Preview: BEN REILLY: SPIDER-MAN #3

[Kanos]

I like the new, serious Spidercide. Perhaps DeMatteis will reveal his from the dramatic side. People won't laugh at Spidercide anymore.

[IamnotJudasTraveller]

I was forgetting to ask - were we even shown anything at all of Seward and Carolyn's relationship? When she first showed up, we basically had her saying Seward was an absent father and she really tore on him but he didn't say she was wrong or anything. This is the first time, I think, Ben rebutted it saying she turned his back on him. I even flipped through the Scarlet Spider issues before Jurgens' relaunch but there was nothing there.

Is this the first time they're suggesting Carolyn might actually be full of it?

[Blanks]

I loved this issue. I wish this was an ongoing instead of an mini. This is what I’ve been missing over the past two decades.

I’m glad to see that a lot of our guesses about the villain was on point. Glad to see him return, after all these years.

[Pav]

Spidercide was always a bit of a cypher. He was very different in 'Mark of Kaine' than how he was portrayed in 'Maximum Clonage.' Plus, I think something changed in him when Scrier touched his forehead during 'Max Clonage.' We just never got to see that play out.

He says Scrier removed his degeneration factor with that, since he decides to try to kill Jackal and even cracks more jokes at his expense when Warren tries to melt him into goo but doesn't manage.

But also, immediately after Scrier touches Spidercide's forehead, 'Cide says something like, "I know now! I know who and what I am!"

But who or what he "really is" was never explained, as Hyp said. Will JMD be picking up on that particular plot thread? He's the Clone Saga writer who originally planned on having Scrier be a cosmic/magic guy rather than a cabal of regular dudes with teleportation tech, so maybe he's always had an idea of the next stage for Spidercide's character. That being said, in this week's issue itself, Spidercide doesn't seem to be feeling at all like he know who he really is -- quite the opposite, really.

I was forgetting to ask - were we even shown anything at all of Seward and Carolyn's relationship? When she first showed up, we basically had her saying Seward was an absent father and she really tore on him but he didn't say she was wrong or anything. This is the first time, I think, Ben rebutted it saying she turned his back on him. I even flipped through the Scarlet Spider issues before Jurgens' relaunch but there was nothing there.

Is this the first time they're suggesting Carolyn might actually be full of it?

Y'know...

Knowing what we now know about Seward Trainer being kind of a sonofabitch traitor...

And with the rumors that JMD may keep writing Ben-centric comics...

And if he's building a supporting cast for Ben, starting with Edward Whelan and Ashley Kafka, like I suggested in my review thread...

And if Ben really meant what he said about not hating Carolyn and understanding why she is who she is...

Maybe, JUST MAYBE, we'll get the real return of Carolyn Trainer as more of a gray-area character rather than a straight antagonist! Maybe even a potential love interest? Personally, I'd love to see that played around with, even if nothing serious ever came for it.

-Pav, who would also love to see Stunner and Joystick as Carolyn's henchwomen...

[Matt Rat]

The spoilers for Beyond have me theorizing this series could have a shocking 'twist' ending

spoilers:

Suppose the book ends with Ben allowing Spidercide to take over his life and he goes back on the road again, where he feels he belongs more? That way, Spidercide can go through the end of the Clone Saga, Clone Conspiracy, Peter David's Scarlet Spider, and Beyond, and him having an edge and a bit of an unhinged attitude is thus more easily explained as being part of his natural personality.

end of spoilers

Probably unlikely to happen, but it'd be a golden opportunity to right the wrongs almost immediately

[MisterC]

The spoilers for Beyond have me theorizing this series could have a shocking 'twist' ending

spoilers:

Suppose the book ends with Ben allowing Spidercide to take over his life and he goes back on the road again, where he feels he belongs more? That way, Spidercide can go through the end of the Clone Saga, Clone Conspiracy, Peter David's Scarlet Spider, and Beyond, and him having an edge and a bit of an unhinged attitude is thus more easily explained as being part of his natural personality.

end of spoilers

Probably unlikely to happen, but it'd be a golden opportunity to right the wrongs almost immediately

That sounds appealing and doesn't sound so obscenely stupid that I dismiss the concept immediately and insist it's not within the realm of possibility.

Which means they likely won't do it

[HypnoHustler]

The spoilers for Beyond have me theorizing this series could have a shocking 'twist' ending

spoilers:

Suppose the book ends with Ben allowing Spidercide to take over his life and he goes back on the road again, where he feels he belongs more? That way, Spidercide can go through the end of the Clone Saga, Clone Conspiracy, Peter David's Scarlet Spider, and Beyond, and him having an edge and a bit of an unhinged attitude is thus more easily explained as being part of his natural personality.

end of spoilers

Probably unlikely to happen, but it'd be a golden opportunity to right the wrongs almost immediately

It's a cool idea. The problem is most of the bonding Ben did with Peter happened after this mini takes place. I'm not sure I'm willing to sacrifice that last leg of the clone saga as that's where the bulk of his character development was imo. Plus, Ben also has stories towards the end of the clone saga where he has flashbacks to his time on the road, so it doesn't totally fit.

[Matt Rat]

Ben also has stories towards the end of the clone saga where he has flashbacks to his time on the road, so it doesn't totally fit.

Nothing a brief mind merger can't answer

[Rzerox21xx]

Damn Bleeding cool, I guess fans of Ben take comfort that we still have 2 issues of JMD book left.

[Sr. Bungle]

Damn Bleeding cool, I guess fans of Ben take comfort that we still have 2 issues of JMD book left.

As much as I loved this mini, ASM 93 doesn't let me enjoy it anymore. Sorry, I'm devastated and angry

[Matt Rat]

As much as I loved this mini, ASM 93 doesn't let me enjoy it anymore. Sorry, I'm devastated and angry

What happened in Beyond was to a copy of a copy. The real, untainted Ben is in the mini

[Refrax5]

It's a cool idea. The problem is most of the bonding Ben did with Peter happened after this mini takes place. I'm not sure I'm willing to sacrifice that last leg of the clone saga as that's where the bulk of his character development was imo. Plus, Ben also has stories towards the end of the clone saga where he has flashbacks to his time on the road, so it doesn't totally fit.

Yeah and with all the time and money I've invested in Ben since his return, I would feel immensely ripped off it wasn't even him. The good news is that the dumber things they've done since his return aren't really his fault. A corrupted soul, damaged memories, etc, are all things that can be fixed in a single story. Just fix him and move on. As I mentioned in another thread, if Hal Jordan can bounce back from over a decade as Parallax and the Spectre and Wally West can bounce back from all the awful things they did to his character, Ben's troubles are pretty simple to fix.

[Rzerox21xx]

Do you feel Christopher Cantwell treated Ben with more respect in his Iron-man series, in Tony team.

[Refrax5]

Do you feel Christopher Cantwell treated Ben with more respect in his Iron-man series, in Tony team.

Yes and no. He didn't really use the character very much, but he didn't do anything bad to him either.

[Sr. Bungle]

Do you feel Christopher Cantwell treated Ben with more respect in his Iron-man series, in Tony team.

Yeah, he treated him a lot better tha the spider office. No doubt.