Rereading Zeb Wells and co's Amazing Spider-Man

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #80 BEY


So now we have a spotlight by Cody Zigler on Aunt May, as she teams up with Dr Octopus to find a cure for Peter Parker's illness. I really liked her arc in the previous issues but it's one thing for her to be zealously advocating for Peter with his doctors as a subplot; it is another for her to break into a prison with a supervillain as part of the A-plot in a longer than usual single issue. There are some fun moments with Ock and May's tactics, like when they visit a secure prison facility claiming they just want to give their grandson some cookies, but I wasn't really sold on her role in the story until the encounter with a supervillain when she's able to get the material that Peter needs in a way that fits the character. That also crystalizes that this issue is an obvious echo of the Master Planner saga. And the ending sets up a new threat with Dr Octopus with a twist that is obvious, but fits multiple characters.


It's not a standard issue (it's an extra with a weird BEY designation between the standard #80 and #81) but it follows major Spider-Man characters and has a big moment for Peter Parker. There are multiple artists, but it seems consistent. This time I like Fiorell.
This is my favorite issue of this mega-arc so far, and it's also good and singular enough to enjoy as a standalone.
A-

[Mister Mets]

Is there any particular reason you're doing this now and not waiting until the run has ended? Seems a bit odd to evaluate a ruin that's ongoing for the foreseeable future.

I'm genuinely curious as you seem pretty determined to defend him over the whole "What did Peter do"/death of Kamala thing in other threads, more so than I've ever seen you do before for Wells, so I'm interested in whether he has won you over as the run has gone on, or have you always enjoyed it, or you're trying to balance the negativity, or some... Fourth thing.

I have no idea how long Wells' run will last, so I don't see the point to waiting until it's finished. Right now I've got some free time, so I can catch up and read the stories that I've only read once, and also devote more time to analysis. There's easily about 75 issues left, just to get to what's been published so far, adding up issues of Amazing Spider-Man, clear tie-ins, Slott and Bagley's Spider-Man and other major Spider-Man comics.

I'll still get a sense of how well they're setting up stuff, now that I know some of the payoff. It will also help inform responses to things that may occur in the future (revelations in upcoming issues, What kind of Amazing Spider-Man lead writer would someone like Jed McKay be?, etc.)

And by the end of the summer, it seems I'll also be caught up at a decent cutoff with the big 31st issue.

Was Wells always going to be writing the main book when he started working on beyond

I think Zdarsky was offered it, but I don't know if that was before or after Beyond started.

[Jman27]

Amazing Spider-Man #80 BEY


So now we have a spotlight by Cody Zigler on Aunt May, as she teams up with Dr Octopus to find a cure for Peter Parker's illness. I really liked her arc in the previous issues but it's one thing for her to be zealously advocating for Peter with his doctors as a subplot; it is another for her to break into a prison with a supervillain as part of the A-plot in a longer than usual single issue. There are some fun moments with Ock and May's tactics, like when they visit a secure prison facility claiming they just want to give their grandson some cookies, but I wasn't really sold on her role in the story until the encounter with a supervillain when she's able to get the material that Peter needs in a way that fits the character. That also crystalizes that this issue is an obvious echo of the Master Planner saga. And the ending sets up a new threat with Dr Octopus with a twist that is obvious, but fits multiple characters.


It's not a standard issue (it's an extra with a weird BEY designation between the standard #80 and #81) but it follows major Spider-Man characters and has a big moment for Peter Parker. There are multiple artists, but it seems consistent. This time I like Fiorell.
This is my favorite issue of this mega-arc so far, and it's also good and singular enough to enjoy as a standalone.
A-

uncle ben rolling in his grave

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #81


Ben Reilly’s confrontation with Miles seems a bit like plate-spinning. It’s fine. Writer Saladin Ahmed has a lived-in sense of Miles’s character, which makes sense since he was the lead on that title. Ben doesn’t get close to crossing the line when it seems he’s put against Miles (a few pages of swinging around and then they work around), although that is a bit anticlimactic, especially since the cover promises a big showdown, and it’s even used for the Volume 2 TPB.
The art by Carlos Gomez is fine, although I don’t care for Miles’s new costume.
B

A slight thing I’m realizing at this point: Jonah’s missing. So’s Norman. I’m not sure it’s because they have bigger roles in the next relaunch.

[Rift]

Is there any particular reason you're doing this now and not waiting until the run has ended? Seems a bit odd to evaluate a ruin that's ongoing for the foreseeable future.

Freudian slip?

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #82
Saladin Ahmed writes his second consecutive single issue story, which is quite different and shows his range. This time Peter is taken to a creepy hospital. This does hit one of my pet peeves when protagonists who have been through so much stumble into life and death situations by pure chance.



But the storytelling is great, and artist Jorge Fornes has an excellent sense of atmosphere. He reminds me a lot of the underrated Paul De Leon.
B+



I should bring up the general quality of the covers. They’re often quite good in this run but this one was an absolute banger.


Covers may be an under-appreciated thing in these kinds of discussions with people who generally read the comics, because it is a big part of what people find valuable.

Freudian slip?

Heh. To be clear, anyone who has thoughts on any story I've mentioned so far, or any particular story later in the run is welcome to make it. This isn't just about my opinions.

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #83
Patrick Gleason writes and draws a story with Peter struggling to improve, because while he’s recovering from a serious illness, his spider-sense is going haywire. Gleason is the sixth writer in the Beyond era, but he builds on earlier chapters quite well, including a flashback with Uncle Ben.


His art is fantastic, and he gets to bring his awesome web-silhouette into the comic, while showing solid character moments. This is another highlight of the period, and it works as a chapter of a larger story or a standalone about Peter facing an internal struggle.
A

This is my favorite issue so far.

[Alex_Of_X]

Amazing Spider-Man #83
Patrick Gleason writes and draws a story with Peter struggling to improve, because while he’s recovering from a serious illness, his spider-sense is going haywire. Gleason is the sixth writer in the Beyond era, but he builds on earlier chapters quite well, including a flashback with Uncle Ben.


His art is fantastic, and he gets to bring his awesome web-silhouette into the comic, while showing solid character moments. This is another highlight of the period, and it works as a chapter of a larger story or a standalone about Peter facing an internal struggle.
A

This is my favorite issue so far.

I think Beyond, in general, is a fascinating forerunner to what now is a defining feature of Wells's run--the tonal disparity between arcs. Consider the gulf between ASM 81-82-83 in terms of tone and choice of artist, and put them against the JRJR to McGuinness tonal shifts. They sort of rhyme, no? The spirit of the rotating team is alive and well in Wells's current stuff

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #84-85
Ziglar ties up his Doctor Octopus story, and it helps bookend the second trade paperback.
It’s still a relatively low-key Doctor Octopus story (compare to the current TPB-length saga or many of his appearances in Stan Lee’s runs) which doesn’t diminish either him or Ben Reilly, and ends in a way that is unexpected but intelligent. Ock’s encounter with the Beyond Corporation (initially known from the excellent Warren Ellis/ Stuart Immonen series Nextwave) and the Heroes for Hire helps make the elements borrowed from other comics seem like they fit in the Spider-Man comics.


The fight scenes are fine, and much of the credit goes to Paco Medina, who has been doing solid work for years. A detail I like is that Doc Ock continues to get into secure environments saying he’s looking for his grandson, which helps sell his flirtatious relationship with Aunt May and hints at how the last story affected him; he’s still acting like they’re working tohether. A smart connection is that his last appearance was more Peter-centric while this is a Ben Reilly story, so it marks the larger piece stay cohesive.
Ben has a good arc building on the motifs of earlier issues, as he learns something devastating. There is a real sense of his emotional state and how it is developed from story to story across different writers and artists. Janine is a bit one-note at this point.
A-



Vol. 2 grade A-

[Vegan]

I hate that Doc Ock story unfortunately. The humor is like 2008-era lolrandom with the talking sandwiches and the fight in part two makes Ben look like the world’s biggest idiot. He subdues Ock’s tentacles then just lets him walk around and set off a trap so he can escape. I can understand if he didn’t want to uncork a spider strength coup de grace on an unpowered human, but he has the ultimate in humane subduing technology strapped to both wrists

[CaptainUniverse]

I should bring up the general quality of the covers. They’re often quite good in this run but this one was an absolute banger.


Covers may be an under-appreciated thing in these kinds of discussions with people who generally read the comics, because it is a big part of what people find valuable.

Funnily enough, the guy chasing Peter and Mary Jane on the cover is a small-time crook who Peter apprehended shortly before he proposed to her the second time around. I think it is interesting they used him for this three-act chase sequence on the cover. I really liked the look of Beyond's covers, the art was amazing and the new logo was just fantastic.

[Frontier]

What makes the Daughters of the Dragon think losing to Doc Ock is beneath them!?

[CaptainUniverse]

What makes the Daughters of the Dragon think losing to Doc Ock is beneath them!?

HOW DARE THEY?! Don't they know who he is? He is OTTO OCTAVIUS! The greatest mind this world has ever SEEN!

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #86
The second half of Beyond kicks off with Wells returning for the first time since #76. He’s the main writer since he had the opening arc and he’s taking over the book solo, so it’s interesting that he’s been gone so long. I don’t know if there was behind the scenes stuff with getting the relaunch ready or if he figured it would be best if he did the opening story, and had a heavier role as it gets closer to a conclusion.


Dowling’s style is a good fit for this story. He seems like the type of guy who would be doing experimental work with Bendis circa 2001. There’s great pacing in a scene in the opening flashing between a conversation between Kafka and Ben, and a mistake he made as Spider-Man. Beyond’s sketchy behavior comes to light, with a major betrayal and Janine reminding people she’s dangerous. Grading this is a bit weird since it’s somewhat incomplete, reading more like the first chapter of a TPB length story than an episode in a larger arc. It’s one of those comic books that is hard to assess because it’s not a standalone, but it’s not also part of a clear discrete story outside of the larger Beyond arc.
B

[Mister Mets]

Amazing Spider-Man #87
The cover promises MacKay and Gomez. The interior credits promise Wells as writer. I might have to check to see if there’s any place where the creative teams offer commentary issue by issue.


Black Cat and Captain America help Peter recover and that whole plot is fun. It's a frustrating situation for Peter. Beyond does some sketchy stuff with Ben’s memories and these scenes are effective, especially knowing how the story ends. I didn’t necessarily like another downfall for Ben Reilly; it seems a bit lazy and it happened with Clone Conspiracy. I get Marvel’s problems with finding an identity for him distinct from Peter and Ben Reilly and Kaine, but not only is it contrary to his appeal, it’s repetitive. That said, the scenes do work, especially when Ben Reilly forgets something very important. Initially it seems a bit like the narrative’s spinning its wheels when there’s an excuse to reverse discoveries, but that fits the larger story and is part of Ben’s larger tragedy. The cliffhanger is also promising, as a supporting character steps up.
B+