REVIEW: ‘Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones,’ Issue #2

While Gwen managed to free Ock Gwen from her halo’s mind control, they were soon beset by another clone of our intrepid hero. With SandGwen running amok, the new duo of Gwens has their hands full if they hope to get to the bottom of this situation in Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #2, published by Marvel Comics, written by Emily Kim, art by Kei Zama, colors by Triona Farrell, and letters by Ariana Maher.

Despite this issue being bookended by battling with rampaging clones, the bulk of Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #2 focuses on Gwen and Ock Gwen getting to know each other. While Ock Gwen has all the original Gwen’s memories, she is also half Doc Ock, which leads her to some noticeably different conclusions from her quasi-parent. Kim writes about the duo’s struggles to adapt to each other in a way that delivers a bit of heart while always being fun to see. I appreciated how Kim pulled from Gwen’s other recent adventures with alternate versions of herself to allow the character to be pretty level-headed about the situation. Having spent as much time bouncing around the multiverse as Gwen has, seeing her particularly perturbed by the concept of clones would feel disingenuous to the character’s life experiences.

While the interpersonal struggles of interacting with a modified version of yourself take center stage, a deadly threat lurks in the city for the Gwens to defeat. Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #2 delivers some fun action sequences that continue to provide what feels like classic superhero brawls. The duel Gwen’s struggles to pin down SandGwen are well constructed, and I loved what the villain’s Achille’s Heel ultimately ended up being. While comics are at their core fantasy and fun, I love it when a writer holds to some physical limitations for technology and powers.

All the action and character are delivered through the energetic art of Zama once again. The characters bring an amazing amount of personality to the pages, making them feel like the larger-than-life personalities comic books are known for. While the page layouts don’t lean into the unique designs as much as they did in the previous issue, they still provide a bit of extra flair, allowing Gwen to feel barely restrained by the panels’ borders. Layering more energy into Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #2 art is Farrell’s coloring. Thanks to the creative’s excellent choices, each panel pops with gorgeous contrasts in color. This sense of contrast is further built on by Maher’s lettering, which delivers some wonderful sound effect designs that fit into both the layout of each panel and their color schemes wonderfully.

Webbing it all up, Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #2 delivers another fun installment to its tale. It explores its characters in interesting ways while delivering some entertaining brawls that showcase powers and letting its title character be the clever hero fans love—a wonderful sophomore outing for this series.

Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #2 is available now wherever comics are sold.