I’ve mentioned before that I don’t like Spider-Man. I wouldn’t say that I hate the character, but I’ve never really had much of an interest in him. It’s the guilt. The endless whining and whinging, the perpetual way in which things don’t wor
k out for him (which is supposed to add realism, but lets face it, most people who have gone through what he has would have crippling PTSD by now, at the least). I don’t care about the Brand New Day thing – it sounds stupid to me, but we need to remember it’s comics – one of the most celebrated series of the year just brought back a bunch of dead super-heroes because a bunch of guys with coloured rings killed the Death entity that previously brought back dead super-heroes (or something like that). So Spider-Man having his marriage wiped out is within the realm of the possible I guess.
So, anyway. I don’t like Spider-Man. But I do like Marcos Martin, Javier Pulido, Michael Lark, Michael Gaydos, Max Fiumara, Chris Bachalo, and a number of the other fantastic artists they’ve been employing on the title for the last little while. I don’t usually buy comics for the artists – the writers are the deciding factor for me usually, but I’ve been very tempted lately to check out their work. I have picked up a few recent issues at Cons or at an amazing used bookstore in my city, and I’ve kind of liked what I’ve been reading.
This leads us to the question at hand: Should I start buying this comic? The random factor of con and used book store buying makes it difficult to get a complete set, and I strongly believe in supporting titles that I like (I never download). To help address this question, I’ve put together a small and random pile of comics (with one trade), and am going to read through them in order, sharing my thoughts. If that sounds boring, please feel free to stop reading.
Exhibit A: Spider-Man: Election Day
Written by Marc Guggenheim, Zeb Wells, and Matt Fraction; Art by John Romita Jr., Barry Kitson, Klaus Janson, Karl Kesel, Tom Palmer, Fabrizio Fiorentino, Patrick Oliffe, Kris Justice, Livesay, Serge Lapointe, Marcos Martin (yay!), Todd Nauck, and Andy Macdonald
Disclosure: I received this hardcover for free back on Boxing Day, for purchasing a certain number of books at The Labyrinth, which runs one of the best boxing day sales in the city. I would never have paid for it.
This is what I don’t like about Spider-Man. There’s an election for mayor coming up, and Harry Osborn’s girlfriend’s father is running. She has stolen the Goblin formula, and is using it to become a Goblin-like villain named Menace, to attack her father’s supporters, to drum up sympathy and support for him. At the same time, there are some cops trying to frame Spider-Man for some random murders, and of course, Peter Parker’s roommate is one of them. So, it’s guilt all around, and Spidey ends up in jail, and they recycle a plot point from an old Daredevil comic, and blah blah blah.
Then there’s the Obama story, which is just kind of embarrassing (although not as embarrassing as the Captain America/Abe Lincoln story that follows) and pandering. What I don’t get is that they felt the need to pair the Obama story, which garnered more attention than Spider-Man has had from the mainstream since his movie came out, with such a derivative and bland main story.
We’re not off to a good start….
Exhibit B: Amazing Spider-Man #605
Written by Fred Van Lente and Brian Reed; Art by Javier Pulido, Luke Ross, Rick Magyar, Yanick Paquette, and Mark Farmer
This double-sized issue is all about Peter Parker and his relationships (again). The book issues with a very good story focusing on Mary Jane in LA, and how her relationship with some actor doesn’t survive a night at a club where the White Rabbit and her Alice in Wonderland-themed goons try to attack him. The story is fine, but it’s the Pulido artwork that makes things work so well, especially with Javier Rodriguez’s luscious colours.
The next two chapters are centred on Parker and his girl troubles. I guess it’s fine, but it doesn’t do much for me…
Exhibit C: Amazing Spider-Man #614
Written by Mark Waid; Art by Paul Azaceta
Now this is more like it (thanks to Mark Waid, a master at super-hero comics). This issue continues Electro’s quest to gain bail out money for the people of New York, and to take out his anger on the DB, which he doesn’t feel deserves government funding. This issue ends with the Bugle building coming down, an image that must carry a lot of weight with New Yorkers. Azaceta’s art is quite good here, and Spider-Man doesn’t feel like any of it is his fault (which is a refreshing change of pace).
Exhibit D: Amazing Spider-Man #619-620
Written by Dan Slott; Art by Marcos Martin and Javier Pulido
If every issue were as good as these two, there’d be nothing to discuss. Martin (with some assistance from Pulido on the last issue) is doing some incredible work with panel boundaries and layout, and even with sound effects. The pages are wonderful visually, and with colouring by Javier Rodriguez, they could not look better. The Mysterio/Maggia/Mister Negative story is interesting, and Hammerhead is used in a way that makes him less ridiculous than normal.
Exhibit E: Amazing Spider-Man #621
Written by Dan Slott; Art by Michael Lark and Stefano Gaudiano
The change in art from Martin to Lark is quite jarring in a continuation of the same story, but I do like the way Lark draws Spider-Man. This issue places him more at street-level, and is reminiscent of Lark’s work on Daredevil. The story is decent too, with Spider-Man and the Black Cat infiltrating Mr. Negative’s home to take away the threat of his DNA-specific Dragon’s Breath gas. Slott also handles sub-plots with Aunt May, MJ, Harry, and this Carlie character well, and its only in the last few pages that Spider-Man gets whiny.
Exhibit F: Amazing Spider-Man #623-624
Written by Mark Waid and Tom Peyer; Art by Paul Azaceta and Javier Rodriguez
I was enjoying this story with the new Vulture (who looks a little too much like Chamber I think) up until the point where life has to get tough for Peter Parker again, as he does something stupid and loses his job. This whole thing felt a little out of character, and makes me wonder if this was yet another Marvel Editorial decision, that needed to be shoe-horned into a story. I like Azaceta’s art a lot, and find it interesting how he draws Spider-Man, making the eyes on his costume quite small.
Exhibit G: Amazing Spider-Man #625
Written by Joe Kelly; Art by Max Fiumara
Kelly and Fiumara work well together (although I’d rather see them work on Four Eyes), and this story works well as a follow-up to their Rhino story of a few months back. Of course, everything that goes wrong can go wrong, and it’s all Spidey’s fault again somehow. That whole guilt thing is getting to be too much to bear again….
I do want to mention that the Rhino has always been a favourite of mine, simply because of the fake eyes on the sides of his head. I love that this detail was included in the designs for the new Rhino as well.
Exhibit H: Amazing Spider-Man #626
Written by Fred Van Lente; Art by Michael Gaydos
Hey, an issue where Spider-Man does something about the things that make him feel bad, instead of moping. This was a decent issue, although the new Scorpion’s new costume is pretty hideous. Also strange that, if Bushwacker and Tombstone are so high up in the Hood’s organization, they haven’t gotten any play in New Avengers.
Gaydos is a good fit for this book when they have lengthy talking head scenes, like the ones between Parker and his roommate.
Exhibit I: Amazing Spider-Man #627
Written by Roger Stern; Art by Lee Weeks
Like a return to the mid-80’s, Roger Stern and Lee Weeks (with his John Romita Jr.-esque style) give us a story with Spider-Man, the Juggernaut, and a ‘flying guy in a blue and white uniform’. This reads like pure classic Spidey, and even references older stories where the two main characters fought or teamed-up. Who else worries about continuity these days? The thing is, I don’t know if I need to read Classic Spidey – I’m pretty sure I have a quarter of a longbox full of it somewhere. But then, I find myself interested in finding out how this ends….
Exhibit J: Marvel Previews for June 2010
The Grim Hunt story arc looks like a sequel to the ‘Kraven’s Last Hunt’ story that I loved so much when I was a kid, and features art by Michael Lark, Marcos Martin, and Max Fiumara. Even though the Martin pages are going to be written by Stan Lee, this looks like something I can’t easily resist, especially with back-up stories by J.M. DeMatteis. Also in June, there is a Black Cat mini-series with art by Javier Pulido. I’m not that interested in this (I would be more interested if it were $3 an issue instead of 4), but will have to see how wild Pulido is going with his art.
The Verdict
Against my better judgment, I think I’m finding myself interested in Spider-Man again, for the first time since Eric Larsen’s run on the book back in the day. I still don’t really like the character all that much, and I can’t handle the self-pity and whining, but I can get behind the solid art that is coming out week after week. I also like the momentum that this Gauntlet storyline is building, and the way in which it is systematically revisiting many of Spidey’s classic rogues gallery.
The benefit of the rotating creative teams is that I’ll be able to skip the ones that don’t interest me quite easily (although I don’t think Stern & Weeks would be something I would pre-order, and then I really liked it). I am definitely going to get The Grim Hunt (even though they are $4 issues), and will decide after that if I am going to continue with the title (Note to Marvel: if they stay at $4, I’m gone).
