The Week That Was 021025

 January Top 5, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, and Review Round-Up

X-amining "Onslaught" Tie-Ins Part 1

"Siege" / "Even the Brave Can Fall" / "...the World's Gone Mad!" / "Manhattan Onslaught"

September 1996

Amazing Spider-Man #415 by Tom DeFalco & Mark Bagley 

Green Goblin #12 by Tom DeFalco & Josh Hood

Spider-Man #72 by Howard Mackie, John Romita Jr. & Al Williamson

Punisher #11 by John Ostrander & Tom Lyle

(Please visit the GCD for full credits from each issue)

Plot

Amazing Spider-Man #415: Peter Parker and his wife Mary Jane return to New York to find the Sentinels controlling access to the city. With the nearest Sentinel detecting enhanced abilities in Peter despite his recent retirement as Spider-Man, he & Mary Jane are forced to use his waning spider powers to flee into the city. Meanwhile, one of the Sentinels cuts the power to the Daily Bugle, after which the Sentinel is attacked by the new Green Goblin while elsewhere, Ben Reilly dons his Spider-Man costume and heads out into the city to help. When the Sentinels stop chasing Peter after his powers briefly give out, he & Mary Jane proceed to the Daily Bugle, where J. Jonah Jameson is determined to put out a paper no matter what, and offer to help, while Spider-Man helps prevent looting, then manages to destroy one of the Sentinels before heading off to find more to smash. 

X-amining Spider-Man Versus Wolverine #1

This review comes courtesy of Patreon supporter Bob McClennan. After supporting the site at the "Extraordinary" level for twelve months, he chose this issue for review. To get the chance to pick your own issue for review, and support the site, become a Patron here. 

"High Tide!"
February 1987

In a Nutshell
Spider-Man battles Wolverine in Berlin!

Writer: James C. Owsley
Penciler: Mark Bright
Inks: Al Williamson
Letters: Bill Oakley
Colors: Petra Scotese
Editor: Ann Nocenti
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
Years ago, before joining the X-Men, Wolverine helped defend his friend Charlie from KGB agents. Afterwards, Charlie disappeared. In the present, Spider-Man runs afoul of a series of murders. Frustrated by his inability to help the victims and screwing up his relationship with Mary Jane in the process, he swears off being Spider-Man. Meanwhile, reporter Ned Leeds believes the murders to be connected, that all the victims were former KGB agents targeted by the freelance mercenary Charlemagne. He prevails on J. Jonah Jameson to send him to West Berlin to investigate further, and Jameson sends a reluctant Peter Parker with him. Meanwhile, Wolverine also recognizes the work of Charlemagne in the killings, and heads to Berlin himself. There, he runs into Peter Parker and identifies him by scent as Spider-Man. Confronting him, Wolverine convinces Peter that he is in over his head, and Peter agrees to go home. However, when he returns to the hotel, he finds Ned dead, murdered by the KGB.

A Very Special Episode - Amazing Spider-Man #96-98

As you may or may not know, Doctor Bitz and I are two of the co-hosts of "A Very Special Episode", a podcast which reviews "very special" episodes of pop culture - those stories where the usual rhythm or tone of an ongoing narrative is briefly interrupted to discuss a serious, topical or otherwise atonal issue, usually with little advance warning or subsequent follow-up. Most often, we review TV episodes, like the infamous child molester episode of Diff'rent Strokes or the episode of Family Ties where Alex Keaton grapples with the death of his previously-unmentioned best friend by turning the show into a one-act play.

But in our recent episode, we branched out  to review a very special comic book story for the first time, specifically the Comics Code-less anti-drug story in Amazing Spider-Man #96-98. Given that a lot of the regular readers of this site read, you know, comic books, and/or are generally fans of Spider-Man, I figured I'd give the episode a special plug here. Plus, Doctor Bitz and I (along with one of our other co-hosts, Full House Reviewed's Ryan Alexander-Tanner) are joined for the episode by the writer of the Chasing Amazing blog, Mark Ginocchio, who also recently wrote the book on Spider-Man, 100 Things Spider-Man Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die. 

So while you're waiting in line for Spider-Man: Homecoming this weekend, give it a listen, and if you like what you hear, check out some of our other episodes (and if you want to buy Mark's book, too, I won't stop you...).

The link below will enable you to listen to and/or download the episode directly, but you can also listen via iTunes, Google Play, Podbean or Stitcher, with links to all four on the show's main website linked to above.

http://media.averyspecialepisodepodcast.com/AVerySpecialEpisode021.mp3

X-amining Marvel Team-Up #65-66

"Introducing Captain Britain" / "Murderworld"
January - February 1978

In a Nutshell
The first (American) appearance of Captain Britain, Arcade, and Murderworld.

Writer: Chric Claremont
Penciler: John Byrne
Inker/Colorist: Dave Hunt
Letterer: Bruce P. (issue #65), Tom Orzechowski (issue #66)
Editor: Archie Goodwin

Plot
Issue #65: After Peter Parker learns he's been assigned a new college roommate in the form of the British Brian Braddock, he shows him around town, while the assassin Arcade is hired by representatives of the Maggia to kill Braddock, whom they believe may be Captain Britain. Later that night, Brian spots Spider-Man leaving Peter's room and, believing Spider-Man to be a criminal, chases after him as Captain Britain. The two fight until Spider-Man is able to convince Captain Britain he and Peter Parker are friends, after which the pair is kidnapped by Arcade. Issue #66: Captain Britain & Spider-Man fight their way through Arcade's Murderworld, with Captain Britain trying to save his captured girlfriend Courtney Ross and Spider-Man figuring out a way into the access tunnels of the place. He is able to trigger an overload of the system, which the heroes use as cover to escape into the sewers. Emerging in the city, they learn from police captain Jean DeWolffe that the European Maggia who wanted Captain Britain dead have been taken out. Elsewhere, Arcade stands in the ruins of Murderworld, vowing to rebuilt it better than ever, then to invite Spider-Man for a rematch.

X-amining Spider-Man #25

"Why Me?"
August 1992

In a Nutshell
Spider-Man & Captain Britain battle Arcade

Writer: Terry Kavanagh
Penciler: Chris Marrinan
Inker: Mark Stegbauer
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Colorist: Kevin Tinsley
Editor: Danny Fingeroth
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Plot
When Spider-Man receives a mysterious note asking for help, seemingly from Captain Britain, he spends his recently-acquired bonus traveling to England. Once there, he's attacked by first a gargoyle and then Juggernaut. Defeating Juggernaut, he's attacked in turn by Captain Britain and Excalibur, who see him as Juggernaut. When they realize they're being tricked, Nightmare & D'Spayre appear, claiming to be behind the illusions. In the ensuing battle, Phoenix is injured, and while trying to revive her, Spider-Man briefly adopts the Phoenix force. But when his blast reveals Nightmare & D'Spraye to be robots, Captain Britain realizes his "Phoenix force" is just a mechanical trick as well. Just then, a cadre of Spider-Man villains attack. After defeating them, Spider-Man & Captain Britain realize they're being played, and Captain Britain figures out they're unknowingly wearing virtual reality helmets. They track the helmets to an imprisoned Arcade, and with Meggan's help, get him to confess to having attacked the pair of heroes.

X-amining Spider-Man #16

"Sabotage"
November 1991

In a Nutshell
Spider-Man and X-Force battle Juggernaut, sideways.

Story, Pencils, Inks: Todd McFarlane
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Colors: Greg Wright
Editor: Danny Fingeroth
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco
Special Assist: Rob Liefeld

Plot
Spider-Man arrives on the scene of the World Trade Center explosion to find most of X-Force fighting Juggernaut. Meanwhile, Cable, Domino and Siryn, along with Gideon and Sunspot, free themselves from the wreckage of the tower's upper floors. Below, X-Force's efforts against Juggernaut prove fruitless, prompting Spider-Man to intervene. In the tower, Cable and Gideon nearly come to blows, but Domino separates them, and Cable declares he's going after Black Tom. Below, Spider-Man tries to lead X-Force in a coordinated attack on Juggernaut, culminating in Shatterstar slashing Juggernaut's eyes. This causes an enraged Juggernaut to slam into a building, sending it crashing down on Spider-Man and X-Force. But they climb free of the wreckage, with Spider-Man declaring that now he's mad, and if X-Force wants to stop Juggernaut, he'll show them how.

X-amining Spider-Man #15

"The Mutant Factor"
October 1991

In a Nutshell
Spider-Man seeks out Beast for some family counseling.

Guest Writer/Artist: Erik Larsen
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Colorist: Gregory Wright
Editor: Danny Fingeroth
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Plot
Spider-Man and his wife, Mary Jane, discuss the idea of having a baby. Worried about possible complications that may arise given his unique physiology, Spider-Man seeks out Beast, who is giving a lecture on genetics at ESU. Arriving at the lecture in the midst of an attack by the anti-human Powerhouse and the anti-mutant Master Blaster, Spider-Man helps Beast subdue the two attackers. The two then discuss Spider-Man's situation, with Beast giving Spider-Man an 85% chance of some kind of complication should he and his wife have a child. The two then intervene when they spot a monstrous creature attack a truck on the street below, chasing the creature into the sewers. Just as it's about to kill Spider-Man, a man and a woman appear, calling out to the creature, which transforms into a child, the couples' son. Beast tells the parents about the Nursery, a facility that can help them raise their mutant child, and promises to help make arrangements for them. Spider-Man returns home, and both he & Mary Jane agree they're not ready to have a baby yet.

X-amining Fantastic Four #347-349

"Big Trouble on Little Earth!" / "Where Monsters Dwell (or is it ... Where Creatures Roam?)!" / "Eggs Got Legs! ...or Love Conquers All!"
December 1990 - February 1991

In a Nutshell 
A renegade Skrull recruits a New Fantastic Four to unknowingly help her acquire a weapon to use against the Skrull Empire. 

Writer: Walter Simonson
Penciling: Arthur Adams
Penciling Assistant: Gracine Tanaka (issues #348-349)
Inking: Art Thibert, Al Milgrom (issue #348 pp 13-16, issue #349 pp4-24)
Letterering: Bill Oakley
Coloring: Steve Buccellato
Editing: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Plot
Issue #347: Fleeing pursuit, a renegade Skrull named De'Lila crashes on Earth shortly after the Fantastic Four's return from an inter-dimensional journey through time. De'Lila, using her shapeshifting abilities, proceeds to infiltrate Four Freedoms Plaza and take out the Fantastic Four one by one. Meanwhile, the Skrulls pursuing her arrive on Earth and are drawn to Monster Island by readings which suggest the monsters which dwell there share some Skrull DNA. They proceed to send the monsters out into the world to flush out De'Lila. De'Lila, in the guise of Invisible Woman, puts out a call for help, to which Hulk, Wolverine, Spider-Man and Ghost Rider respond. Though reluctant to help her at first, they acquiese upon seeing the apparent dead bodies of the Fantastic Four, and agree to become a new Fantastic Four to avenge them.

Issue #348: The New Fantastic Four depart Four Freedoms Plaza, using a device provided by De'Lila which they believe will lead them to the source of the attacking monsters and the murderers of the real Fantastic Four. En route, they stop a monster attacking a plane over Washington, D.C., then proceed to follow it to Monster Island. On Monster Island, Mole Man has captured the Skrulls pursuing De'Lila just as the new Fantastic Four arrive and proceed to interrogate them, learning of De'Lila, including her telepathic powers, which made duping them easier.

X-amining Marvel Comics Presents #48-50 - Life's End

"Fist Fight" / "Child's Play" / "Breaking Point"
April - May 1990

In a Nutshell 
Wolverine and Spider-Man team-up to rescue a girl and her father from a group of evil mutants. 

Writer/Penciler: Erik Larsen
Inker: Joe Rubinstein
Letterer: Jade Moede
Colorist: Gregory Wright
Editor: Tery Kavanagh
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Plot
Issue #48: Swinging through the city, Spider-Man spots Wolverine and, thinking he's someone posing as the dead X-Man, attacks him. However, he eventually realizes Wolverine means him no harm, and assumes he's a ghost of some sort. Wolverine then fills Spider-Man in on the situation: he's tracked a young mutant girl and her father kidnapped by a group of evil mutants to a nearby warehouse. He and Spider-Man sneak into the building, but are stopped by a gun pointed at Wolverine's head. Issue #49: Wolverine and Spider-Man dodge the laser guns firing at them, with Wolverine careful to maintain the ruse that he's still dead. After destroying the cannons, they're attacked by the evil mutants. As Wolverine battles the animalistic Bloodlust, Spider-Man realizes their leader, Critical Mass, is an old classmate of his.

To Better Know A Villain: Norman Osborn

Heading out to see Amazing Spider-Man 2 this weekend? Here's everything you need to know about Spidey's #1 foe (and be sure to check out this post on Spidey himself).

First Appearance
Amazing Spider-Man #14, July 1964

Nicknames and Aliases
The Green Goblin, Iron Patriot

Powers and Abilities
Norman possess superhuman strength, stamina, and healing abilities as a result of the Goblin serum, a chemical compound of his own design. He also possesses genius-level intelligence and business/leadership acumen, as well as an aptitude for chemical and electrical engineering.

Recently, AIM scientists gave Norman powers similar to that of the Super-Adaptoid, enabling him to absorb the super-human abilities of anyone he physically touches.

Gadgets and Accessories
As the Green Goblin, Norman routinely uses explosive and gaseous pumpkin bombs of his own design, and rides a flying "Goblin Glider" with an assortment of offensive capabilities.

As the Iron Patriot, Norman wore a suit of sophisticated armor similar to Iron Man's, outfitted with an array of weaponry.

Read the rest here. 

X-amining Amazing Spider-Man #282 & Web of Spider-Man Annual #2

Amazing Spider-Man #282

"The Fury of X-Factor!"
November 1986

In a Nutshell 
X-Factor is hired to capture Spider-Man. 

Writer: Tom DeFalco
Penciler: Rick Leonardi
Inker: Bob Layton
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colorist: Nel Yomtov
Editor: Jim Owsley
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
After seeing their commercial on TV, Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah Jameson decides to hire X-Factor to capture Spider-Man, over the objections of his Editor-in-Chief, Robbie Robertson. X-Factor meets with Jameson and takes the job, though they tell Jameson they aren't certain that Spider-Man is a mutant. As the X-Terminators, X-Factor tries to locate Spider-Man in order to "warn" him that X-Factor is after him. However, a fight breaks out between a suspicious Spider-Man and the X-Terminators, one which ends only when the weakened Spider-Man is knocked unconscious. As Iceman watches over Spider-Man, the rest of the team returns to Jameson and tells him they've determined Spider-Man is not a mutant, and thus outside their purview. When Spider-Man awakens, Iceman offers to help Spider-Man, but he declines, saying that when he takes off his mask, he's just a regular Joe. Iceman wishes him well, pointing out that the two of them aren't so different, as the public will always fear and distrust them both.

X-amining Marvel Team-Up #150

"'Tis Better to Give!"
February 1985

In a Nutshell 
Spider-Man and the X-Men team up to fight Juggernaut and Black Tom. 

Writer: Louise Simonson
Artist: Greg LaRocque
Inker: Mike Esposito
Letterer: Janice Chiang
Colorist: Bob Sharen
Editor: Danny Fingeroth
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
In New York, Spider-Man returns home and unsuccessfully attempts to dodge his landlady. In Asia, Juggernaut returns to the temple where he received his powers and takes the Ruby of Cyttorak, intending to give it, and thus the power of the Juggernaut, to Black Tom for his birthday. Back in New York, the X-Men complete a training session in the Danger Room, after which they see a news report on Juggernaut's Asian rampage. Seeing the same report, Spider-Man leaves his apartment to check the city for Juggernaut. Meanwhile, Juggernaut arrives at Black Tom's birthday party in Manhattan, and gives him the Ruby of Cyttorak. When he touches it, Tom suddenly grows in size and mass to match Juggernaut. At the X-Mansion, Nightcrawler uses Cerebro to locate Black Tom, and the X-Men head into the city. In Manhattan, an angry Tom demands that Juggernaut turn him back to the way he was, and a fight breaks out between them that spills out into the streets.

X-amining Marvel Team-Up Annual #6

"The Hunters and the Hunted!"
1983

In a Nutshell
Sunspot and Wolfsbane get injected with an experimental drug.

Writer: Bill Mantlo
Artists: Ron Frenz & Kevin Dzuban
Letters:Rick Parker
Colors: Bob Sharen
Editor: Tom DeFalco
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
Spider-Man swings by a warehouse containing a chop shop at the same time Cloak and Dagger arrive. The three of them take out the criminals working in the shop, then discover a group of dead teenagers in a back room. Cloak and Dagger explain that the kids were likely killed by the mobsters responsible for giving Cloak and Dagger their powers via a synthesized drug, as the mobsters are now attempting to re-synthesize that drug and testing it on runaway kids. Meanwhile, the New Mutants emerge from a Broadway play, but instead of heading back to the X-Mansion, Roberto leads them into an arcade. Inside, they get into an argument with some local kids, one of whom pulls a knife on Rahne, leading to Roberto powering up and punching her assailant. A fight breaks out, and Cannonball orders the New Mutants to run back to the bus station, but they get lost. Eventually, the kids from the arcade catch up to them, and Rahne and Roberto are knocked unconscious in the melee. Unseen by their teammates, they're taken by a pair of shadowy figures.

Summer Movie Report Card

The leaves are turning, network TV is reappearing, and the move theaters are getting stuffed with horror movies and awards-hopefuls, which can only mean it's time for the summer movie report card! 

The Avengers

I'm not telling anyone anything they don't already know when I say this was easily the movie of the summer. There were plenty of other fine films that were released after it, but it was all pretty much downhill from here. The Avengers replaces the thematic denseness of The Dark Knight (generally considered by many to be the best superhero movie) with something I prefer to have in my comic book movies: fun. An outstanding achievement on multiple levels.

To Better Know a Hero: Spider-Man

While pretty much everyone agrees it's somewhere between dubious and ridiculous to reboot a film franchise only five years after the release of the last film, that doesn't change the fact that tomorrow sees the premiere of The Amazing Spider-Man, Sony's reboot of its Spider-Man franchise, featuring that British Facebook guy as Peter Parker and the fetching Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy. Putting aside the relative merits of a reboot or the film itself, at the very least, it gives me an opportunity to take a long overdue look at Marvel's resident Webslinger.

Real Name
Peter Parker

First Appearance
Amazing Fantasy #15, Aug. 1962

Nicknames and Aliases
Spidey, Webslinger, Scarlet Spider, Ben Reilly, Ricochet, Prodigy, Dusk, Hornet.

Countdown to Christmas #3: Christmas Trees

After Santa, the Christmas tree is perhaps the most recognizable secular symbol of Christmas. As a kid, I always got excited when the Christmas tree was setup because it was fun place to play with my GI Joes (Christmas tree lights make great lasers). As my brother and I got older, my mom got picky about what kind of ornaments went on the tree, so we each got a small three foot fake tree for our bedrooms, on which we could hang our handmade and fun ornaments.

Teebore's Tidbits

In which I cover things worth discussing but which don't merit their own posts. 

Parks and Recreation Season One

Mrs. Teebore and I started watching Parks and Rec midway through its second season, after we found ourselves thoroughly enjoying the first few minutes of every episode that we watched thanks to the DVR runover from Community. It's been said that the first season of the show was much rougher than the second, much less sure of itself and its portrayal of the main character, the hilariously earnest government employee Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler).

"Merry Christmas to all..."

"... and to all a good night!" 

Teebore's Tidbits

Batman and the Monster Men: A well-crafted "year one" style Batman story, the concept of this story, the first of several such by writer/artist Matt Wagner, is to expand on an existing Golden Age Batman story. I've never loved Wagner's art as much as some people, but it's not bad. The story itself is fun, and it's especially fun to see a more human, rookie Batman struggle against savage, super-strong Monster Men that would likely be little trouble for his modern self. The transition from villainy in Gotham caused by the the mob to the "freaks" of Batman's rogues gallery is also featured, something I always enjoy reading about. Plus, Julie Madison, one of Batman's earliest underutilized girlfriends, is a featured character, and she's interesting enough to make the struggle between being Batman and being Bruce Wayne more enjoyable than it usually is.

Amazing Spider-Man: Brand New Day vol. 1: Longtime readers will remember that I swore off "Amazing Spider-Man" after the "One More Day"/Spidey sells his marriage to the Devil fiasco. A friend of mine (who loves Spidey like I love the X-Men, so one prone to be more forgiving of stupid storylines due to a love of the characters) insisted that "Brand New Day" (as the post-marriage retcon stories are collectively known) was at least worth a look, so look I did (it certainly helped that I was able to get a hardcover collection of the first few stories used with my employee discount, so I paid significantly less than had I purchased these issues individually as they were published). The stories weren't bad, but they weren't all that good either (and I realize such a declaration isn't exactly breaking new ground in terms of "Brand New Day" criticism).

If anything, I was struck at how terribly desperate the creators were to establish that the new post-demonic divorce status quo was just like the swinging Spidey stories of the seventies that all the older fans grew up reading and loving. Harry Osborn is back. Peter's looking for a job. A criminal steals one of his webshooters. Later, the police accuse Spider-Man of murder because a thug he put a spider-tracer on shows up dead. He spends the second story without web-fluid because he can't afford to buy the ingredients to make more. And so on. Again, these weren't bad stories, but they weren't terribly original either. Most importantly, absolutely nothing that happened in them couldn't have happened if Spider-Man was still married. Still, they were good enough to make me want to pick up the next volume (at half price, and discounted, of course). Hopefully the stench of desperation will be gone, and they'll do something that couldn't be done with a married Spider-Man in an attempt to at least try to justify the "One More Day" debacle.

The Stand by Stephen King: I recently finished re-reading this, and apparently, it's been awhile since I last read it, as I'd forgotten large swaths of the book such that certain parts read like new to me (and last time I also read the expanded edition, so that's not the explanation). As before, the first third of the book (detailing the release of the apocalyptic 'Captain Trips' superflu plague and the resultant breakdown of society) and the last third (chronicling the survivors attempts to create a post-apocalyptic society leading up to the titular stand against evil) remain my favorites, while I was still significantly less interested in the middle third (focusing on the main characters immediate reactions to the death of 99.9% of the population and chronicling their various wanderings as they come together). The ending was still as anti-climatic as I found it before, though I appreciated the thematic elements and the craft involved more this time around. And I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the final chapters of the novel, detailing in vivid detail Stu and Tom's hazardous winter return to Boulder, especially considering that, for all intents and purposes, the main conflict of the novel was resolved before they even set out.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: This show was such a slow-burner that it was tough to get real excited about any one episode, and that (combined with its Friday night timeslot) led to it languishing on my DVR for awhile, so I only recently finished the show despite it being off the air since early April. Which means that, for the most part, I was watching the latter half of its second season knowing it wouldn't be getting a third, and it's a shame. The slow-burn may not have always been exciting but it was unique, and it served the characters (the show's real strength) well. Brian Austin Green's Derek Reese, in particular, has become one of my favorite TV characters and a worthy addition to the "Terminator" franchise. The last half dozen or so episodes were particularly strong, and if I was saddened by the show's cancellation before watching it, then the finale really rammed it home. While it did manage to answer most of the major lingering questions, a few smaller one remain (what was the deal with Derek and that creepy Terminator basement in the future, exactly?). More importantly, while the finale didn't exactly end on a cliffhanger, it did introduce an intriguing new status quo for the show that makes me wish it was coming back even more to see how it would have played out.