Another week and yet another Judgement Day crossover. These sorts of things suck if you are a reader like me who isn’t a big event person. It doubly sucks as this cross over follows bang after the Hellfire Gala crossover. Can we please get back to the regular programme which start out really well but feels somewhat diluted at this very interrupted point?
Peter Parker, the one guy in the Marvel universe who carries his responsibilities like a weight around his oft heavy heart faces Judgement from maybe the second person who he failed, impacting him in a different yet equally important way as the loss of Uncle Ben, casting a judgemental glare in the soul of the amazing Peter Parker rather than Spider-Man!
Zeb Wells started this run at a fair clip to be sure. From the end of the first arc, things have kind of slowed down. This pace is not helped by the aforementioned crossovers that comes part and parcel of working on a major Marvel multi media character. Wells takes the idea of the various cast members being judged to their natural self-preservation default setting. Who cares if the apologies and compliments aren’t that genuine, thats not going to matter in the long run, is it? As the story progresses, Wells does well to surprise the reader as to who some of the people casting their judgements are and to whom. The dialogue works well with Peter spending time doubting himself, his actions and his intentions under the glare of possibly his truest love. No not Debra Whitman, Gwen Stacey! Truth be told, I could’ve done without the ASM #500 homage, though this may potentially add story value down the line.
From the get go, one of the biggest draws, no pun intended, of the new run was the art of John Romita JR. Imagine my disappointment then that despite the cover, Romita JR is replaced by guest artist Nick Dragotta. Now, I am not saying that Dragotta’s art is bad, it’s just different. The art is more angular than you may expect, with a stretched almost languid feel, especially for Peter. I was looking froward to seeing a JRJR. Gwen. Oh well. The colors from Marcio Menyz take a different tone with a more painted look over the more traditional colors used. VC’s Joe Carmagna, missing from the cover I may say, keeps things running along well with the sheer verbiage and emotion of the dialogue.
I want to hate this book. I wanted to bash it for the interruptions to the main flow of the ongoing run. Yet Wells has shown the importance of that special person, for not just Peter and by doing so, could lead to some interesting places.
Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 3.5 Stars
Colors – 4 Stars
Overall – 4 Stars
Written by; Zeb Wells
Art by; Nick Dragotta
Colors by; Marcio Menyz
Letters by; VC’s Joe Caramagna
Published by; Marvel Worldwide Inc.