Spider-Man 2099 #2

By Peter David, Will Sliney & Antonio Fabela

The first issue of the new Spider-Man 2099 was mostly an introduction for new readers perhaps not aware of Miguel, his personality, or his current predicament. That’s fine, as long as the next issue actually goes somewhere. So, how does 2099 fare?

Well, this issue doesn’t really go anywhere at all. We receive no plot progression and only a little character development for a secondary character. At the start, there’s a fun little action scene, but things slow down in a hurry. The rest of the issue is just talking. There’s a possible awkward love triangle introduced, though it’s too soon to tell what direction Peter David is taking that. At least that would be something, if the possible relationship with his boss had some sort of lead-up.

All of this negativity might give you the impression that this is a bad issue, but it’s really not. Issue #2 is an enigma because even though we get almost nothing, Peter David writes that nothing flawlessly. The action is written well and the large amount of talking doesn’t feel like a drag to read at all. David is a total pro. At this point, the guy has seen it all and written it all. He has a total handle on this series, which he should, since he’s the one to start it all. The problem is that it’s a bunch of perfectly written nothingness. What score can you even give something like this?

Will Sliney is a great artist, let’s just get that out of the way. His first 2099 issue was solid but not too incredible. Now, it’s more of the same, only the characters appear stiff. On the plus side, that’s not a problem during the only action scene. Sliney goes out of his way to depict Miguel’s fighting as more fluid, acrobatic, and vicious than Peter Parker’s style.

If it wasn’t for Peter David’s professionalism and Sliney’s great action scene, this would be getting a lower score. That being said, this series has tons of promise. Miguel is a great character. Let’s see how this plays out.