Barely one month after the A.X.E.: Judgment Day event, the X-Men are caught in a new crossover. However, this one also revolves around Spider-Man. Written by Zeb Wells and drawn by artist Adam Kubert, Dark Web is about clones. Here is the official synopsis:
“The worlds of Spider-Man and the X-Men collide, thanks to the unholy alliance of Madelyne Pryor, AKA the Goblin Queen, and Ben Reilly, now known as Chasm! The two most famous and famously wronged clones are back…and they’re going to claim what’s rightfully theirs! The Dark Web they spin over Manhattan is going to change the NYC skyline forever!”
So, the Dark Web event involves Spider-Man and the X-Men, but also Mary Jane Watson, Black Cat (Felicia Hardy), Venom (Eddie Brock), Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan), and Scarlet Spider (Ben Reilly).
What to Read Before Spider-Man Dark Web?
If you have missed Amazing Spider-Man Beyond (see reading order), you may need to take a look at it in order to discover what happened to Ben Reilly (also for the first Mary-Jane/Black Cat team-up!).
- Amazing Spider-Man: Beyond Omnibus
Collects Amazing Spider-Man (2018) #75-93, 78.BEY, 80. BEY, 88. BEY, 92. BEY, 74 (Ben Reilly Story); Free Comic Book Day 2021: Spider-Man/Venom #1 (Spider-Man Story); Mary Jane & Black Cat: Beyond (2022) #1.
As for Madelyne Pryor, it’s in the recent Hellions book by Zeb Wells that she made her recent comeback, then in the New Mutants:
- Hellions By Zeb Wells
Collects Hellions (2020) #1-4, 7-18. - New Mutants by Vita Ayala Vol. 3
Collects New Mutants (2019) #25-28.
Of course, Dark Web being a Spider-Man event, you may want to familiarize yourself with the beginning of the actual run written by Zeb Wells:
- Amazing Spider-Man By Wells & Romita Jr. Vol. 1: World Without Love
Collects Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #1-5. - Amazing Spider-Man by Wells & Romita Jr. Vol. 2: The New Sinister
Collects Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #6-8. - Amazing Spider-Man by Wells & Romita Jr. Vol. 3: Hobgoblin
Collects Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #9-14.
And for Venom, who apparently also plays a notable role in this Dark Web event, it’s Ram V and Al Ewing who recently took over the book. Here are the last books:
- Venom by Al Ewing & Ram V Vol. 1: Recursion
Collects Venom (2021) #1-5. - Venom By Al Ewing & Ram V Vol. 2: Deviation
Collects Venom (2021) #6-10.
Spider-Man Dark Web Reading Order: Collected Editions
- Dark Web
Collects Dark Web #1, Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #15-18, Venom (2021) #14-15, Dark Web: X-Men #1-3, Dark Web: Ms. Marvel #1-2 and Dark Web Finale #1.
Some of those issues are also available in:
- Amazing Spider-Man by Wells & Romita Jr. Vol. 4: Dark Web
Collects Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #15-18, Dark Web #1, and Dark Web Finale #1. - Venom by Al Ewing & Ram V Vol. 3: Dark Web
Collects Venom (2021) #11-15. - More to come soon, came back later for an update!
You can also find the other tie-ins in:
- Gold Goblin
Collects Gold Goblin #1-5. - Mary Jane & Black Cat: Dark Web
Collects Mary Jane & Black Cat #1-5.
Spider-Man Dark Web Reading Order: Issue by Issue
This is a temporary reading order based on what was announced by Marvel (aka the publication order). This list below will be updated as the event progresses. Leave a comment on this article if you have suggestions to make the reading order better, thanks.
- The Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #14
- Free Comic Book Day 2022: Spider-Man/Venom (optional, referenced in ASM #14)
- Venom (2021) #13
- Dark Web #1
- Dark Web: X-Men #1
- Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #15
- Dark Web: Ms. Marvel #1
- Mary Jane & Black Cat #1
- Gold Goblin #2 (optional)
- Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #16
- Venom (2021) #14
- Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #17
- Dark Web: X-Men #2
- Gold Goblin #3 (optional)
- Dark Web: Ms. Marvel #2
- Mary Jane & Black Cat #2
- Venom (2021) #15
- Dark Web: X-Men #3
- Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #18
- Venom (2021) #16
- Dark Web Finale #1
After Spider-Man Dark Web
Too soon to say, came back later for an update!
You did a great job with the reading order of AXE Judgment Day. So I’m back to see your reading order for this event. After reading today Amazing Spider-Man 14 I realize how FCBD 2022 Spider-Man/Venom is not relevant at all. Cause in Amazing Spider-Man 14 is where they actually show us how Ben and Madelyne met and they mentioned some fun (FCBD) they had before. I’m just trying to put together who Madelyne met first. Was it Ben or Venom? Cause in Venom 13 she meets Eddie for the first time. So, did she already met Ben when she met Eddie? Well, I guess we need more issues to find out that. But I guess it doesn’t hurt the reading order leaving Venom 13 before Amazing Spider-Man 14.
Thanks for your help with AXE, happy to continue on this road with you 🙂
As for the start of the event, I concur, we don’t know who she met first. I’ve just read ASM #14 and it confirmed my belief that you can always skip the FCBD. If it was important, it would be in the main book. I put it after ASM though, because it makes more sense to read these few pages once you know the context, but it’s really optional.
I have read everything again. And Venom #13 defintively takes place after Amazing Spider-man #14. When Venom meets Madelyne at the last 2 pages of the book, she says that he looks like to have something in common with a friend of hers. That friend got to be Ben. So that means she and Ben are already working together and that now she just met Venom for the first time. So, it goes
Amazing Spider Man 14, FCBD (optional), Venom 13, then Dark Web Alpha.
I finished reading both Dark Web X-Men 1 and Amazing Spider-Man 15. Although the release order have Amazing Spider-Man 15 first, then Dark Web X-Men 1, the reading order is the opposite. I read Amazing Spider-Man 15 first, then when I read Dark Web X-Men 1 I realized that in terms of reading order, the events of Dark Web X-Men 1 happens before Amazing Spider-Man 15. In Dark Web X-Men 1, Spider Man shows up to team up with the X-men, Iceman and Firestar, learn that what’s happening has something to do with a clone of Jean, then after dealing with monster he goes way, to find Normam, then in Amazing Spider Man 15, when he gets to Normam, he finds Ben, and then later he fights Venom then meet Maddie for the first time and realizes she’s Jean’s clone.
I think its very clear that the reading order is different from the release order mentioned in the last page of the book.
First comes Dark Web X-men 1 then Amazing Spider Man 15.
Indeed, I just read them and Dark Web X-Men is clearly before ASM #15. In fact, Spidey says at the beginning of the issue that he just left the X-Men.
I also think that Venom #14 will take place before AMS #15, but we’ll see for that one later.
I’ve just read this week, Dark Web: Ms. Marvel #1, Mary Jane & Black Cat #1, Gold Goblin #2. From what I could tell, there’s really no preference order or proper order between them. All we know so far is that they’re all after Amazing Spider-Man 15. Maybe following issues could determine better understanding of which issue should be read first.
I’ve just read them and, indeed, nothing is introduced to indicate a particular order of reading. We’ll see what the future issues add to the story. It seems that Dark Web is the kind of event during which everything happens mostly concurrently outside of the main series (and AMS here). We’ll see soon enough!
This week order:
Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #16, Venom (2021) #14, Dark Web: X-Men #2.
In AMS #16 the plan to invade the Treehouse initiate, in Venom $14 the plan is executed, in Dark Web X-Men 2 the plan is already completed and Maddie has the item she wanted stolen from the Treehouse.
Note: Although AMS #15 mentions Venom #14, this is just them telling us where to find the explanation to why Venom got dumb. In Venom #14 there’s a flashback that explain that.
Thanks for your comment, I was going to read DW: XM #2 before Venom #14! It’s an easy-to-follow event, for now at least. I like it when they put clear references to other books in that type of event, the narrative is more coherent that way.
Happy 2023.
Back to Dark Web.
I’ve read this week only issue, Gold Goblin 3 and it felt very disconnected from the whole event. Reminded me of how X-Force was disconnected from AXE Judgement Day.
I guess we could leave this issue after Dark Web X-Men 2 or even put as optional. The next issue of Gold Goblin is already after Dark Web crossover. Come to think of it , I think now that both issues of Gold Goblin 2 and 3, are indeed optional, they don’t add much to the main event. Anyway, next week we’ll have more. I can’t wait to read X-Men Dark Web 3.
I was skeptical about Gold Goblin. I mean, they launched the series and made it part of an event with issue 2… No surprise it’s not really useful for Dark Web, the writer has his own story to tell. I’ll put an optional next to it for now.
Just read this week issues.
Seem like that ASM 17 takes place before Dark Web X-Men 2. As it was showed in ASM 17 Ben calls Madelyne to go help him to create the army of 6 powerful demons and she says to him that she can’t waste time there cause he has guests. And in Dark Web X-Men 2 Madelyne engage in a fight with Jean which we don’t know the result yet. So I’d say AMS17 is right before Dark Web X-Men 2.
As for Mary Jane and Black Cat 2 and Dark Web Miss Marvel 2, Id say that both stories are optional, they have their own enemies to deal with it, the only thing that connects them to the Dark Web crossover is the fact that there’s demons attacking NY and they end up in Limbo, Ms. Marvel for just a brief moment. They don’t help Spider-Man or the X-Men to deal with the bad guys. Feels like the same thing that happened to the Gold Goblin tie-in issues.
I guess the only issues important to the story are the books of Spider-Man, X-Men and Venom. Cause they’re all connected.
I was expected that the Mrs. Marvel tie-ins were going to be optional, because it’s so often the case. Marvel likes to put her in events that way. As for Black Cat & MJ, I’m waiting for the end before putting it in the optional category, because the end may add some information to future developments. We never know. For those two, it feels a bit like during King in Black.
Dark Web is one of those small events Marvel is trying to make bigger than necessary. It’s fun, but feels like it will be mostly an anecdote in the end.
Hi, let me ask you, are you going to create a topic for the X-Men and Captain Marvel crossover?
It seem like a pretty easy to follow crossover but there are somethings to have in mind. For example, X-Men 18 brings a prelude on the last 2 pages, but the crossover actually began with Captain Marvel 43 to 35 where some X-Men members goes to help Captain Marvel, but considering that Laura (Wolverine) is one of them, and Laura is also in X-Men 18, that means that the story in X-Men 18 happens first, then comes Captain Marvel 43 to 45, then comes X-Men 19 which is set to be released on February 8. Basically this crossover will be Captain Marvel 43 to 49, and X-Men 18 to 21.
So far, I get the reading order is this, mostly because of the already released issues combined with the release order of the upcoming issues.
X-Men 18
Captain Marvel 43 to 45
X-Men 19
Captain Marvel 46
X-Men 20
Captain Marvel 47
X-Men 21
Captain Marvel 48 and 49
But maybe this order could change after we actually read these books.
This here is my twitter, I’ve made a post about this crossover.
https://twitter.com/XMenNation1/status/1613525628778860545
Thanks for the info. I’m a bit late on my readings (and I’m not into Captain Marvel), I will look into that!
Well, I’ve read this week issues. Seem like they could stay on the exact order they’re now. Dark Web X-Men 3, then Venom 15.
I got say, Venom 15 didn’t feel like part of the Dark Web crossover at all. And I was only able to understand what was going on because I’ve currently reading Venom, so because of that I could follow up to what they were saying. This issue was heavily focused on the plot of Venom, didn’t even needed to be a tie-in for Dark Web, unless next issue is about to happen something that connects to the Dark Web event.
Dark Web X-Men 3 was great.
An X-Men fan like myself, could read only the following issues to get the X-Men point of View perspective of this Event:
ASM 14 (Prelude, showing Madelyne getting visited by Ben and creating Hallow’s Eve)
Dark Web 001
Dark Web X-Men 1
Venom 14
Dark Web X-Men 2
Dark Web X-Men 3
Dark Web Conclusion
Unless the X-Men is about to appear in AMS 18 or Venom 16, they stayed mostly in their own issues.
I think, the X-Men will be back in the conclusion, but ASM will be like the other titles, focused on its own plot, the Ben Reilly stuff. Everything will come together in the last book to clean the mess.
As for Venom, I don’t understand why they decided to put the character in the mix, they mostly did nothing with him and he is back to his own stuff before the end of the event. I suppose he helped to sell a bit more.
Another week, another issue read.
Very clear to me that Amazing Spider Man 18 takes place right after Dark Web X-Men 3.
Now I’m wondering how will the Venom #16 issue connected to this.
I just read it too and I’m thinking of moving Venom #15 before Dark Web X-Men #3 or after the last AMZ with Venom #16, just to have a better reading experience. I’ll see after reading the last Venom to see where to put them.
Great idea to move Venom 15 to before Dark Web X-Men 3 because makes more sense to read Amazing Spider Man 18 right after Dark Web X-Men 3. But it is a good idea to wait until next week to see what will happen in Venom 16.
Honestly, the event will end and we don’t know the answer to what’s happened in Limbo with Black Cat and Mary Jane. Unless this answer will be given in the last issue Dark Web Dawn.
Right now, if a friend of mine were to ask me which issues I’d recommend for the Dark Web crossover, my answer would be to read the Dark Web main issues, Spiderman, Venom and X-Men. Unless something amazing is about to happen in the final issue Dark Web Dawn, I feel like Dark Web Miss Marvel, Gold Goblin and Mary Jane and Black Cat are optional and irrelevant issues to understand this crossover. Nothing important happened in the Dark Web Miss Marvel issues, and seem like the answer of what’s going on with Mary Jane and Black Cat in Limbo will be given after the whole event is over.
Well, I can’t wait to read next week issues and find out if I’m right about this.
Conclusion Day.
Well, after reading Venom 16 and Dark Web Final, I can say for sure, this is just my opinion, that the books of Gold Goblin, Black Cat and Mary Jane, and Dark Web Ms Marvel are irrelevant for this crossover. If the reader sticks with Dark Web 1 and Final, Venom 14 to 16, Dark Web X-Men 1 to 3, and Amazing Spider Man 15 to 18, they can get the full picture of the story.
PS: I’ve enjoyed this event a lot. I’m wondering now if Marvel is about to release a book about a team of X-Men for Limbo. Limbo X-Men? X-Men Limbo?
It was expected that some titles would be mostly irrelevant. I hoped the Black Cat & MJ story would have been better though. In the end, it was a fun read, and the publication’s schedule has been short enough to make the thing move fast enough–I hate when it takes months to read mostly anecdotal events.
I don’t see X-Men: Limbo becoming a thing, but with Marvel we don’t know, maybe. Why not!
Yeah, every event has some pointless books. I had hopes for Black Cat & MJ to be important to the story but the event has ended and they’re still in Limbo. I’m still going to read the next issue to see if there’s something that ties in to the event even though the event is officially over.
PS: Kind off topic here but do you read X-Men? I was trying to place the facts of this event inside of the timeline of the current X-Men Vol. after AXE Judgement Day, and I could use your help.
In my opinion goes like this:
X-Men 13 & 14 – Judgement Day
Then comes X-Men Annual 1 (takes place right after Judgment Day in my opinion)
Then X-Men 15, 16 and 17.
Then the Dark Web full event.
Then X-Men 18.
We can notice that in X-Men 18 Havok isn’t there in the team anymore, which makes me think that is due to him staying behind with Madelyne in the NY Limbo Embassy. Another thing, in X-Men 18 the girls from the X-Terminators team are all wearing Christmas hats which implies to be in that same season.
But I guess only after reading X-Men 19 is when we’ll figure this out.
Although X-Men Annual 001 was released after X-Men 17, I think it takes place before the story told through X-Men 15 to 17, because in X-Men Annual everything is fine between Havok and Cyclops, and is during X-men 16 that they have the fight and make amends in Dark Web X-Men 2.
Maybe I care to much lol, but I keep very attention to the X-Men stuff lol
Reading Order X-Men (2021-)
X-Men 1 to 3
Death of Doctor Strange: X-Men/Black Knight 001 (The main crossover doesn’t involve the X-Men although they make a cameo appearance)
X-Men 4 to 7
Dark Reign X-Men 1 to 3 (The X-Men does not appear in the main crossover books at all)
X-Men 8 to 12
X-Men Hellfire Gala 001
Judgement Day Crossover which includes X-Men 13 & 14
X-Men Annual 001
X-Men 15 to 17
Dark Web Crossover which includes X-Men Dark Web 1 to 3
X-Men 18
I mostly lost interest in the X-Men lately. I’m trying to follow what’s happening for the events. The multiplication of the series, the confusion in the reading order, me not bothering for some characters, and the irregular quality of the writing. It’s basically too much for me. I’m just not caring enough to stay invested in the whole enterprise.
I’m happy to see that there are still fans who keep up with everything, I’m kind of admiring this type of dedication that I lost through the years.
I understand. Thanks anyway.
What shatter my motivation sometimes is the art error. When I find an art error that makes me so upset that I can’t focus on the reading anymore. Like for example, in Immortal X-Men #3, in the very first pages they say Storm is in Planet Arakko, that’s why she won’t be in the QC meeting. Then, she’s drawn in all the pages of the meeting. Either she was supposed to be in the meeting and the writer later changed his mind and didn’t inform the artist to remove her from the meeting or the artist didn’t pay attention to the notes and used her in the meeting anyway. This type of mistake kills me, and it is happening basically in every issue of Immortal X-Men. And this isn’t getting fixed in the TPB version. That’s what kills my love for the comics. The officer behind the editing in the X-Men books are doing terrible work and there’s nothing we can do to change. I even want to help them to do good but most writers don’t respond well to me finding their errors and reporting back to them. Most times I’m polite, but something I just lose patience when it happens several times in one single book. I’m not seeing these errors happening in other books like Wolverine and X-Force. The majority of errors are in Immortal X-Men, and sometimes in X-Men. I could write a book about this lol.
Thanks, have a good weekend.
Ngl dark web is the worst marvel event only read a bit of it just to see venom lmao its a pretty bad event ngl gang war isint much better but its better than this✋️✋️