| Amazing Spider-Man #546 |
|
|
|
| Posted by Sam Holland |
06:15 AM Wednesday, 16 January 2008 |
Permalink
|
 It's a Brand New Day for Spidey, and everything old is new again. But despite what you may have heard, that's not all a bad thing. I came into this "new era" of Spider-Man with more than a little trepidation. In fact, I really didn't want to like it. After the events of One More Day undid Peter and Mary Jane's marriage (and who knows what else) and created some Crisis on Infinite Earths type of continuity problems, I planned on reading this issue and then dropping the title from my pull list. But I resolved to at least give it a chance and see if it held up on its own merits. For the most part, it does. Peter's living with Aunt May due to financial problems and his much lamented "Parker Luck." Since the Initiative has assigned "official" heroes to look over the Big Apple, unregistered Spider-Man is laying low, giving Peter time to be a normal person. Problem is, being a normal person has never been easy for Peter. He can't get a job and the money he's due from the Daily Bugle has been frozen. Seems that after Spider-Man disappeared, the Bugle's sales have been in the toilet and J. Johan Jameson is trying to ward off a takeover. As for the rest, Harry Osborn is still his best friend and a multi bazilionaire, Peter's got a new love interest (even though he doesn't know it yet) and a quasi new villain is put into play. Steve McNiven's art is as beautiful as it was when he was on Civil War. He can do the mundane and fantastic with equal aplomb. Dan Slott's script is tight and a little cramped, not surprising considering all he had to do- deliver a script that pointed the way ahead while asking us to forget the last twenty years all while lifting the typical first issue weights of new characters, villains and relationships AND facing the reality that a lot of people will be predisposed to hate it sight unseen. All in all, I liked it. There are some great character moments and this does set the stage for more. My only real complaint is that we never see Peter in costume, but since the title is now coming out three times a month, I suppose I can be patient. There are a few backup stories featuring Harry, Aunt May and New York's official superhero, Jackpot, a sultry femme fatale with red hair that says "tiger" a lot. It's so obvious as to who it is that I'm certain that the character's identity must be someone other than MJ. Also included is a BND crib sheet that resets the world of Spider-Man. Best part about that is the artwork by John Romita. For the record, I never thought that Peter getting married was a good idea, but once that bridge was crossed I was behind the marriage 100%. I was disappointed in the fashion in which their union was dissolved or annulled or Made To Be Gone, but I have to say that I'm kind of looking forward to single Peter. Dan Slott's a heck of a writer, cause he's got me believing that the best is yet to come. But please, get Peter out of Aunt May's house. Please. Comments (0) |
|
| Next > |
|---|