Spider-Girl #3

History

Spider-Girl (Vol. 3) launched June 11, 2025, as a direct spin-off of Dan Slott and Paco Medina's Spider-Boy, where Makawalu Akana — created by Slott and designer Michael Cho — debuted in Spider-Boy #12 as the villainous Funhouse before claiming the Spider-Girl name. The ongoing series was written by Torunn Grønbekk (known for her work on Venom and Thor) with art by André Risso, under editor Kaitlyn Lindtvedt and executive editor Nick Lowe, with cover art throughout by David Nakayama — himself of Hawaiian heritage and a vocal enthusiast of the character's cultural roots. Issue #3, released August 20, 2025, is the third installment of what became a seven-issue completed run, and its central antagonist Paper Doll was created back in 2008 by Dan Slott and Marcos Martín, giving Grønbekk a layered thematic opportunity: a Brand New Day villain rediscovered by a Brand New Day-era series.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Released August 20, 2025 (cover-dated October 2025); written by Torunn Grønbekk, art by André Risso, cover by David Nakayama; 32 pages.
• Part of Spider-Girl Vol. 3, a seven-issue completed series (June–December 2025) spun directly out of the Spider-Boy title; editor Kaitlyn Lindtvedt, executive editor Nick Lowe, editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski.
• Paper Doll (Piper Dali) — originally created by Dan Slott and Marcos Martín in Amazing Spider-Man #559 (2008) — returns to a significant role for the first time since a brief cameo in the 'Hunted' storyline, and the encounter leaves Maka so badly shaken she asks her mother to sleep in her bed afterward.
• The issue advances the series-wide conspiracy: Tombstone (Lonnie Lincoln) is revealed to be directing Dr. Tramma's pursuit of Maka, with the goal of acquiring or exploiting Spider-Girl's power-copying mutant ability.
• Hijack (David Bond) and Lady Bullseye (Maki Matsumoto) appear, continuing their roles as recurring supporting/antagonist figures; TV Tropes notes that Hijack's role across the series marks his most substantial comics presence since Invincible Iron Man (2016), following only a brief appearance in Rise of the Powers of X.
• Spider-Girl (Makawalu Akana) is the fourth character in Marvel Comics history to hold the Spider-Girl name, and the first of Hawaiian heritage; her mutant power — copying abilities through direct eye contact — distinguishes her from every prior spider-themed hero, all of whom gained powers through scientific accident.
• Maka's full name, Makawalu, means 'eight eyes' in Hawaiian, a meaningful linguistic tie to her spider identity established by her creators Dan Slott and Michael Cho.
• The series features four variant covers for this issue: a David Nakayama Virgin variant, a Jan Bazaldua variant, an Annie Wu variant, and a Javier Garrón 'Funhouse Mirror' variant — the last motif running as a throughline variant design across the full series.

Cast · 11 characters

Full credits

Variants (4)