A Winkler in Time: ASM47 Review and Spoilers

[Pav]

Hello, Webheads! Let's hold hands and take a stroll through this week's issue, shall we?

1. We start the issue at an abandoned factory, where a Masked Killer with a Big Knife is holding someone hostage: the hostage knows Mayor Luke Cage, who knows Madelyne Pryor, who has Ben Reilly imprisoned. But the dude won't talk, so he's gonna get mutilated! Luckily for him, Ben Reilly appears as Chasm and stops the Killer WHO WAS JANINE aka HOLLOWS' EVE THE WHOLE TIME. Hooray! Also: new mask. (I wonder what the side effects of this mask are.)

2. Janine removes her mask and reverts to form, swearing she (probably) wasn't going to hurt the guy and immediately hugs Chasm, asking how he got out. Ben replies that it's a long story (which is ridiculous because it was literally a very short story in which he escaped) but he's found someone who going to fix him. We don't see who it is, but Janine is NOT happy to see this person. On the other hand, I'm happy that neither are shown doing anything particularly villainous and horrible.

3. Then a bunch of stuff with Peter happens and do we even really care about that? It's not like he's the ONE, TRUE SPIDER-MAN anyway, y'know? So, real quick: Peter gets set up on a date with Aunt Anna's nurse from Ravencroft and they have a meetcute and it's fine and OH DANG WAS THAT A JOYSTICK NAMEDROP?!?! Best part.

4. Peter abandons his date with the bill -- oh, that Parker Luck! -- because Betty is in trouble. Dudes with guns are looking for her; she's done too much snooping into the business of the Hobgoblin, and that's not all: she's found the Winkler Device, which historically has been used to brainwash people into becoming fake Goblins. So Peter dons the Spidey gear and rescues her from the random henchgoons. Betty tells Peter she got a lead on the location of the Winkler Device and had to act fast because she's trying to get her husband Ned out of prison.

5. Cut to Oscorp: ...um. Something happened? An old guy is mad at some guy. Lizard and Living Brain are involved? Uh...

6. Cut back to Peter and Betty with the Winkler Device -- but they aren't alone! It's Werewolf Hollows' Eve and Chasm! Hollows' Eve asks Peter who his friend is and -- okay, I legit chuckled -- Ben says, "Oh, that's the love of his life... Betty Jane." Ha. Anyway, Peter tells Ben that he needs help, but that's why they're here in the first place, on the advice of their therapist: Queen Goblin!!!! Whoa. Not gonna lie: as much as I don't love these three characters being turned into villainous caricatures of themselves, I DO think they're a pretty rad-looking threesome! Almost like a funhouse mirror team-up between Spidey, Green Goblin, and Hobgoblin! But, y'know, inherently disappointing despite the cool costumes.

So that's the issue. And I'm excited. Why?

Because we all know Zeb Wells built a failsafe into his Chasm story, and that failsafe is the clone of Ashley Kafka, who has had the means (via the Beyond Corp) to restore Ben's memories. So, to me, seeing Kafka return as the Queen Goblin HOPEFULLY means that we'll finally get the payoff of a Ben Reilly who gets his memories and, therefore, his heroism and our happiness, returned and restored. Perhaps Kafka plans to rejigger the Winkler Device so that it functions like the Beyond Corp tech? That's my best guess, anyway! The wrinkle, of course, is that we still know Ben will be Chasm in Curse of Kaine; but to be fair, his Chasm powers and his brain damage did technically happen separately and for different reasons. So even if Ben remains as Chasm for a while, maybe this issue is the beginning of his restoration back to the hero we all know he should be -- not to mention the potential returns of the more heroic personas of Janine and Kafka. Here's hoping!

See you next issue!

-Pav, who would kill for the return of Joystick...

[wleakr]

I really appreciate seeing someone post that is excited for an issue of ASM!

[Vegan]

I also wouldn’t mind Joystick piping back up. She was fun in Thunderbolts as well, and the Great Game or whatever it was called she was a part of is a fun idea

[Huntsman Spider]

I also wouldn’t mind Joystick piping back up. She was fun in Thunderbolts as well, and the Great Game or whatever it was called she was a part of is a fun idea

Very much cosigned. The Great Game does make sense in a world of superpowers and hyper-tech that nonetheless still somewhat resembles our own; it's just bored rich people sponsoring a fight club with superhumanly enhanced and/or technologically augmented participants.

[Crazyspideyfan]

The action scenes were pretty good in this, Betty has to know at this point that Peter is Spidey lol he’s not even trying to hide it

[Huntsman Spider]

The action scenes were pretty good in this, Betty has to know at this point that Peter is Spidey lol he’s not even trying to hide it

Like Perry White with Superman over at DC, or Robbie Robertson closer to home, Betty's too good a reporter not to have figured it out by now.

[HypnoHustler]

I wish I had your faith in where this will go, but I’ve been burned by Marvel soooooo many times when it comes to Ben. With our luck, that solution you suggested will be teased but then Queen Goblin will die before she can restore him. I just don’t trust them to handle this story the correct way that you or I would.

[ARkadelphia]

My girl Janine really needs to cut this Chasm clown loose so that she can get back on the path of all that is good and righteous.

[Sr. Bungle]

I wish I had your faith in where this will go, but I’ve been burned by Marvel soooooo many times when it comes to Ben. With our luck, that solution you suggested will be teased but then Queen Goblin will die before she can restore him. I just don’t trust them to handle this story the correct way that you or I would.

That, or she has another plan for Ben entirely

[Huntsman Spider]

My girl Janine really needs to cut this Chasm clown loose so that she can get back on the path of all that is good and righteous.

Hmm, yeah?

I wish I had your faith in where this will go, but I’ve been burned by Marvel soooooo many times when it comes to Ben. With our luck, that solution you suggested will be teased but then Queen Goblin will die before she can restore him. I just don’t trust them to handle this story the correct way that you or I would.

That, or she has another plan for Ben entirely

That would be entirely possible.