Miles Morales teams up with Spider-Smasher to defeat his evil clone

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38 preview — (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

In a parallel universe, Miles Morales lost his fight to his evil clone, Selim, and now the latter is a dictator worth fearing. When Miles and his best friend/clone Shift enter this universe in Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38, they're quickly forced to reckon with its reality – and that includes meeting an adult version of Miles' little sister, Billie, who's addressed by another character as Capitán Billie.

So how did we get here?

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38 kicks off 'Empire of the Spider,' which seemingly refers to Selim's reign in this alternate universe. Here, the good Miles was defeated in issue #28, at the end of the 'Clone Saga,' and his baby sister Billie grew up without him.

Now, she's a badass soldier type. Marvel previously teased her debut in March with a cryptic poster introducing Spider-Smasher. That's Billie, but her moniker isn't as ominous as it sounds: She isn't a threat to our Miles. She's leading a resistance against Selim, and if past events tell us anything, Miles and Shift are going to help her cause.

However, they may also ask Billie for her help with their mission: finding out whether Miles' Uncle Aaron is alive in this dimension. 'Empire of the Spider' is a multi-part story arc, and Marvel's July solicitations explicitly mention Aaron being a captive of Selim's; the August solicits toss Miles' and Billie's futures into the air. These two are clearly going to have to work together to get what they both want and get out safely.

Ahead of Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38's release next week, Newsarama has a sneak peek at Miles' first time meeting Spider-Smasher Billie.

Image 1 of 6

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38 is written by Saladin Ahmed, with pencils by Christopher Allen and Alberto Foche, inks by Oren Junior, José Marzan Jr., and Alberto Foche, colors by Brian Reber, and letters by Cory Petit. The main cover art is by Taurin Clarke, and the issue goes on sale June 1.

Miles Morales may be Spider-Man, but he's nothing like Peter Parker. Learn how Miles became his own hero and re-defined the mantle of Spider-Man.

Samantha Puc (she/they) is an editor at Newsarama and an avid comics fan. Their writing has been featured on Refinery29, Bitch Media, them., The Beat, The Mary Sue, and elsewhere. She is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative nonfiction at The New School.