Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025) #4

Well, here we are. It’s Wednesday, which is new comics day, and this week, we have a really stacked line-up. We’re reviewing a grand total of five different comic books this week, and of the five, I was incredibly excited for four of them. This was the one I wasn’t so hyped about. Having recently reviewed the first season of the Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man series, I thought my time in this universe was at its end for a while, only to be dragged back in, my fingernails leaving indentations, as I clutched to any and all forms of alternative media, in search of something of a higher quality.

Today, I’m taking over for Aramis to talk all things Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #4, and though I was initially open to taking over this series’ coverage for this issue, let’s just say I feel like I’m owed something after dredging through this 20-page showcase of nothingness. Let’s get into the nitty gritty details.

---

The Review

Image by Marvel Comics

After I finished the Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man series on Disney Plus, I was admittedly pleased that my disturbingly low expectations for the show were exceeded. The bar was cleared, even if said bar was practically on the floor. However, I’m starting to feel betrayed by my own optimism, as, at the very least, I was hoping to go into this issue of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and come out the other side having at least had some fun. Alas, ’twas not to be.

Let’s get the niceties out of the way, and though sarcasm may permeate these upcoming sentences, I am being genuine in my praise here. The art style is really nice in this comic. It’s a great mixture of classic visuals with a modern flair. In an age where grunginess and superhero content often go hand-in-hand, it’s nice to engage with a series that isn’t afraid of a little colour. Artist Eric Gapstur is to thank for this, as his work here really is incredible. Hats off to you Mr. Gapstur.

From this point on, however, I am putting my hat firmly back on my head. I cannot get past the writing here, particularly in the dialogue. Some of the sentences spoken by these characters are laughably bizarre. Don Manfredi explains to Spider-Man that he is glad the hero has broken into his property, as it means the ensuing beatdown is ‘perfectly legal’ – as, for some reason, notorious mob boss Don Manfredi is now concerned with legality. Nico Minoru also utters the genius line at one point that ‘it’s no fun having tea unless you SPILL it’. Not only does this make no sense to me from a metaphorical standpoint, but the stylistic decision to embolden the word ‘spill’ makes me imagine Nico doing the most cringe-worthy teenage head-roll, feeling empowered by her own nonsensical sass.

Image by Marvel Comics

I could forgive some of this lackluster dialogue and character presentation if there were some sort of strong story grounding it all in the background. However, for the most part, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #4 has so little going on outside of these facepalm-inducing moments, you can’t help but zero-in on them in the aftermath of reading. The highlight of this comic for me was the laugh I got out of the idea that ‘Fancy Dan’ is a name that ‘strikes fear into others’ and ‘commands respect’. I can see how this would have gone over better with readers in the era of comics that Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man draws inspiration from, but in this day and age, statements like this are just laughable to me.

Now, for the comic’s most hilariously egregious moment to me. Now, to be fair to the creators here, I know this is an origin story – this is not the Spider-Man we’ve seen take on New York’s greatest threats. However, the idea that the huge knockout blow, the final strike that would end Spider-Man for good in this issue’s battle, was dealt with a potted plant… I just can’t take it seriously at all, especially when you factor in that Peter goes up against much greater threats very shortly after this in the Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man TV series. That plant smash is a moment I will never forget, and it’s for all the wrong reasons.

I did enjoy some of the action in this issue though, again majorly down to the work of Eric Gapstur, who manages to bring some gravity to this narrative. I can’t say that I particularly care about what’s going on in these fights, mainly because these are the most third-rate villains I’ve ever seen, and we already know Peter will eventually thrive in the near future, because this is a prequel, but still! Again, my praise goes to Eric Gapstur, the real MVP of this issue.

Image by Marvel Comics

At the end of the issue, Peter is apparently falling to his death from the top of a New York building, but if I’ve being brutally honest, I couldn’t care less. He finds himself plummeting to his demise after being taken out by a potted plant, the stakes are not exactly through the roof. Despite the cliffhanger, I don’t think I’ll be picking up the next issue of this series – I’m glad that some people seem to be enjoying it, but this was a real nothing-burger for me – flashy art, with very little substance to give it any real meaning.

So, this comic was a pretty bleak time for me – I’m far more engaged in the storylines they’ve got going on in the series than I am with anything shown in this comic book. Be sure to let us know your thoughts on Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #4 in the comment section of this article, and thank you for reading!

See also: Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #3 Review

• ShareCopied to clipboard
• X
• Facebook