Remember what fun felt like?
Since Amazing Spider-Man used to come out three times a month, and is currently coming out twice, I never added the title to my pull list. Sure, I wanted to, as I'm what's generally known as a "massive Spider-Man nerd'', but I managed to restrain my nerd instincts long enough to consider the financial effects of buying as much as I wanted. And so I waited. And watched people commenting on how good the current writing on Amazing Spider-Man is, and how great the series is. So I finally jumped on the bandwagon and picked up Amazing Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Volume One.
What can I say about this TPB in one word? Fun. Just fun. Which is exactly what it's supposed to be. What I love about this TPB is that it's not trying to be what it's not: if Spider-Man fails the world won't explode and Aunt May will die. I'm not saying that there's no suspense or consequences, it's just that it won't mean the end of all time if Spider-Man fails. It works because the writers are keeping it simple, taking it back to the 60's/70's style stories, as is intended.
In terms of stories, this can pretty much be split into three parts: the initial Spider-Man: Swing Shift one-shot, which has Spider-Man stopping new villain Overdrive (who turns out to be a massive fan of Spidey), Amazing Spider-Man #546-548, which has Spider-Man stopping (another!) new villain Mr. Negative from killing off an entire Maggia branch, and Amazing Spider-Man #549-551, which has Spider-Man teaming up with Jackpot to stop Menace. As I said, that's about the bulk of the TPB, and whilst these don't sound like the greatest stories ever told, I can assure you that Spider-Man's witty dialogue, the new villains, and the plot twists will keep you reading. And don't even get me started on the subplots....
Something I never noticed before I picked this up is how much I like Peter Parker. In this TPB, Peter still has ''the old Parker luck'', and he has a large range of problems, from finding a job to making new web fluid. It's these little problems driving Peter Parker which help make this TPB, and even though there's not much depth to something such as Peter, Harry Osborn, and Lily Hollister going to a club, the dialogue and the way in which the scene plays out are simply fun to read.
In conclusion, I'd strongly recommend this to someone who is a reader/fan of the early Amazing Spider-Man comics. As I said, there's not as much depth here as you'll find in other comics, but it's for the better, as it makes for more fun stories and enjoyment. I had fun with this TPB, and so unless you're into serious, gritty comics, you probably will too.
