Spider-Man is back in Brooklyn, only to find himself in the crosshairs of Deadpool — both Deadpools! Wade Wilson has gone too far this time and messed with the wrong Spider-Man. How far will Wade go to collect on this contract, and who is pulling the strings behind this job? Miles Morales: Spider-Man #30 is written by Cody Ziglar, drawn by Luigi Zagaria, colored by Bryan Valenza and lettered by Cory Petit.
Man, it seems like poor Miles can’t catch a break. He finally dealt with the aftermath of one comic book crossover, only to get roped into another. Then again, I can’t complain too much because this was hinted at as far back as last year’s Miles Morales annual, when Agent Gao hired Taskmaster and Deadpool to kill Miles. Now, Deadpool and his daughter Ellie Camacho are finally trying to take Miles out, except he gets Miles’ brother Shift instead.
Since Shift had been pretending to be Miles to cover for him while the real Miles went to Wakanda in the previous issues, it is not difficult to see why both Deadpools made a mistake. Unfortunately, this puts them in the crosshairs of the real Miles, which is where things begin in this issue.
Despite being part of a crossover, writer Cody Ziglar keeps the reader from being lost as he briefly switches to a flashback to explain how things got to this point. He also does a great job at juggling all of the characters who appear in the issue, including Miles, both Deadpools, Kwaku Anansi and a new character who appears at the very end. Both Deadpools sound distinct from each other as father and daughter, with Wade matching Miles quip for quip and Ellie being more level headed.
Of course, it also helps that Ziglar is accompanied by the excellent letterer Cory Petit, who gives each character’s dialogue their own style. This ranges from Wade’s yellow speech bubbles and black letters to Anansi’s red and white dialogue bubbles and letters. Petit’s lettering also enhances the action panels as well, with bright, blocky red letters for “KICK” and a “CRACK” from a punch.
Moreover, the action in this issue is also a highlight thanks to artist Luigi Zagaria and colorist Bryan Valenza. The artwork is dynamic and visually striking, with fight scenes between Miles and both Deadpools hitting fast and hard. Of the two Deadpools, I like Ellie’s fighting style best: It’s earnest, swift and powerful. Miles even remarks that he can feel her hits through his vibranium suit.
Yet even more than her ability to fight, I like Ellie for the heart to-heart she has with Miles near the end of the comic. She has family issues that Miles is able to empathize with, and it doesn’t hurt that she and Miles both speak Spanish either. With this new understanding comes the possible start of a new friendship, which Ellie and Miles will need to help get them out of the predicament they find themselves in. Only next issue will tell if they manage to do so.
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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.
