Spiderfan001

For Mark Bagley's last kick at the can Bendis decided to do a single issue of what they've both done best throughout this entire series... conversation. That's not a bad thing by any means, this issue another example of the strength Peter and his aunt share, and love they have for one another. If you've read Ultimate Spider-Man before, then you'll know what to expect here. Stuart Immonen also makes his debut, illustrating the fight scene, and while I'm still undecided as to whether he's a good fit for this series, I'm wondering if the momentum of the book will shift now that Immonen is taking over the artistic chores. The only reason I didn't mind Ultimate Spidey's extremely slow pace was because the book usually came out twice a month, but with Bagley gone, I'm wondering if this book's primary flaw is going to stand out more. Support for this book, as well as the entire Ultimate universe as of late, has been shaky, I hope Immonen is able to keep up; he has some mighty big shoes to fill.

Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four wasn't a ground breaking miniseries, those of you looking for Silver Surfer Requiem level quality will want to avoid it, and yes, the primary reason for its existence is to cash in on the two recent blockbusters that came out this summer. But who cares? This series was a hell of a lot of fun; the interaction between the characters was spot on and will make you laugh. The artwork by the dearly departed Mike Wieringo is beautiful and really fits the tone of the series, and the ending wraps up everything both nicely and in a satisfying way. I've never read Jeff Parker's stuff before, but after this, I'm interested in seeing more from him, particularly on a more serious title. Don't let the far out sci-fi plot turn you off, this is a great buy for those of you with a little extra money left over from your pull list. What else are you going do with it? Put it in the bank? Hah!

SPOILERS AHEAD!

After three issues of build up, Spidey's epic confrontation with the Kingpin has finally arrived! And what a confrontation it is! JMS writes a great sequence and Ron Garney draws it beautifully, but I can't help but feel a little bit cheated by the outcome. I mean, I knew Spidey wasn't actually going to kill the Kingpin, but the logic he uses in letting him live just didn't seem right to me. I mean, hasn't the Kingpin been beat up countless times before by Daredevil in front of other criminals? If Fisk could bounce back from that, I'm pretty sure his reputation could survive a beat down by Spidey, who is a much more powerful opponent anyway. Also, by the end of the issue Peter still says he's going to kill the Kingpin; the problem I have with this is that Marvel is not going to let Spider-Man kill anybody, so it makes Peter's threats seem hollow. All in all though, this was a solid issue, even if there weren't any surprises.

I'm a big fan of Mark Bagley, so when I heard that he was leaving Ultimate Spider-Man I had my doubts about the book's future. My doubts were further amplified when I heard Stuart Immonen was taking over the artistic chores; I had seen his stuff in Ultimate X-Men before, and while I didn't mind it, he never really wowed me. Fortunately it was all in vain; Immonen has already won me over. His style is much more looser than Bagley's, but it works, particularly in the scene with Norman Osborn in his cell, not to mention the great cover. The story itself is interesting enough, though it's still too early to tell where Bendis is going with it. My fearless prediction: Norman kills Mary Jane while she's in her goofy looking goblin form. How's that for a twist? Anyways, bravo Mr.Immonen, this book's future is looking brighter already.

The last chapter of the Back in Black storyline does not disappoint, although it could be considered a seperate story all on its own. Basically, it shows us where Peter is in his life right now, what he's been reduced to, and the sheer hopelessness of his situation. It's an emotional roller coaster ride for both Peter and MJ, and it is expressed beautifully by Ron Garney's artwork, which makes it all the more disappointing that this was his last issue. Anyone who is currently unfamiliar with the current status of Spider-Man and is looking to get into him come One More Day would benefit from picking up this issue. One More Day also looks to be the last Spidey story for JMS, whose proven to be a fantastic Spider-Man writer when not writing about mystical Spider-totem crap. He had a great run, and one can't deny that he reinvigorated the Spider-Man, Mary Jane and Aunt May characters after the tag team of Howard Mackie and John Bryne nearly screwed them up. Tip'o'the hat to JMS, I'm not quite sure what to expect from One More Day, but it sure as hell has my attention.

And just like that, Sensational Spider-Man has come to a close (not counting the upcoming One More Day issue). Roberto Aquirre-Sacasa's run has had its ups and downs, but all in all, I liked him and what he tried to accomplish with the book. He handled Spider-Man's unmasking well, dealing with how the Black Cat, Liz Allen and some of his rogues gallery reacted. He had the Black Cat finally date someone else intead of always longing for Spidey, and he wrote a great one shot story about Aunt May in issue #33. Come to think of it, his only real stinker was the recent two part Venom story in issues #38 and #39. "The Book of Peter" isn't a stinker, but it's a bit of a disappointment as a finale to his run. Pete's conversation with God doesn't give us any new insight into how he feels, and the result is that the whole issue feels like a rehash of what we already know. On the plus side, Clayton Crain's artwork looks great as always, especially during the flashback sequence at the beginning. The message of this story is clear: Peter has to have faith that his life will get better, because in the end, faith is all we have. Not a bad note to go out on, but it could've been better.

The last chapter of Norrin Radd's last days in this world is not as philosophically charged as the other issues were, but rather, it's more of a testimony to the character and what he has accomplished throughout his life. Wonderfully painted by Esad Ribic and masterfully written by JMS, this issue is a fitting conclusion to a great miniseries that as a whole stands to be one of Straczynski's best works yet. A must have not only for fans of the Silver Surfer, but comic book fans in general. For those of you wondering, the title of this story, Agnus Dei, is a Latin term meaning Lamb of God.

SPOILER ALERT!

This is it folks! Joe Quesada's sinister plan to unearth the Spider-Marriage starts here! We've heard him complain about it ever since the day he stepped in to the grand title of editor in chief, and now his solution is finally coming to fruition! So how is it? So far it's off to a good start, but it's still too early to tell whether this story will go down as a classic, or a catastrophe. Not a lot happens in part 1, and it looks like we'll only get into the meat of the story come part 2, which sucks because you have to pay an extra dollar for these issues. That's not to say that this issue is a waste of time; I particularly like the portaryal of Tony Stark, who is all too often potrayed by JMS (among other writers) as a cold, uncaring fanatic. Here we can tell he really is torn between helping Peter and how doing so would jeapordize his position in the Marvel Universe. I also like his solution; sending Jarvis to the rescue not only brings his romance with May full circle, but it also shows us that Tony does indeed still have compassion for his former friends.

Quesada's artwork really shines, especially the scenes with Peter and Tony over the night sky, and the last page with a desperate Spider-Man swinging into the night looks amazing. My only real problem with the art is his Peter Parker, I can't put my finger on it, but something doesn't look right about him. It's nothing major, and it's probably just me.

The ending gives us a good idea about where this story is going; Peter will end up dealing with forces that are too big for him, and the resulting effect is that his relationship with Mary Jane, and his life as he knows it, will be altered. It'll be a double edged sword; in order for Peter to save his loved one's lives, he has to sever his ties with them.

Tony Stark is a tricky character to write. His actions often lead him to look like a villain simply because they usually put him at odds with everyone else in the Marvel Universe, so you have to make sure he doesn't come off as too much of a jerk. A lot of writers seem to have trouble with this, and as a result Iron Man has hit a sour note with what seems to be the majority of the fanbase.

JMS doesn't improve Stark's image here, quite the contrary, Iron Man comes off as even more arrogant until Thor puts him in his place. I'm a little confounded with how Tony handles the situation; why would you threaten a thunder God who you yourself made a monstrous clone of, and then expect him to join your ranks? How did he think Thor would react to the cloning incident? This isn't the first time JMS has written Iron Man to be an arrogant, poor judge of character. Since he is a writer who seems to have a liberal point of view when it comes to politics, I doubt he sympathizes much with Tony's position and so he writes him as a self important lap dog for a government that uses safety as an excuse to control people. One only has to look at the place where this issue takes place in; New Orleans, a city viewed by many as to have been neglected by the United States government, both in the real world and in the Marvel Universe. Of course I am just speculating, I don't know JMS personally and so I can't definitively tell you what his views are on politics, I'm merely going on what I have picked up from his writing.

Hey! Wait a minute! This is a Thor comic! Where do I get off writing about Iron Man? Well, Thor is a character that never really struck a huge chord with me; don't get me wrong, I like him, just not enough to buy his monthly title. JMS hasn't really gotten me to care about Thor anymore than I already did, and for that, combined with what I feel is a misrepresentation of Iron Man's character, I can't really give this issue a high score. Of course, the very notion of Thor pounding Stark's face in will be enough to get many fans to stand up and cheer, I guess I was one of the few who was rooting for Iron Man in this fight.

I don't think Peter David got to tell the stories he originally intended to with this book. Various crossover events must have posed a problem for him, such as The Other and Civil War. This was really a shame, because as much as I've enjoyed PAD's run, I can't help but think of what might have been had he more creative freedom. It's things like this that make me feel that the fans who bitch about "event fatigue" may have a point. Fortunately, PAD ends his run with a stellar issue featuring a long overdue chat between Peter and Mr. Jameson. It's a great read, and a story I fear, that would've never been told by the Spider-Writers and editors had PAD not written it. Come to think of it, a lot of PAD's run has had him picking up the slack from other writers. He finally resolved the goofy plot thread left over from Mark Millar's run where JJ thought his son was Spider-Man. He brought in the Mysterio we saw at the end of Kevin Smith's Spider-Man/Black Cat miniseries, as well as resurrecting the old one in a new and exciting way after he was needlessly killed off. He also (thankfully) concluded The Other, brought Flash Thompson out of his comatose state, and revived Peter's job at the high school. Too bad he couldn't get around to the Stacy twins...

F.N. Spider-Man was really the Spider-Man fan's comic. Don't get me wrong, anybody can enjoy it, but the hardcores are the ones who will appreciate it the most. This issue is a great buy for those curious about the current dynamic between Jameson and Spider-Man now that his identity's been revealed. It has all the superb dialogue, humour, drama, and great characterization that I've come to expect from this series.

Thank you PAD! Good luck on She-Hulk!