Ghost-Spider Vol. 1: Dog Days Are Over: Dogs Days Are Over (Ghost-Spider (2019-2020))

“Ghost-Spider – Dog Days are Over” collects the first five issues of the renumbered and rebranded Spider-Gwen, though that’s the only change.I can never remember what happened in a previous volume of a series, and though this one starts in the middle of whatever, it was a superbly entertaining whatever, and despite it being near midnight, I just kept going, sucked in by the sheer pace and fun of it all.I just checked my review of the previous volume and found this -“It is all just regular Spider-versal stuff, and yet, as I said in the review of the previous volume, a new writer and artist have made a world of a difference, and I’ve given this five-stars again simply because there was no reason not too (even though I don’t like the art!).”Well, I agree with it all again, except there IS now a reason to give it the five stars – it is because it deserves them!

One spoiler here which is necessary to the reviewI have enjoyed the tension, humour and changes of pace through Spider Gwen in all arcs, threads and what-have-yous and was doing fine with this volume until.Along came a panel which concluded a set up hostage situation, a trap to catch Spider Gwen.One of the gun men says to the woman and child 'We don't need you...'Next panel an outside of the building with the words ' Bang Bang' implying the two hostages were gunned down. An innocent woman and child...seriously?What on the earth were the writer artist and editor thinking about?Yes, yes we all know comics and graphics have moved on since the 1960s, yeah, yeah it's a Big Bad World and terrible things happen. I know I read news, lots of it.What I cannot tolerate is this image of the slaying of innocents just for some hack thrill to show how bad the bad guys were. Cheap. Unnecessary and for some unwary readers upsetting. Me? Well I can't use the words I want to because Amazon might censor them or some reader might be offended by my "over-the-top" reaction. (It's only a comic man, and far worse things happen in Batman...I can hear the words now). Don't care, whichever way you look at it, this was offensive and unnecessary.I read this through Comixology so I can't literally ditch it, it goes into 'Achieve' to rot are far as I am concerned.A great story ruined by one cheap piece of sensationalist (and I can't use that word either).