Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024) #9 review: The city has voted

It isn't really a secret that Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024) has been a bit of a mixed bag so far. The concept of Gwen abandoning her home world to move to Earth-616 is definitely compelling, and such a tale has proved to work wonders for Miles Morales before. That being said, the execution has left us with a little something to be desired. But now that 2025 is here, the series has every chance to undergo a redemption arc. So was issue #9 the start of something amazing? Or does it follow the same pattern as its predecessors?

A city in despair

Paolo Villanelli's is definitely a standout of the issue... for the most part. See, there are some sequences where Black Tarantula—a character who has a black costume with a black hood—battles Mr. Fear—another character with a black costume and a black hood. Sometimes it can be difficult to make out who landed a punch and who has the upper hand. The dialog bubbles make the job easier, but you'll definitely have to look twice to know what's going on in the battle sequences. That being said, the illustrations are great and their darker palette of colors goes really well with the rather grim story of the saga.

I've been really a fan of how the art has looked lately in Gwen's adventures as it is completely different from the look of any other ongoing Spider-Man-related runs. I think it's important for every saga to have its unique visual identity. Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) has really benefited from Marco Checchetto's incredible attention to detail while Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2022) has a more cartoony look going on for it (which definitely works). So it's nice to see that Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024) has its own gothic art going on for it—a style that isn't currently found elsewhere within the Spidey realm.

Now let's move on to the story. Thanks to Mr. Fear's toxin, readers get a glimpse of Gwen's worst fear, and that is being unsure if moving to Earth-616 was a good decision or not given that she left her whole world behind in the process. That's another fantastic moment in Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024) #9, as it gives its titular character more depth and a compelling conflict. After all, she did get away from everything she ever knew, and her new home hasn't exactly been kind to her. Gwen's having a hard time, and it was nice to see those insecurities literally come to life.

Unfortunately, while there are some great moments in this issue, it's also plagued by the same problems the saga has seen before. The story is far from being an original concept as it's filled with many common tropes, and I truly don't understand the Black Tarantula's fixation on getting Gwen on his side other than being in love with her, I guess (which has been really creepy, to say the least). After all, he already spread his message to everyone in New York, and the citizens cast their votes to kill the corrupt judge. He's doing just fine without the superheroine by his side.

The will-they-won't-they dynamic between Gwen and Black Tarantula will surely reach a breaking point now that the judge has been executed by popular demand. That even sets up the pieces nicely for a great follow-up that has every chance to surpass its predecessor if executed correctly. So fingers crossed said event eventually branches out into a more unique storyline that isn't filled with the same cliches we've seen time and time again.

Verdict: Another fitting entry for the series

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024) has always been on the verge of spreading its wings and soaring really high. Unfortunately, it never manages to make a jump strong enough to make that happen, and issue #9 isn't the exception. While its art is amazing, its action pieces are sometimes difficult to make out. Furthermore, the story still follows the same path we all expected it to and fails to take us by surprise. On the bright side, Gwen's personal arc is a highlight of the issue as we see her insecurities haunt her more strongly than ever, and the pieces are all set for issue #10 to be the very best in the saga. Fingers crossed that turns out to be the case!

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024) #10 will be released on Feb. 12, 2025.