Slott definitely stars off "Spider-Verse" with a bang, showing us Otto's actions during the period of time when he disappeared in issue #19. At first, I thought that we were just going to be treated to a fun romp through the 2099 world, and the brief appearances from the Specialist and Venture were exciting if disappointingly brief. But, this issue does have "Edge of Spider-Verse" emblazoned on its cover, so it was clear that it had to tie into that plot somehow. The good news is that Slott brilliantly uses Otto's attempt to return to his own time as the device for introducing Morlun's rampage throughout the Spider-Verse. After encountering the fourth dead Spider-Man, Otto stars to wonder why so many Spider-Men are winding up dead and begins assembling an army to take on the mysterious assassin. It feels totally organic, and I have to applaud Slott for thinking of such a great way to get this story rolling.
Since "Spider-Verse" is just starting in this issue, we're still left with a lot of question. For example, we still don't have any idea why Silk's release from Ezekiel's bunker kicked off Morlun's rampage. Moreover, we know that Otto's activities here happen in the past, and it seems likely that he leaves the army at some point, since he does re-appear in issue #19. However, Slott does cast some doubt on that. First, we see a dead "Civil War" era Iron Spider in this issue. This Spider-Man is presumably not an alternate-universe version of Peter Parker, but a past one. Assuming that Peter hasn't died in the present due to the murder of a past self, Slott at least floats the possibility that Morlun's actions (and, therefore, possibly Otto's) are somehow not affecting the present. As such, we could be looking at a world where Otto had a different experience than this one in the original continuity, returning in issue #19 as normal. However, now, he might exist outside the time stream, setting up the possibility that he survives his eventual death in issue #31 since it's his original issue #19 self that dies. (Oy, my head hurts.) At any rate, Slott is clearly going to have to give us some sort of explanation. Either we're dealing with a different Otto or we need to know why Otto returned to the present and then promptly forgot about Morlun murdering the Spider-Men of the multiverse.
Even with these questions, it's definitely a fun issue. Slott has always been great at juggling a lot of characters, and the joy of this event is going to be seeing all the Spider-Men interacting. Otto meets the Indian Spider-Man in the main story and a Logan-trained assassin Spider-Man in the back-up story, and I find myself hoping that someone with a better knowledge of the various Spider-Men is keeping track somewhere. So long as Slott remembers to have fun throughout this event and not have it devolve into an attempt to check all the boxes, I think we're going to have a great time.
(NOTE: It laters become clear that the vampire here is Karn, not Morlun.)
**** (four of five stars)
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