What is your verdict on Gerry Conway's Amazing Spider-Man run?

[Confuzzled]

It's definitely an A+ and deserves to be counted as one of the most iconic and influential runs in comics. Great writer is great.

[Winterboy]

My favorite Spidey run ever.

Andru's artwork is stunning.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

A lovely video essay on Conway’s full run

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=s4X-rtLgYN0&t=1s

[Matt Parker]

So, I recently re-read this run for the first time since I was in High School (where I read it as a part of the hype build up to Amazing Spider-Man 2, funny enough) and I want to unpack my thoughts on the run here.

I think Conway's run excels at depicting the human drama of Peter Parker and his supporting cast. Conway was a teenager when he was writing this run and you can tell that some of these stories (particularly Peter's search for a new Apartment) were derived from his own experiences as a geeky young man living in the city. While Stan Lee and Ditko/Romita did a good job of selling the human drama, it feels more authentic under Conway. The way he deals with Peter's grief over losing Gwen and his slowly budding relationship with MJ is so well handled.

I love that he shows the realistic toll that so many personal loses would have on Peter. In just about 5 years in universe, he had lost Uncle Ben, lost Captain Stacy, and lost the love of his life Gwen, on top of all the stress from having to make life or death decisions to save innocent people on a daily basis. Because of all that, Peter is starting to crack. He develops an ulcer early in the run, and later he starts snapping at MJ and Flash because he isn't handling his grief well, on top of doubting his own sanity near the end after Mysterio and the Jackal do a number on him. Peter is clearly suffering from some mild form of PTSD for a lot of the run and I enjoyed how Conway allowed him to deter on the edge of hopelessness before slowly recovering thanks to starting a relationship with MJ. The Clone Saga itself is such a great mind screw and I love how Peter is forced to literally battle himself to ultimately save the day, since he has been doubting and hating on himself for the entire run. It's excellent stuff and I marvel at how mature it all is. Gerry was wise beyond his years.

Speaking of MJ, she was so well written here and I liked how she was conflicted about Peter. She clearly loves and adores him, but she's scared to commit (which we'll later find out is because of her awful childhood). When she finally decided to stand up and fight for Peter at the end, it's such a wonderful moment. Gerry laid the foundation for MJ to become the most fleshed out and interesting love interest in superhero comics.

This run also nails these little, relatable moments that just give verisimilitude to the interactions between the characters. The way Peter and MJ's first kiss unfolds is so relatable. It's a little awkward and both are clearly experiencing joy and a little embarrassment at the same time. Elsewhere, Peter's comments about the lake view of his apartment window (where he has to lean out the window to get a glimpse) or his conversation with a cabbie regarding directions to Flash's apartment are so darn real. Conway was born to write these types of scenes.

However, the human drama is only half of the equation when it comes to effective Spider-Man stories. Peter is a superhero, and his crime fighting adventures are an important part of the puzzle. This is where I feel Conway is a little less effective, as the "superhero" stories are a little more hit and miss.

For the hits, I LOVED the Jackal. I know he's a controversial character, but I think, written by Conway, he's an excellent nemesis for Spider-Man. While an argument can be made that he's a little too similar to the Green Goblin for his own good, he's much more focused on ruining Peter's life by sending super villain after super villain to meddle in Peter's affairs. While the Goblin had other motives beyond Spider-Man, the Jackal comes to represent Peter's grief over losing Gwen and his refusal to let himself move on. I love his design, I love his trickster like demeanor, and I like how he sees himself as the hero of the story. I also enjoyed the gang war between Ock and Hammerhead. Conway gave both characters very distinct voices (he writes some of the best Doc Ock dialogue I've ever read) and I liked the Dick Tracy vibe it had.

Conway also created the Punisher, Tarantula, Man Wolf, and Grizzly, all of whom were solid additions to the rogues gallery (yeah, I kinda like Grizzly, sue me). Gerry also wrote some enjoyable stories with classic, pre existing villains like Scorpion, Molten Man, as well as new versions of Mysterio and the Vulture. Finally, his handling of Harry Osborn was sublime. While Harry himself was handled fine, I loved the drama it put Peter through. It was a tragic story that laid great groundwork for J.M. in the 90s.

Sadly, Gerry had some stinkers when it came to action/villain side of things. A few of his original creations, like Mindworm and Cyclone landed DOA and their stories were pretty lame (even though both had excellent scenes with Peter Parker and his personal drama). Similarly, his resolution to the Ock/Hammerhead rivalry was pretty underwhelming and his Kangaroo story was bad. The use of the Spider-Mobile, while funny, felt really out of place in this run. Conway's ASM isn't as dark as Miller or Bendis on Daredevil, but it is much more mature and serious than the Stan Lee stories, so this recurring gag felt so jarring. I also thought his decision to use throw away copycat versions of Vulture and Mysterio was odd even if I dug those stories. Clifton Shallot and Daniel Beckhart are destined to be forgotten trivia questions.

When you look at Conway's run as a whole, I think it's pretty damn excellent. While he had a few clunkers and never felt quite as confident with the superhero side of things as he did with the soap opera stuff, he crafted an exciting and essential run that is one of the best ever for the character. Any writer is lucky to have one iconic story when working on a beloved superhero franchise like Spider-Man, and Gerry's run has three iconic stories (the Night Gwen Stacy Died, Harry becoming the Goblin, and the OG Clone Saga) that have all been followed up on in later comics and that have been adapted into other media. So, Clifton Shallot and Mindworm aside, I think the quality of those stories makes it worth it to stomach a few clunkers here and there.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

So, I recently re-read this run for the first time since I was in High School (where I read it as a part of the hype build up to Amazing Spider-Man 2, funny enough) and I want to unpack my thoughts on the run here.

I think Conway's run excels at depicting the human drama of Peter Parker and his supporting cast. Conway was a teenager when he was writing this run and you can tell that some of these stories (particularly Peter's search for a new Apartment) were derived from his own experiences as a geeky young man living in the city. While Stan Lee and Ditko/Romita did a good job of selling the human drama, it feels more authentic under Conway. The way he deals with Peter's grief over losing Gwen and his slowly budding relationship with MJ is so well handled.

I love that he shows the realistic toll that so many personal loses would have on Peter. In just about 5 years in universe, he had lost Uncle Ben, lost Captain Stacy, and lost the love of his life Gwen, on top of all the stress from having to make life or death decisions to save innocent people on a daily basis. Because of all that, Peter is starting to crack. He develops an ulcer early in the run, and later he starts snapping at MJ and Flash because he isn't handling his grief well, on top of doubting his own sanity near the end after Mysterio and the Jackal do a number on him. Peter is clearly suffering from some mild form of PTSD for a lot of the run and I enjoyed how Conway allowed him to deter on the edge of hopelessness before slowly recovering thanks to starting a relationship with MJ. The Clone Saga itself is such a great mind screw and I love how Peter is forced to literally battle himself to ultimately save the day, since he has been doubting and hating on himself for the entire run. It's excellent stuff and I marvel at how mature it all is. Gerry was wise beyond his years.

Speaking of MJ, she was so well written here and I liked how she was conflicted about Peter. She clearly loves and adores him, but she's scared to commit (which we'll later find out is because of her awful childhood). When she finally decided to stand up and fight for Peter at the end, it's such a wonderful moment. Gerry laid the foundation for MJ to become the most fleshed out and interesting love interest in superhero comics.

This run also nails these little, relatable moments that just give verisimilitude to the interactions between the characters. The way Peter and MJ's first kiss unfolds is so relatable. It's a little awkward and both are clearly experiencing joy and a little embarrassment at the same time. Elsewhere, Peter's comments about the lake view of his apartment window (where he has to lean out the window to get a glimpse) or his conversation with a cabbie regarding directions to Flash's apartment are so darn real. Conway was born to write these types of scenes.

However, the human drama is only half of the equation when it comes to effective Spider-Man stories. Peter is a superhero, and his crime fighting adventures are an important part of the puzzle. This is where I feel Conway is a little less effective, as the "superhero" stories are a little more hit and miss.

For the hits, I LOVED the Jackal. I know he's a controversial character, but I think, written by Conway, he's an excellent nemesis for Spider-Man. While an argument can be made that he's a little too similar to the Green Goblin for his own good, he's much more focused on ruining Peter's life by sending super villain after super villain to meddle in Peter's affairs. While the Goblin had other motives beyond Spider-Man, the Jackal comes to represent Peter's grief over losing Gwen and his refusal to let himself move on. I love his design, I love his trickster like demeanor, and I like how he sees himself as the hero of the story. I also enjoyed the gang war between Ock and Hammerhead. Conway gave both characters very distinct voices (he writes some of the best Doc Ock dialogue I've ever read) and I liked the Dick Tracy vibe it had.

Conway also created the Punisher, Tarantula, Man Wolf, and Grizzly, all of whom were solid additions to the rogues gallery (yeah, I kinda like Grizzly, sue me). Gerry also wrote some enjoyable stories with classic, pre existing villains like Scorpion, Molten Man, as well as new versions of Mysterio and the Vulture. Finally, his handling of Harry Osborn was sublime. While Harry himself was handled fine, I loved the drama it put Peter through. It was a tragic story that laid great groundwork for J.M. in the 90s.

Sadly, Gerry had some stinkers when it came to action/villain side of things. A few of his original creations, like Mindworm and Cyclone landed DOA and their stories were pretty lame (even though both had excellent scenes with Peter Parker and his personal drama). Similarly, his resolution to the Ock/Hammerhead rivalry was pretty underwhelming and his Kangaroo story was bad. The use of the Spider-Mobile, while funny, felt really out of place in this run. Conway's ASM isn't as dark as Miller or Bendis on Daredevil, but it is much more mature and serious than the Stan Lee stories, so this recurring gag felt so jarring. I also thought his decision to use throw away copycat versions of Vulture and Mysterio was odd even if I dug those stories. Clifton Shallot and Daniel Beckhart are destined to be forgotten trivia questions.

When you look at Conway's run as a whole, I think it's pretty damn excellent. While he had a few clunkers and never felt quite as confident with the superhero side of things as he did with the soap opera stuff, he crafted an exciting and essential run that is one of the best ever for the character. Any writer is lucky to have one iconic story when working on a beloved superhero franchise like Spider-Man, and Gerry's run has three iconic stories (the Night Gwen Stacy Died, Harry becoming the Goblin, and the OG Clone Saga) that have all been followed up on in later comics and that have been adapted into other media. So, Clifton Shallot and Mindworm aside, I think the quality of those stories makes it worth it to stomach a few clunkers here and there.

Wish we had a like or love button. But this is a wonderful review and post. Bravo!

[Ozymandias]

I liked it as a kid, but then again, I liked almost any comic as a kid. Afterwards came Howard/Thomas, Corben, Starlin, Shooter, Claremont/Byrne, Gruenwald, Michelinie, Miller, Sim, Byrne, Baron, O'Neil, Stern, Wolfman/Pérez, Simonson, the English writers... and last but not least, I discovered European comics. At this point, Conway didn't rate very well.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

I liked it as a kid, but then again, I liked almost any comic as a kid. Afterwards came Howard/Thomas, Corben, Starlin, Shooter, Claremont/Byrne, Gruenwald, Michelinie, Miller, Sim, Byrne, Baron, O'Neil, Stern, Wolfman/Pérez, Simonson, the English writers... and last but not least, I discovered European comics. At this point, Conway didn't rate very well.

I'd say Conway rates pretty well in that crowd, speaking as someone who's familiar with many of those names, as well as English writers and European comics (which i've read as a small child and was introduced to before I read superhero comics).

Conway's run on ASM is certainly better than Wein's, Wolfman's, O'Neill's which all followed him. After Conway, ASM fell into a downslide that only recovered when Roger Stern came in (and Stern was followed by successors as capable as he -- Defalco and Michelinie -- unlike Conway).

Likewise, Conway paved the way for Claremont and Miller. He was a young 19 year old taking Marvel's flagship title after Stan Lee left, and asserted his own point of view and style on the character, earned commercial success and controversy. Conway set a precedent for Claremont and Miller taking even more radical steps. Editors could say then, "Claremont is shaking X-Men away from Stan and Miller's doing the same with DD, but then Conway killed Gwen and that was ASM rather than some rinky-dink title like X-Men or Daredevil". Claremont for his part always spoke of the influence of Gwen's death and the way the titles changed in his run on X-Men. Roger Stern likewise cited Conway's story on Doctor Doom's mother in his Astonishing Tales series as an influence for TRIUMPH and TORMENT.

If you consider Conway's entire comics career as a whole, then I'd say yeah he peaked early and nothing he did on any other title but Spider-Man has come close to importance as what he did on ASM. But you know only a small number of people ever hit peaks like that.

[Ozymandias]

Conway's run on ASM is certainly better than Wein's, Wolfman's, O'Neill's which all followed him.

Not a fan of Wolfman on its own, nor Wein for that matter, but I like either of them better. O'Neil is the first Spidey writer I own something from (7 comics that costed me about 70€ recently).

[Ying Ko]

I seem to remember enjoying it growing up. Never went back to reread though.

[NC_Yankee]

I'd say Conway rates pretty well in that crowd, speaking as someone who's familiar with many of those names, as well as English writers and European comics (which i've read as a small child and was introduced to before I read superhero comics).

Conway's run on ASM is certainly better than Wein's, Wolfman's, O'Neill's which all followed him. After Conway, ASM fell into a downslide that only recovered when Roger Stern came in (and Stern was followed by successors as capable as he -- Defalco and Michelinie -- unlike Conway).

Likewise, Conway paved the way for Claremont and Miller. He was a young 19 year old taking Marvel's flagship title after Stan Lee left, and asserted his own point of view and style on the character, earned commercial success and controversy. Conway set a precedent for Claremont and Miller taking even more radical steps. Editors could say then, "Claremont is shaking X-Men away from Stan and Miller's doing the same with DD, but then Conway killed Gwen and that was ASM rather than some rinky-dink title like X-Men or Daredevil". Claremont for his part always spoke of the influence of Gwen's death and the way the titles changed in his run on X-Men. Roger Stern likewise cited Conway's story on Doctor Doom's mother in his Astonishing Tales series as an influence for TRIUMPH and TORMENT.

If you consider Conway's entire comics career as a whole, then I'd say yeah he peaked early and nothing he did on any other title but Spider-Man has come close to importance as what he did on ASM. But you know only a small number of people ever hit peaks like that.

I give Conway an overall A. For Amazing it is a B+. Obviously ASM 121-122 and 129 ( Punisher) speak for themselves, I also like the Hulk story. ( and for those issues I give him an A+). However, He has to be deducted a letter grade for Clone Saga. But I boost it up to an A for Renew Your Vows. That is how I come up with an A