From Newsarama

NYCC 2014: Jason Latour's SPIDER-GWEN Origins and Plans

It’s the story everyone saw coming: a typically throw-away short story in a one-shot becomes a massive internet and sales sensation overnight, leading to an ongoing series for that character.

What, you didn’t call that?

Yes, Spider-Gwen #1 is coming, from the team of Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez, who shepherded her into the Marvel Multiverse via Edge of Spider-Verse #2. From the character’s first announcement (not appearance, announcement), this alternate world Gwen Stacy who got the spider bite instead of Peter Parker had vocal fans. There was cosplay of the character seemingly overnight, with both fans and artists drawing their interpretations of her – even though she had not yet appeared on a single printed page.

Spider-Gwen joins Spider-Woman and Silk in the ever-expanding – and increasingly female Spider-Man corner of the universe.

We caught up with Latour at New York Comic Con just after the announcement (well, after not one, not two, but three Spider-Gwen cosplayers came to him for pictures and signings), for an exclusive first interview on what this newest Spider-character has in store for fans.

Newsarama: So, Jason, is it sinking in yet that this fun little one-off character comes around and now you have an ongoing series out of it?

Jason Latour: Yeah, it’s pretty impressive, ain’t it? I can’t think of another example of the public voting so fast and having it turn around.

I for one am super flattered, and feel a real responsibility to get it right. You know, you work in comics as long as I’ve sort of been in and around it, which is basically my whole life, and you could never have recreated the situation that led us here. So part of the fun is to sit back and enjoy it. How often does anybody get a “Gwen” like this?

Nrama: Absolutely! So, being an artist yourself, did you contribute to the design here, or just let Robbi go crazy?

Latour: No, I just gave Robbi a prompt. I said, Okay, Robbi, this is what you’re good at: go do it. He did all the heavy lifting on that. That’s about as much credit as I feel comfortable taking.

Nrama: So where did the drummer and the Mary Janes part come in?

Latour: You know, I knew Robbi and I both like music, it’s a part of our life, a thing we’re interested in. I knew Robbi wanted to draw the book, and that he’d nail that.

Then from a story standpoint, I’m a creative person, I’ve been a creative person my whole life. To have the drive to sort of be yourself, but decide how much of yourself you give to the world and how much you keep inside. That’s part of being an artist, one part is selfish, one part gives to people. I felt like that was a neat parallel to what Spider-Man is all about.

So the two things just sort of clicked organically. It also felt like a fresh way to do a Spider-character that we’d never seen before.

Nrama: Why Drums specifically for Gwen, and not guitar or lead vocals or whatever?

Latour: Because, it’s all personality stuff. It’s all the fact that, you know, being raised by a cop, there’d always be emphasis on being a steady hand, being a person who doesn’t take too much credit for things, but is there to help people. The drummer, if nothing else, that’s what they are in most bands, they’re the glue that holds things together. So you can see two things on display here: when she’s Gwen she is the Gwen she’s grown up to be. When she puts the mask on, she can be somebody else and define who that person is – she gets to be the frontman, so to speak. So it was fun to play with that.

Also, our friend Rico, who colors the book and is an amazing colorist, is a drummer, and his little daughter is learning the drums. So that was sort of in the back of my head – I didn’t actually put it together until we started working on the book, I forgot that! And she’s a little tiny blonde girl, so that all sort of gelled together, you know?

Nrama: You sort of teased it in the one-shot, but why does Gwen decide that she needs to be a hero?

Latour: Right, well, we implied that… the story of how Peter Parker (in our universe) actually died is a story that we may tell at some point. But what you need to take away from that, is she feels responsible for having inspired him to become the Lizard. When she got her superpowers, she basically did what 616 Peter did, which is try to become famous, try to be on stage. So her being on stage inspired [her] Peter to try to be special, too. So he did this, became a supervillain, they fought, and somehow, Peter died. So she feels responsible for Peter’s death. And it’s also interesting because her dad is a cop, so now she’s a criminal. That mask, it is the literal grey area between her sense of justice and doing right by other people that her father would preach and instill in her as a kid, and this new and unique modern reality for her that he would have no concept of. So it’s her trying to merge those together, and being a hero is for herself.

Nrama: Gwen is a fairly new hero, and when you pick up her story for the ongoing, she’ll have just been part of this crazy Spider-Verse thing, meeting and working alongside all these other Spiders, including some much more experienced ones. How… that has to have a pretty profound impact on her, right?

Latour: Yeah, absolutely. It’s going to have an impact on her as a superhero, but it’ll also wreak havoc on her life as Gwen Stacy, because to her friends and family, she went missing!

Her bandmates were already concerned because she basically blew the concert, and her father, after this big reveal, his daughter goes missing. So when she comes back from Spider-Verse, not only will she be inspired by the Spider-Men and Women she meets to sort of try to be a better hero, she will also have to pick up the pieces of being Gwen Stacy, and figuring out what that means.

So that’s really what the drive of the first arc is.

Nrama: Very cool! Are we going to see more alternate versions of familiar faces?

Latour: Absolutely. That sort of evil-ish Matt Murdock will be a big part of things moving forward. We have sort of a new, retro take on an old Spider-villain to start, and then we have a surprise antagonist, who’s also a well-known New York Marvel character. Speculate away.

Nrama: What’s one thing in particular that you’re really excited, either yourself to write or for fans to see after Spider-Gwen kicks off?

Latour: Look, I’ll be real coy about this, but I’ll say one thing – the Parkers, Ben and May, are still alive. Just keep that in the back of your head.

Nrama: You want a little shameless plug time for your other projects here, like Southern Bastards?

Latour: (laughs) Yeah, they’re very separate projects, but I’m the co-creator and artist on Southern Bastards, which I’m really super proud of. People who come from something a little lighter like Spider-Gwen might think it’s a little too hard-edged for them, but I’d invite you to give it a try, it’s a little different and a little more open to all kinds of readers than you might expect. So, Jason Aaron and I are working on that – and he is just awesome.

Nrama: You and Robbi planning a nice long stay with Spider-Gwen?

Latour: I hope so. I hope I can put the bridle on that bull that is Robbi and ride him for as long as I can!

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plus some info from the Spider-Verse Panel

From Newsarama & CBR & Spider-man Crawlspace

Arriving next to the panel were Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez as Lowe officially announced the new ongoing series Spider-Gwen, featuring the alternate Gwen Stacy with spider-powers from Edge of Spider-Verse #2. “We obviously ended that first story with a pretty crazy cliffhanger,” Latour said. “Gwen comes back from whatever remains of Spider-Verse, and she decides to become a superhero. Now that she’s chosen to define who Spider-Gwen is, what does that do to Gwen Stacy? Those two things are very intertwined. For her father, he didn’t quite give her the great power equals great responsibility speech, but he essentially gave that speech, and now he has to be put to the test.” Latour also reassured that Gwen’s fellow rock band members, The Mary Janes, would still be around. Rodgriguez talked about Spider-Gwen’s costume design, saying he wanted something simple, “something very modern, and get in the head space of what Gwen would do if she was in this superhero world.”

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Spider-Gwen #1 by Robbi Rodriguez

From Spider-Man Crawlspace

Spider-Gwen in February 2015

Marvel sent me (Crawlspace NOT me@animehunter) this press release to make it official.

MARVEL PROUDLY ANNOUNCES SPIDER-GWEN!

New Series Focuses on Gwen Stacy who was Bitten by the Radioactive Spider Instead of Peter Parker

New York, NY—October 17th, 2014 — Revealed at Marvel’s New York Comic Con “Spider-Man” Panel, Marvel Comics is excited to announce the latest addition to the Spider-Man mythos – Spider-Gwen! The new on-going series will focus on Gwen Stacy, who, in an alternate universe, was the one bitten by the radioactive spider giving her spider-powers!

After a sell-out introductory issue that’s part of the events of the current Spider-Man storyline, “Spider-Verse“, the new series, written by Jason Latour (Edge of Spider-Verse, Wolverine and the X-Men), artist Robbi Rodriguez (Edge of Spider-Verse, All-New X-Men), and colorist Rico Renzi spotlights Marvel’s latest cult-favorite hero as she introduces readers to a whole new world where she is the one true spider-hero!

Speaking with Marvel.com, Latour confesses that the drum-playing, rebellious Gwen Stacy, aka Spider-Gwen, has a long road ahead of her to prove she’s not the costumed menace the NYPD has painted her as– especially since her father is the NYPD Captain tasked with bringing her down. “[Spider-Gwen’s] journey is going to pull her father along into its wake. He knows her secret, and it’s a truth that threatens to make his world into a very dangerous lie.”

Latour also teased villains for Spider-Gwen and her father through the series, “We’ll absolutely see an ‘evil’ Matt Murdock (a.k.a. Daredevil), and the Kingpin. I’m a huge old school Daredevil fan, so I get this real sick thrill out of twisting him around and making him the villain. There’s also a new twist a character you’d immediately identify as a villain, who we’re re-casting as a more complex threat to Gwen and Captain Stacy—a character coming at her from within the system…”

“It’s a rare character that gets the public outcry that Spider-Gwen got,” says Senior Editor Nick Lowe. “From the sell-out of Gwen’s first appearance to the groundswell on Twitter we’re excited to bring more Spider-Gwen into the world with the creators who started it all!”

Marvel Comics’ Spider-Gwen swings into comic book retailers in February 2015.

From CBR

CBR TV: Latour & Rodriguez Explore "Spider-Gwen's" Ongoing

Breakout characters can be rare in comics, but with a simple concept and a striking costume, "Edge of Spider-Verse's" alternate universe Gwen Stacy is getting a chance to go solo.

NYCC: Marvel Prepping "Edge of Spider-Verse" Spinoff For Spider-Gwen

At New York Comic Con, writer Jason Latour and artist Robbi Rodriguez -- the creators behind the original one-shot story and upcoming ongoing title -- talked to CBR TV about the surprising life of the character. Check out the video where the two compare Spider-Gwen to Internet favorites like the new "Batgirl" series and tease the dark mirror of a Marvel mainstay in his new series, and read on for highlights from their conversation.

On their recruitment to bring Spider-Gwen to "Edge of Spider-Verse":

Jason Latour: "Nick Lowe, our editor, called me up to see if I had any time because he had these fun Spider-Man one-shots where you could pretty much create any kind of character you wanted to. And one of the ideas we kept coming back to involved Gwen Stacy. My initial reaction, being an old school nerd, was that you don't touch Gwen Stacy. Gwen stays dead. But having gone through the experience of 'The Winter Solider,' [I reconsidered.]

"So I slept on it for a night, and then the next day I called him up and said, 'I want that Gwen Stacy character. I have an idea for it. And if we do the Gwen Stacy book, I want Robbi involved.' I instantaneously saw a different world for the character that was down a different avenue, and I felt like it needed Robbi and Rico [Renzi, our colorist] to tell it. I felt like the Rock N Roll aspect of the book would make it different, and you really need the right artist to make that work. There's a fine line behind making it interesting and your dad's sad old record collection."

Robbi Rodriquez: "Then I think we both had this idea where it was going to be this Saturday morning flashback thing where you'd get the initial backstory there. And putting all the pieces together to make it readable was the biggest part. I'd text Jason when I'd be drawing at the bar and say, 'I got it here,' or, 'I think I'm stuck at this part.' I think it was just whenever I needed a second pair of eyes on something, and vice versa."

On their long term plans for the ongoing series:

Latour: "I'm going to be sort of coy with it. Her relationships out of costume is what will drive the book, but the costime itself and actually becoming a superhero [is] especially [like] what we saw in the first issue. It's a bunch of people trying to define what Spider-Woman is. The book itself is about how does Gwen try to define who she is, even in the mask.

"She's coming out of this giant superhero war, and she's been fighting alongside these Spider-Men and Spider-Women for the stakes of the multiverse or whatever. I think that's what we'll be jumping into when she gets back from that: How does that event drive her to be a better Spider-Woman? And how does she do that in a world where she's being defined by other people constantly?"

"We're going to see a lot of new twists on familiar faces. One that's pretty obvious is that we've got evil Matt Murdock, which sounds so simple, but I get a lot of joy out of figuring out where that can go because I love 'Born Again' and Ann Nocenti's 'Daredevil.' I love the idea of a Matt Murdock who has embraced the darker aspects of himself."

On the design of Spider-Gwen's costume:

Rodriguez: "It started out with me being lazy, because I knew I'd end up drawing it 20,000 times. But also part of me is, I'm a Toth kid. I want it to be so simple and tight. And instead of using the traditional spider-web symbol, I wanted to drop it as a design element right on top of Gwen. Immediately you just see her face and the hoodie… I knew I did not want to do Spider-Man colors at all."

Latour: "That was the one thing where I said, 'Robbie, are you sure it should be purple? Maybe we should make it red...' Then he was like, 'I told you it should be purple.' [And he's right] it really works… The only moment of prescience I had in coming up with the story is when I stepped back from the Gwen Stacy of it all and knew we had this amazing costume, I felt like people were going to react to that."

On why this was the moment for Gwen Stacy to be embraced by fandom:

Latour: "To me, Gwen Stacy never had a story. By the time I came along, she had been replaced by Mary Jane. And when you step back from it and look at comics as a culture, it seems like Emma Stone and the reemergence of Gwen in other media had given people a connection to her again. And it felt like it was owed to the readership a moment where it's just catharsis."

Rodriguez: "Where it's not just treated as a plot point."

Latour: "Yeah. Where it's not a 'fridging.' There needed to be a moment -- even if it was just for one issue -- where we get to see that character have some empowerment and break out of the borders of the page. [To be] a character that has a life. Like all superhero comics, one great thing they have as a genre is to have a character who can beat death. I felt like she was owed that moment."

On whether they ever expected to get an ongoing series:

Latour: "I'm just one of these crazy people who has a million ideas, so I already had years of Spider-Gwen [stories.]

Rodriguez: "I just expected him to get hit by a bus thinking up new mutants." [Laughter]

Latour: "I know how comics work. I know just because something has a fan reaction, it doesn't mean the company's going to get behind it. But we live in a real amazing publishing era where this kind of stuff does happen. In some way, this is a real unprecedented, 'Rocky' kind of story where the fans stood up and made something happen. It's touching to me."

Rodriguez: "It's touching to me, too."

From Newsarama

SPIDER-GWEN Artist Robbi Rodriguez: 'She's a Career High Note'

There are instances in comics where the right people do the right thing at the right time and it creates not only a sensation, but something tangible that people can latch on to and embrace it wholeheartedly. Robbi Rodriguez's Spider-Gwen costume made internet waves before a single page had been published. The costume was simply published on his Instagram account with the hashtag "spidergwen" and what seemed like overnight, became a hit with fans across the board. It, along with a sellout of an introductory one-shot, has led to Spider-Gwen the ongoing series, spinning out of Spider-Verse next year, with Rodriguez joined by writer Jason Latour.

Newsarama sat down with Rodriguez at this year's New York Comic Con to talk about the success of Spider-Gwen and the mystery of how and why people clamored for more (turns out Marvel was listening), and the surprise that she was given her own ongoing series at the beginning of next year.

Newsarama: So, Robbi, before Spider-Gwen even debuted, it already was making its round on Tumblr, Twitter, etc. I mean you had people making costumes within a week of showing the image. What was that like?

Robbi Rodriguez: That was weird and kind of mind-blowing! For one thing, I discovered what Tumblr was [laughs]. Just seeing how many people connected to that costume. I drew that so it would be simple since I would be doing it for 20 pages. So just seeing the simplicity of it connect with so many people actually makes me see the future a bit more brighter now. It's good to see people want this level of simplicity again.

Nrama: You've again paired up with your friends Jason Latour and colorist Rico Renzi with the ongoing. That dynamic obviously works well, but what’s that like working with your best friends?

Rodriguez: It's basically like everyday, except I don't have to kill them. I mean, the fact, you know, we have a happy little marriage. I mean, Jason and me will eventually butt heads, Rico is the nice calm family man that soothes everything down. It makes the job a lot easier, ya know? I can trust Rico and his judgement because we have the same color aesthetic and that saves me a step, I just know it'll look good. Jason's scripts are so tight and smart and yet it leaves so much for my own interpretation to where it still feels like a collaboration.

Nrama: You only had an issue to cram everything in there that you needed to set things up: her being labeled a menace, her relationship with Peter, so what is it like to take a breath and expand here? What are some things you have going on?

Rodriguez: I think we want to keep that format, still. We feel as though that's a lost art now in comics, one and dones. I mean, for the background stories, if we want to play with them, we can, but this way it's a bit more exciting. We have a few ideas we're cooking with right now, but as far as a long-term plan, we might have one or two two-parters so it's not entirely kept being drawn out stories.

Nrama: The whole Spider-Gwen was some sort of movement. You had your friends from the band Married with Sea Monsters do a song. Are you going to try and keep up with the marketing like that now that's an ongoing?

Rodriguez: I treat all this product pretty much like it's an ongoing, so that will explain the almost-guerilla marketing, ya know? I'm still surprised that the Spider-Gwen hashtag took off the way it did, that's still crazy to me. So you'll probably see a little bit more to that as you see me work on the series a bit more here and there. Beforehand, I really didn't give a f--k since it was going to be a one and done, but now that people are clamoring for this and expecting something out of it, it's going to be a little bit more selective of what I show this time around.

Nrama: You've made your own merch like your Mary Janes shirts and prints, so what else can we expect from you that has the Spider-Gwen brand on it?

Rodriguez: I don't know really. This whole experience has been so shocking and surprising and caught us all off-guard, especially me. I was supposed to be unemployed after the one-shot and then boom, here we are, here's an ongoing now.

Nrama: Who approached you with the idea of the character, or was it something pitched to you guys?

Rodriguez: I think it was approached by Nick [Lowe] to Jason. One idea was going to be a sort of continuation to the fabled "Springbreak Wolverine" called "Old Man Spider-Man", where it was going to actually be Uncle Ben in the costume. The other one was Spider-Gwen since Dan was thinking about putting Gwen back into the fold. That just set an alarm in Jason's head. [In Jason Latour voice] "I got this s--t right now!" Once Nick approached me about doing it was sort of [Latour voice] "Aw, man, let's do this s--t".

Nrama: Last time we talked about FBP, you mentioned you think you just have five years left in your career because of your medical condition, do you think Spider-Gwen is the highlight of your career? I mean, if your career, God forbid, were to end next week, would this book be an absolute high note?

Rodriguez: You know what? Yeah, it'll definitely be a high note. If the s--t just goes out tomorrow and I had to quit or I just wake up in the morning and I'm just like "I'm done, I quit" having that big success and the fact I had an effect on comic culture for even just a short period of time, that's f-----g awesome!

From Bleeding Cool

‘Having The Spotlight Is Definitely A New Experience’ – Robbi Rogriguez Talks The Rise Of Spider-Gwen At NYCC

By Brian Goldberg

Robbi Rodriguez took the time to answer some questions for me and his fans about his experience at NYCC 2014. His work on Edge of Spider-Verse #2 with writer Jason Latour has become one of the big key books released in 2014. He has a very unique sense of style and design that comes out in his art and his prints. Here is a little bit about his time at NYCC, his down to earth view of his career, and his creative process.

Brian Goldberg: How does it feel that a character you designed is such a hit with fans? I saw a few Spider-Gwen cosplayers walking around the show floor. That is art appreciation at its finest.

Robbi Rodriguez: I’ve said this in many other places, but it is wild to see first hand. I’ve seen a few online before but seeing it in the crowd with my own eyes is a totally new experience. I’m sure they appreciated the hoodie during that bit of rain we had over the weekend.

BG: How many prints did you sell? I saw many fans walking around with your Spider-Gwen print. Myself included. How did it feel to be an Artist Alley hit?

RR: I sold out of the 100 I did for the show by Sunday morning. Having the spotlight is definitely a new experience. I’m so used to being about to go walk around, grab food or grab a cigarette during a dead period, but there was never a one. As much as I don’t really like the attention, I’ll just enjoy for the moment ’cause it will go back to normal soon enough.

BG:Your graphic design work is unique and definitely makes its mark. Will there be more con exclusive items in the future?

RR: That’s a wait and see. I go show by show and whenever I do, I evaluate what I sell in that market. I have a few ideas, but will see if I execute them since I’m cutting down from 4-5 a year to just 3.

BG: What will your next published work be? What would be your dream assignment?

RR: It’s just going to be Spider-Gwen for the time being. As far as what my dream assignment would be, I’ve never really had one. I like doing my own thing in both my work and my life. So after all of this is done, I look forward to going back to indies and self publishing areas again.

BG:How was your overall NYCC experience?

RR: Its a new high for me and one I won’t forget anytime soon. If I decide to just quit tomorrow, it would be the best height to to leave on.

BG:What was your favorite moment of NYCC?

RR: Of NYCC? Seeing a Spider-Gwen trying to hail a cab.

Spider-Gwen will be released by Marvel Comics in 2015. If you are interested in more about Robbi’s art please visit his artist page at http://robbi462.deviantart.com/.

If you would like to speak Geek with Brian, please email him at your.dog@gmail.com.

From CBR

SPIDER-MANDATE: NYCC Post-Game Talk on Silk, Spider-Gwen & More

Welcome to SPIDER-MANDATE, CBR's regular column featuring the lowdown on everything Spider-Man. Whether it's the core adventures in "Amazing Spider-Man," the upcoming "Spider-Verse" event or the other titles coming to Spidey's corner of the Marvel U, Peter Parker and company have a lot on their plates.

Shepherding the flock of web-swinging titles is Marvel Senior Editor Nick Lowe, who brings his years of experience as head of the X-Men books to Spider-Man -- and it means he's the man with all the answers when it comes to what's up with Peter Parker and Co.

This week, SPIDER-MANDATE takes on the recent announcements from New York Comic Con 2014, including the new "Silk" and "Spider-Gwen" ongoing series, extending the diversity of the Spider-Man line of books, the challenges ahead of May "Mayday" Parker as "Spider-Verse" approaches and much, much more.

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CBR News: Nick, NYCC brought some pretty amazing announcements for fans of the Spider-Man books, not the least of which was "Spider-Gwen" -- was the idea of an ongoing always a possibility or did it come about directly as a result of the response to the character?

Nick Lowe: It was a secret hope of mine, but beyond that, it really was the fire it caught that made all of this possible. The craziest thing is, that issue did so well both in print and digitally that it became something we couldn’t ignore. We plan things pretty far ahead here at Marvel, and this "Spider-Gwen" series was not a part of the plan just because we didn't know how it would go over. Robbi's design coupled with the great story that Jason put together set the Spider-World on fire. It got to the point where we at Marvel were like, "We've got to do this now!" [Laughs] It's all the creators, the passion they put into it.

EXCLUSIVE: Greg Land's "Spider-Woman" #3 cover (Large version bottom of post/article)

We've spoken at length about Silk in the past, but NYCC revealed that she's also set for an ongoing with Robbie Thompson and Stacey Lee at the helm. What can readers expect to learn about Cindy Moon during the course of the series?

It's so good. Robbie's first script is in and it's fantastic. Robbie and his editor Ellie Pyle, have been working so hard on it, and it's going to kick so much butt. I had a great lunch with Robbie out in San Diego where we talked about Silk and the story that Dan has set up in "Amazing Spider-Man" and what possibilities there were. But the credit for the team on the series goes to Ellie Pyle. She's the one who put it together, she's the one who brought Robbie in, she cast Stacey Lee, she cast Dave Johnson on the covers. It's come together to be such a cool project. We planned this when we knew what a big part Silk was going to play in "Amazing Spider-Man" #4, 5 and 6; "Edge of Spider-Verse" and then "Spider-Verse" itself. If there was ever a time to launch a "Silk" series, this was it.

It's pretty interesting to see all these female-led Spider-books in the line, but it's also striking how different they seem to be from one another -- not just one another, but any Spider-title that's ever been published. Not a lot has been revealed about Dennis Hopeless and Greg Land's Spider-Woman, but in previous Spider-Mandates, you've said how different it is from every other take on the character. How do you see these three books contributing to the diversity of the line as a whole?

Jumping back a little bit, "Spider-Woman" was one of the first things I wanted to do when I came in to the Spider-Office. "Amazing Spider-Man," it was a runaway success before I got here so I just wanted to make sure not to screw it up and let "Amazing" be "Amazing." Spider-Woman was one of the things that -- I thought, "We've got to have a 'Spider-Woman' book." I love that character, she's great. What we've been building with "Spider-Woman" is a really cool series. You get to know Jessica Drew in the midst of this huge, crazy Spider-Event. This is the biggest, craziest super hero thing that she's ever been involved with. We put her through hell, and I can't wait for fans to see what we've got coming out of this event. Dennis writes her so well. The characterization from the issue one, page one balloon -- there's so much personality from Jessica here. She's down-to-earth, really cool. And the opening “Spider-Verse” arc is the tip of the iceberg. I don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves because we've got surprises coming that we can talk about in coming weeks, but that's going to be a book to watch.

You also have Greg Land doing incredible work. He's a terrific storyteller, a really great artist who's doing some incredible work on this book. I can't wait until people actually see it.

EXCLUSIVE: Paco Diaz's art from "Scarlet Spiders" #1 (Large versions bottom of post/article)

Right away, we come out of the gates into "Spider-Verse" with a huge "Spider-Woman" super hero book.

Then you have "Spider-Gwen" -- I don't want to get too far ahead and spoil what's happened in "Spider-Verse" -- but she also comes out of this event changed. If you liked "Edge of Spider-Verse" #2, you're going to like this book. It puts her into a super heroing role unlike she had before "Spider-Verse" started. Jason and Robbi and Rico have tremendous plans there.

With "Silk," Robbie Thompson has such an imaginative take on the character and filling in her past while pushing her into the future, filling out this incredible supporting cast. As we get closer to the launch of "Silk," we can talk about it even more. She's got one of the greatest supporting characters in all of Spider-history in her book, and once we get a little closer, we'll tell you who that is.

I'm just so proud of these books and how naturally they came about. I think it's a testament to the work we're trying to do here in the Spider-Office.

Well, let's talk about "Amazing." It really does seem like a female-driven week, as you've got Mayday Parker appeared "Amazing Spider-Man" #8 as part of "Spider-Verse." Dan Slott said the character had "a wonderful final story that gave her a happy ending" during the Spider-Verse NYCC panel -- but then he trailed off. Should fans start to get concerned about Mayday given Dan's diabolical mastermind of a plan to kill off many beloved Spider-folks?

Stories and the way stories work are an endless fascination of mine. There's this great song by this band called Dawes, called "Stories Don't End." It's about how we put an ending on stories when we think it fits but that doesn’t mean events stop happening, and that's something that happened with Spider-Girl. Her story is continuing on and it ain't pretty for her. What we see in "Amazing Spider-Man" #8 is huge for that character, and I'm afraid of saying more for spoiling the issue.

For those who have read it already, you know how huge this story is for her as a character. It's going to bear heavily on her through "Spider-Verse," but it ain't easy what she has to go through. I won't say any more for those who haven't read it yet, but go read it if you're a fan of her character.

EXCLUSIVE ART: Spider-Verse continues to roll through "Amazing Spider-Man" #9 ------ Art by Olivier Coipel (Large version bottom of post/article)

After "Spider-Verse," assuming that everyone stays alive, it looks like there will be a good number of titles coming from the Spider-Office -- certainly more than in recent years.

Well, we've got a little bit of a different angle on it than we've done in the past. About a year ago, you had "Superior Spider-Man," you had "Superior Spider-Man Team Up," "Superior Foes" -- we had a bunch of Spidey books, but they all really revolved around Spider-Man himself. One thing that we're trying that's a little different right now is to diversify that a little bit. That's the beauty of having Spider-Man 2099 stuck in the present and the great book that Peter David and Will Sliney put out month after month. We get a different person wearing a web suit. The same goes for "Silk," for "Spider-Gwen," for "Spider-Woman." We're going to try and give it as many differently toned and feeling books with different characters at the helm, because we're ready to beyond to branch beyond Peter Parker. We've got a really rich corner of the Marvel Universe here that we can explore in greater ways. I hope that readers out there are ready to prove me right on this! [Laughs] Who knows? Maybe we'll be back to three different books starring Peter Parker.

Weirdly, it does slightly feel like you're becoming editor of the X-Books again, with all these different titles.

[Laughs] Except it's not fourteen team books!

[Laughs] Well, what is that like for you, as editor -- getting to see the volume and diversity of the Spider-Books rise as you've started to develop your own spin on these books after taking over from Steve Wacker? I don't want to say it's your first foray into solo books --

Oh, it totally is! I've worked on solo books, but not for eight or nine years. It's a big learning process for me, but it's been really fun to go out there. And I've got such a great team here with me and they do such great work.

EXCLUSIVE: German Peralta's art from "AXIS: Carnage" #2 (Large version bottom of post/article)

you mentioned Steve Wacker before, and he would like to claim that he's my mentor, and that's possibly closer to the truth than I'd care to think. I very much stand on his shoulders. I've come in at a really great time in the Spider-Office, and I just hope that people like the books. I hope people go pick up 'em up and don't just talk to them and look at them. That's how these book are going to succeed: if people go and pick them up at their stores.

Before I let you go, Gerard Way's "Edge of Spider-Verse" issue came out last week -- which was a huge issue for you.

Yep! I'm the luckiest boy in the world -- my wife and I are going to his concert on Thursday at Webster Hall, so if you're also going to Gerard's awesome concert at Webster Hall, you might see your local Spidey-Editor. Please come by and ask me Spider-questions. I'll be the one dancing and singing too loud, I would imagine. I don't think I'll make it to the mosh pit because I'm soft and fragile, but it's possible.

I was so stoked for "Edge of Spider-Verse" #5 to come out. I'm so people have gotten it. It's already sold out, it's going back for its second printing. It's such a cool issue. Gerard and Jake Wyatt created such a cool alternate universe with Penny Parker and Sp//der. I couldn't be prouder of that book and the work they did on it. I'm so happy it finally happened, and hopefully, this is the start of many issues that we'll collaborate on.

The next Spider-Mandate is a big one, Spider-Fans -- it's the first real "Spider-Verse" column! With the build-up to the event all set to go off, make sure you post your questions in the CBR Community Spider-Mandate forum, or you can go ahead and send questions via an e-mail with the subject line "Spider-Mandate". No matter what your preference, get those questions in before October 31!

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EXCLUSIVE: Greg Land's "Spider-Woman" #3 cover

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EXCLUSIVE: Paco Diaz's art from "Scarlet Spiders" #1

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EXCLUSIVE ART: Spider-Verse continues to roll through "Amazing Spider-Man" #9 ----- Art by Olivier Coipel

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EXCLUSIVE: German Peralta's art from "AXIS: Carnage" #2

First Look: ADAM HUGHES' SPIDER-GWEN #1 Variant Cover

Adam Hughes decided to drawn Gwen Stacy in her more traditional look for his variant cover to next month's Spider-Gwen #1 (with just a hint of her alternate universe costumed identity), but hey, it's still Adam Hughes drawing Gwen Stacy.

Check out Newsarama's exclusive first look at the cover.

SPIDER-GWEN #1

JASON LATOUR (W) • ROBBIE RODRIGUEZ (A/C)

VARIANT COVER BY KRIS ANKA

YOUNG VARIANT BY SKOTTIE YOUNG

VARIANT COVER BY ADAM HUGHES

BLANK VARIANT ALSO AVAILABLE

SPIDER-GWEN SPINS INTO HER OWN SERIES!

• BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT! The breakout hit of the biggest Spider-Event of the century is taking comic shops by storm this winter with her own new ongoing series – SPIDER-GWEN!

• Gwen Stacy is Spider-Woman, but you knew that already. What you DON’T know is what friends and foes are waiting for her in the aftermath of Spider-Verse!

• From the fan-favorite creative team that brought you Spider-Gwen’s origin story in EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE, Jason Latour and Robbie Rodriguez!

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99