Amazing Spider-Man #25 Discussion (Spoilers)

[Dreaded Porcupine]

Another solid issue. Spencer has a lot going on. Every issue may need to be this size to cover it all. The Syndicate should be a lot of fun. Things are starting to get interesting! Spencer has a lot to tell over the next year.

[KangMiRae]

Another solid issue. Spencer has a lot going on. Every issue may need to be this size to cover it all. The Syndicate should be a lot of fun. Things are starting to get interesting! Spencer has a lot to tell over the next year.

He's pretty good at laying out multiple plots! I think the upcoming year should be awesome.

[Tendrin]

It's good to see Francine Frye continue the tradition of Electro being awful at villainy.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

I wasn't all that enthused about this to be honest, as I expected.

Good stuff in there and all but making a big fuss about MJ going back into acting feels forced. Spencer set up in ASM#8 or 9 that MJ wanted something different, something that stuck but now going back into acting feels like he went against that set-up. It also came as a little mean-spirited. I mean why do you have to make this Melanie rando look bad, especially the cheap gag at the end with Melanie Daniels crying on camera about being a victim passed as a cheap gag.

That said, I liked MJ's monologue about acting and so on. It's great and it's true. It feels like something out of the movie Opening Night. I hope Spencer brings out her more artistic side in the later issues. Personally, I think MJ should transition to writing plays and creating this stuff. Because she was basically doing that in this episode. There's also the subtle touches where she acts like Peter. That crack about Francine being a failed-Firelord cosplayer is like stuff Peter would say, and it's a great subtle touch about people in relationships picking up traits from their partners when in other people's company.

The stuff with Dr. Connors is great. And again Connors and the Lizard family is the most interesting he's been in ages. Although again, it's a peeve of mine when anyone can create stuff like self-replicating robots (the nightmare of all AI researchers) on a biochemistry degree. Stick to your field fellas. Being a scientist doesn't mean you can create robots.

[Nutcrawler]

Overall, I enjoyed it. The MJ story was fun, Peter and Kurt was dull but the characterization is important, I liked the interactions between JJJ and Peter. The only thing that really stood out was that god-awful "we fed comics to a robot" story that hurt to read. Seeing Miguel O'Hara was nice though.

[Snoop Dogg]

zeb wells came back



zeb baby please relaunch nova

[Spidey5640]

Decent issue as far hinting at things for the future. I really hope Kindred doesn't turn out to be Ezekiel, which is the feeling I got when I saw him sticking to walls and then looking at the monitors with all the spider themed heroes. That would be a real disappointment. Don't know about anyone else but I'm about done with team-ups and crossover with the other spider people.

Overall the book still has that forced light-hearted fell to me. It just lacks any hint of seriousness on any issue or story line for me.

[Yvonmukluk]

No. They included Miguel, Silk, Ben, and Jessica, whose books were all cancelled a while ago. Cindy and Jess have team books but I don't see Strikeforce or Atlas getting dragged in. I actually think this could be the mystery December event. Maybe Spider-Man 2099, Scarlet Spider, Silk, and Spider-Woman will all get minis?

Well obviously he can't appear in books that have been cancelled or team books, I could see him having some influence or Miles' or Gwen's solo series.

[Vortex85]

Recently Mephisto has appeared to multiple Spider-people. There was a thread on it earlier this year.

In this issue, Kindred is eyeing the various Spider-people....


HHMMMMM. Just throwing that out there.

[stillanerd]

Having wrote up a review of this issue, I also agree that Nick Spencer's main story was well done, even with the constant switching of multiple artists. Plus, this is some of the best character work MJ's had in a very long time. That said, I also agree that, in terms where Peter and MJ end up, it does feel like a step backwards. Also, I hope the "Who is Kindred?" mystery doesn't drag out unnecessarily like the original Hobgoblin mystery did.

Stillanerd Reads: Amazing Spider-Man #25

[Celgress]

Aside from the Peter back in school stuff (this trope needs to die), it was another great issue, IMO. Spencer's run continues to impress me , well, other than Kraven's Last, For Reals This Time, Hunt which I found to be boring and unnecessary filler .

Edit - While I enjoyed the issue overall I do agree with several other users that the mystery of Kindred has started to drag. If the payoff isn't significant Kindred might become another Clone Saga or Ned Leeds Hobgoblin debacle (I hope not).

[Tien Long]

Hey all. Just finished this myself. I thought it was a decent read, but there were some elements that seemed disagreeable to me. Throughout his run, Spencer seems to excel in characterization. However, I think he characterizes Pete's surrounding cast better (just slightly so) than he does Pete. Of course, it was still cool to see Spidey flipping around, smashing robots, and inspiring Curt to make up for his mistakes rather than succumb to them. However, we've seen Pete do that tons of times in the past. I wouldn't say it's trite (I think it's still worthwhile), but I'd like to see something new (more on that later).

Seeing MJ and Carlie was great. It's nice to see how Spencer has been incorporating elements from different eras of Spider-Man, whether it's Mysterio's old ID to BND's Carlie Cooper. Seeing MJ take charge and outwit Electro was pretty cool as well. Her monologue which touched upon her acting and her life was deep.

Towards the end of the issue though, I couldn't help but notice one of my only criticisms with Spencer's Spider-Man run; his reversion of characters. During Slott's run, Pete was a scientist at Horizon Labs, ran his own company, and head of a newspaper section at the Daily Bugle. In the past, MJ ran her nightclub and had a top position at Stark. Seeing them as science grad student and actress again....it doesn't seem like there's growth. I keep wondering what job does Pete have now? How is he making money? I'm enjoying his Spider-Man adventures and moments with MJ, but what about the job-earning, adult aspects of his life? Now, I'll accept Pete and MJ in these particular roles. Yeah, they've been done, but they are comfortable. Still, I'd like there to be some new developments within them.

As for the other parts of the issue, well, I've some questions:

- Don't mind the Kindred subplot. For now, I'm okay with how it's moving along. Definitely interested in how all the other Spider-folk will be involved. Hopefully we'll get to see the Scarlet Spiders in there. I saw Ben, but that mouth wide open in the corner, could that be Kaine? Maybe he's screaming for something?

- What's so significant about Spider-Man 2099? I know he was in a new costume before as well as a new series. How did that end? Did it set up for seeing Miguel in his old uniform?

- Trying to figure out who the members of the new Sinister Syndicate are. Is that the female Scorpion, Carmilla Black? The female Dr. Octopus would be Carolyn Trainer, right? Who is the woman in the scarf?

- Loved the robo generated Spider-Man story. Really, some computer program read all of those Spider-Man stories and came up with one of its own? How did that work?

So, overall, there's good story telling here. Some parts are worn to me though. I'll accept them, but I'd like to have more development.

[Hulkout42]

Have to agreed again. Granted, Spencer has only been on the title for a year now but still. A lot of people can say the same for the Jackal's secret just before Clone Conspiracy. I am just overall tired of all the secret, behind the scenes villains that always seem to plague the Spider-Man books. Do the X-Men ever have to deal with these type of "masterminds"?

Back to point... lots of red herrings from Kindred. First up is how he is sticking to the wall when he reveals himself to Beck. Kindred again looks very Spider-Man like there.
Next up are the things he states. He tells Beck he hates killing innocents. With that said, i no longer believe he is the Burglar. His little jab at Beck about "we're all salves to continuity is pretty funny. The second thing that jumped at me was the bold "Just one more chance" and "you'd never make the same mistakes again." Totally reeks of One More Day.

Spencer did pretty well building up Hydracap, personally i feel he can do more with this new character than Slott with Ben Reilly...for one thing he is more respectful of past events and contunuity.

[Huntsman Spider]

Hey all. Just finished this myself. I thought it was a decent read, but there were some elements that seemed disagreeable to me. Throughout his run, Spencer seems to excel in characterization. However, I think he characterizes Pete's surrounding cast better (just slightly so) than he does Pete. Of course, it was still cool to see Spidey flipping around, smashing robots, and inspiring Curt to make up for his mistakes rather than succumb to them. However, we've seen Pete do that tons of times in the past. I wouldn't say it's trite (I think it's still worthwhile), but I'd like to see something new (more on that later).

Seeing MJ and Carlie was great. It's nice to see how Spencer has been incorporating elements from different eras of Spider-Man, whether it's Mysterio's old ID to BND's Carlie Cooper. Seeing MJ take charge and outwit Electro was pretty cool as well. Her monologue which touched upon her acting and her life was deep.

Towards the end of the issue though, I couldn't help but notice one of my only criticisms with Spencer's Spider-Man run; his reversion of characters. During Slott's run, Pete was a scientist at Horizon Labs, ran his own company, and head of a newspaper section at the Daily Bugle. In the past, MJ ran her nightclub and had a top position at Stark. Seeing them as science grad student and actress again....it doesn't seem like there's growth. I keep wondering what job does Pete have now? How is he making money? I'm enjoying his Spider-Man adventures and moments with MJ, but what about the job-earning, adult aspects of his life? Now, I'll accept Pete and MJ in these particular roles. Yeah, they've been done, but they are comfortable. Still, I'd like there to be some new developments within them.

As for the other parts of the issue, well, I've some questions:

- Don't mind the Kindred subplot. For now, I'm okay with how it's moving along. Definitely interested in how all the other Spider-folk will be involved. Hopefully we'll get to see the Scarlet Spiders in there. I saw Ben, but that mouth wide open in the corner, could that be Kaine? Maybe he's screaming for something?

- What's so significant about Spider-Man 2099? I know he was in a new costume before as well as a new series. How did that end? Did it set up for seeing Miguel in his old uniform?

- Trying to figure out who the members of the new Sinister Syndicate are. Is that the female Scorpion, Carmilla Black? The female Dr. Octopus would be Carolyn Trainer, right? Who is the woman in the scarf?

- Loved the robo generated Spider-Man story. Really, some computer program read all of those Spider-Man stories and came up with one of its own? How did that work?

So, overall, there's good story telling here. Some parts are worn to me though. I'll accept them, but I'd like to have more development.

Spider-Man 2099's most recent series ended with him dying and being revived in his own time by Strange 2099, just as New Year's Day hit, making it technically 2100 instead of 2099, though he did come back briefly for Spider-Geddon in his old costume. As for the members of the new Sinister Syndicate, the female Scorpion is actually a character named Scorpia, who uses her own scorpion-styled exoskeleton and has shown up in other comics in the past as a mercenary. The female Doctor Octopus is Carolyn Trainer, who did appear recently in Hunted as one of the many animal-themed criminals imprisoned in Central Park for Kraven's true final hunt. The woman in the scarf might be the new female Trapster introduced in Marvel's 2017 Free Comic Book Day issue previewing Chip Zdarsky's Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

Towards the end of the issue though, I couldn't help but notice one of my only criticisms with Spencer's Spider-Man run; his reversion of characters.

What you mean is reversion of characters to earlier jobs. What characters work on isn't tied to what they are currently doing and so on. Sure Slott gave Peter a lot of fancy jobs but he did that by infantilizing Peter and having him "fail upwards".

During Slott's run, Pete was a scientist at Horizon Labs, ran his own company, and head of a newspaper section at the Daily Bugle.

He didn't get any of those jobs by his own merit or skill. He got the gig at Horizon Labs because May pulled strings. The company was made by Otto who hijacked his body. The gig at the Daily Bugle came because Robbie felt sorry for him.

Slott's run gets undue credit for progressing Peter's character when what he did was infantilize and undercut him and have him deal with success that he didn't earn and felt uncomfortable with. It was more or less the story of someone "failing upwards". MJ Becoming a nightclub owner was Slott's attempt to update MJ's Romita era characterization as a party-girl but more or less regress her to that version, while also repeatedly slamming Conway, Stern and Defalco's landmark work on the character and her backstory.

I keep wondering what job does Pete have now? How is he making money? I'm enjoying his Spider-Man adventures and moments with MJ, but what about the job-earning, adult aspects of his life?

Thing is Peter, and also MJ, are supposed to be young millennials struggling with themselves and jaded about seeing some opportunities pass away. So them going in and out of different phases and so on, is part of that.