Marvel / DC: Spider-Man / Superman

#1A

Pepe Larraz Regular

Release:	Apr 22, 2026
Cover:	Jun 2026

Creators

Writer	Jeph Loeb, Geoff Johns, Brad Meltzer, Dan Slott, Jason Aaron, Joe Kelly, Brian Michael Bendis, Louise Jones Simonson
Artist	Pepe Larraz
Cover Artist	Pepe Larraz
Cover Colorist	Marte ‘Martegod’ Gracia

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I have to admit; I’m having a hard time mustering the energy to write about this one. It’s not really a fault with this book, it’s all me. I guess I’m just feeling a little burned out with some crossover exhaustion. It was probably a mistake to decide that I was going to write at least a Short Box about all of the crossovers, but that’s what I decided, and here, after many false starts, I am.

I liked the main story in this one – written by Brad Meltzer with art by Pepe Larraz – more than the last one. It starts in the midst of things, with Superman, suffering from the effects of kryptonite, buried under rubble with Spider-Man. Unlike the last one, the two heroes do not have a prior relationship with each other.

The villains of the piece are Lex Luthor and the Green Goblin, with a kryptonite-boosted assist from Venom. It mostly focuses on the two heroes doing the impossible, with Spider-Man holding up the rubble even though it’s a much greater weight than he can bear, and Superman providing an assist despite the kryptonite.

Mostly, it seems like Meltzer really wanted to pay homage to the classic The Amazing Spider-Man #31-33, and also to get in a dig about Batman keeping kryptonite in his utility belt, I guess. (Superman notices that Spider-Man is carrying a watch in his belt, which he’s checking with X-Ray vision to make sure there’s no kryptonite there. When he explains that, Spider-Man asks, “What kind of lunatic hides kryptonite in a utility belt?!” with a lot of shock and alarm for someone who just learned what kryptonite is a few seconds earlier.)

The encounter with Venom causes a bit of a mind meld between the heroes, so after they – spoiler – overcome the bad guys, we get a bit of an epilogue in which Clark visits Peter while the latter is at Uncle Ben’s grave, and Clark tells Peter that he does not believe the claim he made while they were trapped underground that he is a hero because of guilt. He’s a hero because, like Clark, that’s how he was raised.

The story ends with Peter and Aunt May visiting Jonathan and Martha Kent for dinner and includes Jonathan confidently stating that he and Ben would have been friends, which may be a nod to the Pa Kent/Uncle Ben team-up in DC’s offering.

It’s fine. The Venom+kryptonite bit is kind of clever, and I really liked the art from Larraz.

As with the others, shorter stories round out the issue:

• Spider-Man Noir and (Golden Age) Superman – It’s okay.
• Gwen Stacy and Lana Lang – It’s basically the same as the Lois/MJ story from the last crossover. It’s a little better – though it pains me to say so as a certified Lana-hater – but that’s not saying much.
• Mysterio vs. Superman Featuring the Thing (and More) – This is probably the best story in the book, told from the perspective of the ever-lovin’ blue-eyed Thing, with great art from Gary Frank, and featuring a great moment of Superman simply talking the Hulk down. Geoff Johns can still tell a decent story sometimes. Also fun to see a LOT of Marvel and DC characters rubbing elbows (and punching faces).
• Hobgoblin and Steel – The stories start getting really short starting with this one. It’s slight, but fine, and features an appearance from another hammer-wielding hero.
• Ghost Spider and Supergirl – Ultimately, it’s kind of cute, but I’m baffled by the mean girl attitude on display throughout most of it by the Maid of Might.
• Miles Morales and Superman – Another fun one. Bendis did a lot wrong in his tenure on Superman, but he demonstrated there as here that he does really get the character. And obviously he knows Miles well as his creator.
• Symbiotes in Metropolis – This story features multiple characters but mostly focuses on the Mighty Thor (Jane Foster) and Wonder Woman. There’s not a lot to it, but Jason Aaron does a lot with it – it’s great to see him teamed up with Russell Dauterman again – and it has what is probably my favorite moment in all of the crossovers we’ve had so far, mostly because of how much I love Jane Thor.

• Spider-Man and Superman – A kind of overall epilogue for the book that features the Man of Steel imparting some advice to the Wall-Crawler

Even though many of the stories were very short, I feel like the pacing was better than the stories in the last crossover. Nothing felt rushed or unfinished.

As with the other crossover book, there was great art throughout. All hits, no misses.

Even though I’m generally more of a fan of their Distinguished Competition, I have to give credit where it’s due when it comes to this Marvelous offering.

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