Look Out World, Here Comes Spider-Man & Alpha!
This might sound crazy to anyone reading this but I haven't read any of current Spiderman stories (other than reading Amazing Spider-Man: Sins Past, Spectacular Spider-Man: Sins Remembered, and Spider-Man: The Real Clone Saga)....until now. When I first heard that Spider-Man was finally going to get his very own sidekick it seemed impossible for various reasons:
- I always thought Spidey was the opposite of being a teen sidekick....but I guess we everyone, including fictional characters, need to grow up eventually. From the 70's to what I assume the present I more surprised during that time that he has reached his early/late twenties (or early thirties...give or take...)
- Over years he has team-up with different young heroes: Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Black Cat, Scarlet Spider, Spider-Girl (both Anya Corazon in Marvel Mainstream AND his daughter May in MC2 Universe), Jackpot, etc. ... AND the hot shots at Marvel never considered having one of them to be Spidey's sidekick/partner...
- Other than Bucky, Toro, and Rick Jones...Marvel is/was never too keen on kid sidekicks...so why now?
Sure a superhero duo always sounds great because the sidekick's/partner's name was the key (for example: Batman & Robin the Boy Wonder, Captain America & Bucky, Aquaman & Aqualad)...but why on Earth was "Alpha" was given to be the name of Spider-man sidekick? Think about it: Spider-Man & Alpha...sounds more like something you expect in Marvel Team-Up. Did someone loose a bet for the sidekick's name or what?
Anyway, back to my thoughts on this book. When I read this book, I find it very interesting to see the parallels of AMAZING FANTASY #15 to this modern legend in the making. The character himself, Andy Maguire a.k.a. Alpha, his secret identity along is a clear amalgam based on the two Spider-Man actors Andrew Garfield from Amazing Spider-Man and Tobey Maguire from Spider-Man (1 through 3). I find Alpha also to be some strange combination of both Spidey and Johnny Storm/Human Torch...without the "flame on". This book has been entertaining to me as it not only presented Spider-Man's sidekick, but for the two short stories that were presented as well. The first short story reminded me of a two-part episode of an old 1990's Spider-Man cartoon ("Make a Wish" & "Attack of the Octobot") which remains to be a sensitive episode (next to the episode where Mary-Jane "dies" after discovering that she is a Hydro-Man clone). Now I can't wait for the next issue and see where Alpha's place in Spider-Man's life.
To Spider-Man, the world's greatest superhero on a successful fifty year long run...and may he continue towards another fifty years...should Marvel NOW prove otherwise. And to Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the two geniuses that made the legend an international star.
