Miles Morales doesn’t usually have a lot of inner narration, but this issue is chock full of it, and it definitely makes for a more engaging story. Not a lot happens plot-wise, and Miles being lost in the fields of Wisconsin is fixed rather easily, but it’s still a very fun and fulfilling story. It’s fun to read Miles working out his problems in his head. He’s a smart kid with a strong personality, and his inner commentary elevated a somewhat simple story. Throw in a few emotional moments with Spider-Woman and Miles’ parents and you’ve got a real winner.

Ultimate Spider-Man #18

When ‘Divided We Fall/United We Stand’ started, I didn’t think Brian Michael Bendis had any interest in crossing over. But now that the story is finally done, I’m happy with what Bendis did to help flesh out Miles and his family.

Comic rating: 5/5: Great.

Ultimate Spider-Woman has always been a very fascinating character, and I wish I was reading Ultimates so that I could see more of her in action. She’s a great foil for Miles Morales, and their scenes together in this issue – especially in light of her attitude last issue – were fantastic. We, the reader, know exactly why Jessica Drew is so awkward around Miles Morales, but he’s clueless, and it leads to a really nice scene between the two. Likewise, Miles’ parents get a standout scene as Jefferson fills us in on what happened with the HYDRA terrorists. I was definitely surprised by the reveal, and I’m excited to see what it does for his character. I’ve always felt Bendis has been a little lacking when it comes to Miles’ relationship with his parents and how they impact his life. I hope this is the start of some good stories.

And it’s Miles Morales himself who carries the comic, with a running internal commentary like Peter Parker used to do. Miles is definitely a different person than Peter, but he’s still got that desire to be heroic, and that’s always relatable. I also like that Miles isn’t quip-a-minute, but still kind of funny.  And Bendis finds a lot of humor and cool action in Miles’ fight this issue – with artist David Marquez drawing the hell out of this issue! The art is absolutely perfect, making for an even better comic.

Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.

The issue opens with a quick splash page recap to get us up to speed. President Captain America led a team of superheroes into battle against HYDRA, and during the scuffle, Miles saved Captain America from one of the War Machine soldiers.

But now, many hours later, Miles is all alone on the Wisconsin battlefield. He was thrown some distance from the battle and knocked unconscious, blacked out through the whole rest of the fight. When he woke up, he couldn’t find anyone else, and now the inner city youth is exhausted and walking across the fields trying to figure out how to get home. He’s never left New York City, but now he’s lost and alone in Wisconsin!

But wait, perhaps he’s not alone. Miles sees another person in the distance, a woman lying injured on the ground. Miles runs towards her, hoping she can help him, but then he gets a lesson in perspective.

And giant butts

It’s one of the Giant-Woman bad guy terrorists! And she definitely recognizes Miles as one of Captain America’s superheros! She’s none too happy to see him, and proceeds to try and flatten poor Miles, who has already run out of webbing. But he’s quick, and he has his Venom Sting, so Miles holds his own against the gigantic woman – for a little while, at least. Eventually she’s able to grab him and slam his tiny body into the ground. Poor Spidey.

Back in New York, Jefferson tells his wife about what happened. He was arrested by SHIELD for causing a disturbance, but then his prison transport truck was ambushed by HYDRA goons. They broke Jefferson and the other detainees out, convinced that these rabble-rousers would be on their side. The HYDRA agents killed the SHIELD agents and invited Jefferson to join them.

Instead, he took the gun and killed the HYDRA goons!

Like a boss

Jefferson ran home and just zonked out until his wife came home. Now he’s freaking out, afraid that he’s ruined everything they’ve built together. His wife hugs him and tells him it’ll be OK. They just need to find Miles…

Their son is currently dangling unconscious in the hand of the Giant Woman as she walks across Wisconsin. She uses her radio to try and call her base, but she’s only getting static. She’s just as lost as Miles, who starts to wake up. Miles uses his Venom Sting to zap her hand and escape again. Then he zaps her ankle to get Giant Woman to bend over, giving him the perfect shot to leap up and punch her square in the face! Miles had said earlier that he couldn’t punch a girl, but Giant Woman went too damn far. She collapses in front of him.

Lucky Miles.

The greatest moment of his young life

He sees some jeeps pulling up in the distance, and Miles tries to wave them down. They turn out to be SHIELD agents who intercepted Giant Woman’s radio transmissions. Spider-Woman is with them, and she rushes forward to give Miles a hug. He thought she was going to yell at him again, but she’s incredibly relieved that he’s OK. Spider-Woman radios for back-up and SHIELD takes Miles home to New York.

That was a little disappointing. I liked the idea of Miles being stuck in Wisconsin. But I guess SHIELD could easily take him home.

Miles and Spider-Woman share a moment in the back of a SHIELD van where she gives him a cover story for where he’s been, but all Miles wants is to know more about her. First she was annoyed by him, now she’s being friendly and protective. What’s her deal? Who is she? But Spider-Woman can’t bring herself to tell him.

Her face is apparently not a dead giveaway

For those who don’t remember, Spider-Woman is a female clone of Peter Parker. She has all of his memories, but she can’t live Peter’s life. It’s kind of tragic.

In their search for Miles, his parents visit the home of his best friend Ganke. But he can’t tell them where Miles is. Ganke knows that Miles is Spider-Man, who was on the news as fighting in Wisconsin. But Ganke can’t tell anybody. Fortunately, he doesn’t have to, because Miles shows up at the front door. When he didn’t find his parents at home, he went to Ganke’s. Everyone is reunited, and Miles says it was cool that his dad fought some terrorists, but Jefferson is still very worried.

I’ll admit there isn’t much to the overall plot. Miles fights a random Giant Woman, then gets sent home by a SHIELD ex Machina. He’s back with his parents in New York, all that crossover craziness is settled, and we’ll probably get on with the regular ongoing story with the next issue. I’m grateful for that. Like I said, I don’t think Bendis had much to work with in the beginning of ‘Divided We Fall’, but he really nailed the landing with this issue. Miles’ inner dialogue as he fights the Giant Woman and worries about how he’s going to get out of the mess was a lot of fun to read. Miles is a great kid. And then the chat between Miles and Spider-Woman was very well done, really getting into the heads of the two characters. I hope Spider-Woman stays a reoccurring character.

And Marquez’ art is amazing. Those pages of Spider-Man vs. Giant-Woman are phenomenal. The scale and the spectacle are downright cinematic.