Marvel’s Silk: Everything Spider-Man is, But Better

Warning: this article contains spoilers for Silk #1

There’s a new web-slinger in Marvel Comics’ New York City: her name is Silk and she’s everything Peter Parker’s Spider-Man is, only without any of the drawbacks. As one of Marvel’s crown jewels, the original Spider-Man is a hard act to follow. His backstory, powers, and red and blue spandex suit are iconic on stage (perhaps best forgotten), screen, and comic book page. Any contender to the throne is bound to be subjected to scrutiny by fans, which is what makes Silk’s case so interesting. While the two share more in common than would perhaps be wise in the grand scheme of things, the similarities only highlight what makes Cindy Moon’s Silk so great.

With this month’s release of Silk #1, from writer Maurene Goo and artist Takeshi Miyazawa, Cindy Moon is re-entering the spider-verse in a big way. Since Robbie Thompson and Stacey Lee’s run on the character ended in 2017, Cindy Moon made a big splash in 2019’s War of the Realms crossover event as a member of the New Agents of Atlas. Now that she’s back in her own series, Silk is having to blaze a trail for herself in the shadow of her traumatic past and the legacy of Parker’s Spider-Man. If this first issue is anything to go by, such a feat shouldn’t be so difficult to accomplish. 

Originally created by Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos in 2014, Silk’s origin story is virtually identical to Spider-Man’s. Her powers don’t stem from inter-dimensional hijinks, spontaneous mutation, or sinister experimentation, but from a radioactive spider bite. Before dying, the very same spider responsible for turning Peter Parker into Spider-Man, went on to bite Cindy Moon. And just like Parker, her physiology underwent radical arachnid-like transformations. If that wasn’t enough, Moon was also drawn to the world of journalism and even works under the same cantankerous newspaperman J. Jonah Jameson.  

However, it turns out that second bite packed a bigger punch. Shooting organic and highly-versatile webbing from her fingertips—which she can weave into clothing and manipulate into various useful forms—gives Silk an added edge compared to Parker’s homemade synthetic webbing. No more damaged web-shooters or depleted cartridges getting in the way of crimefighting either. Though her super-strength may not be as super as Parker’s, she more than makes up for it with superior speed , agility, and a higher-level extrasensory perception of danger or “silk sense”. Moreover, she may not have the science acumen driving Peter Parker’s big brain, but she is gifted—or cursed—with eidetic memory, which allows her to retain and recall (almost) everything that she sees. 

Not only that, but Silk gets paid. Gainfully employed at Jameson’s latest news outfit “Threats and Menaces” as a reporter, Moon is quickly making a name for herself as a resourceful and talented news writer. Unlike Peter Parker, Silk’s relationship with her boss is one of like-minded respect and common interests. In fact, it looks like she’ll be getting another good paycheque protecting Jameson from evil-doers looking to silence him. What readers are getting here is a character who isn’t cast to stumble and fall short in her personal and professional life as Parker was doomed to be, and she’s doing all this without sacrificing her relatability. Not bad for someone who spent a decade locked in a bunker hiding from a band of murderous spider-hunters. 

All things considered, Silk #1 is a promising start to the Marvel Comics series relaunch. Now that mainstream audiences have been introduced to the sprawling Spider-Verse, there’s more room for other wall-crawlers to share the stage. Cindy Moon’s Silk is more than a female version of Peter Parker‘s Spider-Man. Similarities aside, she’s what the original wall-crawler struggled to achieve. 

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