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"I quit The Avengers five weeks ago today. And everyone I've ever met is dying to know why. I'm beginning to think it's not so much curiosity as it is that nobody likes my answer... But look, my parents were mad scientists who pumped me full of spider-juice just to see what would happen. I went to Hail Hydra High School and Nick Fury University. Everyone I've ever dated has super powers (except Hawkeye). I've been extraordinary my entire life. And after all these yeas of insanity... a little ordinary sounds pretty #&%^ great."
Jessica Drew, Issue #4

Spider-Woman is a 2014 comic book series from Marvel Comics. It's written by Dennis Hallum with art by Greg Land, Javier Rodriguez, and Natacha Bustos. The series is the fifth volume of Spider-Woman and the third starring Jessica Drew.

Set in the shared Marvel Universe, the series launches during the events of Spider-Verse, the first four issues dealt with the Spider-Verse event before launching a new status quo with Jessica tackling crime as a "street-level" superhero, a new costume (her first costume change in 37 years) and also dealing with a major life change.

After being part of the multi-dimensional Spider-Verse event and dealing with her own fair share of galaxy-wide battles as part of The Avengers; Jessica decides quits the Avengers in search of a more normal life while still helping regular people. She teams up with Ben Urich and recovering ex-villain the Porcupine solving cold cases Urich has collected.

In the wake of Secret Wars, Spider-Woman was relaunched again as part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel initiative with Jessica still as a street level hero, this time with a major difference - she's 9 months pregnant. Not only does Jessica have to be a hero, but she also has to worry about her child's safety.


Spider-Woman (2014) provides examples of:

  • Ascended Extra: Roger, who went from the Legacy Character of a D-List villain, largely doing the same job of showing up in villain groups when needed, to a main cast member with a fully fleshed out personality and backstory here.
  • Big Sister Mentor: Along with parenthood, Jessica is now also juggling being a mentor to both Silk and Spider-Gwen.
  • Big Damn Kiss: Roger and Jessica share one after they're reunited and Hobgoblin is taken care of.
  • Civvie Spandex: Jessica's new costume (her first since 1977) is not quite Not Wearing Tights but it's stylish enough to pass as a normal outfit; it's basically a jacket with a Chest Insignia, tights, and boots.
  • Dark Mistress: Earth-001's Jessica Drew is in relationship with Morlun, as revealed during the Spider-Verse event. Earth-616's Jessica once impersonated her.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Jessica, in full force.
  • "Die Hard" on an X: Jessica has to deal with a group of Skrulls trying to kidnap a prince of their species when she goes to a space hospital for a regular check-up. With no way out and with Carol on Earth trying to help her, Jessica is forced to use her super-spy skills to regain control of the hospital.
  • Easily Forgiven: Averted for poor Roger. Jess doesn't trust him at first and his ex still doesn't like him.
  • Feud Episode A brief one as Jessica ends her friendship with Carol briefly during the events of Civil War II. Near the end of the series, Carol pulls a Big Damn Heroes, saving a very exhausted Jessica and Roger from the Hobgoblin and his forces and apologizes, begging to be friends again. Jess, in the middle of a Big Damn Kiss with Roger, is only able to give her a thumbs up in approval.
  • Give Him a Normal Life: Subverted. Both Jessica and Carol have a laugh that Jessica's baby will never have a normal life, not with his mother as a superhero.
  • Heel–Face Turn: Roger Gocking, aka the Porcupine, a minor Marvel baddie is now a hero and hanging with Jessica and Ben.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Carol Danvers, until the event of Civil War II in which Jessica disavows their friendship over Carol getting Bruce killed by Hawkeye. Then, they make up near the end of her series.
  • Knight of Cerebus: Hobgoblin. Outside fo the Civil War II arc and the final issue before the relaunch, the book had been pretty light with Jess mostly fighting minor or rookie C to D list supervillains. Hobgoblin on the other hand is one of Spider-Man's biggest foes (If not in recent years), and in his first appearance seemingly kills Roger.
  • Love Confessor: Roger admits to Ben that he is in love with Jessica, but he knows it can't happen between them.
  • Maternally Challenged: Jessica used to not care for kids. When the other Avengers are cooing over the newborn Danielle Cage and Mary Jane tells her to "look at this baby", Jessica's only response is "That is a baby. Get it away from me." Then again, this was during the time Veranke was posing as Jessica. Now that she's expecting, she notes that she changed her mind.
  • Mystical Pregnancy: Averted; the comic book fanbase was wondering about how Jessica got pregnant and whether or not this would be a standard "comic bock" supernatural birth with weird circumstances. The author and many editors said this wasn't the case. And when Jessica finally gave birth in issue #4, while it was under duress and via C-Section and in a space colony, the birth and baby are quite normal.
  • Platonic Life-Partners: Starting to develop this with Ben and Roger/Porcupine, assuming neither is the father (which is VERY unlikely). They seem to care a lot about Jess, and vice-versa, but there's nothing romantic about either relationship.
  • Pregnant Badass: After Secret Wars ends, and eight months pass by, Jessica is eight months pregnant and HUGE and while she takes a backseat to the danger, she's more than capable of taking care of herself. She takes care of herself and the other pregnant mothers in the space black hole hospital during a Skrull invasion until her water breaks. After giving birth via C-Section, she quickly makes waste of the Skrull crew.
  • Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Jessica and co. Jess is a former Avenger who hasn't done solo work in years prior to the series and later struggles to juggle a career of crime fighting with being a single mother, Roger is a former D-list supervillian who's better at being a dad than he is at fighting crime and Ben Urich is a long time reporter painfully aware his medium is dying and trying to accomplish something before retirement.
  • Redemption Equals Death: Porcupine, who is killed by Hobgoblin in Spider-Woman #13. He completed his Heel–Face Turn in this book, he becomes a better father for his daughter and even fought as a hero a couple of times. So naturally, it seems like he's killed by Hobgoblin but he survives the murder attempt.
  • Rogues' Gallery Transplant: Jess hasn't yet tangled with her old Rogues Gallery, but has been fighting different C-Level villains throughout the volume. She battled Tiger Shark (a traditional Sub-Mariner villain), the Sandman (A Spider-Man villain), and the Blizzard (traditionally an Iron Man villain). Hobgoblin, another Spider-Man villain becomes her biggest threat after the events of Spider-Woman #13 where he kills Roger. Or so we thought.
  • Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Initially with Silk during the Spider-Verse tie in. They get better.
  • True Companions: Jess, Roger and Ben.
  • The Unreveal: There was a lot of speculation (from fans of the comic and the characters in the comic) on the paternity of Jessica's baby. In issue #5, she shares scenes with Hawkeye (a previous love interest) and talks to Carol in issue #5 about a one night stand. Before revealing the father is an anonymous sperm donor.
  • Who's Your Daddy?: Jessica is not revealing the identity her baby's father or her love life. Tony Stark found out the hard way. Issue #5 reveals that the father was an anonymous sperm donor.

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