Broken Frontier

Spider-Man and the Red Hulk team-up for an awkwardly hilarious adventure.

Avenging Spider-Man #1 is an incredibly fun first step in what hopefully is a long line of hilarious team-ups with New York’s favorite hero.  Writer Zeb Wells immediately hits readers in the face with a witty inner monologue that pokes fun at the non-stop pace of Spider-Man’s life, where sleep is sacrificed in order to appear on “two (two!)” Avengers teams, all the while keeping the Big Apple safe. 

Following the fun and bombastic introduction, Spider-Man’s team-up with Red Hulk begins.  The pair of polar opposites, one hero that beats the world into submission while the other favors a little more finesse, is a great starting point to introduce the premise of Avenging Spider-Man.  Wells injects the perfect amount of humor into Hulk and Spidey’s conversations, at one point comparing the two’s travels to the famous Luke/Yoda training sequence, only to finally see the two off with Hulk bullying Spider-Man into following him.  Regardless of what position Hulk and Spidey find themselves in, the tone is fun and oftentimes hilarious.

Wells does not limit his humor to the unlikely team alone.  New York City’s mayor J. Jonah Jameson’s vindictive spirit is as present as ever, blaming the interruption of New York’s “hippie-jog” on Spider-Man, Hulk, and the party-crashing subterranean monsters alike, depending on which group is within closest shouting distance. 

Zeb Wells’ partner in comedic crime is Joe Madureira, who brings a ton of physical humor to Avenging Spider-Man.  Hulk’s constant brooding face perfectly reinforces the awkward feeling of Wells’ team-up, while the behemoth’s manhandling of Spider-Man’s slim body will certainly make readers feel a little sympathy for the smaller hero, even if a smile cannot be helped.  J. Jonah Jameson, likewise, constantly looks on the verge of either spouting a gut-busting sarcastic joke or suffering from a massive aneurism, which greatly adds to the hilarity of the mayor’s predicament.

Avenging Spider-Man #1 captures the fun tone of a light-hearted superhero story, while also poking fun at the less than believable nature of the genre.  Spider-Man’s team-up with the massive Red Hulk is the perfect mixture of opposite strengths and tones, which serves to heighten the humor and fun.  Zeb Wells and Joe Madureira delivered a fantastic first issue, one that hopefully is only the first part in a long run of Spider-Man team-ups.