Comics comments: Amazing Spider-Man 698-700, Morbius 1, Avengers 1-2
As mentioned a little while ago, I've sampled a few of the recent "Marvel Now!" books, including the pretty cool Indestructible Hulk. But the most notorious of the recent stories is one that sets the stage for a new Marvel Now title, and that's "Dying Wish" in Amazing Spider-Man #698-700, with 700 being billed as the FINAL issue of Amazing Spider-Man and the end of Peter Parker as the webslinger. The title is giving way to the Superior Spider-Man. What does all that mean?
Here there be SPOILERS. Skip ahead to the paragraph with the Morbius image if you don't want to know any more.
Still here?
Amazing Spider-Man #698-700: OK, in the shocking events of ASM #698, we follow Peter Parker in a typical day of his life, where everything seems to be going pretty well. In the first-person narrative, we see that Peter is feeling his mojo a little more than usual. Then he gets a summons from the Avengers to go to the Raft, a high-security prison for supervillains in New York Harbor. His arch-nemesis, Doctor Octopus, whom we know has been dying for a while, is on his deathbed and is apparently asking for ... Peter Parker. When Spidey asks for Alone Time with Doc Ock, we learn that Ock hasn't been calling for Peter Parker -- he IS Peter Parker, trapping inside this useless, dying body. And the mind of Doctor Octopus is now in Peter's body, with access to all of Peter's knowledge and memory. The entire issue had actually been narrated by Doc Ock.
It's a terrific twist by longtime Spidey scribe Dan Slott, who said he had been setting this up for years, and in the next issue, ASM #699, he revealed exactly how Otto Octavius pulled off the body-swap. The two foes face off a final time in ASM #700, where Peter tries desperately to get back into his own body before Ock's body fails, yet Otto-Spidey seems to have anticipated his every move. Peter-Ock hits the end of the road. Still, in his dying moments, he manages to mentally force Otto to relive all the key events in Peter's life, giving the shocked, humbled Octavius a new insight into what made Spider-Man so indomitable. He learned the good old Stan Lee lesson: with great power comes great responsibility. Otto vows to Peter that he'll protect his loved ones and honor his name... and with that, "our" Peter Parker dies, and Otto -- still arrogant even as a "hero" -- says he'll be a better Spidey than Peter ever was, hence the Superior Spider-Man.
Naturally, comics fandom being what it is, this story caused a ruckus! Disturbingly, Slott even received death threats. (Jesus, really, folks? I know we get emotionally invested in these books sometimes, but it's still a fictional character. I'm sure a few of the folks who got crazy-mad had been mocking Twilight fans months earlier for threatening Kristin Stewart after she cheated on "Edward.")
The big question, though, is: Were these good comic books? For ASM #698 and 699, the answer is a solid yes. For readers who managed to avoid spoilers, the twist in #698 was simultaneously infuriating, stunning, and jaw-droppingly brilliant. Seeing the "magician's trick" in #699 was cool, too, as was seeing the dying Peter-Ock figuring out a way to escape the Raft. As for the finale in #700, it had a big bar to clear. Not only was it the last issue of Amazing Spider-Man, but in today's world -- with advance solicitation of upcoming issues and Internet spoilers -- the days of being totally surprised by an "event book" are gone. Thus, the ending loses a bit of steam. Still, Slott makes it work, and the death of Peter Parker is an appropriately damn sad occasion.
Overall, "Dying Wish" succeeds as an excellent comic book tale -- on its own merits. Taken as part of the Marvel Universe, however (and taking into account the money machine that Spidey-merchandise continues to be), do you or I have ANY doubt that somehow Peter Parker will return to life in, say, two years and kick Ock out of his body? Johnny Storm was "killed" two years ago; he came back to the FF. Both Captain America and Batman were killed; they came back (in a couple of nutty ways, admittedly). And let's not forget the Big One: the Death of Superman in the early '90s. How long did that last?
That's why I can't get overly excited about this tale, one way or the other. I didn't include it in my previous post of the year's Top 10 for that reason, and frankly, I can't see myself picking up Superior Spider-Man. Just because the story was excellent doesn't mean I much care to read what will be the short-lived career of Spider-Ock. Also, the tiny, cynical part of me realizes that Marvel is aware of this sentiment and will be more than happy to market "the Return of Amazing Spider-Man" in 2014. Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
Morbius the Living Vampire #1: Yep, I'm an admitted longtime fan of the scientifically cursed Michael Morbius, going all the way back to Amazing Spider-Man #101-102 by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane, after the Comics Code relaxed the post-EC Comics restrictions on supernatural characters. Neither strictly villain nor hero, Morbius has mostly just wanted to be left alone while he tried to find a way to peacefully (and non-fatally) satisfy his hunger for blood. After many appearances in Spider-Man's book the past few years -- and last year's garishly great Legion of Monsters mini-series -- Morbius has gotten his own title, by Joe Keatinge (Glory) and Rich Elson. It's an effective kick-off, with Morbius having finally traded in his '70s glam-goth outfit for a more nondescript hoodie and jeans as he hides out in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn.
You get a decent sense of the character's personality through the first-person narration, where Morbius helpfully explains what sets him apart from the undead variety of bloodsucker. And it's a good cliffhanger at the end. Still, I wish we had gotten more of a hint as to where Keatinge intends to take the series. Will it be as balls-to-the-wall nuts as Morbius' original color series in Adventure into Fear, or will be it more horror oriented? In any event, the first issue of Morbius offers enough of a reason to stick around and find out. Rating: 4 out of 5.
Avengers #1-2: I think I figured out why I don't fully embrace Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opeña’s new Avengers title. Oh, make no mistake: I like it quite a bit. It's beatifully wriitten - almost poetic, in fact - and it truly is "big, cool, and gorgeous." But the title is meant to be the flagship of Marvel Now, right? It's capitalizing justifiably on the huge success of last summer's film and is intended to attract a "new audience" (the Holy Grail of modern comics industry), which would include a sizable group of young readers, too. All correct, right?
Yet after two issues of this mainstream superhero comic, there has barely been a punch. (In issue #2: zero.) Normally, that's something praiseworthy, and I don't mean to sound simplistic, but for a new title that yells "AVENGERS," shouldn't there be more POW or WHAM?
It'd be different If it were a continuation of an existing title; in such a situation, a creator should feel free to go nuts, as Hickman rightly did in his just-concluded Fantastic Four run. For this title, though, at this time, Marvel may be letting a golden opportunity slip through its fingers by not bringing some Whedonesque action to the printed/digital page of this new comic. Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
Here there be SPOILERS. Skip ahead to the paragraph with the Morbius image if you don't want to know any more.
Still here?
Amazing Spider-Man #698-700: OK, in the shocking events of ASM #698, we follow Peter Parker in a typical day of his life, where everything seems to be going pretty well. In the first-person narrative, we see that Peter is feeling his mojo a little more than usual. Then he gets a summons from the Avengers to go to the Raft, a high-security prison for supervillains in New York Harbor. His arch-nemesis, Doctor Octopus, whom we know has been dying for a while, is on his deathbed and is apparently asking for ... Peter Parker. When Spidey asks for Alone Time with Doc Ock, we learn that Ock hasn't been calling for Peter Parker -- he IS Peter Parker, trapping inside this useless, dying body. And the mind of Doctor Octopus is now in Peter's body, with access to all of Peter's knowledge and memory. The entire issue had actually been narrated by Doc Ock.
It's a terrific twist by longtime Spidey scribe Dan Slott, who said he had been setting this up for years, and in the next issue, ASM #699, he revealed exactly how Otto Octavius pulled off the body-swap. The two foes face off a final time in ASM #700, where Peter tries desperately to get back into his own body before Ock's body fails, yet Otto-Spidey seems to have anticipated his every move. Peter-Ock hits the end of the road. Still, in his dying moments, he manages to mentally force Otto to relive all the key events in Peter's life, giving the shocked, humbled Octavius a new insight into what made Spider-Man so indomitable. He learned the good old Stan Lee lesson: with great power comes great responsibility. Otto vows to Peter that he'll protect his loved ones and honor his name... and with that, "our" Peter Parker dies, and Otto -- still arrogant even as a "hero" -- says he'll be a better Spidey than Peter ever was, hence the Superior Spider-Man.
Naturally, comics fandom being what it is, this story caused a ruckus! Disturbingly, Slott even received death threats. (Jesus, really, folks? I know we get emotionally invested in these books sometimes, but it's still a fictional character. I'm sure a few of the folks who got crazy-mad had been mocking Twilight fans months earlier for threatening Kristin Stewart after she cheated on "Edward.")
The big question, though, is: Were these good comic books? For ASM #698 and 699, the answer is a solid yes. For readers who managed to avoid spoilers, the twist in #698 was simultaneously infuriating, stunning, and jaw-droppingly brilliant. Seeing the "magician's trick" in #699 was cool, too, as was seeing the dying Peter-Ock figuring out a way to escape the Raft. As for the finale in #700, it had a big bar to clear. Not only was it the last issue of Amazing Spider-Man, but in today's world -- with advance solicitation of upcoming issues and Internet spoilers -- the days of being totally surprised by an "event book" are gone. Thus, the ending loses a bit of steam. Still, Slott makes it work, and the death of Peter Parker is an appropriately damn sad occasion.
Overall, "Dying Wish" succeeds as an excellent comic book tale -- on its own merits. Taken as part of the Marvel Universe, however (and taking into account the money machine that Spidey-merchandise continues to be), do you or I have ANY doubt that somehow Peter Parker will return to life in, say, two years and kick Ock out of his body? Johnny Storm was "killed" two years ago; he came back to the FF. Both Captain America and Batman were killed; they came back (in a couple of nutty ways, admittedly). And let's not forget the Big One: the Death of Superman in the early '90s. How long did that last?
That's why I can't get overly excited about this tale, one way or the other. I didn't include it in my previous post of the year's Top 10 for that reason, and frankly, I can't see myself picking up Superior Spider-Man. Just because the story was excellent doesn't mean I much care to read what will be the short-lived career of Spider-Ock. Also, the tiny, cynical part of me realizes that Marvel is aware of this sentiment and will be more than happy to market "the Return of Amazing Spider-Man" in 2014. Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
Morbius the Living Vampire #1: Yep, I'm an admitted longtime fan of the scientifically cursed Michael Morbius, going all the way back to Amazing Spider-Man #101-102 by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane, after the Comics Code relaxed the post-EC Comics restrictions on supernatural characters. Neither strictly villain nor hero, Morbius has mostly just wanted to be left alone while he tried to find a way to peacefully (and non-fatally) satisfy his hunger for blood. After many appearances in Spider-Man's book the past few years -- and last year's garishly great Legion of Monsters mini-series -- Morbius has gotten his own title, by Joe Keatinge (Glory) and Rich Elson. It's an effective kick-off, with Morbius having finally traded in his '70s glam-goth outfit for a more nondescript hoodie and jeans as he hides out in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn.
You get a decent sense of the character's personality through the first-person narration, where Morbius helpfully explains what sets him apart from the undead variety of bloodsucker. And it's a good cliffhanger at the end. Still, I wish we had gotten more of a hint as to where Keatinge intends to take the series. Will it be as balls-to-the-wall nuts as Morbius' original color series in Adventure into Fear, or will be it more horror oriented? In any event, the first issue of Morbius offers enough of a reason to stick around and find out. Rating: 4 out of 5.
Avengers #1-2: I think I figured out why I don't fully embrace Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opeña’s new Avengers title. Oh, make no mistake: I like it quite a bit. It's beatifully wriitten - almost poetic, in fact - and it truly is "big, cool, and gorgeous." But the title is meant to be the flagship of Marvel Now, right? It's capitalizing justifiably on the huge success of last summer's film and is intended to attract a "new audience" (the Holy Grail of modern comics industry), which would include a sizable group of young readers, too. All correct, right?
Yet after two issues of this mainstream superhero comic, there has barely been a punch. (In issue #2: zero.) Normally, that's something praiseworthy, and I don't mean to sound simplistic, but for a new title that yells "AVENGERS," shouldn't there be more POW or WHAM?
It'd be different If it were a continuation of an existing title; in such a situation, a creator should feel free to go nuts, as Hickman rightly did in his just-concluded Fantastic Four run. For this title, though, at this time, Marvel may be letting a golden opportunity slip through its fingers by not bringing some Whedonesque action to the printed/digital page of this new comic. Rating: 3.5 out of 5.