Review by Ian Keogh
Spider-Punk was introduced during Spider-Verse, but had a larger role as an alternate Spider-Man in Spider-Geddon, which included a solo story found in Edge of Spider-Geddon. On his largely ruined world Hobie Brown is a musician, and eventually his underground revolution toppled President Norman Osborn, decapitated via Hobie’s guitar.
His frequent and more prominent appearances indicate that either people like Spider-Punk, or the Marvel editors have faith in his potential. It accounts for this graphic novel when his previous appearances have hardly sparkled, yet there’s spirit here for taking a different approach.
Cody Ziglar frames Spider-Punk as part of a gang, bonded along the lines of kid groups from old TV animation shows, and drops musical references in keeping with Hobie’s trade. Kraven and the Hunters, for instance, might be an old fashioned band name rather than Kraven and his thugs, and the writing at times resembles song lyrics, although it’s also far too wordy in places.
Artist Justin Mason takes the spirit and delivers the energy, his scratchy people and surroundings quirkily dynamic in a way not often seen at Marvel. The goof eccentricity of Tank Girl is the influence, not the artistic heavy-hitters of old Marvel comics, which gives Battle of Banned a visual ethos matching the lead character’s name.
Osborn may be dead, but he planned well, and the dangers of his technology being discovered and deployed by others spurs the plot, treated by Ziglar as the city to city tour a band takes. Captain Anarchy has been seen during Spider-Punk’s previous appearances, and Ziglar introduces Ironheart as the third member of their band in what’s an us against the world story where a fourth ally is kept under wraps for a while. Other variants of Marvel characters turn up in different cities.
Battle of the Banned is silly, anarchic and a whole lot of fun, and importantly a story you’d never get with a Peter Parker Spider-Man. It transforms Spider-Punk from a mystifyingly prominent character to one with potential.
