After a year of seeing the obnoxious Doc Ock in Peter's body ruining Peter's life, we finally returned to the 'Amazing' Spider-Man for a brief moment. Though it is still a 'hidden chapters' thing for the 5 issues, they brought classic Pete back with some truly great storytelling.
First off all, confessions. When Amazing Spider-Man ended with #700, my link to Marvel ended too. The 'end' of Peter Parker (however long that may be) was a little anticlimactic with some weird science questions (who is in the head? Ock with Peter memories? Ock-Peter hybrid??).
After that, I dropped Spider-Man completely and only returned a few months ago when I learnt SpOck is going to meet an end soon (maybe?) with the Goblin Nation Arc coming up (coinciding with Amazing Spider-Man 2 the Movie) but excepting the welcome appearance of Spider-Man 2099, it was a little too bloated and deary.
So, when I found that Amazing Spider-Man was returning for 5 issues (700.1 -700.5) which would take place before Dying Wish, I immediately latched on. And they didn't disappoint.
I'll be taking them one issue at a time, even though there are two double-parters and only one one-shot. Don't worry, I'll be giving a concluding statement for each story (3 in total).
Amazing Spider-Man 700.1
With Christmas in the air, David Morrell decided to give us a back-to-the-basic story arc. With J.J editor of Daily Bugle again, and Peter a photographer, it takes us a long way back. With a brilliant analogy of how Spiders hibernate during the winter, Peter describes his predicament to Aunt May (who doesn't know he's you-know-who here). Crime continues even when everything else comes to a stop, and Peter can't keep on going.
But Aunt May is there to reassure Peter that just as flowers wither away with the frost, they are born renew in the summer. Change is forever. Though a little too philosophical, the sentimentality behind it is believable and it helps there is no super-villain around.
This isn't an action comic. Far from it, it's about how heroes never stop, how they persevere even through the coldest and darkest days.
So, I give it 8.0 out of 10
Amazing Spider-Man 700.2
Continuing on from the last issue, Peter is worried about leaving Aunt May all alone during the blizzard. But even while racing through the blizzard as Spider-Man, he's still there to save people from a fire and help an ambulance. And when he can't go on, Uncle Ben is always there to help him get back up again.
Peter is able to reach Aunt May and help her recover and finally, is able to get a long-earned rest as the blizzard ends. Through the story appeared rushed (and Morrell himself complained about editorial arm-twisting), the sentiments attached to it and the story of people rather than unearthly monsters helps this come through.
So, I give it 7.0 out of 10.
OVERALL: With some great sentimentality and Peter showing what humans are like, this is a very good story at the core which may have faltered a little at the execution stage.
Amazing Spider-Man 700.3
Where do our villains go when they need a hospital?
With this, we take the story as a little-known villain Firebrand faces Spider-Man and although he is taken out, Peter suffers 80% burns, leaving his body unrecognizable. Then begins the horror story as Peter is taken to a hospital for villains. As Peter struggles to recover, he tries to blend in. But the Surgeon General knows who he is.
Joe Casey takes the mantle as he crafts an intriguing story of a villain hospital in which Peter gets trapped. With some appropriately gritty art, a Machiavellian villain and some well-known cameos, this is a story that deserves to be read twice.
In the back-up, Black Cat comes across an admiring youngster and helps her torch her father's paintings and escape. If you like Cat, you may like this but for me, it was a little meh.
So, I give it 8.5 out of 10
Amazing Spider-Man 700.4
Continuing on from last issue, Peter is attacked by the other hospital inmates when the Surgeon tells them of his identity. While Peter fights them, one girl tries to save Firebrand, but instead the room blows up and this leads to a hospital evacuation. As Peter reflects on everything that's happened, he climbs into his bed worn out.
Another gritty issue, though it couldn't live up to the last one. The Firebrand incident was a little out-of-the-blue, but everything else worked out, including some grey areas like whether villains deserve hospital treatment or not. And I would love to see the Surgeon General again.
In the back-up, a small kid learns that it isn't always brawn that wins out. Sometimes brain does too, courtesy the neighborhood Spider-Man!
So, I give it 8.0 out of 10.
OVERALL: A gritty tale with some grey overtones, this was a brilliant story line that took a look at the other side - the villains, even as Spidey kept quipping along.
Amazing Spider-Man 700.5
With the final issue, we got some light-hearted shenanigans of Johny Storm, as the Fantastic Four and Mary Jane made appearances. Like most of the time, Johny did something wrong and it was up to Spidey to save the day. While Johny is a little too annoying for me, it was beautiful and nostalgic to see Mary Jane getting the Fantastic Four as visitors to her flat and being completely unperturbed.
Johny got a message from a future Ben Grimm that he had to keep something out of Reed's (Mr Fantastic) hands and in the process, found himself the victim of a 'time' prank - it turned out the bag was empty!
After philosophical and gritty tales, it was nice to end it with a laugh. Certainly a better one than the one Slott gave to Amazing Spider-Man.
But the back-up was probably the highlight of the entire run. As Peter confronts the death of a boy who worshiped him and gave his life to save Spider-Man, he realizes that there are heroes everywhere he looks. Not all of us have super-powers, but all of us can be heroes.
So, I give it 8.0 out of 10.
FINAL STATEMENT: Peter will always be Spider-Man to me, and the guy I can relate to as I grow up (minus the super-hero shenanigans) and these stories captured that very well. No matter if it's Ock in the mantle now, but just as Bruce Wayne IS Batman, Peter IS Spider-Man.
So, I give these 5 issues an average of 8.0 out of 10.
+Some great Peter Parker moments
+Great mixing of tones
+Great artwork
+Some great story-lines (especially the back-up of 700.5)
-Conclusions were a little weak
-Only 5 issues? (stifles a tear)
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