It is with a heavy heart, but a definite optimism, that we bid farewell to Scarlet Spider, the little comic that almost could. How is it even possible that Marvel took a chance on a comic so deeply indebted to the despised Clone Saga? A comic starring Kaine, of all characters, going by the name ‘Scarlet Spider’, of all names? Sheer lunacy! But writer Christopher Yost made it happen, and through 25 issues, he gave us a pretty darn good comic book. This final issue is, in some ways, a wrap up of Kaine’s adventure in Houston. But it’s just as much a prologue for what comes next in New Warriors.

Scarlet Spider #25

Scarlet Spider #25 is a good finale. The art is back to its usual strength, and Yost gives us a pretty epic battle with which to say goodbye. There isn’t too much soul searching or finality, but this comic is a pretty solid look into the life of the failed clone of Spider-Man.

Comic Rating: 8/10 – Very Good.

I think Kaine is a character with a lot of potential, and it’s a simple potential. Just like the banner read at the start of this series: ‘All the power, none of the responsibility.’ He’s not the anti-Spider-Man, he’s Spider-Man’s neglected kid brother. That has potential. Spider-Man is this great hero, well respected in the superhero community, beloved by many beautiful women, adored by his loving Aunt May and all-in-all, lives a pretty OK life (other than this Otto Octavius stuff, of course). Kaine is the guy living in Peter Parker’s shadow. Kaine didn’t ask for this life. He didn’t choose to give himself spider-powers. He was born into Peter Parker’s shadow, and he isn’t using that to become some kind of heartless, evil villain who just wants to make Peter miserable – like the reveal of Thomas Wayne Jr. as the head of the Court of Owls over in Scott Snyder’s Batman.

And therein, I think, lies part of the problem with Scarlet Spider the series. And why I think DC’s new Harley Quinn series isn’t going to last long: when you remove these characters from the context in which they are most interesting, giving them instead a generic superhero set up, it robs their story of its maximum appeal. Kaine may be an entertaining guy, but I most want to read about Kaine in the context of the rest of the Spider-verse. What do the Avengers think about Kaine? What do Mary Jane and Aunt May think about Kaine? How does Peter deal with having his adversarial clone healthy and alive? I loved the scenes at the end of Spider-Island where the two of them had to work together. Why couldn’t we have a comic about that?

Removing Kaine (or Harley Quinn) from that which defines them is going to make the comic a tougher sell. This is a cruel market, and as you can see, Scarlet Spider just didn’t last.

Hopefully, New Warriors will learn some lessons from Scarlet Spider. Kaine will be interacting with the larger Marvel Universe, with people who will compare him to Spider-Man. Therein lies the best drama, I think. Not that Kaine’s adventure in Houston wasn’t thoroughly entertaining. I would say this was a quaint but forgettable series, hopefully a springboard to launch Kaine into bigger and better adventures.

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

This issue plays fast and loose with the timeline, and I’m going to stick with their way of doing things to make sure I get the full and proper synopsis to you people.

We open in Monterrey, Mexico, where some sort of vague criminal deal is going down in a half-finished construction project. There are all sorts of disreputable men with guns, and a dufflebag full of money, similar to the first issue of Scarlet Spider. And similar again to that first issue, a costumed superhero decides to get involved.

Well yeah, her, but also…

Scarlet Spider kills the lot of them and grabs the dufflebag full of cash, easily a few million dollars. Aracely – or Hummingbird, as she wants to be called – finds one of them still alive, and she uses her powers of empathy to convince him that he’s afraid of guns and instead likes puppies. Scarlet Spider tells her to hurry up because they’re leaving, and he tells her not to talk about Houston.

Speaking of Houston, it happened a week ago, so let’s flashback! The penthouse suite blew up and blew everyone out of the building relatively unharmed from the explosion itself. Seriously. Everyone was blown free without a scratch, though they were falling to their deaths from the top floor of the hotel.

But wait, time for another interlude back to the ‘present day’. Kaine and Aracley are on the road in Mexico. He mentions trying to find her parents, and she says the dreams stopped ever since they crossed the border. Aracely is seeing visions of some kind of coyote, and Kaine decides they’ll make camp for the night. Aracely is her usual adorable self.

Kaine sucks at telling stories

That’s the two of them in sleeping bags next to a fire. Aracely goes on and on about how she misses Houston and their penthouse suite, but Kaine keeps telling her to shut up. Aracely sits up and tells Kaine that he’s going to have to talk about Houston sometime, but Kaine confidently replies that he does not.

Speaking of Houston, Kaine snapped into action when everybody was falling, and he used his amazing spider-powers to save all of them. He’s a big, damn hero!

Ain’t he just

That one Roxxon woman starts screaming about how she did it because she loves Kaine, and she’ll never stop loving him, but Annabelle punches her right in the mouth! There are a few coloring and lettering errors on this page and the previous one, but they are easily ignored. The art throughout this issue is stellar, which is weird, considering how slapdash David Baldeon’s art looked last issue. He must have rushed through that one and saved his best work for this finale.

Anyway, Kaine can’t be bothered by the Roxxon woman now because he’s got bigger problems!

He totally slept with that

Shathra is a neat choice for villain for this series. She totally works, I think, and could easily be taken wholesale from Peter Parker’s rogues gallery. Of course, she doesn’t have the time to become a reoccurring villain.

Aracely tells Kaine he needs to go beat her up, but Kaine shoots back that he’s not a super–

Maybe just this one time…

Such is the superb comedic timing of Scarlet Spider.

Interlude time again! Kaine and Aracely are walking through the busy streets of Mazatlan, Mexico. They stopped for food and supplies, and now they’re leaving, according to Kaine. But Aracely sees a pair of tourists being mugged in an alley and tells Kaine. He just keeps right on walking, telling her it’s not his problem.

Back to Shathra!

Kaine suits up, quotes Breaking Bad (“I am the danger!”) and goes on the offensive against Shathra. For those who don’t know, Shathra is the physical manifestation of the spider-wasp totem. She represents one of the spider’s natural enemies, and Kaine’s beastly side feels the urge to just straight up kill her. But Shathra is too mystical to be felled by a mere stab to the face, and her body breaks down into a whole swarm of wasps to attack Kaine.

Officer Wally comes to Kaine’s rescue as he tries to shoot Shathra, but that too is of no use. She turns her attentions to him, ready to kill the meddling human, when Kaine lets his inner spider monster out to play!

Let’s see Peter Parker do that!

Monster Kaine brutally and viciously tears into Shathra, only now everybody is watching. Dozens of Houston citizens have gathered to watch the fight, drawn by the initial explosion. And now Kaine’s friends, Wally and Annabelle, are there to see him as this big, hideous spider-monster.

Sure enough, when it’s over, and Kaine changes back to normal, a frightened Annabelle runs off.

Wally is a bit calmer, and he tells Kaine to go, he’ll hold off the cops. Aracely wants Kaine to stay, because he’s a hero and he just saved the city, but Kaine hangs his head and leaves.

Cue the sad Charlie Brown music

We end with another interlude, on some beach in far off Mexico. Kaine and Aracely are relaxing in beach chairs, sipping drinks, and Kaine thinks about how death has always been a part of his life. He once asked himself if he could have a normal life, with friends and love, but after Houston, he has his answer. Well now he’s done trying to be something he’s not. He’s done trying to be a hero.

Mostly.

That’s probably a clue

And that is where we leave Kaine and Aracely, who will soon be joining the latest iteration of the New Warriors. What does the future hold for them? Who knows! There’s no guarantee that New Warriors will reach 25 issues, not in this comic book climate. They should have called it ‘Avengers Warriors’ or something.

Scarlet Spider definitely went out with a bang. That battle against Shathra, coupled with Kaine’s Houston life falling apart, would have been a fine finale. Like I said, Shathra was a good villain for this series, and Yost surprised me by bringing back Kaine’s spider monster side. I wasn’t a fan of that evolution when it happened, but Yost put it to good use in this issue. I liked that, in the end, Houston was a failed experiment. I don’t know if Yost always intended that, but I have to imagine he had a fairly good idea that the series would end shortly in cancellation. We all could hope for a long-lasting Scarlet Spider series, but in the comic book industry, I’m sure they all have to write with one ear towards the coming end.

So I like that Yost ended this series with Kaine losing all of his friends, never getting the girl and shuffling off into the sunset. Not every story has a happy ending. And Kaine’s story will probably always be one about failure. It’s key to the character. Peter Parker is the successful one. He gets the girl and saves the day. That’s what makes Kaine so bitter, because he can always see what Peter has, but he can never have it for himself. Kaine tried to make a life in Houston, but through a combination of super-villains and his own feelings of worthlessness, it didn’t work out. He’s on the run, again struggling to find a place in the world. He can never escape Spider-Man’s shadow, but he’s not about to lay down and die either. Such is the thing of great drama.

And if nothing else, Scarlet Spider gave him one of the most adorable sidekicks ever!