Spider-Woman, Vol. 2: The Assembly

Spider-Woman (2023)

by Steve Foxe

Spider-Woman's ongoing series continues with a fresh start and a whole new direction!

Brokenhearted following the shocking revelations about her son's fate, Spider-Woman decides to leave New York for a fresh start — and return to her old stomping grounds of San Francisco! But the trek across country will not be a smooth ride. And Jess will meet some fresh faces who perhaps have the potential to become New…Champions?! But why does Jess have a sinking feeling that there's more to these teens than meets the eye?

COLLECTING: Spider-Woman (2023) 6-10

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel

120 pages, Paperback

Published December 3, 2024

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Assembly...Assemble?


Less than meets the eye?

I wasn't expecting Jessica Drew's ongoing one-woman crusade against Hydra to kind of become a backdoor New Champions pilot but OK, then.

The change of setting to SF and the anti-venture capital message was entertaining, at least.

[MoonKnight · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun!!!

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

this run ends with Jessica in San Francisco still mulling over her son Gerry who has been aged and turned into a Hydra assassin.
that's strangely not resolved...
instead she crosses path with a new group of young Supers-The Assembly (new Champions) and Angst the Secreamer...who I remember from his Iron Man days.

[Guilherme Smee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Neste volume, através da carta de despedida de Steve Foxe, ficamos sabendo que ele foi incumbido editorialmente de fazer a lambança da edição anterior: acelerar a idade de Gerry, o filho da Mulher-Aranha, e torná-lo seu oponente. Mais uma prova da má condução editorial da Marvel. Nesse segundo volume, entretanto, a coisa dá uma melhorada, mas, mesmo assim, Foxe é incumbido de dar voz e vez a uma nova geração de jovens heróis manipulados pela Hidra para ganhar poderes e se parecerem com os Vingadores; eles são A Assembleia. Mesmo incumbido de mais uma missão editorial, dessa vez Foxe se sai muito melhor, conseguindo desenvolver uma história envolvente, aventureira, com personagens novos e antigos que fazem sentido, muito diferente do primeiro volume desta versão de Mulher-Aranha. Os desenhos do brasileiro Ig Guara também ajudam a perceber essa mudança de tom do primeiro volume, que era relacionado com a saga do Homem-Aranha, Guerra de Gangues.

[Tyler Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great outing for my first time reading a solo Spider-Woman series. I liked it a lot and I can’t wait to see this story continue, I assume Jessica’s search for her son will unfold in the pages of West Coast Avengers and I know the kids of The Assembly have their own series coming as the new New Champions. I’m glad I picked this up, I only did it at first for the Gang War tie in but I’m happy I stuck with it.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars.
Highlights:
After the events of the last Volume, Jessica hits the road to clear her head and track down more info about her son. Arriving in San Francisco (after some quite fun transportation issues), she meets "The Assembly" a new team of superheroes. Styling themselves after current heroes: Liberty (a cross between Captain America and Wasp), Cadet Marvel, Moon Squire, Hellrune (kind of like Raven and Hela), and Titan (who looks like a young Hulk in an armor). Eventually Titan is revealed as Gremlin inside a new Titanium Man (see the legendary Armor Wars) who was directly responsible for the programming of Jessica's son Gerry. Nothing really gets resolved regarding the son, but we know that she will cross paths with Green Mamba at some point.

Overall, not a bad read, if feeling a bit forced. I really hope Jessica gets some justice soon.
Recommend, but really only if you've read the previous Volume.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reeling from the revelation that her lost son is actually the villainous Green Mamba, Spider-Woman crosses the country to San Fran, ostensibly on the hunt for said son, but also just kinda getting away from it all. What she finds is (essentially) a new Champions team, The Assembly, who have an odd desire to save corporate America from protesters...

It comes as no surprise that this new super-team is not what it seems (and is tied into Hydra's child brainwashed child labor scheme). It's a somewhat predictable storyline (that doesn't at all resolve the Green Mamba conundrum), but it looks great and reads fast. Solid middle-grade Marvel...which makes it all the more unfortunate that the run is abruptly concluded here.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad way to conclude a series run...

Jessica Drew is on the search for her aged-up son, Gerry (now a Hydra villain going by the name of Green Mamba) AND Hydra themselves. Her search brings her back to some of her old stomping grounds in San Francisco. While getting her bearings, she bumps into a new superhero team called...'The Assembly' and they're pretty much Younger Young Avengers with legacy names and NO history that Jessica can find.

Fishy, right?

Turns out that Hydra has had a hand in a LOT of things. 'The Assembly' is the latest plaything they've been working on.
=========
Bonus: I like the Hydra mischief, but I wanted it to be a longer thing. Maybe they can pick this up in another series?

[Justin Greer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only downside here is I want this series to continue! We never get enough Jess. Fun story, cool developments, interesting villains. Still need more about Gerry… but Jessica Drew is the best, as ever.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

fine enough. but the main story is cut short

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jessica heads to San Francisco for a new start, but finds herself having to rescue a new group of super-teens from...themselves?

It's nice to see Jess in this parental role, just to twist the knife a little more about the unfortunate circumstances surrounding her own son. The Assembly aren't particularly inventive since they're just baby versions of the usual suspects, but the personalities ring true, and I enjoyed some of the D list villains that got to shine in both actually villainous and supporting roles.

It felt like this book was just about getting off the ground, but alas, ten issues is about the limit for most second tier books these days. Fun while it lasted.

[C.T. Phipps · Rating 5 out of 5]

SPIDER-WOMAN: THE ASSEMBLY is a story about how Jessica Drew returns to her old stomping grounds in San Fransisco and finds a bunch of child superheroes brainwashed by Hydra into unwitting tools. There's a lot of fun to be had here even if I wasn't a big fan of the New Champions. It tied in nicely to her story with Gerry. I sadly feel like they were setting up a lot more plots when the book was abruptly cancelled. For example bringing back Jessica's love interest from the Seventies only for it to go nowhere. Still, it was very enjoyable.