Marvel Comics will relaunch its flagship The Amazing Spider-Man series in 2025. Along with a new #1 issue comes a brand-new status quo for Peter Parker, as the perpetually down-on-his-luck hero struggles to find a new job and faces the return of a villain he hasn’t battled in years.
As revealed by Polygon, the new series will be written by Spider-Man veteran Joe Kelly, who is also writing the “8 Deaths of Spider-Man” storyline in the current volume of ASM. The series will be drawn by Pepe Larraz (Blood Hunt) and longtime Spider-Man artist John Romita, Jr.
As the new series opens, Peter Parker is once again facing an uphill battle to find a job, while also dealing with the return of The Rhino. However, this iconic villain is just the tip of the iceberg, as it seems a shadowy mastermind is manipulating Spidey into a conflict with some of his biggest villains. One of those villains is a character fans haven’t seen in seven years (any guesses?). The book will also heavily focus on the recently redeemed and Goblin-free Norman Osborn, as well as Peter’s new girlfriend Shay.
“Even though this is a new #1, I don’t think of it as a ‘restart’ per se,” Kelly told Polygon. “I’m writing the next chapter of the story of one the world’s greatest characters, lucky enough to follow in the footsteps of the folks before me. After that sinks in, I spend a lot of time thinking about what I love about Spider-Man and his cast, what stories resonated with me at different times of my life, and how I can synthesize all of that into something that works with what came before but breaks new ground. I’m fascinated by the internal lives of these characters and exploring new territory there — Peter’s youth is interesting, for example, the days before he was ‘puny Parker’ in high school. At the same time, I feel a drive to take bold, unexpected swings in order to see how Spider-Man deals with Marvel-sized curve balls. Pressure makes diamonds.”
“The most important part of Spider-Man that I wanted to portray accurately is Peter,” Larraz said. “Of course I can talk about drawing a believable New York, I shot hundreds of pictures of details of the city for reference, or how I’ve focused on drawing the flow of Spidey’s movement and speed in a way closer to animation than comics. But I think Spider-Man comics work because we care about Peter and his world, so that was my main focus: To draw a Peter that you instantly recognize and empathize [with]. Fortunately Joe’s script is fantastic and he captured Peter’s voice in a way so perfect that made the work much easier for me.”
The Amazing Spider-Man #1 will be released in April 2025.
For more Marvel Comcis goodness, check out an exclusive preview of Star Wars: Legacy of Vader #1 and see which series won IGN’s Best Comic Book Series or Original Graphic Novel of 2024 award.
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