Web of Spider-Man #10 – Review

The Extremist, Part 3 by: Fred van Lente (writer), Nick Dragotta (art), Brad Simpson (colors) & Clayton Cowles (letters)

Negative Reinforcement by: Marc Guggenheim (writer), Sana Takeda (artist) & Dave Sharpe (letters)

The Story: Spider-Man wraps up his conflict with the Extremist and Jackpot gets into a bind with Mr. Negative.

What’s Good: I’ve quite enjoyed this Extremist story over the last 3 issues of Web of Spider-Man.  It isn’t the best Spider-Man story ever and the ending here isn’t quite as good as the beginning of this story, but its still an above average Spider-tale.  Throughout it has played on the theme of the dual nature of Peter Parker who is both kinda wussy and spineless, yet incredibly brave once he puts on his mask.

The art is also quite good on both portions of this issue.  Dragotta is doing more of a classic Spider-Man look whereas Takeda is doing something more photo-referency with the Jackpot tale, but I don’t have any complaints with how this issue looks.

Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 – Review

By Marc Guggenheim (writer), Mike McKone (pencils), Andy Lanning (inks), Jeremy Cox (colors)

The Story: After a year of speculation, the mystery behind Jackpot is revealed. Spider-Man, fed up with the games and half-truths sets out to discover the identity of Jackpot and her motives. Little does he know that he’s going to discover more than he bargained for. Mutant Growth Hormone, drugs, and deceit all play a role in this surprising story that treads down a road the reader is most likely not expecting.

What’s Good? It’s a complete story and told in such a manner that readers not too familiar with Jackpot or Brand New Day will be able to follow along. The art by Mike McKone is clean and sharp in such a way that it fits perfectly with a Spider-Man book — or maybe it’s me enjoying Spider-Man rendered in a classic way. Either way you look at it, McKone’s work represents the character well.

Marc Guggenheim gives us some fun moments with Spidey and Jackpot doing their thing. It evokes memories of classic Marvel Team-Up action. I enjoyed these sequences and there seems to be genuine chemistry between the two characters.

What Sucks? The realization by Marc Guggenheim and the Spider-Man “Brain trust” that Jackpot is a useless character that’s run her course. I beg to differ, but that’s just me. Granted, the door is left open for Jackpot’s return, I just feel this character is a wasted opportunity. Also, the stupidity of the character blows the doors right open. I can’t believe the she lasted this long given her history with drugs and lack of training.

And then there’s Spider-Man chasing Blindspot around his home without using his webshooters to stop him. Talk about a waste of two pages. I’m sorry, but Spider-Man is not THIS stupid.

Finally, how is this Amazing Spider-Man #1? This is the 35th annual, people! Stop resetting the numbering to sell more copies. You can’t use this Brand New Day crap as an excuse forever.

Conclusion: This book plays out more like a double-sized issue than an annual. There’s no back-up stories, no pin-ups, no specials.  It’s a story that finally gives us some answers, yes, but the manner in which the answers are delivered leaves a lot to be desired (and feels cheap).

Grade: D

– J. Montes

Secret Invasion: Amazing Spider-Man #1 – Review

By Brian Reed (writer), Marco Santucci (pencils), Mark Pennington (inks)

The best word to describe this series? Obligatory.

I’m a fan of Brian Reed (love his Ms. Marvel work) and I actually have been enjoying Brand New Day. But this book serves as nothing more than to tell fans, “Hey, Brand New Day is part of the Marvel Universe!”. And then Brian Reed goes on to prove it.

The Skrulls attack New York and the Daily Bugle staff is caught in the middle of it. Spider-Man isn’t even in this book because (surprise, surprise) he’s in the Savage Land with the rest of the Avengers! This seemingly leaves Jackpot around as the only person who can save the day. The story is pretty silly and all the events seem trite or forced. Without its flagship character, the book is souless, because let’s be honest, the supporting cast isn’t enough to carry this book. If I wanted stories about newspaper reporters and Skrull invaders I’d just as well read Frontline – which I am – which is a superior book.

This book adds nothing to the overall Secret Invasion storyline, nor does it have a compelling plot. Save your money. Avoid this one or just wait for the trade if you must. I’m sure the real Spider-Man will show up eventually. (Grade: D)

– J. Montes

Amazing Spider-Man #551 – Review

By Marc Guggenheim (writer), Salvador Larroca (art), Jason Keith (colors)

Marc Guggenheim concludes his run on Amazing Spider-Man this week. For the most part, his story has kept in tune with what Dan Slott started on his Brand New Day run. It’s fun, entertaining, and even surprising at times.

The first thing that struck me when upon finishing this issue is the complete omission of the supporting cast. However, I can see why this choice was made, given the circumstances. What we get instead, is a satisfying conclusion to the whole Menace story line. Guggenheim spends the whole issue focused on Spider-Man and Jackpot trying to apprehend this new villain. There is no payoff, per se, but we are given a jolting near the end of the book – a sad conclusion that Peter Parker knows all too well. The whole subplot of “who is Jackpot” also takes a left turn leaving us (and Spidey) with more questions.

All in all, I was pleased with how this issue wrapped up. Salvador Larroca’s art flows much better with the action and narrative this time around. It also probably helped that he didn’t have to draw too many civilian faces, either. Despite missing the supporting cast, everything is paced just right and Guggenheim clearly makes the distinction of what separates a rookie from a veteran superhero. His humor is hit and miss, but most of the time, it hits (especially when Spidey questions the cops on why they shoot at him and not Menace). The only thing I hated was the gratuitous plug for “Brothers & Sisters”, a show Guggenheim produces. Was that really necessary, Marc? (Grade: B+)

– J. Montes

Amazing Spider-Man #550 – Review

By Marc Guggenheim (writer), Salvador Larroca (art), Stephane Peru (colors)

Last issue, Spider-Man was poking around Menace’s backyard along with Jackpot when she double crossed him. Her “back up” arrives in the form of The Blue Shield – a completely irrelevant and forgotten character from the early 1980s. Spidey does exactly what any normal person would do, he laughs and pokes fun of The Blue Shield’s name. Very funny stuff.

Eventually, the Menace shows up, riling enough distraction for Spidey to escape his would be capturers. Spidey pursues Menace and the dialogue that follows is laugh out loud funny. Marc Guggenheim is completely in his element when he writes Spidey, making it all seem so natural and effortless. However, when Peter’s not in the suit and we deal with the supporting cast and subplots, the writing quality lessens.

After Spider-Man’s initial confrontation with Menace the story slows down considerably. Peter meets with the new DB publisher who still can’t seem to get his last name right. It’s a running gag, I know, but it’s no longer funny. Next we cut to the construction worker who Spider-Man saved last issue. The worker claims Spidey knocked him off the building and draws up plans with his lawyer to sue Spider-Man! Finally, we go back to Spider-Man meeting with the cops about the spider tracer killing, which turns out to be worse than expected; it’s not just one killing, but a series of killings over the past three months, each of the victims having been planted with Spidey’s old model of the tracer? Spider-Man has no answer, and neither do the cops. But they do want to question him. Meanwhile, Menace attacks the mayoral debates in Harlem. Spidey’s up to his ears in trouble as usual – and he still doesn’t have a job!

So how was the issue? Uneven. The story doesn’t flow well – it jumps around way too much for my liking. It’s weird too, because both Marc Guggenheim and Salvador Larroca are fantastic when Spidey’s doing his super hero thing. But when it comes to everything else in this issue, they falter. Larroca’s civilians look off (especially Peter) and his storytelling stumbles (especially when Menace attacks the theatre). The same goes for Guggenheim. His dialogue isn’t as entertaining and the pacing languishes. We do learn Jackpot’s real now, though! (Grade: C+)

– J. Montes

Amazing Spider-Man #549 – Review

By Marc Guggenheim (writer), Salvador Larroca (art), Jason Keith (colors)

The opening of Amazing Spider-Man #549 falters a bit. There’s a sequence involving Spidey saving some construction workers that is just told badly. First, they’re free falling, the next thing you know they’re all on the ground and Spidey’s tossing up a net to catch falling debris. I looked over this page a couple of times, scratching my head as to how they went from Point A to Point C with no Point B. What happened here?

Carrying on the torch lit by Dan Slott, Marc Guggenheim delivers clever and witty dialogue. His reference to the Distinguished Competition is a nice pun, and he seems to be in tune with Spidey’s humor. Spidey’s mouth runs throughout the book and yes, some of it’s hammy, but this is Spidey we’re talking about here. This issue marks the emergence of a new villain, The Menace. He’s designed very much in the vein of the Green Goblin, except he’s gray and seemingly more vicious. The Daily Bugle (or The DB as they now call it), has put out a bounty for the first person who delivers a photo of this new villain, so Peter rushes out to be the first. In true Spider-Man fashion, he bumps heads with his new rival, Jackpot.

Salvador Larroca is no Steve McNiven, but he delivers good work here (storytelling problems aside). His character line art is just so simplified now that it almost feels lazy. Larroca also seems to rely more on his colorist, Jason Keith, to get the work done. Keith does a nice job giving the characters more depth.

For months we’ve all been questioning if whether Jackpot is Mary Jane. I’m glad Peter sees and hears the resemblances as well. Do we get an answer? Not quite, but the fact that it’s already being addressed is good. Oh yeah, and the ending made me chuckle. Slott’s story arc may be over, but the humorous tone and good writing continue. (Grade: B+)

– J.Montes

Amazing Spider-Man: Swing Shift #1 (Director’s Cut)

By: Dan Slott (Writer), Phil Jimenez (Pencils)

Okay a bit of a complaint here. When this story first debuted last May, it was a free comic (it was Marvel’s offering for Free Comic Book Day 2007). So, I find it a little ironic that this book’s cover price not for the normal $2.99 but $3.99! Talk about pricey! Okay, so what do we get out of this Director’s Cut? Well, we get some lines of dialogue that are in tune with Brand New Day’s status quo and an appearance by Mr. Negative. Story’s virtually the same as the FCBD issue, so no complaints there; it’s a fantastic read.

What drives up the cover price of this book is all material thrown in at the end of the book. First we get Tom Breevort’s original manifesto that he devised for Spider-Man’s Brand New Day revamp. It’s goes into all the details of the changes we’ve now seen. Next is what looks like a Power Point Presentation that acts as a dossier on Spider-Man’s new cast. It goes into the details of each new villain and supporting character and actually answers a lot of questions readers currently have. Also, from the looks of it, this dossier seems to confirm that Jackpot is most likely NOT Mary Jane.

There’s also some other characters in the dossier that will make you go back through the Swing Shift’s story for another glance. Slott cleverly inserted more new cast members into this issue’s story than we originally thought. This is all going to make Spider-Man very interesting over the next year. For people following Brand New Day, this is something you should probably pick up – even if you already own the original issue. (Grade: A-)

– J. Montes

Amazing Spider-Man #548 – Review

By: Dan Slott (Writer), Steve McNiven (Pencils)

Brand New Day Part 1 featured Peter Parker kissing a beautiful girl on the splash page. Part 2 had Peter giving J. Jonah Jameson mouth to mouth on the splash page. Part 3? Well, I’m not gonna spoil it for you. Let’s just say Dan Slott’s having a lot of fun with his three issue run and we’re all winners because of it.

Like last issue, this one’s loaded with humor and fun. And while I have noted that it seemed like there was a bit too much going on with all the sub-plots, Slott has somehow managed to tie-up all the loose ends within 24 pages. It’s really well done, too – no “Awww come on, this is BS” moments! I’ve been paying pretty close attention to this storyline (as non-serious as it is), and I’ve got to say, I haven’t been this engrossed by Spider-Man in years. The way Slott throws a twist on Mr. Negative’s alter ego completely caught me off-guard! Why does he look like Chow Yun Fat anyway?

Steve McNiven’s art? This guy doesn’t need anymore accolades. You know what you’re gonna get from him: the good stuff.

I’ll always hate Joe Quesada for taking MJ away from Peter and ruining continuity with poor storytelling, but I’ll be the first to admit that this new stuff is fun. Whether the next creative team will be able to build upon what Dan Slott has masterfully (and almost effortlessly) created, is something we’ll find out soon. Very soon. (Grade: A)

-J. Montes