Miles Morales: Spider-Man, Vol. 8: Empire of the Spider

Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2018)

by Saladin Ahmed (Writer), Taurin Clarke (Cover Art), Christopher Allen (Illustrator)

Miles Morales and Shift embark on an interdimensional quest! Their first stop is Brooklyn - but not the one they know. They're entering the Empire of the Spider! Prepare to discover a horrific timeline where Miles' clone Selim rules with an iron fist! The only thing standing in the way of this evil Spider-Man's oppressive regime is a rebellion led by some familiar faces: General Ganke Lee and a very grown-up and extremely badass Capitán Billie Morales! But who else from Miles' family is out there? And what is he prepared to sacrifice to save the ones he loves? The Miles and Shift who set out on this journey through the Multiverse aren't going to be the same people who come back. Why is that? Ask Ultimatum! Collecting MILES MORALES: SPIDER-MAN #37-42.

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Spider Man, Superheroes, Comic Book, Fantasy

144 pages, Paperback

First published December 27, 2022

About the author

Saladin Ahmed was born in Detroit and raised in a working-class, Arab American enclave in Dearborn, MI.

His short stories have been nominated for the Nebula and Campbell awards, and have appeared in Year's Best Fantasy and numerous other magazines, anthologies, and podcasts, as well as being translated into five foreign languages. He is represented by Jennifer Jackson of the Donald Maass Literary Agency. THRONE OF THE CRESCENT MOON is his first novel.

Saladin lives near Detroit with his wife and twin children.

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 2 out of 5]

Shift and Miles find themselves in the Spider-verse in a quest for Uncle Aaron that (yawn) leads to yet another alternate Spider reality where a rogue Spider rules as an Emperor over an enclosed part of NYC. As ever there are alternate version of Miles Morales cast members, but Spider-verse stories need to give me more to entertain me. as they al becoming a bit samey. This is still a key Miles universe read though, because of its outcome. A 5 out of 12, Two Star read.

2024 read

[Frédéric · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m really not big on whatever-verse stuff and if I’ve seen way worse this conclusion to Saladin Ahmed’s run isn’t amazing either and very, very teenager friendly.

Miles and Shift hit an alternate reality where Selim is emperor of Brooklyn- yeah I know, that sounds kinda small-time ambition, right?- and Ganke the local John Connor with Billie as an aggressive adc.
Some people dress as fancy Spider Stormtroopers to maintain order, the crew fights, wins and gets back in Brooklyn in time for dinner. Whew! Close call.

Art is ok. Some nice designs, some dark settings, lots of very average stuff.

[Rory Wilding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picking up from where the last volume left off, Miles discovers that his uncle Aaron is alive and is trapped in another dimension, and so he and his clone Shift go through a dimensional trip where he confronts old enemies and alternate versions of familiar faces. Considering that the influence of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is somewhat felt throughout Saladin Ahmed’s run, it was kind of obvious that the writer would take Miles into an adventure across dimensions, but does it serve as a fine conclusion?

The first thing that happens is Miles and Shift encountering Ultimatum in between dimensions, as the first issue is devoted to this one action sequence that gets resolved by the end of the issue, as the two heroes travel to the next world, which covers most of this volume. Upon arrival, they have discovered that New York is taken over by the Empire of the Spider, led by Miles’ evil clone Selim. Standing in the way of this evil Spider-Man’s oppressive regime is a rebellion led by some familiar faces: General Ganke Lee and a grown-up Billie, Miles’ sister.

In the tradition of superhero comics, we have a dark future story, which also serves the climax of Ahmed’s run. As well as continuing some story elements from the run like the Clone Saga, there is a sense of re-treading water as considering the tropes that you would see in this kind of narrative, such as seeing grown-up versions of well-established teen characters, they do detract from the intimate soap opera that was a big part of the run (and Spider-Man comics, in general).

That is not to say the volume is without those intimate moments, but you wish there was a lot more. Scenes such as Miles reuniting Ganke, Billie’s upbringing where she learns to hate the Spider symbol, and even Shift finding his romantic interest that is adorable, always a nice counterbalance to the superhero spectacle. As for the spectacle itself, with both Chris Allen and Alberto Foche on artistic duties, it is serviceable with very little to surprise you.

The final oversized issue – drawn by a variety of artists – serves as a nice epilogue with Miles seeing a fortune teller, who predicts a future for the web-slinger, calling back to several beats from before, such as a brief team-up with Rhino and Miles’ relationship with Starling. Considering that the next creative team has taken over the Miles Morales run with their own ideas with where they want to do the character, but issue #42’s use of fortune-telling is a nice way of wrapping the ideas that Ahmed was doing with his end, with an element of ambiguity.

[Markus Santos · Rating 3 out of 5]

É o último volume do Ahmed no título do Miles, e ele tenta fechar todas as pontas soltas que ele deixou nos últimos volumes. Aqui continua a viagem dimensional que o Miles e o Transmuto começaram, procurando o tio do Miles. Depois de uma luta com o Ultimato, eles acabam indo parar numa realidade em que o Selim, um dos clones do Miles, dominou o Brooklin e se transformou em imperador. A irmãzinha do Miles e o Genke lideram a resistência e agora eles tem que ajudá-los. Depois que isso se resolve, o Miles tenta ter um dia comum com os amigos e um encontro com a Canora, mas são interrompidos por uma emergência que envolve o Rino. Mais um volume bem mais ou menos do Miles. Continuo com a sensação de que fizeram a melhor coisa possível integrando o Miles com o restante do universo Marvel mas depois não souberam o que fazer com ele. Não tenho noção de como foi a fase posterior do Ahmed, mas espero que tenha descoberto o que fazer com ele.

[Sud666 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I randomly picked up this volume to see what's going on in Miles Morales' life. The story isn't bad, though enough with Multi-verses already, and is set in some random universe where a Miles clone named Selim has taken over Brooklyn and named himself Emperor. A bit odd since an Emperor controls many lands and Selim only controls one..so, technically, he'd be a king..but I digress.

Miles, in a weird new pajama-based costume, is running around with a mentally damaged clone named "Shift" that only says "glurp" (poor thing is probably "woke"). They are fighting Selim and his soldiers trying to free Brooklyn. In this future, Miles' sister and old-roomie Ganke have become resistance fighters.

Interesting enough story, though nothing great. Decent enough artwork, though nothing great. Thus is a 2 star volume. Nothing great but not terrible either.

[Guilherme Smee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Neste encadernado temos o final da fase de Saladin Ahmed no Homem-Aranha Miles Morales. Neste arco, Miles e seu clone do bem Transmuto são arrastados pelo fluxo do tempo e das realidades a um local onde o clone do mal de Miles, Selim (que é Miles ao contrário!) domina Nova York. Lá, seu amigo Ganke é o líder da resistência e sua irmã Billie é uma das comandantes de campo. Ao mesmo tempo que Peter Parker tem um papel essencial na trama. Achei interessante Ahmed ter pensado esse futuro alternativo focado no Universo de Miles, mas ao mesmo tempo faz a gente se perguntar por que os outros heróis do Universo Marvel não interferiram na tirania de Selim. Outra coisa que me incomodou também foi o rodízio de artistas, praticamente um ou mais por edição do encadernado. A fase se encerra com uma leitura de cartas de tarô falando sobre o que o futuro reserva para Miles e seu amigos. A próxima fase de Miles Morales será comandada por Cody Ziglar que já havia feito histórias curtas com o personagem.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, this is the end of Saladin Ahmed's run on Miles Morales: Spider-Man. I can't say I didn't feel it coming. The book has been plodding along to get to issue #42 for awhile now. Every time it felt grounded, it got yanked back into some Marvel mega event. The best bits for Miles tend to be either in a team-up or living his Brooklyn life.

These last issues before the reboot certainly don't damage the character. This alternate timeline plot puts most of the Selim clone saga stuff to rest. His constant attendance battles at his prep school are addressed and put to the side as well.

So, this felt like the end of junior year for the character. He's not a bumbling freshman. He's not suffering from the sophomore slump. Miles just finished out his 'junior year'. Getting things ready for that senior year and life changing decisions with no net. Making choices in life and dealing with the end result no matter what...

Bonus: Another alternate timeline story? I guess if you have to get it out of your system one last time..
Bonus Bonus: Starling, as a character, holes a lot of promise. Hope to see more focus on her

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you like Into The Spider-Verse? Well, let's do that, but with Miles and Shift as they head through multiple realities on the trail of Miles' missing Uncle Aaron, culminating in a dystopian future in which Miles lost his Clone Saga and all of New York is ruled by his twisted clone Selim.

While the premise here isn't exactly new, Saladin Ahmed keeps things very focused on Miles and Shift's relationship, even when the cast grows in the Empire Of The Spider to include older versions of classic characters. It does feel a little quick to revisit the Miles/Selim rivalry, but considering the poor kid still doesn't have many villains of his own, it's not overly surprising. There's also a rematch with the Assessor that's very cathartic to see though.

The final issue of the collection is also the end of the series, and is mostly a revisit of how we got to where we are. It's a nice end-cap to a solid run, and a good reflection on the developments Miles has had, from his new family members to his costume and beyond.

On art we have Chris Allen, who's been hanging around (Spider-pun!) for a while, some fill-ins by Alberto Foche, and the series' original artist Carmen Carnero appears for a sequence in the final issue which is a nice way to come full circle.

Empire Of The Spider brings Miles' latest adventures to a close in the same style as the rest of the run - a good focus on Miles himself, with some nice art and a fun story. We all know he won't be gone for long, but it's still bittersweet to see his series come to an end.

[Haley Yochum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Satisfying conclusion to Saladin Ahmed’s run. Was a fun universe hopping journey that saw Miles face Ultimatum once more only to be transported to an alternative timeline - the future. Or a possible future. The ultimate satisfaction came from Miles finally finding Uncle Aaron, saving him, and getting back to Brooklyn and his own life. In the alternate dimension, I liked the fact that Ganke and Billie played large roles in helping Miles on his journey to ultimately defeat the threat that was “Emperor Selim.”

While I didn’t like Ahmed’s run as much as Bendis’, this was really good as far as a follow-up goes. The pressure to create something as good as what Bendis and Pichelli created is a tall order. Ahmed’s stories were heartfelt, fun, and really focused on family and community, which I love. Looking forward to what’s next.

[Joshua]

The end of a great run. I tend to like Spider-Man more when it’s neighborhood level and Miles is kicking it with his family and friends, and this volume is decidedly not that, but it’s been cool seeing Miles Morales change creative hands and grow and evolve. In some ways the second shepherd of a character can be just as important to the character’s longevity as the creators and in those capacities Ahmed and company have nailed it.

[Emmett Spain · Rating 2 out of 5]

An average end to a diminishing run. Miles journeys around the spider-verse and it’s much ado about YA hijinks. Dull work with great art. Glad Ahmed’s run is done.

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am subtracting an entire star because of how many times Miles says "chacho" in this volume. It wasn't a thing up until this volume and he says it 20 times.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Miles Morales: Spider-Man, Vol. 8: Empire of the Spider" is a decent ending to the Miles Morales: Spider-Man series written by Saladin Ahmed. I have mixed views about the multiverse storyline. Some of it worked for me, but not all of it. However, I did like the ending.

I think the villain was a bit one dimensional. I'm guessing that he has a similar backstory to the Selim in Miles' universe. However, there wasn't much information about him. He came off as a power-hungry tyrant and I think it would've been helpful to add more depth and/or relatability (or a different backstory) for his character. Or, it may have been better to use a different villain rather than bring back a doppelganger of a previous villain. Either way, I think it would've been better to have him present throughout this series rather than a villain for the final story.

It probably would've helped to have the multiverse adventures to be a larger part of the series. I know that there were hints towards it as well as the inclusion of some multiverse counterparts. That was great, but I think it would've worked better if we had multiverse adventures earlier on as it would allow more time for worldbuilding and exploration of characters, rather than have it at the very end. Nonetheless, this is more of a personal preference.

Indeed, I still enjoyed the plot. It was great seeing the multiverse variant of Ganke and a cool twist to see the Billie's multiverse counterpart. The fight against the tyrant was well written and exciting throughout. The action and art were all great. Plus, there were some good twists generally.

I like the final story better. It focused on the connection between Miles and his family - as well as his bond with Brooklyn. Indeed, his borough is his family also. There was a nice plot involving fortune telling and discussion about fate in general. I also love the focus on Miles/Spider-Man and Tiana/Starling. They had some great dialogue and adventure together. The story wrapped up nicely and is beautiful.

Overall, while I had issues with some parts of this book, I liked it as a whole. It's a nice ending for Ahmed's run of Miles Morales: Spider-Man. His run also made me an even bigger fan of Miles and I want to read even more Miles Morales books.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

An odd outing for Miles, but a fun one.
Highlights:
- Ending in a in-between space, this Volume picks up where the last one left off with Miles and Shift caught near Ultimatum. Quickly gaining the upper hand over him, they ultimately lose when Ultimatum opens a portal to a world where Miles' clone Selim has been made Emperor of Brooklyn.
- The leader of the resistance is an adult Ganke, which is odd, but a fun twist for Miles.
- Brooklyn is cut off from the rest of everything, and Miles discovers that they are using Prowler (Miles' Uncle Aaron from 616) to power the very unique shield that does it. Once they rescue him, the people are so shocked to see the sky again, as it has been a long time.
- Billie takes over after Ganke. Until his death she never knew that Miles was her older brother from another universe. She takes the up the mask and mantle as the Spectacular Spider-Smasher.
- Miles and Starling attempt to have a date, but are interrupted when they need to go help Rhino save some kids.

Odd end to Saladin Ahmed's run, but still pretty good. Worth it to wrap up the series.

[Alex Sarll]

The conclusion of Ahmed's run, and fittingly the final issue of this is a lovely, prismatic recapitulation of everything that made the best bits of that sing: grounded yet aspirational superheroics, with a strong supporting cast and a great balance between the costumed and regular aspects of Miles' life. Before that, though...oy. The first issue doesn't have a single character who isn't a version of Miles, and there are plenty more to come, to the extent that before long it's Miles' wonky clone versus the alternate universe version of Miles' wonky clone who is working for the alternate universe version of Miles' evil clone, and I know at some point the Spider-Man concept got bitten by a radioactive house of mirrors, but this is ridiculous. We're in the dark future of an alternate timeline, except we basically see nobody outside the regime and the rebels (most of whom are themselves directly connected to Miles), meaning it all ends up with the weightless feel of a theme park. Not to mention a little bathetic when it turns out that this nightmare regime covers almost the whole...of Brooklyn. You can't take over one borough and call it an empire, dude.

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn't a bad story, but it was a weird one. Or maybe it's just the creative team trying to set a direction for the comic to keep it distinct from the main Spider-Man comic line. And apparently, that niche is multi-versal adventures. This sort of makes sense given the Ultimate origins of Miles as Spider-Man, but we also end up with comics where the stakes aren't super evident.

This "big" adventure is a great example of that challenge. We have him and Shift exploring a whole other reality where he didn't survive his little Clone Saga and the resulting outcome was taken to an extreme. This is whole other version of Brooklyn that is now the Empire of the Spider and they're somehow ruled by this alternate version. It's a compelling story but you know that things reset to normal by the end of the arc then...what's next?

I hope the next Miles Morales efforts find other things to explore for him. The best bit from this comic is probably his developing relationship of sorts with Starling, but that may get dropped like nothing flat if we're not careful.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd probably give this 3 1/2 stars, so rounding up. Kind of a ho-hum final volume and wrap-up to Saladin Ahmed's run on the series. There is a pretty good alternate universe story in here where Miles' clone Selim survived and rules over Brooklyn with an iron fist, but the whole thing is kind of rushed and not really allowed to breathe. I'm glad that Shift continues to be a character and even gets some development (his first kiss!), but again, that stuff need some more room to breathe. And then the final issue is kind of a "greatest hits" medley as Miles visits a fortune teller and then sees his fortune play out over the course of a day? (I mean, I think that's what's happening...) Obviously, this character isn't going to be on the shelf for long and I think, all in all, Ahmed did a pretty good job with developing him, but this conclusion is just a bit soft.

[Joey Nardinelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the whole, I really liked this run by Ahmed. I feel like he did a great job balancing Miles, who even as a more recent Marvel character feels so connected to so many different people in his family and friends community as well as Peter Parker and several other offshoot rogues and one of their progeny and now a clone in the mix…like I said, overall great job. I always felt like this series was staying with a foot firmly planted in YA territory even as it delved into things like torture and trauma — I think the ribbon adorning the ending left me with that feeling too. This volume itself feels a bit flimsy — the elements around finding Uncle Aaron and then getting into an alternate future all felt rushed even with an epilogue issue tagged on. Curious to see where the Miles stories go from here post-Ahmed.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've kinda loved Ahmed's run on Miles Morales. I could do without alternate timelines and universe hopping, but Ahmed manages to bookend his run really well, putting a once-and-for-all (?) end to Ultimatum, Selim, the clone saga, The Assessor, and even Miles' unwitting alliance with The Rhino.

We get a nice, Miles Morales feelgood ending, and that might be my only real complaint...the book is pretty light on feeling like there are any stakes or drama. It's really just sort of an ending, and a victory lap for a writer who managed to have a nice 3.5 year run on a great character and managed to do some decent stuff with him along the way.

It doesn't measure up to Bendis' initial run, but this is probably the best stretch Miles has had since joining the "Marvel Universe Proper".

[Bryan Fischer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This seemed like an odd send off for this run. But the way the last handful of books had been going, this seemed inevitable. More time traveling, dimension hopping, facing the same villains again. Just not my cup of tea plot wise.
But in saying that, it was probably my favourite version of that story that this run has included. Some fun and heartfelt moments, art was pretty good, and I liked the new character designs.
Final issue of the book (and this run) was hit and miss. Some good writing, some good art, but also some poor art (was kinda blurry and low res?).
I nearly gave this a 4 star, but I think that was just because this is the final book in the series and I felt the need to bump it up lol

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mediocre end to a mediocre run for Miles, a real disappointment after Bendis' long run on the character.

This is yet another plot that looks great on paper. Miles and his clone traverse the multiverse, meet another clone, and see their friends and family in an alternate reality. And, it's honestly a nice capstain to Saladin's stories. But there's just nothing interesting here. It's very decompressed action, with the pages just streaking by.

The last issue is a little better, with Saladin remembering that Miles has a supporting cast.

Overall, though, it feels like nothing happened in this whole 42 issue run, other than Miles getting an awful new costume. I think it's going to be largely forgotten and ignored when whatever happens next occurs.

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miles and Shift get transported to another universe where he lost the fight with his clone Selim and was killed. Selim has siloed Brooklyn off with some kind of rift and taken over. Ganke is an old war General leading the rebel forces. This has been done so many times before that it all seems a bit generic now. The whole clone thing has more than run its course and I didn't really care for it here. Let Miles be his own man instead of Spider-Man lite. The last issue is not great with a glimpse into a possible near future with a team of former artists on the book that you know isn't going to actually happen.

[Allysa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 4 stars are more for the overall work that Ahmed did with Miles Morales than with this issue in particular. Within this issue, I was glad we saw the end of multiverse hopping Miles but didn’t need a retread with the evil clones even if it did involve finding Uncle Aaron. I did enjoy the full circle moments of the volume, with the call back to the journal and the return to working with Rhino to save kids, just like in volume 1.
Ahmed had an excellent run and I can’t wait to see what he moves onto next and to see who takes over Miles.

[Jamieson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The finale of this particular run of Miles Morales, this collection sees Miles and Shift exploring the multiverse where they arrive in world where Miles' clone Selim won their battle (see Miles Morales: Spider-Man, Vol. 5: The Clone Saga) and turned Brooklyn into his own little empire. A fun story that ties together the series with a final issue that wraps everything up and ends the run well. A must for fans of this series and Spidey fans in general.

[Erica · Rating 2 out of 5]

This volume probably deserves more than 2 stars, but I've been on the fence about continuing this line and this sealed the deal for me to stop. I've liked Ahmed's work for a long time, but the over saturation of Marvel and the relentless need to connect separate comic storylines and explore multiverses just makes everything harder to follow and a lot less special.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I'm going to miss Ahmed on this book. No, I didn't love the last story, because it kind of felt like something I've read or seen many times before. But I've always liked the way he writes Miles, and his supporting cast. At least the last issue does a good job of tying up loose ends and setting up the next writer.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a little torn on this volume because I didn't really like the alternate universe plotline, but I also didn't realize that this was the final volume and it was bittersweet in that sense. I honestly enjoyed the story more once things were resolved and we got to see everyone go back to "normal," kind of tying the entire series together.

[Bekka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the multiverse stuff, but I will say that I think it would have been better to stretch out all the alternate reality stuff a bit more to explain what was going on, and to allow the wrap up issues to breathe a bit more.
TW for violence, mentions of torture, death, grief, funerals, guns.

[Néstor Vargas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wasn't a huge improvement in the overall quality of the series but it concluded on a high note. A bit cliche on the alternate dystopic future with the main guy being a bad emperor, but the ride was still fun. Good way to bring Uncle Aaron back and for Miles to see where his anger can lead to. Not my favorite Miles' run but it was consistent.

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall it was good, Shift was a cool character and Miles new suit is my fav spider man suit, but some issues felt like they didn't matter much and were kind of forgetful and i didn't care for a lot of things that did happen. But the arcs i did like i really enjoyed and i think its def worth a read!