a whole.
First appearing in Ultimate Fallout #4 (August 2011) as part of writer Brian Michael Bendis’ Ultimate universe, Miles Morales became the second Spider-Man following the death of Peter Parker, originally illustrated by Sara Pichelli. He came about in the wake of Barack Obama’s President election in 2008, as the first African-American President, and actor Donald Glover’s campaign to star as Spider-Man, influencing the creation of Miles Morales as the first Afro-Hispanic web-slinger. He would later appear in the 616-universe in 2015 and then attracted an even greater fan base in 2018 through the animated feature, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, inspired by the comic book event of the same name.
His origin story and how he got his arachnid powers were detailed in his first story-arc in Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man, set prior to the events of his first appearance in Ultimate Fallout #4. Miles, like Peter, was bitten by yet another radioactive spider, courtesy of an Oscorp scientist, Dr. Conrad Markus, who attempted to recreate the spider-formula that created Spider-Man from Peter’s blood. However, the Prowler – Miles’ uncle, Aaron Davis – stole the formula and one of Markus’ spiders crawled into his duffle bag. Some days later, when Miles visited his uncle at his apartment, he received a bite from the stowaway spider, which gave him superhuman abilities akin to Peter’s. Like Peter Parker, Miles can do whatever a spider can, though with a few additional abilities. As well as his own, very slick black and red suit. He can swing from a thread, and spin a web any size, but he can also paralyse you with his “venom strike” and make himself invisible.
Besides his uncomfortably tight spandex and iconic colour scheme, if there’s one thing Spider-Man’s well known for it’s his colourful cast of rogues – rivalling Batman as one of the biggest. From Green Goblin to Otto Octavius, and the alien symbiote Venom, Peter Parker has had his fair share of deadly encounters. As well as slightly embarrassing ones… Typeface doesn’t exactly inspire fear, outside of a preference for cursive over Times New Roman. For the most part, Miles takes over Peter’s rogues gallery – they’re more or less a package deal with the costume. However, among his deadliest and most personal battles have been with the likes of Venom, involved with one of his most emotionally driven story arcs, and his own uncle, the Prowler.
As far as reading recommendations go, the backlog of Miles Morales comics is thankfully not as long as some of Marvel’s other iconic heroes, having nine years’ worth of comics as opposed to Parker’s fifty-eight-year tenure. In recent years, we’ve seen Parker grow, and while his charm and punny quips we associate with him are still a vital part of his character, to some his most recent adventures don’t quite have the same swing, preferring to revisit some of his classic stories instead. In this sense Miles Morales is a great character for both new and veteran Spider-Readers, recalling the energetic teenage years of Peter Parker in a way that can be enjoyed by all readers – despite critics arguing that the increasingly more mature content of comic books makes a 13-year-old superhero inaccessible.
1 Death of Spider-Man Prelude and Death of Spider-Man
The lead up to Miles’ first appearance gives his presence in the Ultimate Marvel universe a greater sense of context and legacy, helping to assert the difficulties he would face in his early days as New York’s new premier web-head. In many ways it shows that Miles works best within the Ultimate Marvel continuity, as opposed to the main series because of his association with Parker’s legacy. Death of Spider-Man Prelude and Death of Spider-Man conclude Peter Parker’s Ultimate storyline in a way that, while controversial for killing off one of Marvel’s most popular characters, helped to breathe new life into the Spider-Man mythos, keeping it fresh and interesting, while maintaining a classic Spider-Man style with the creation of Miles Morales. This shockingly tragic story arc is worth reading if only to help understand Miles Morales’ place in the Ultimate Marvel universe.
2 Ultimate Comics Spider-Man Vol. 1: “Who Is Miles Morales?”
It only stands to reason that if you want to follow the story of Miles Morales, this volume – as its title might suggest – is the way to go as it includes Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #1-5 as well as his first appearance in Ultimate Fallout #4, which deals with the aftermath of the aptly titled “Death of Spider-Man” storyline.
The six-part Ultimate Fallout looks at the effects Peter’s demise had on the Ultimate Marvel universe – with Aunt May, MJ, and Gwen Stacy featured prominently. However in Ultimate Fallout #4, a certain “someone” in a Spider-Man costume turns up to fight and defeat a recent prison escapee, Kangaroo, provoking the people of New York to express disapproval, citing this new “Spider-Man” as disrespectful to Peter Parker. Meanwhile, Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #1-5 follows the new wall-crawling teen, Miles Morales, as he develops and learns to cope with his new powers in his first on-going Spider-Series, written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Sara Pichelli.
3 Ultimate Comics Spider-Man Vol. 4: “Venom War”
In this volume, Miles – like any good Parker successor – attracts the attention of the Daily Bugle, who want to find out whatever they can about the new Spider-Man with a few shocking revelations for them, the reader, and Miles himself. But just as Miles finally gets his own uncomfortable skin-tight, if very stylish, spider-branded new duds and web-shooters, a new, hungry Venom makes his appearance that ties to Miles’ father, Jefferson Davis…
It’s fair to say Venom is probably everyone’s favourite Spider-Man antagonist and it doesn’t hurt that Tom Hardy brought the character to the big screen; and no, we’re not counting the Spider-Man 3 Venom. But anyone familiar with Venom’s history with Peter Parker will know that he’s one of the Spider’s biggest, baddest enemies and whenever he shows up, it’s always an eventful episode. Plus, it would hardly be a Spider-Man best of without the gooey super fiend! And this iteration of the age-old Spider-Symbiote conflict brings an emotional sting to the Morales story.
4 Spider-Verse
Serving as the inspiration for the animated movie that spawned a new fanbase for Miles Morales, Spider-Verse is a 2014 crossover which brought together Spider-characters from multiple universes to fight against Morlun and the Inheritors, who hunt and feast upon Spider-heroes across dimensions. It was inspired by the two part “Spider-Wars” episodes from Spider-Man: The Animated Series and received a sequel as well as a similar take with Venom characters. Usually it’s recommended to avoid cross-over events if you’re trying to get into a new character. However, Spider-Verse is a fun way to introduce readers to creative takes on the Spider-Man mythos and the optional Edge of Spider-Verse ties-ins serve to introduce new Spider-Men/ Women to readers for the story. While Spider-Verse will likely be the first thing that attracts your attention if you’re first encounter with Morales or anything Spider-related came from the animated movie, if you’re a new Morales fan it might be best to catch up on a few of his own solo stories first. Spider-Verse is a fun title that doesn’t strictly rely on prior story knowledge, but it admittedly benefits more from some character familiarity.
5 All-New, All-Different Avengers Vol. 1: “The Magnificent Seven”
Marvel’s “All-New, All-Different” line-up attempted to usher in new readers with an “All-New” line of comics that were easily accessible to new and old readers alike. All-New, All-Different Avengers Vol. 1: “The Magnificent Seven” shakes up the typical Avengers team with new comers Kamala Kahn (Ms. Marvel), Sam Alexander (Nova), and of course our favourite new Spider-Guy Miles Morales, as well as the new Thor (Jane Foster) and Captain America (Sam Wilson). The only characters who aren’t “All-New” or “All-Different” are of course the iron-clad Tony Stark and Vision. Perhaps “Almost All-New, All-Different” would have suited this title better.
That being said, it’s a refreshing change of pace from the same old MCU line-up and the cast have great chemistry from the mixed levels of experience and reader familiarity of the assembled do-gooders, providing the potential for friction and drama. There are moments of comic relief as well, with four grown-up veteran heroes and three newbie teens, and each have a different style and attitude when it comes to “avenging” – even if we’re still unclear what it is the Avengers avenge. For those curious about a team-up book featuring Miles Morales outside of the Spider-Verse event, this is worth a read with Mark Waid taking up writing duties and Alex Ross offering some gorgeous cover art to boot!
