The Good
This is the most powerful Spider-Man book I have ever read. The Ultimate Peter Parker is dead and gone, and 616 Peter Parker makes his way to the May household to meet Aunt May and Gwen Stacy with Miles Morales. What happens from there is a lot of talking about the past and how these two worlds differ. It's incredibly emotional, and while I've loved the rest of these mini-series, thus far, this issue blows the others away, and there's no action, no fighting, no bad guys, only heart-wrenching dialogue.
Bendis does an amazing job here at portraying a very private moment between these four characters. It's not overly-sappy, and it's not forced. It's just damn good. It's not a constant tear-jerking all the way through. There are moments of fun and intrigue throughout the issue, and the moments leading up to the incredibly sad moments are paced very well.
Unless the last issue of this book is awful (I'm pretty sure it will be awesome though), this is going down as my favorite cross-over book of all time. It works so well on so many levels, and this issue is the nail in the coffin for me because it really addresses how the lives of the people closest to Peter are affected by his return, and it's not just a couple panels of this, it's essentially a whole issue.
Once again, Sara Pichelli is awesome. There's a lot of detail here when it comes to facial expressions, and while I normally complain about "disappearing backgrounds," it works insanely well here for a few high-emotion moments where nothing else in the world matters other than the single action happening in the panel, whether it be a hug or a moment of realization. All around amazing job done by Sara.
The Bad
I wish I read this last today, and not second.
The Verdict - My Pick of the Week!
If you're only going to pick up one book this week, even if you haven't read Spider-Men at all, this should still be the issue you should get. It's an incredibly powerful issue. This is an amazing story from start to finish in the middle of a dynamite story line. Bendis' writing is fantastic here, as well as the pacing from beat to emotional beat. Sara Pichelli's art, as always, is top notch and she proves you don't just have to have to guys punching each other in the face to tell a great story artistically.
Overall, I give this the highest recommendation possible. You WILL love this issue.
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