It wasn’t so long ago that I thought the Marvel were doing Spider-Man all wrong. Too often they were changing the wrong things; first Peter was rich, then they brought in Kindred and then more clone shenanigans (though the last one has the possibility of being interesting via the FCBD Spider-man book). So, I approached this book with a spidey-sense of trepidation.
Peter is still down on his luck, to the point of taking help from a nefarious source, to say the least. Throw in the fact that Tombstone is out for his blood, then things aren’t that rosy for our favourite wall-crawler. Still, regardless of his problems, once Peter puts on his Spidey suit, all hubris is gone and the arrogance of the proportionate strength and speed of a spider shines through.
Zeb Wells continues his strong start with an issue that centres on the now rather than the past. In doing som, there are a raft of unanswered questions, such as why does Peter owe Norman Osborn “one”. Despite the main cover, we also don’t get to see any MJ. Instead we get Peter’s continued descent into solitude. For a while now, I have been complaining about the humour quotient in Marvel books, giving a range of character a kind of “plug ‘n’ play” feel. Spidey’s quips though are exempt and Wells wastes no time throwing in sparkles of sarcasm and jokes about pudding. I especially like the reason why a bad guy won’t fire on Spidey. Wells is making Tombstone a real villain, in part due to Tombstone’s desire to succeed and in part to Spidey’s own over confidence. It is a fine line to walk that other writers wouldn’t people to walk without dumbing down the hero.
By now everyone knows I am huge John Romita JR. fan, so it comes as no surprise that I love his work here. Everything works, with the usual square jaws and frameworks. The book looks down and dirty which matches Wells’ tone to a tee. Romita JR. manages to show two distinct body types for our hero; Peter is pretty normal, if ia little blocky, yet Spidey is all odd angles and extended limbs. The confrontation in the third act is flawless with Romita JR. subtle spider-sense tingles a well nuanced highlight. Along for the ride is Romita JR.’s longtime collaborator Scott Hanna whose inks and to the detailed pencil work. The colors from Marcio Menyz also work well in setting the down and dirty aspects of Peter’s journey. VC’s Joe Caramagna provides a font that works; the spider motif for Peter’s inner monologue is a nice touch.
it has been a given that over the last year to eighteen months, it is fair to say that Zdarsky’s Daredevil has been Marvel’s success. With that said, under Wells and Romita JR., this could be year the Spider-Man climbs back to top spot!
Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 5 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars
Overall – 5 Stars
Written by; Zeb Wells
Art by; John Romita JR.
Colors by; Marcio Menyz
Letters by; VC’s Joe Caramagna
Published by; Marvel Worldwide Inc.
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