Amazing Spider-Man 647, End of Brand New Day!
And thus it ends, Amazing Spider-Man is no longer on sale three times a month. What does it mean? Well, Brand New Day is now officially over. While many people were furious with Marvel for what they did with One More Day, which led into Brand New Day, it's now over a hundred issues later, and I find Brand New Day to have been a great success, with a plethora of great stories resulting from the change in the status quo. Yes, I joined with the start of Brand New Day. But will I leave now that it's over? Of course not, because this issue made me more excited than ever for Big Time. Why? Well...
The issue opens with Vin in the diner Oksana used to work in, having just gotten off of the bus from Rykers Prison. Cutting away, we see Peter wearing a halloween Spider-Man mask in a costume shop with Carlie, but she has finally had it with Peter and needs to know what Peter wants for them, and until he knows, she's to be left alone. As he leaves the costume shop, he sees Overdrive kidnapping a rich heiress, but with his costume in the wash, Peter has to think fast as he runs after Overdrive. Saving the heiress, Peter is stripped nearly naked, and still without a costume for Harry's costume party that night. As we see Vin talk with Peter and Michele and then later with Carlie, we fast forward to the party that night, with some very inspired costumes by Peter and friends. As we see many issues resolved, new threads unfold, as our issue and the Brand New Day run ends with Peter and Carlie, finally together.
This finale is written by Fred Van Lente, a writer responsible for some great work within Brand New Day, and a man who deserves this chance to wrap things up. To be honest, there is almost nothing wrong with this issue from a story standpoint. It truly feels like things have come full circle, whether it be from Overdrive as the villain, just like the Free Comic Book day start to Brand New Day, or the party in Harry's name, just like the end of One More Day. Vin comes back from jail, something I've been eagerly awaiting, Carlie and Peter finally get together, and Harry finally gains that sense of purpose he has been searching for. He's on the path towards growing up, which is great to see as an evolution of his character, who hasn't been able to grow for so long.
Art by Max Fiumara is a great plus as well. To be perfectly honest, the only thing that could have brought this issue more full circle would have been to have Steve McNiven on art (Since he started it all), but Fiumara manages to make up for that by delivering top-notch art. While I feel it's not as good as his original Rhino issue, there are many moments here that show off his talents. For instance, anything with the Spider-Man costume Peter wears here is great. In addition to that, Peter swinging in his undies is just pulled off incredibly well, it's a great sight. AND, the Goblin tattoo is amazing. I don't know who designed it but the way Fiumara executes it in the image it's present in is incredibly cool, erie, and sinister all at once. Props. And as if I have to mention it again, but the costumes in the party, perfect. I was literally laughing out loud at them, I couldn't have ever even thought of a better surprise than to see these costumes.
In the first back-up story, we see Harry and Vin talk after the party is finished. Written by Zeb Wells with art by Michael Delmundo, this story is quick, to the point, and very very sinister. Wells shows Harry's dark side and why an Osborn is never to be messed with, especially at their own party. The simplicity and directness of this tale also adds to what makes for a very good look into Harry Osborn that makes you question the man.
The next back-up story by Bob Gale and Karl Kesel focuses on Spider-Man dealing with a loophole in one of Mayor Jameson's new laws that prevents people from interfering, even to help, with any city run activities. While enjoyable and full of some nice little gags, I felt that this was a bit weak, since it didn't really serve any purpose to build towards the larger picture of things to come and with this being the end of Brand New Day, I expected everything to be quite relevant to closing or opening doors.
The third back-up by Joe Kelly and JM Ken Niimura was surprisingly good. Last time Niimura worked on a Spidey story I wasn't too interested, but reading this story this was not the case, as I found the story and what would happen to Norah to be very compelling and while not as relevant as the Osborn tale, it still provided a sense of closure and slightly new direction for Norah, which was nice to see. Plus, it did actually look rather pretty this time around.
Fourthly, that's right, FOURTHLY, we see a story involving Spider-Man and Flash Thompson by Marc Guggenheim and Graham Nolan. One of the saddest and yet most endearing things Brand New Day has brought about was the return of Flash Thompson to Peters life and his war injuries. It's led to a very interesting direction for him, and having Peter, as Spidey, talk with Flash about things was very well handled and came off quite powerfully. Props to Marc Guggenheim for always handling with Flash with care and attention, it pays off.
Lastly we FINALLY find out the story of Mia Flores, the girl Peter mad out with in the first issue of Brand New Day. Told by Dan Slott and Fred Van Lente with art by Adam Archer, it's a lot of humor and fun, and the story is a goofy way to end the issue. It's not bad, and it does bring things full circle again, but it's just funny to see. It's not bad, I actually quite enjoyed it. It's the right kind of goofy.
All in all, it's a big book at $4.99, and while some of the bonus content isn't needed, it does provide a satisfying conclusion to Brand New Day and I'm happy with the book. It's a 4 out of 5 for me, but next issue is sure to hit the Big Time! (Spidey's jokes are funnier...)
