Grimlock ♥ Ultra Magnus

A lot of what I like about Miles Morales is here: the young child, struggling to find his place in a world full of superheroes, where he is counted amongst them.   He's trying to balance school, his friend Ganke, his girlfriend Katie Bishop and his superhero life. 

Of course, nothing is that easy.   His father blames Spider-Man - the new, post Parker Spider-Man - for his wife's death.   Of course, she was helping people in the hospital where she worked, and got shot by a police officer, so it wasn't directly Spider-Man's fault.   It was a big fight due to Spider-Man, and Miles' father has never been all that fond of superheroes in general.  

But when Galactus - from the normal Marvel universe -  breaks through the walls of the multiverses and starts devouring alternate universes, well, Miles thinks he has no choice but to reveal his secret identity as Spider-Man.   He'd been trying to get his father to leave, but had been running around as his alter-ego, trying to save New York.   It made sense as Cataclysm was happening, and New Jersey had been destroyed, as in completely wiped off the map.  

This all happened before this series, but also explains why Miles is living alone.   His mother dead, his father run off by this secret, he worries about telling Katie his secret.   Will it drive her off?   Will she stay when he keeps 'flaking', although he's really running off to save people?

And to further complicate things, other people are lying about certain people not being dead.   It all adds up to one headache after another for Miles, and while he's a trooper, I wonder how much of this pace he can take.   I do hope he catches a break soon.   It's rewarding to see him march on, to see him use humor and bravery, and certainty that he's doing right to keep going, but poor kid!

Some issues were funnier than others, and all had the potential to be that funny.   The pacing felt off too, with some issues a bit more action-packed, and others at a bit of a lull.   I'm not sure I can point my finger at why this doesn't have the same spark for me that the original Morales/Spider-Man series did, but it just doesn't.   It's a little more depressing, maybe?   

I'm going to wait for MU to get the final issues up until I read the second volume, which I hope does pick up for me.   Overall, this was really good, there were some really funny moments, and I can't believe how much I ship Miles/Katie.    I'd read the second volume just to find out what happens with them, to be honest.  

For now, though, Spider-Men!