Amazing Spider-Man #655 – Review

By: Dan Slott (writer), Marcos Martin (art), Muntsa Vicente (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

The Story: The Spidey characters deal with the death of Marla Jameson.

What’s Good: Tour de force!  The opening two pages of this issue say it all.  I don’t think it’s too much of a Spoiler to discuss it, but you’ve been warned.

If your spouse died, would you remember to turn off their alarm clock?  When do you pick up the book they were reading?  What about their toiletries?  When do you stop wearing a wedding band?  The emotional opening pages allow Slott and Martin to address this void in Jonah’s life, but instead of showing the man sobbing or tearing his hair out, they tell the whole story with silent panels.  A lot of what a person leaves behind are things like alarm clocks set for 7:00 a.m. and toothbrushes.

The entire first half of the comic is a silent panel-by-panel depiction of Marla’s funeral.  Very moving.

From there, the story drifts into a psychedelic dream of Peter’s as he visits with his dead loved ones and grapples with his guilt over the deaths he wasn’t able to stop.  Again, this section has its very emotional moments such as when Peter’s parents appear faceless because he can’t remember what they look like but he can remember the face of the guy who killed Uncle Ben.  It also explores the age-old comic question of, “Why doesn’t Batman just kill the Joker?” Or in this case any of Spidey’s rogues gallery?  Do associates of Spidey’s like Punisher and Wolverine possibly have the right idea?

I personally think the phrase “kills it” is used way, way, WAY too frequently to describe art.  It’s kinda like calling everything awesome.  But, know this; this issue has wonderful art.  I’m a huge fan of guys like Greg Capullo who pour all kind of intricate detail into a panel, but I still LOVE this work by Marcos Martin.  His lines are so clean and simple.  There is almost no cross-hatching.  And, it works so well because it keeps us focused on the storytelling aspects of the art.  There isn’t a single panel in this comic where there wasn’t full consideration given to the size, shape and placement of the panel.  And a couple of the panels reminded me very much of something that JH Williams would have done in Promethea where the entire splash page is basically a collection of borderless panels.  The colors aren’t quite flat colors, but it is nice for a change to see a panel colored for the emotional reaction that the creators want you to have rather than due to what color they think an object would be colored in real life.

Amazing Spider-Man #654.1 – Review

By: Dan Slott (writer), Humberto Ramos (pencils), Carlos Cuevas (inks), Edgar Delgado (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

The Story: Flash Thompson is introduced as the all-new Venom.

What’s good: This is yet another example of great art making all the difference.  Just merely having Humberto Ramos doing pencils on this issue pushes this comic to a higher grade as a starting point.  I’ve gushed about his art plenty and if you’re interested in the details, go check out my reviews of ASM 648-650.  His loose and cartoony style is so effective at conveying the kinetic energy of a character like Venom.  The other thing that really puts Ramos’ art over the top are the great layouts and page designs such as one page where Flash dances with the fem fatale on this issue.  This comic is really well executed from an art standpoint.

And, the story isn’t too shabby either.  The concept of Flash as Venom is really cool.  We all know what a devious little bugger the Venom symbiote is and it is clearly a major problem when you put that symbiote together with someone like Mac Gargan.  It is going to be very interesting to see whether the symbiote will corrupt a good guy like Flash and what Flash will be willing to do to retain the symbiote since it allows him to walk again.  This particular issue has a done-in-one kinda feel to it as Flash/Venom goes out on a one-man hostage rescue mission.  The whole thing is well told and well paced by Slott and it is a very different type of superhero comic than we’re used to getting from Marvel.  This is almost more of a military/espionage comic.

A final note on how well these two creators seem to work together.  You can just tell that Slott must be very aware of what Ramos draws well when he is writing the script.  That makes a huge difference and there is a LOT to be said for a writer having trust in the artist to carry their part of the story.  Let’s hope that these two have plenty of opportunities to work together in the years to come.

Amazing Spider-Man #654 – Review

By: Dan Slott (plot), Fred Van Lente (script), Stefano Caselli (art), Marte Garcia (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

Venom back-up: Dan Slott (writer), Paulo Siqueira & Ronan Cliquet de Oliveira (pencils), Siqueira, Roland Paris & Greg Adams (inks), Fabio D’Auria (colors), Caramanga (letters) & Wacker (editor)

The Story: Spidey deals with a threat to his secret identity while fighting the Spider Slayers.  Oh, also  someone dies.

What’s Good: “Another fast paced and romping issue of Amazing Spider-Man”….  That has been a solid descriptor for every issue since Dan Slott took the reins of this title in issue #648.  Again, this issue is action packed and uses a blend of Spidey’s superhero and scientist sides (with a clever twist on the secret identity).  Slott has really embraced this role as hero/scientists and the series is better for it.

Another thing that I love about ASM is how much it feels like New York.  As much as I love fictional places like Gotham, there has always been something neat about being able to imagine a NYC with Spider-Man in it.  Both Slott and Van Lente are New York guys, so it makes sense that they’d nail it.  Perhaps it is “east coast bias” on my part, but I enjoy the authenticity of a NYC setting way more than stories that are vaguely set in the Pacific NW where it rains all the time.

There is also a chance that we’re going to see some lasting change in J.Jonah Jameson.  Something HUGE happens to the guy in this issue and you can’t help but think that it could change how he views the world.  Let’s just hope that it is a change that sticks.  Jonah is such an important supporting character and it would be nice to see him stretch his legs a little bit.

Amazing Spider-Man #653 – Review

By: Dan Slott (plot), Fred Van Lente (script), Stefano Caselli (art), Edgar Delgado (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

Power-Man back-up by: Van Lente (writer), Reilly Brown (pencils), Victor Olazaba (inks), Andres Mossa (colors), Caramanga (letters) & Wacker (editor)

The Story: Spidey needs a little help to foil the plans of the Spider-Slayer.

What’s Good: Lots of cool guest stars in this issue of Amazing Spider-Man as the New Avengers show up as well as a certain uber-bad guy.  You know what?  The Avengers SHOULD show up sometimes in Amazing Spider-Man since Spidey is an Avenger.  This is the kind of story-making that makes the Marvel Universe feel like a universe where everything is touching and interconnected.  And, their appearance is done is such a way that you don’t need to read New Avengers to understand things.  Sure, there is an inside joke or two that you might miss if you aren’t aware of the distinction between New Avengers and plain old Avengers, but this is a case of interconnectivity being a plus.  We need more of this kind of thing in Marvel comics.

The writing in this issue is really smooth.  The credits indicate that the script is actually by Fred Van Lente and that’s never a bad thing.  His writing style and sensibilities aren’t that different than Dan Slott, so it isn’t a jarring change.  If you follow Van Lente on Twitter or read some of his creator-owned projects (Action Philosophers or Comic Book Comics) you’d realize that he’s a really bright and well read guy and that intelligence really shows through in everything that he writes.  2011 should be a big year for Van Lente.

Also, I love Peter Parker’s boss and that they’re writing him like he’s actually intelligent.  Ya know….smart people would start to figure out that Peter might be Spider-Man so this story angle makes a lot of sense.

The art is overall quite good.  The layouts and storytelling are all very strong and I like how his Spider-Man looks like a man wearing a mask where you can see jaw muscles and the like under the mask.  He also draws a really good Squirrel Girl.  I’m sure Caselli isn’t going to put “esteemed Squirrel Girl artist” on his business cards, but he does draw her really well.

Amazing Spider-Man #652 – Review

By: Dan Slott (writer), Stefano Caselli (art), Edgar Delgado (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

Power Man back-up by: Fred Van Lente (writer), Reilly Brown (pencils), Victor Olazaba (inks), Andres Mossa (colors), Caramanga (letters) & Wacker (editor)

The Story: Peter Parker settles into his nice, happy life and some arthropod-themed villains have a grudge against J. Jonah Jameson.  Imagine that…

What’s Good: I like seeing happy Peter Parker.  It’s amazing that it was only a couple of story arcs back that his roommate, Michelle, had sold all of his clothes (except for one ugly sweater) to help pay the rent.  How luck can change!  Here we see a Peter who is at ease, enjoying spending time with his family and new girlfriend, Carlie Cooper, while enjoying a dream job that rewards his creativity.  I guess all of these elements were in play during Slott’s first arc of his run on this title, but they didn’t quite sink in as much because of the mayhem going on with the Hobgoblin.  Even though this happiness is certainly temporary, it is well earned.

Peter’s love life has always been an important facet of any Spidey story and Carlie has really grown on me.  Step back to January 2010 with MJ back in town, Peter having drunken hook-ups with his hot roommate and even flirting with Betty Brant and I wasn’t too enthused about him “picking” Carlie, but she is really the perfect match for Peter.  She’s smart, funny and way more comfortable in her own skin than MJ has ever been.  And I even like MJ in this “special friend” role where she can be a sounding board for Peter because she knows everything.

But, ASM is not only a slice-of-life comic, so Slott also brings the action in the form of Spider-Slayer and the new/old Scorpion.  This leads to an great action scene that ends with Jonah making a very surprising request of Spidey.  The crazy thing about Spidey and Jonah’s relationship is that Peter/Spidey is close with just about everyone in Jonah’s world, except for Jonah.

ASM has had awesome art for the last hundred issues or so.  It is really amazing how they are able to shuffle artists due to the frequent release schedule and maintain a high level of quality.  Caselli keeps the ball rolling with some great work here, but I especially like how he draws Carlie and MJ.  IMHO, Carlie needed to be made a little more attractive than she had been drawn.  I mean, Peter picked her over some pretty hot women and the way Caselli draws Carlie helps you understand his decision.  [Note to the kids at home: I’m certainly not implying that looks are everything, but they had to at least get Carlie into the same ballpark with the other ladies.]

Amazing Spider-Man #651 – Review

By: Dan Slott (writer), Humberto Ramos (pencils), Carlos Cuevas & Joseph M. Damon (inks), Edgar Delgado (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

Scorpion back-up by : Dan Slott (writer), Stefano Caselli (pencils), Delgado (colors), Caramanga (letters) & Wacker (editor)

The Story: The story arc wraps up as Spidey & Black Cat try to reclaim the reverbium from Kingpin.

What’s Good: Another issue, another really fun Spider-Man story.  The thing I like best about Dan Slott’s writing is the tempo.  These stories just move along as a healthy clip without feeling rushed.  In this initial story arc of his solo-tenure on ASM, Slott has covered a lot of ground: Peter Parker has a new job, new girlfriend, new Hobgoblin and new status quo for Kingpin.  All that in four issues.  Spider-Man is supposed to be a roller coaster, not a scenic tour and Slott gets that.

Another thing he gets is writing single-issue comics.  I am so sick of comics that are “written for the trade” where there is almost no reference to anything in the story that could allow you to place it in time or continuity.  Not Slott (or his editor Wacker).  He makes a very self-aware joke in this issue referencing the new Tron movie.  I can’t tell you how much I love that because thing great thing about Marvel comics is that they aren’t taking place on Earth-4b in fictional cities like Metropolis….they take place in New York City and they should feel like they’re going on right now.  Bravo to you guys!  So what if it seems dated for the trade readers.  I can’t imagine a trade of a title like ASM is that evergreen anyway (meaning I doubt it continues to sell well year after year like Fables or The Walking Dead).

In terms of major plot developments, we have those too.  Interesting new status quo for Kingpin, eh?  I was pretty surprised to see this development happen here and not in the pages of a Daredevil comic.  I also like the new Hobgoblin.  He’s well fleshed out and a lot of fun to read (being a complete smart ass).

Ramos’ art continues to be a great fit for this series.  As much as I enjoy our more realistic artists, I think this exaggerated cartoon style is my favorite for Spider-Man (especially if Black Cat is going to be around).  Ramos’ characters are just so alive!  Every character in every panel feels like they are in motion.  Great stuff.

Daredevil: Reborn #1 – Review

By: Andy Diggle (writer), Davide Gianfelice (artist), Matt Hollingsworth (colors), Alejandro Arbona (associate editor), Stephen Wacker (editor)

The Story: Reborn, Chapter One: Matt Murdock, walking through the desert of New Mexico, a man running from his past, comes upon a town that’s got itself some secrets.

What’s Good: I was completely swept up and immersed in Diggle’s writing and Gianfelice’s pictures from the first panel. Terse, personal monologue hovers over a barren landscape bleached of color and meaning. It’s a landscape that just persists, much like the character himself. Gritty, indistinct birds move in the sky while a lonely road crossing frames the view. And the monologue? Art. Pure art. “Nothing but the hiss of the wind in the needlegrass…” How much more evocative can the writing get? You don’t even need pictures to go with it, but luckily we’ve got Gianfelice. Diggle also pulled some fine work out of his pen with DD talking to the blind kid. I know there’s some symbolism that was planted there, but not yet exposed, so I’m eager to pull out the layers in the later issues.

Carnage #2 – Review

By: Zeb Wells (writer), Clayton Crain (art & colors), Clayton Cowles (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

The Story: We learn how the Carnage symbiote returned to Earth and what plans a nefarious corporation has for it.

What’s Good: Pretty fun story.  A SPOILER warning is probably in order….and….I like how Wells brings the Carnage symbiote back to Earth in the hands of a corporation that is planning on using the symbiote to create prostheses and super-powered suits.  It’s clever and doesn’t run over the top of any other story that Marvel is telling and even though it does star Spidey and Iron Man, it avoids major “I-can’t-buy-this” continuity problems by keeping the action in NYC.  Well done!

Wells even shows some knowledge of how corporations function with their legal agreements and how they protect their intellectual property.  I usually don’t like to drag my personal fan baggage into a review, but in this case it is worth pointing out that I LOVE this aspect of the story because it happens to be very close to my own professional career.  He’s got a few tidbits wrong (e.g. contracts are governed by state law, not federal law), but it is a gleeful personal delight to see a comic book delve into my boring workday and inject superheroes!  I only wish that I could run into Spider-Man during my next technology licensing deal, but I digress… 🙂

Clearly the end result of this story is going to be a new host for the Carnage symbiote.  We may be getting some answers to that in this issue, but I have a pretty strong feeling that we haven’t seen the final answer about who will be in the suit at the end of the day.

It is no surprise that Wells has a good grasp on writing Spider-Man since he was a member of the rotating group of Spidey-writers that only recently ended (writing the EXCELLENT Shed story arc, btw), but he also writes a very good Tony Stark who sounds just like the guy Bendis is writing over in Avengers.

Clayton Crain’s art is one-of-a-kind.  When you open a comic by Crain, you are not going to confuse it with anything else you might see.  I’ve been pretty hard on his art in the past, but I actually like most of his work in this issue.  He uses very dramatic layouts to frame the story and he is no slave to traditional, rectangular panels.  I also like how he has a very clear sense of where he wants your eyes to linger on a page.  He is just a very experienced and professional artist.  Even on a few of the panels that may not be to my personal taste, he is “going for it” and that’s something I always tip my hat to.

Amazing Spider-Man #650 – Review

By: Dan Slott (writer), Humberto Ramos (pencils), Carlos Cuevas, Nikki Damon & Victor Olazaba (inks), Edgar Delgado (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

Marc Gargan back-up: Slott (writer), Neil Edwards (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Morry Hollowell (colors) & Chris Eliopoulos (letters)

The Story: A new Spidey-suit makes its debut, as Peter Parker gets ready to take on the new Hobgoblin.

What’s Good: Slott and Ramos are off to such a strong start on their run on ASM.  The days of the rotating Spidey-creators produced a lot of good stories and looking through my notes, the “average grade” for those stories was ~B, but Slott/Ramos have just taken this to another level.  They should be glad that there is no “comic creators’ union” because they would be getting a harsh talking to for making other creators look bad.

The story itself is just fast, well-paced fun.  It starts out with a very well done action sequence with Spidey tangling with the new Hobgoblin, but the middle and latter part of the issue do great stuff with Peter’s supporting cast.  But, the stuff that really stands out to me are the scenes in Peter’s lab at his new job.  I love how Slott is making use of Peter’s science background and these scenes could consist of nothing but Peter spouting some techno-babble while working on some “stuff”.  But, Slott uses MJ and Carlie in a really clever scene that features Peter and Carlie talking WAY over the top of MJ’s head about science stuff.  This is way more effective that any jabbering about flux-capacitors could be.

Oh…and you might have heard…there is a new Spidey-costume.  You can see it on the cover art and if you’ve followed online teasers or message boards, you’ve probably already seen opinions about what/why this costume is here.  My favorite speculation was that it was for some sort of tie-in with the TRON movie.  Ha!  Turns out the costume has a very specific and sensible purpose, although I do wonder how Slott will make this costume go away because if I were Spidey, THIS would be my permanent costume forever.

I hate to say that Ramos is “killing it” on the art, because I think that is such an unimaginative thing to say, but it is really true in this case.  I love his exaggerated cartooning style because it allows him to be freed from the constraints of physics and anatomy in a way that a more realistic artist cannot.  When they draw a character with a leg that is too long it just looks screwed up, but when Ramos does it, it just screams that these characters are alive.  Ramos is truly one of the modern masters at this style (along with Chris Bachalo) and I think this run on ASM is as good as anything I’ve ever seen from him.   He draws a great Spidey, a great Peter Parker, a great Carlie Cooper, a great Black Cat. I kinda feel sorry for the artist on the next arc.  Why can’t Ramos and Bachalo just alternate arcs?

Amazing Spider-Man #648 – Review

By: Dan Slott (writer), Humberto Ramos (pencils), Carlos Cuevas (inks), Edgar Delgado (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Stephen Wacker (editor)

Spider-Girl back-up by: Paul Tobin (writer), Clayton Henry (art), Chris Sotomayor (colors), Joe Caramanga (letters) & Nathan Crosby (editor)

The Story: Spidey enters the Big Time with Avengers action that was better than anything that has been in the actual Avengers comics, science prowess, love and a new job.

What’s Good: This is the perfect Marvel comic book.  It has everything: Iconic character?  Check.  Big action?  Check.  Guest stars that make sense for the story?  Check.  Good characterization?  Check.  Creative use of classic villains?  Check.  Outstanding art?  Check.  Friendly to a new reader while not dumbing it down for long-timers?  Check.   Absence of decompressed storytelling and endless talking heads?  Check.  And this is the biggie…  Feels tied into today’s Marvel Universe?  BIG CHECK.

This comic really has it all.  What makes Spider-Man special are the contrasts.  In this issue we see him function as an Avenger, issuing orders (in typical “aw shucks” mode) to Thor and Iron-Man and using his genius-level brain to solve a problem that is befuddling Reed Richards and Tony Stark.  But, after this reminder of what a powerful hero Spider-Man is, we see that Peter Parker is broke and has nowhere to sleep.  Not even his friends really want to let him crash because he’s gone to the well too often.

What makes Peter special is that he COULD be Tony Stark and have the riches and women, but his sense of responsibility to be Spider-Man requires him to make sacrifices that make his private life so painful.  When is the last time that Tony Stark stood up a dinner date because he was beating up muggers?  This is why we cheer for Peter Parker and love it when things occasionally go right for him.  And they do start to swing his way in this issue….in a big way.  Not that it’ll last, but we can enjoy the moment.  As we transition from the Spidey “brain trust” of rotating writers to Dan Slott doing all the writing, it is so nice to see how clearly Slott understands why Spidey is special.

Humberto Ramos’ art is up to the task of telling this story with Slott.  Between he and Cuevas (on inks) they have made a really nice looking comic.  The characters are very nicely drawn in a cartooning style that works so much better for superheroes than any sort of photorealism.  There is great variety of line thickness, perspective, panel and layouts.  It is also very nice how they do the little things like not abusing splash pages and breaking panel borders in effective ways.  Bravo.

Captain America: Who Won’t Wield the Shield #1- Review

Forbush Man: Forbush Kills!
by Jason Aaron (writer), Mirco Pierfederici (art)

This story by Aaron functions as a framing structure for the issue and it’s the strongest of what’s on offer.

Probably what’s most impressive is Aaron’s ability to not only make fun of himself, but to caricature his own style.  His gritty internal monologue by Forbush Man is a clear pisstake on his usual writing style and the fact that he applies this formula, applied in past to badasses like Wolverine and the Punisher, to Forbush Man is pretty hilarious.  When a brutal beating via bucket is narrated in noir fashion, it’s hard not to laugh.

Then there’s how Jason Aaron portrays himself, which is a definite highpoint.  Aaron makes himself into a completely pathetic weasel of a man with a strange fixation for Wolverine related violence.  It’s self-deprecation at its finest and clear evidence that Aaron is having a ball writing this.

Other Marvel writers and editors encounter Forbush Man on his path for revenge, and most of them are a lot of fun as well.  Joe Quesada hanging out, poolside at his palatial manor and Ed Brubaker’s continual concern for his Eisners and his later channeling of his Criminal characters are golden.  I don’t think I’ll ever be able to erase the image of Brubaker firing a gun while screaming profanities.

Forbush Man himself is also well-done.  Aaron basically turns the character into a mouthpiece for bitter, veteran comic book fans.  He attacks the Marvel offices for their making everything “dark and gritty,” as he embodies and voices the “why can’t comics just be fun” crowd.  Eventually, things get metatextual, and even more fun, as Forbush Man realizes that he too, is in a comic and that, in going on a murderous rampage, he too has been made “dark and gritty.”

On the downside, the art isn’t quite right for this story, particularly where the coloring is concerned.  Pierfederici goes for a pseudo-painted style that really wouldn’t be my first pick for a wacky comedy tale like this.  Also, the story’s ending is a bit lame, relying on a flat Marvel Zombies joke.

Grade: B+

Doctor America: Occult Operative of Liberty
by Matt Fraction (writer), Brendan McCarthy & Howard Hallis (art)

This was….completely insane.  If you miss the wacky Fraction that wrote Casanova, well, there are flashes of that here.  The sheer insanity brings some enjoyment.  Better still is how self-aware the story is of its own haphazard nature.  Characters openly reference how slapped together and non-existent the “narrative” is.