The Amazing Spider-Man #1 Gives Fans the Exciting Story They’ve Been Craving (Review)

The Amazing Spider-Man has had a rough road for the last few years. The Zeb Wells run on the book was something of a disaster, and Marvel decided that the best thing to do was put out another edition of The Amazing Spider-Man #1. Writer Joe Kelly, finishing up the last volume of The Amazing Spider-Man, would remain on the book, as would part time artist John Romita Jr.

, but The Amazing Spider-Man would boast superstar artist Pepe Larraz as well. A lot of fans are still leery of the book given its recent history, but Marvel has boasted that this would be an all-new Spider-Man era. And surprisingly, The Amazing Spider-Man #1 actually somewhat delivers on that, giving readers an entertaining Spider-Man ride.



At this point, anyone reading The Amazing Spider-Man #1 is going to be well-versed in the problems of the last volume of the book and on keen lookout for them in this first issue. Well, to put your fears to rest, there’s no Mary Jane or Paul anywhere in the book, so at the very least Marvel and Nick Lowe have decided to stop smearing the relationship everyone hates in their face. So, for this reader, that’s already a plus.

Right from the first page, this is a just a super entertaining Spider-Man romp. It kicks off with Peter at multiple job interviews, each one serving as a nice little joke about how difficult the lives of Peter and Spider-Man are to maintain at the same time. This is vintage Spider-Man, something that Kelly has always been very good with, and is the best way to start off the book.

Instead of giving us a mystery box set-up, we just get fun storytelling.Kelly keeps that vibe going throughout the issue. The Amazing Spider-Man #1 is split into three sections.

The first is the main story and sets up the conflict for the first sty arc, the second deals with Norman Osborn, and the final teases the book’s new villain, Hellgate, but one thing that runs through the whole book is an exciting energy. Everyone knows that Marvel wants a younger feeling Peter in The Amazing Spider-Man and we get that throughout the first story. There’s a date with his new girlfriend, a visit to Aunt May, the introduction of an old friend from school, a great fight, and some sinister set-up.

There’s a timeless feel to this rendition of Spider-Man, and if you’re into that, you’re really going to enjoy this. Honestly, I’m not the biggest fan of younger feeling Spider-Man, but I actually really enjoyed this aspect of the book. Kelly just gets how to right good Spider-Man, and as much as I don’t want to like this book — Ultimate Spider-Man is my Spider-jam — I kept finding myself enjoying it.

RELATED: Amazing Spider-Man’s Final Issue Cracks Spider-Man 3 JokeKelly sets up a cool little mystery — why is Rhino acting out of character — one that takes readers to Kingsley Tower to Rhino’s apartment. Longtime Spider-Man will recognize the name Kingsley, and will be happy to know that Hobgoblin looks to be returning with a new plan. Hobgoblin is a villain that can be a rough sell.

Marvel has dropped the ball with Hobgoblin numerous times, but this issue goes a long way towards setting him up in a better way. Getting Hobgoblin as a mastermind villain could be a lot of fun, and it’s enough to keep an older Spider-fan like me coming back. All in all, the writing in this issue is classic Spider-Man goodness and that’s a very good thing.

Pepe Larraz’s art is outstanding. Everyone expected Larraz to hit this out of the park, but his art in this book is actually better than I was expecting. This is prime Larraz from the first page on.

His characters acting in the opening interview scenes sells each of the jokes perfectly, his battle with the Rhino is gorgeous, a kinetic ballet of superhero comic action. His Rhino is a truly massive monster and the fight’s double page spread is a feast for the eyes. The issue’s Hobgoblin teases have just the right amount of dark foreboding, and the issue’s end — another double page spread of Spider-Man surrounded by foes — will definitely have readers wanting to come back for more.

Larraz is known as the X-Men artist of this generation, but if this issue’s art is any indication, he may be adding Spider-Man to that list. Larraz works with longtime collaborator Marte Gracia on colors, and once again this team is putting out some of the best art in the industry. Gracia is a top-flight colorist, and the colors in this issue pop in a way that few other colorists could manage.

Romita Jr finishes off the book with the last two stories and his art basically looks the same as it has throughout his latest run on The Amazing Spider-Man. It has all of the strengths of Romita Jr. art — good linework, good action and character design, the stylization that can only come from John Romita Jr.

— but if you haven’t been liking his recent work, you won’t like this art any better.Kelly, Larraz, and Romita Jr. have a tall order in front of them.

The Amazing Spider-Man is the most hated bestselling comic on the stands right now, and the Wells run, combined with editor Nick Lowe’s well-known disdain for the fans of the book, is enough to keep most people away from this issue. That would be a huge mistake. I’m a person who stopped reading TASM after “One More Day”, and this book sold me on this new run.

Joe Kelly is one of the most underrated writers in the history of the medium, and this book is an example of why he’s such a great writer. It’s intriguing, action-packed, has a great hook, and is funny. It’s everything you could want from a Spider-Man comic.

Pepe Larraz’s art is beautiful. There’s really no other way to describe it. In a lot of ways, Kelly and Larraz’s Spider-Man feels like the platonic ideal of Spider-Man.

It’s not going to make you happy if you’re Mary Jane partisan, but if you just want a good Spider-Man comic, this is exactly the book you should pick up. I went into this book expecting not to like it, and it pleasantly surprised me with every page.Rating: 3.

9 out of 5Published by MarvelOn April 9, 2025Written by Joe KellyArt by Pepe Larraz and John Romita Jr.Inks by Scott HannaColor Art by Marte Gracia and Marcio MenyzLetters by Joe CaramagnaThe post The Amazing Spider-Man #1 Gives Fans the Exciting Story They’ve Been Craving (Review) appeared first on ComicBook.com.

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