Spider-Man: Brand New Day just released this week to critical and commercial success. The fourth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spider-Man series starring Tom Holland proved to be more than worth the hype. And part of what made the movie’s buildup and payoff so great were the team-ups Spider-Man had with Jon Bernthal’s Punisher and Mark Ruffalo’s the Hulk. These team-ups continued the propensity of Holland’s version of the Web-Head for joining up with other heroes, including Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and even alternate versions of himself! This narrative choice calls back to the original Marvel Comics, as Spider-Man constantly worked with other members of the superhero community. And if you loved the team-ups presented in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, then these comics are right up your alley.
Despite Spider-Man primarily working as a solo crimefighter, he’s had his fair share of crazy crossovers that are not only reminiscent of Spider-Man: Brand New Day but could also serve to help you get ready for the next big MCU projects.
As in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the comic storyline “The Omega Effect” features the Web-Head working with the Punisher and fighting the ninja clan known as the Hand. Additionally, this story also includes a character that wasn’t included in the movie: Daredevil. Spanning Avenging Spider-Man #6, Punisher Vol. 9 #10, and Daredevil Vol. 3 #11, “The Omega Effect” brings together New York’s three greatest street-level heroes. When Daredevil gets his hands on the Omega Drive that contains key information on every criminal syndicate on Earth, the Hand and other organizations try to kill him to get the device. Naturally, Spider-Man and the Punisher come to Daredevil’s aid, and together they fight numerous thugs and ninjas to keep the Omega Drive from falling into the wrong hands. This storyline is a lot of fun as the Wall-Crawler has great character dynamics with other heroes while facing off against the Hand, just as in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Between their confirmed appearance in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday film and rumors of Sadie Sink playing Jean Grey in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it’s safe to say that the X-Men now have a pivotal role in the MCU. And for people who want more stories involving the Web-Head working with the Children of the Atom, they need to look no further than the miniseries Spider-Man and the X-Men. In this lighthearted comic, Spider-Man temporarily relocates to Krakoa to be a guest professor at the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning. Unfortunately for the Web-Head, on top of having to deal with rowdy and rude students, Spider-Man also finds himself facing off against numerous villains like Sauron, Mojo, the Sinister Six, and Mr. Sinister. Not only is it great to see Spider-Man taking a teaching job, but this is one of the best stories that has Spider-Man fully immersed in the world of the X-Men, including their society, school, and villains. All of this makes it the perfect story to read after Spider-Man: Brand New Day to prepare for even more MCU X-Men content.
Even with the success of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Tom Holland can’t play the Web-Head forever. In fact, both Holland and Marvel’s boss Kevin Feige have discussed the MCU passing the Spider-Man torch onto the iconic legacy hero Miles Morales sometime in the near future. If this mantle transference does indeed pan out, then the Spider-Men miniseries is the perfect team-up story to read beforehand. This crossover event was the first time that the two Spider-Men met, as the Peter Parker of the main Marvel Universe found himself flung into the original Ultimate Universe. On top of providing great comedy and action as Peter and Miles work together to stop Mysterio, Spider-Men provides many heartfelt moments. The series has Peter meet the Ultimate versions of Aunt May and Gwen Stacy. Most importantly, in the series, Peter officially gives Miles his blessing to continue the Spider-Man legacy. If the MCU is truly planning on retiring Tom Holland and introducing Miles Morales, then this is the story to read beforehand to prepare.
In the same way that Jon Bernthal’s Punisher made his first movie appearance in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the iconic anti-hero was introduced in a Spider-Man comic. In Amazing Spider-Man #129, the villain the Jackal tries to destroy the Web-Head by tricking the ruthless vigilante the Punisher into thinking that Spider-Man is a cold-blooded murderer. Initially, the Punisher believes the Jackal’s lies and hunts the hero across New York City. And after a long-fought battle, Spider-Man eventually manages to convince the Punisher that the Jackal is a liar and that Peter is not a killer. Realizing his mistake, the Punisher vows to get revenge on the Jackal and storms off. This historic comic introduced the most grounded and dangerous anti-hero in all of Marvel Comics by initially making him an enemy of Spider-Man. And despite the Punisher’s propensity for killing people, something that the Wall-Crawler abhors, Amazing Spider-Man #129 was also the first of their many encounters and team-ups, making it the perfect comic to understand their relationship in the movie.
Easily one of the most anticipated parts of Spider-Man: Brand New Day was the return of Savage Hulk who was last seen in Avengers: Infinity War. And it’s safe to say that the temperamental Jade Giant more than lived up to expectations as he battled Spider-Man. With the Wall-Crawler’s love of wisecracking and annoying people, it’s no surprise that the Hulk has tried to squash the hero numerous times. Arguably the best of their team-ups, and the one most reminiscent of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, occurred in Amazing Spider-Man #381. When the gamma hero Doc Samson is infected with a virus that turns him into a rampaging beast, Spider-Man and the Hulk work together to stop him. Unfortunately, when the virus transfers to the Jolly Green Giant and causes him to lose control, Spider-Man must fight to protect innocent people and knock the Hulk back to his senses. Eventually, Spider-Man manages to appeal to the Hulk’s morality and convince him to revert to Bruce Banner, who commends the Web-Head for his quick thinking. This comic perfectly emulates the events of Spider-Man: Brand New Day as Spider-Man fights a corrupted Hulk and interacts with both the Bruce Banner and Hulk personas.
