Inari and White Cat, two super-thieves with everything to lose, are running wild in Brooklyn, and with Spider-Man still reeling from the God War, the battle against these new foes might be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Misty Knight’s leading the investigation, but she needs an extra hand. Someone with cat burglary experience, perhaps? Miles Morales: Spider-Man #37 is written by Cody Ziglar, drawn by Luigi Zagaria, colored by Bryan Valenza and lettered by Cory Petit.
To catch a couple of super-thieves, Spider-Man will need a thief. The Black Cat, the best in the business, is here to lend a helping paw, but can Miles trust her? Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38 is written by Cody Ziglar, drawn by Luigi Zagaria, colored by Bryan Valenza and lettered by Cory Petit.
Given that Miles Morales has been THROUGH it, you’d think he’d get a nice li’l break from superhero stuff. Yet a hero’s work is never done, and after a fun game of basketball with his homies, he soon gets a call from Misty Knight about a string of robberies. The perpetrators turn out to be new characters: Inari, a Japanese thief who controls white kitsune foxes, and White Cat, a guy who seems to be riffing off a similarly named thief called Black Cat. The difference is, White Cat’s powers are centered on good luck rather than bad.
Before we get into the superhero stuff, I wanna give props to writer Cody Ziglar for how he wrote the basketball scene at Brooklyn Visions Academy. The only characters I was familiar with were Miles and Ganke, but they sound true to life, like I could hear them while walking past a basketball court. It’s the fun of the game and the gentle ribbing between friends that make this stand out for me, especially since Miles hasn’t had a moment to breathe lately.
Moving on to the superhero stuff, I love the banter between Misty and Miles. Miles’ playfulness and Misty’s professionalism clash in an amusing way here, enhancing their mentor-mentee relationship as part of Miles’ “internship.” This moment of levity also gives Miles another moment to breathe right before his first encounter with Inari and White Cat.
It is in this encounter that the rest of the comics’ team shines. Luigi Zagaria’s artwork is so intricately detailed when it comes to Miles’ superhero suit. I liked seeing Miles’ camouflage mode enhanced by Bryan Valenza’s blue and white colors and Cory Petit’s red dialogue boxes of Miles’ internal thoughts.
All of this is even more striking once the action starts. Zagaria’s detailing makes the kitsune foxes that Miles fights more imposing, and is given a mystical touch by a glowing yellow outline from Valenza. Meanwhile, Petit’s lettering was particularly notable when Misty delivers a satisfying bionic arm punch to a fox, the “THWACK” enhanced by red that resembles lightning.
Although Misty’s actions force the thieves to regroup, Misty and Miles soon realize they need a bit of help to fight them. To that end, the issue ends with the two meeting with Black Cat to even the playing field. Given her complicated history with Spider-heroes, time will tell whether Felicia can be trusted.
Buy Miles Morales: Spider-Man #37 here.
Miles Morales #38
Picking up where issue #37 left off, the issue begins with thieves Inari and White Cat unmasked as they check in with their boss. In addition to being unmasked, it is revealed via images and spoken dialogue that Inari is a brown-skinned, possibly biracial Japanese girl and White Cat is Cherokee.
This isn’t the first time I’ve seen antagonists of color as thieves, but it is rare to see them written so sympathetically by writers of color. Ziglar reminds me of how the late Dwayne McDuffie wrote the antagonist Thunderbolt, who starts out as a comic relief villain in Damage Control and is later redeemed in Ta-Nehishi Coates’ Black Panther run. Inari and White Cat are not thieves by choice, and the reasons for that are made clear later on in the issue.
Speaking of Inari and White Cat’s boss, this is the first time I’ve encountered Black Obsidian — introduced in last year’s Giant-Size Spider-Man #1 — and I dislike him very much. He’s pompous, cocky and taking advantage of two young people in need. Glad that Inari and White Cat aren’t letting themselves get pushed around, even if they do work for him. I especially like White Cat dissing Black Obsidian in Cherokee.
Meanwhile, Miles finds himself unexpectedly picked up by Black Cat and Misty Knight in civilian clothing. Shout out to Luigi Zagaria for putting Black Cat in a cute outfit. She, Misty and Miles put their heads together to figure out where Inari and White Cat will strike next, before heading out to confront them at a high-security warehouse vault.
It is here that the panel layout and colors stand out thanks to Zagaria and colorist Bryan Valenza. When the fight first begins, a kitsune fox slams into Black Cat, and the panel is yellow to signify that it is Inari attacking and the swiftness of her move. The panel’s colors also emphasize tension, such as yellow turning into green when Miles knocks off Inari’s mask. Cory Petit’s lettering gets a similar treatment, with a brutal red “SLAM” and a swift blue “THWIP.”
When the dust settles, Inari and White Cat are down for the count and decide to talk things out. They explain that both of them are in debt due to family and home situations and that working for Black Obsidian is the only option they have to pay it back. After hearing their stories, Miles thinks they should all pay Black Obsidian a visit. The issue ends as Inari, White Cat, Black Cat, Miles and Misty drop in on him, and I look forward to seeing them kick serious butt next issue.
Buy Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38 here. (Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, ComicsXF may earn from qualifying purchases.)
Latonya "Penn" Pennington is a freelance contributor whose comics criticism can be found at Women Write About Comics, Comic Book Herald, Newsarama and Shelfdust, among others. Follow them @wordsfromapenn.com on Bluesky.
