Originally Posted by
Vaegrin
This was an excellent issue. I think this series has just truly hit its stride. A few thoughts.
1. Peter Parker is in excellent form this issue. I missed seeing MJ, but it was good to have an issue to focus on Peter being Peter, as well as his relationship with Annie.
2. Given recent events, I found Peter's explanation for her absence--"at the doctor all day"--potentially ominous. Peter didn't seem overly worried, but that could just be because he was with Annie. I'm anxious to find out what happens next. The cover for issue #12 still has MJ in her gorgeous symbiote costume, so the troubles with Venom may not be over.
3. I had to suspend disbelief a bit regarding Peter's decision to take Annie with him to confront the Lizard, but it was absolutely worth it for many reasons. It does make sense that Peter would want to go stop the Lizard as long as he thought there was no serious danger, so think of it as a superhero bring-your-daughter-to-work day. Anyway, Peter has brought MJ with him on patrol before, and that was when she did not have any powers.
4. I have loved this book from the beginning, but one of the things it really needed to accomplish was to sell me on Normie Osborn. This book did that. It's nothing out of left field, but suddenly I get it, and I'm intrigued. The interactions between Normie and Annie were very good, and I genuinely do not know which way things will go from here.
5. This was Ryan Stegman's first solo-written issue, but you wouldn't know that from reading it. The transition was seamless. Stegman's prose is smooth and feels natural, and he ably captures every character's voice.
6. This was the first of a three-issue arc, and based on this first issue it is shaping up to be the best one yet. There is no question: longer arcs are exactly what this book needs. The setup that was done in this issue is so important to grab my attention for the rest of the arc, and that could not have happened in a two-issue story.