Originally Posted by
HellsRider
Had a chance to read 300 and 301 together along with 302. First off, a congrats to Todd and the team for taking this series as far as it has come. Spawn was my very first comic series I ever picked up and have stuck with it ever since picking up all of the side series along the way as well.
That said, I wish the milestone was reached with quality and not just quantity. Over the years that I have been picking up the series, I did try other series from Image and DC and while it helped me experience other characters, worlds, writers, and artists it also highlighted the weaknesses of Spawn and at times magnified them. The series has always had really good art and over the years when other reviewers try and jump back on the series they are always quick to point that out, but the writing always leaves something to be desired and for a long time its been stuck on a particular gear that either your on board with or not. With 300 & 301, being taken in as one story as Todd mentioned, its familiar, lacks impact, and lacks focus.
300 begins with several pages of a couple at a family get together that goes horribly wrong followed by the newscasters. This is meant to highlight the poison that Wanda's killer has set into several countries with plans to cover the world with it that drives people to go mad and kill one another. This reminded me of the whole bug infestation bit from 250 which made me worried right off the bat as that issue spent what felt like half of its oversized issue talking about that. Here it's less than that, but by 301 after a particular act happens, its gone like nothing ever happened. We then go to Spawn and Marc which then leads to Spawn going to Albania where he meets his wife's killer - Violator. Here is the problem with this - we, the audience, have known that Clown was Wanda's killer since the Resurrection one shot 4 years ago where you can see a gang member with Clown's markings on him. The fact that this "mystery" was dragged on this much loses its impact especially when the series thinks its going for a red herring by having Spawn "kill" Clown in an issue prior to this. How Clown has this new form and empire is never explained. Its revealed here that Clown and Godsend have teamed up due to the threat that Al poses and that the infection Clown has set in motion is meant to kill everyone on Earth. After beating up Al, they rip the symbiote off of him. As they leave, Al blows up the facility and with Clown/Godsend surviving, Al comes out of the ashes and dons a new look saying the symbiote didn't make him Spawn, but that he is Spawn. This is followed up in 301 where Clown uses the symbiote to raise some demons, but Al uses his powers to raise zombies, but forget that as Al makes a point that what Clown is holding is a bomb. It goes off killing Clown and Godsend while at the same time be a beacon that Medieval Spawn, Gunslinger Spawn, She Spawn, Mandarin Spawn, and two others notice and also leads to Al being weak again and having to rely on his military training again. A cool moment, if it wasn't familiar since we saw the symbiote bomb bit back in Satan Saga Wars 3 years ago. The issues don't provide any background as to who these Spawns are, except for one, and it becomes more confusing later on.
300 continues by going back to a particular moment where Spawn and Redeemer are fighting with Al hoping that Redeemer remembers who he was as Eddie and accepting of the gift Al gave him years ago. Redeemer accepts this, joins Spawn's side as a mole in Heaven's ranks, and transforms into the Reaper. Again cool image, but why is this important and how did Al know that Eddie would turn into this and how does Al even know Reapers exist when he has never met one. Again things like this make a cool image lose its impact. We then cut back to Marc who he is trying to flee from the cabin he and Al have been at. When he realizes its futile and returns, the Freak appears momentarily only for him to disappear. We then go to the hospital where Jim Downing has been in a coma and we see warriors from Heaven trying to look for him when they meet Freak, Curse, Cy-gor, and Overt-kill and they do battle with Freak and the crew winning only to reveal that Jim Downing is awake and a Spawn again with Freak calling him master. This is slightly followed up in 301 where Freak's brother is trying to find him when he encounters demons. Before he's killed by them, Overt-Kill and Freak arrive killing the demons and then Al/Spawn appears realizing he still needs to find Curse and Cy-gor. Freak kills his brother. Again interesting stuff but again taken out of it for a number of reasons - back in 287 Al mentioned to Marc that Al and Jim cannot exist at the same time, but now they do for no particular reason. Could it be because of the symbiote bomb and Jim is now one of the six Spawns? Who knows right now and we presume that Curse and Cy-gor are with Jim for an unknown reason. The whole Freak brother bit in 301 felt like a waste of time to me and completely unnecessary when it could have been used to explore this more.
300's final two plot points involve a guy going up some steps into the mouth of a demon head. In 301 we get a little bit more as the guy guts himself with a sword turning him into Ninja Spawn - this is confusing for so many reasons. Again we can't care about something if we don't have any context. Who is this guy, where is he, why is he there, why did he do that to himself, how is he a Spawn that seems to be away from the six Spawns we saw in the same 301 issue. Its an element I feel didn't need to be introduced when nothing is done with it and only serves to complicate things just cause. The final plot point of 300 is following up on the Nyx/Jessica Priest plot line from the previous issues. Jessica makes it to Nyx's place only to find her dead. Jessica checks the place only to find a secret room with documents on Al and other matters. She notices a particular book with a spell for resurrection. Thinking she can use it to bring Nyx back to life, the spell instead floods Jessica with everything about Al since his return and his fight. By the end of it, Jessica transforms into She-Spawn and is ready to help Al. Again cool moment, but if memory serves Jessica was retconned to be Al's killer and not Chapel as originally intended so its weird that Jessica is now helpng Al. We also know that Cog was the last person with Nyx, but no follow up on that until maybe 303.
301s other follow ups are the military covering up the symbiote bomb incident and Al is still doing interviews for people to fight the good fight. Two guys come out of a bar to then be attacked by Spawn to then have Sansker (the same Sansker from the Bloodfeud series over 20 years ago) appear and do battle with Spawn easily winning without even being at full power. Al lets him go as a message for anyone to bring it on. Again cool moment in terms of bringing someone back from the series past, but reeks of familiarity like when Malebolgia first died. Al, realizing he's weak now, seeks some weapons when he meets one of the six Spawns. Who or what he is is never explained as the only purpose this moment serves is to say a third power greater than Heaven and Hell has awakened though no context is given as to what that is.
By the end of 301 we have the following plots:
- Al continuing his fight against Heaven and Hell who now have faceless leaders. He's weak again due to the symbiote bomb and relying on his military training like he did when he originally fought Overt-Kill and more recently after the events of Satan Saga Wars. A third power has awakened.
- Cog was the last person with Nyx, who is now dead, and Jessica Priest has turned into She-Spawn
- Redeemer, now on Al's side, is a mole in Heaven's ranks with the ability to transform into the Reaper
- Jim Downing is alive and kicking with powers and possibly with Curse and Cy-gor doing who knows what while Al has Freak and Overt-kill
- Ninja Spawn is around as are 5 other Spawns one of which has his own mission but who or what these guys are is unknown
- The on going fight Al has in the public eye continues which is the only reason why Marc exists
So how does 302 follow up on this? By doing absolutely nothing. Besides the last page where Jessica and Al meet, its a pretty worthless issue filled with a lot of talking and repetition that just leads to fighting but not caring who Al is fighting other than the fact that the guys are Heaven warriors who are trafficking humans. It reminded me of the pointless war on drugs Al did before the Dark Horror arc that went nowhere. We get a bonus story on She-Spawn when she is confronted by what seems like the Violator in her mind who warns of the third power and to give up the Spawn power. Nice to have a back up and being black & white is interesting, but again wish we got more with Jessica.
Todd mentioned that the Spawn-verse has been unleashed, but its a very messy way of doing it that right now its tough to care for due to plot points not being followed up on right now, not given the proper context, or being really familiar. It lacks focus and with no actual villain to face other than random Heaven and Hell warriors at the moment who cares that other Spawns exist if they are going to be just as aimless with even less character. It feels like a story that should bring about other books, but if its all being kept in this one and if 302 is anything to go by this is going to be painfully slow.