Amazing Spider-Man 93 Spoilers and Reviews

[Pav]

"Phineas Gage was an American railroad construction foreman remembered for his improbable survival of an accident in which a large iron rod was driven completely through his head, destroying much of his brain's frontal lobe, and for that injury's reported effects on his personality and behavior over the remaining 12 years of his life..."

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I'll be honest: I couldn't avoid spoilers and speculation. While the specifics were mostly unknown to me, I went into this issue knowing that Ben was going to become Chasm. I saw the costume. I assumed this meant he wouldn't be getting his memories back, as well.

But I was determined to give this issue a fair shot -- to try to judge it on its own merits. And I'll say this, as well: studying literary analysis helped me to differentiation between liking something and appreciating something. By that, I mean -- even if there are aspects of a work of art I don't care for, I try to find something to appreciation about its crafting. I can think of an example easily: the novel Swamplandia, which I believe is an excellently written book and has an ending that I really did not like.

I knew, going into this issue, that it was going to be a tragedy -- in the literal sense of the word. Reading the first few pages only intensified this realization. The word "tragedy" literally kept appearing in my thoughts. And I found myself thinking of tragedies. Hamlet has always been my favorite Shakespeare play; by the end, every major character is killed, including the titular hero. I thought of the film Memento, and how brilliant that movie was despite / in spite of an ending that is a little maddening. I even thought about Watchmen, in which the true villain gains the ultimate victory.

A well-written tragedy can be appreciated.

All that to say: I think I liked the issue.

Journey through it with me, won't you?

1) We start off with a flashback: Ben and Peter are in Aunt May's attic, and it's near the end of the 90s Clone Saga. Ben and Peter have become brothers, Ben is Spidey, and neither knows that he's going to be murdered at the hands of Norman Osborn in the days to come, leading to the return of the "one, true Spider-Man." By fans of the Saga, it's generally considered one of the best moments. But the narration is Ben looking back at this moment, and he points out something very metatextual and very true: "...he came back right when you started feeling comfortable. you know what it means when he comes back." Where's the lie, folks? Behind the scenes, we know that as the writers really started gaining a grasp on Ben as Spidey, giving him a supporting cast and a number of love interests, re-establishing his relationship with heroes and villains, they had the rug pulled out from under them! Peter had to come back. Of course he did.

2) Ben's getting this memory confused with another: he's the Scarlet Spider, and he's with Mary Jane at the beginning of the Saga. Mary Jane is upset and lashes out at Ben; she's worried that Ben wants to take Peter's life away. Between these memories, we get narration from Ben about how badly he DID want Peter's life, that Mary Jane was right. And here, I'd like to say two things: 1) the art is absolutely gorgeous, especially Ben's Scarlet suit; and 2) this was my first indication that the writing of the issue just might be good. I LIKE the way these two scenes were connected, and I think they're honest about what happened back in the 90s. At the start of the Saga, part of Ben DID wish he could have Peter's life, but he knew it wasn't his for the taking. And Peter's return DID come when Ben's had really settled in as Spidey. The stories were really strong, especially the ones that had nothing to do with clones and the Jackal and all that. Ben was moving on... until he was killed.

3) But these memories? They're going away, and we're back with Ben at Beyond in the present. Hobie Brown is asking him what's wrong. That's right: the Slingers get a cameo appearance! And the best part: it's made clear that they know this is Ben! The Scarlet-Slingers continuity from BR:SS remains intact! Ben and the Slingers are literally my favorite superheroes, so I appreciated the added bonus that they are aware of who Ben is, including his name. Dusk wants Ben to remember them, but he replies, "Who says I didn't?" and proceeds to attack. He wants Maxine Danger and nothing is getting in his way.

4) Maxine, meanwhile, is monitoring the situation along with Marcus, who informs her that Spider-Pete is arriving. Maxine decides to "tell the board."

5) MJ is in Peter's ear. She knows Peter is mad because Ben left her at the Bugle with Queen Goblin, but she knows Ben is hurting. It's the empathic MJ we were missing at the beginning of Beyond, but hey -- people are complex! Emotions are tricky!

6) Peter saying "thank you" really made me smile, which I appreciated considering what I knew was coming.

7) Ben finally gets to Maxine, who does good villain dialogue. And whoa: "You and Kafka saw to it that no copies of your implanted memories would be held. All to protect your friend's identity." Good intentions. Good intentions.

8) Maxine puts it all on Ben: he created these problems for himself, from her perspective. But he can fix things: he can use some Beyond tech to get Peter's memories back -- he just needs to get them directly from the source if he wants to heal himself. "Surely, he'll help you."

9) "He's my friend."

10) Ben attacks Maxine, but it's a hologram. She's actually with Marcus, who is informed that he's about to be killed by armed Beyond goons.

11) Elsewhere, Peter and Ben finally find each other. Ben wants Peter to put on the helmet-tech that Maxine gave him, but Peter is understandably wary of using any Beyond tech and tells Ben he can't possibly ask him to do so. Ben isn't asking, however -- and that's a nice callback to the beginning of Beyond (and JMD's current mini) in which Ben expresses his discomfort in asking for help.

12) Back to Marcus, who is being escorted by the kill team. Luckily for him, Janine has stolen a gun called the Infantilizer, and we get our Beyond goofiness for the issue: the kill team turning into babies. Marcus can get Janine out of the building, but she's got other plans.

13) Meanwhile, Ben is telling Peter what it's like in his head -- and the "second person" description is certainly an interesting way of framing it. Ben tells Peter that he isn't allowed to keep his life from him and punches his square in the face. And y'know -- I believe that Ben would act this way in the face of losing his very identity because it's EXACTLY HOW PETER ACTED back in the 90s when he was faced with the realization that he was actually the clone.

14) The banter is still good, though, you guys. "No, because you are!"

15) Put into a no-win situation, what are two overly-emotional superpowered brothers going to do but come to blows? Brothers fight all the time.

16) Oh, and Maxine? She's informing the board of current events, and they inform her that she's no longer needed and is immediately shot -- except, nope! It's another hologram. Of course it is. Maxine says goodbye, for now.

17) Our attention is now directly on Ben and Peter fighting. "You're not the better one, Peter. You're just older. And you hate me because I'm new." MORE EXCELLENT METATEXTUAL WRITING: there was nothing wrong with Ben Reilly being Spider-Man, except that he wasn't Peter. Peter came first, and that's all there is to it. That's all he needed to have fans on his side. Ben was new and bad. Luckily, Peter doesn't feel that way: "I don't hate you!"

18) It doesn't matter. Peter still isn't at peak health, and Ben is able to handily beat him. And hey! We get to see the Spinneret again! Yup, Peter gets wrapped up, snug as a bug. He keeps telling Ben that he wants to help, but Ben rightly asks why, then, he has to make him?

19) Somewhere else, Marcus and Janine have just discovered that Maxine is gone and that the whole Beyond unit is going to be scrubbed, including the lower levels being flooded with "quantum-shifting polymers in a psycho-reactive medium," which "rewrites matter." Not great to be caught in it, especially if {foreshadow} you're people. Janine asks Marcus to help her find Ben...

20) ...who is about to put the helmet on Peter, who's tied up by the spinneret. But not for long: "Janine 04-14."

21) Peter smashes the helmet, and Ben is crushed. He's never going to be whole again. He's going to lose everything that made him who he is. Peter believes there's still something they can do, but Ben flies into a rage and puts Peter in a headlock, who then flips Ben off of him and INTO THE QUANTUM-SHIFTING POLYMER STUFF!!!

22) Peter wants Ben to jump up to him, but it's too late. Ben has already lost himself. It's over. And an explosion blows Peter away...

23)...into the arms of Marcus, who leads Peter out.

THE END.

[Pav]

BUT THEN...

24) Back at the hospital, Peter is being checked on due to "the mugging" that happened. Aunt May is there too, giving the doctor a hard time. MJ and Marcus are also there, and Peter cries as he thinks about failing to help Ben. MJ thanks Marcus for saving Peter, but he gives credit to Janine.

25) And Janine? She's underneath the Beyond building. She hasn't given up looking for Ben, and she says his name, a weird substance -- expunging psychoactive goo -- shapes itself into his name.

26) Janine looks into a puddle of the goo on the ground, and, okay, BIG QUESTION: is what she sees in her reflection supposed to imply that she, too, has been changed? It looks like she has some kind of mask on, right? Very curious.

27) But not as intriguing as Ben emerging from the rubble!

WEEKS LATER...

28) Peter and MJ have just finished a workout, and Peter is feeling like his old self. MJ asks Peter to move back in with her, but he's not sure it's the smart thing to do, as "he's a mess right now." MJ asks when isn't he, and Peter replies, "There was that... that one time." A simply joke? Maybe. A tip of the hat to the marriage, which was a huge part of the Clone Saga? Maybe!

29) In the end, Peter agrees to move in -- but he and MJ are interrupted by a mysterious figure enveloped in a bright light! "Come with me."

MONTHS LATER

30) Ben doesn't know much, but he knows Janine never left him and that he'll never leave her. He's looking in the mirror, and he's still got Empty Beyond Face happening. He puts on his new mask, and heads out in his new, weird costume. Who he was is gone, and all that's left is a Chasm.

THE END FOR NOW.

...

When a reader encounters an issue he or she doesn't like, I know it's easy to believe the creative team had bad intentions. I'm not saying such a case is impossible, but I don't believe it's true here, especially after reading what Nick Lowe wrote at the end of the issue regarding Ben's lack of a place in the current world of Spider-Man comics. I mean, he literally says that finding a role for Ben "has been a challenge for us," indicating that they've been trying to come up with something for Ben. Now don't get me wrong: I still maintain that Ben never needed anything more to maintain a title of his own. I don't think being the Jackal or being deranged or even becoming Chasm has ever been necessary. I don't think being "another Peter" should've been the impediment it seemed to have been. But that doesn't mean I won't acknowledge how Marvel feels about the situation, and I get it even if I don't agree with it.

And when Nick Lowe used that word himself -- "tragedy" -- well, I think they wrote a good one. I was hoping for a happy ending. We all were. And I understand if you, reading this, can't accept that Ben was given a role in another tragedy.

But I think this issue was written well, the art was beautiful, and honestly, I believe Ben was treated respectfully. And I guess I'll just say this, for those who don't want to follow Ben's adventures as Chasm. I remember when my great-grandmother was suffering from Alzheimer's. I remember her no longer being able to recognize her own family. It's not exactly the same situation obviously, but I think Ben's in a similar situation: Ben may be different -- drastically so -- but he's still Ben. His condition doesn't make me love him any less; in fact, I love and appreciate him more than ever -- for what he has been, and for what he could become.

Because, y'know what? I'm honestly kind of excited for the new chapter in Ben's life! I have my hopes and desires for him like I always will, but I'm also intrigued because I have no clue what comes next for Ben and Janine, and I look forward to reading their next adventure, whenever it might be.

I want to thank everyone who enjoys the character of Ben Reilly for partaking in these review threads and in all our clone conversations in general. I appreciate the discourse a great deal, and I'll forever love talking about Ben.

Your friend,

-Pav, who quoted from the Wikipedia page on Phineas Gage...

[Matt Rat]

'Fraid I have to disagree with the spin.

This is the kind of crap they have pulled no less than three times with Ben now, and time and again it's been a proven failure, and ultimately quickly forgotten about.

If you want to contribute to Ben's character assassination under some belief any of this will stick or be popular, go ahead, some of aren't into bargaining

[HypnoHustler]

I disagree with much (not all, but about 70%) of your assessment, but appreciate your well thought-out analysis as usual. I didn’t hate it as much as I thought I would (at least it was written, drawn and paced better than some recent issues), but I’m still not happy with the awful status quo they left Ben in.

[Batman Begins 2005]

Poor Ben Reilly and his fans done dirty again. Only time he hasn't since his death in Spider-Man #75 is in the current Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider miniseries by J.M. DeMatteis. Hated what Dan Slott, Peter A David and Beyond has done to him.

[Sr. Bungle]

Poor Ben Reilly and his fans done dirty again. Only time he hasn't since his death in Spider-Man #75 is in the current Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider miniseries by J.M. DeMatteis. Hated what Dan Slott, Peter A David and Beyond has done to him.

Thanks for all your reviews Pav. Always a pleasure to read something made with with so much love and passion.

[xpyred]

As a Ben Reilly fan, this run is complete trash that can join the recent Scarlet Spider series and the clone conspiracy. As far as I'm concerned, Ben died in 1996 and that's it. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone. Completely disgusted and disappointed.

As for the issue itself - really? Another boring mysterious character glowing in the window about some ominous nonsense? I'm over it and it hasn't even begun.

[Matt Rat]

Also, I read the Peter/MJ stuff and my god, who talks like this? Wells just isn't that good at their voices at all.

[jda95]

Pav's optimism has been probably the best part of following this board throughout Beyond and I appreciate this assessment, even if I remain more cynical about their intentions for a "place" for Ben.

[HypnoHustler]

Did anyone else find Nick Lowe’s letter self-contradictory. “Unfortunately there’s no place in the current Spidey-scape for poor Ben…” and then a few sentences later “… but as you’ll see this may not be the last we hear about Ben.” As Chasm? The worst superhero-makeover-into-an-edgelord since Speedball became Penance? Let’s not, Nick.

[Spiderfan001]

Did anyone else find Nick Lowe’s letter self-contradictory. “Unfortunately there’s no place in the current Spidey-scape for poor Ben…” and then a few sentences later “… but as you’ll see this may not be the last we hear about Ben.” As Chasm? The worst superhero-makeover-into-an-edgelord since Speedball became Penance? Let’s not, Nick.

It's really crazy because if they're no space then they should have kept him dead, or atleast gave him a honorable end in Beyond.Turning him into a new character is the worst idea.

Also we have dozens of Spiders in 616 but Ben is the one you have no space for?

[HypnoHustler]

It's really crazy because if they're no space then they should have kept him dead, or atleast gave him a honorable end in Beyond.Turning him into a new character is the worst idea.

Also we have dozens of Spiders in 616 but Ben is the one you have no space for?

Yeah. Alternatively if they want to retire him, let him have a happy ending with Janine. In a twist on the 90s saga he could be the “Peter” that gets married, retires and has a baby.

[CrimsonEchidna]

So where's Kaine through all of this?

[jda95]

It's really crazy because if they're no space then they should have kept him dead, or atleast gave him a honorable end in Beyond.Turning him into a new character is the worst idea.

Also we have dozens of Spiders in 616 but Ben is the one you have no space for?

If the solution for finding out where a character fits is turning them into a different character, maybe staying in limbo is the best option.

[SplinteringHeart]

Yeah. Alternatively if they want to retire him, let him have a happy ending with Janine. In a twist on the 90s saga he could be the “Peter” that gets married, retires and has a baby.

Agree with both these points..plenty of spiders, Ben could be around too, and yes a happy ending with Janine would have been better.

Terrible ending..turning Ben, again! They just won't let him be a hero! What have we got in Chasm, another sub-Goblin/Venom/Carnage character...it's enough with Kafka as Queen Goblin....poor Ben!