Give SCARLET SPIDER a try! Here's why:

[Huntsman Spider]

Totally giving a try but the book is required to keep growing in character work. I love that Ben is back with potentially good new gravitas in the right hands but the title isn`t perfect as of now. You have action and some progress from CC but it needs to have more meat in it. So far the interactions between Ben and Kaine have been a bit off with the whole "no, you`re the one who made me do this!". Guys, keep it simple, Ben was the Scarlet Spider and Kaine wanted to honor him when he put on the name, that`s why he`s so pissed off. His hero turned into the devil.

That said, I`m likely one of the few here who`s relaxed about it. Whether the book suceeds or not, Ben is back. People sometimes act as if, if this book isn`t a major hit then they`re out to kill him again just to prove something and I think that`s nothing more than conspiracy theory. NewBen is making his baby steps so let writers tell their tale and see where it goes.

Hopefully back to the roots the further he goes but without losing some of the new raw.

Quite the excellent point you made. That is the simple and true reason for Kaine's animosity toward Ben. Ben was the guy he always measured himself against, in one form or another, and Ben breaking bad broke his heart, whether he'll say it out loud or even admit it to himself or not.

[JoeWithoutFear]

Just replace "peace" with "Scarlet Spider" ...

[Scott Taylor]

I like this title, and am buying it mostly for Pad's writing and character work, but there is really nothing about it that can draw in a larger audience or even draw in the Ben Reilly fanbase.

[Anthony W]

Sorry. I'm going to attempt to start reading Spider-Man comics again and I am going to have a strict "Just Peter, no franchisee" rule.

[Pav]

Sorry. I'm going to attempt to start reading Spider-Man comics again and I am going to have a strict "Just Peter, no franchisee" rule.

Good thing Ben Reilly IS Peter

Buy Scarlet Spider!

-Pav, who is just sayin'...

[The Negative Zone]

I tried to follow the book, but then I couldn't find issue 3 at my comic shop, so I feel like I'm too far behind to get them now.

[LordMikel]

My friends,

The Scarlet Spider is my favorite character in all of fiction, and it's not for no reason. As a kid, I was fascinated by the stories of Ben Reilly and Kaine. It helped that they had cool costumes, but it was the nature of their lives as clones of perhaps the most noble hero in the world that kept me captivated. Ben's death and Peter's grief felt real to me, and I still remember the excitement I felt when Kaine, the "loose end," reappeared out of nowhere after the Clone Saga had officially ended. But these moments have been few and far between: for twenty years, I was essentially without Ben Reilly in my comics.

Why does this matter so much?

Ben Reilly's status as a clone of Peter Parker gives him an intriguing position, both within the text and meta-textually. Within the text, Ben is a walking nature v. nurture experiment; his history of simultaneously needing to carve out a new life for himself while nevertheless having an innate desire to be the "one true Peter Parker" presented us, the readers, with drama of the most existential variety. Meta-textually, stories involving Ben Reilly provide writers with the opportunity to create Spider-Man stories that can't easily be told in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man; Peter Parker can learn new lessons while doing different jobs and dating different women, but the character of Peter Parker is essentially fixed. Not so for Ben, who - by virtue of his birth - is another Peter Parker, but one that holds little cultural cachet and can therefore participate in stories that take creative risks.

I've barely mentioned Kaine, but he is a fascinating character in his own right: his journey from a Spider-Frankenstein to the heroish Spider-Man he is now has obviously won over many fans, considering the fair popularity of the Yost series.

The current series may not be perfect, and I understand the frustrations of many who don't like the turn that Ben's story has taken. But in my opinion, this is the natural place to take Ben's character: now that he knows he will never live the life of Peter Parker, it's finally time to find out who Ben Reilly can be.

What does a damaged Peter Parker do when he wants to carve out some kind of fulfilling life for himself?

Trust in PAD to tell the tale. The man knows how to tell epic stories over years of comics. His X-Factor run is a personal favorite of mine (and if you haven't read it, the first year of that series is exceptional).

Give Ben Reilly: the Scarlet Spider a try. The longer it goes, I think, the better and better it's going to get.

So far, we've essentially been getting set-up: Ben is in Los Vegas, dealing with ramifications from Clone Conspiracy; we've also seen Kaine hunt down Ben, with the Scarlet Spider-Brothers throwing down in entertaining fashion.

Who knows what what will happen next?!

-Pav, who thanks you for reading...

I wanted to say, I love this thread and I wish there were more like it. People pushing books that they love and want to see it do well.

[WebLurker]

I tried to follow the book, but then I couldn't find issue 3 at my comic shop, so I feel like I'm too far behind to get them now.

Could you get a reorder?

[Adset]

i wanted to love this book. i, too, am a big scarlet spider fan from way back. i read the entirety of the clone saga as it was coming out in the 90s, and i liked ben so much i actually dropped the spider-books after peter parker: spider-man #75. i've only come back for the big spider-events just to check in, though i did grab all of superior and kaine's scarlet spider book. i read the clone conspiracy with great anticipation. i bought the first five issues of the new scarlet spider series...

... but man, this is not a good book. cheers to all who are digging it, but not even nostalgia can keep me interested enough to go on. i may revisit it if comixology ever does one of their 99 cent sales for it.

[Pav]

i wanted to love this book. i, too, am a big scarlet spider fan from way back. i read the entirety of the clone saga as it was coming out in the 90s, and i liked ben so much i actually dropped the spider-books after peter parker: spider-man #75. i've only come back for the big spider-events just to check in, though i did grab all of superior and kaine's scarlet spider book. i read the clone conspiracy with great anticipation. i bought the first five issues of the new scarlet spider series...

... but man, this is not a good book. cheers to all who are digging it, but not even nostalgia can keep me interested enough to go on. i may revisit it if comixology ever does one of their 99 cent sales for it.

My friend,

Comics are an expensive hobby, and if you don't dig it, you shouldn't buy it. But! I feel certain that this book is only going to get stronger as PAD puts all the characters in place - including the SLINGERS!!!!

Although, if you dropped after Ben's death, maybe that isn't a huge deal for you.

-Pav, who loves them more than anyone not named Ben Reilly...

[RD!]

I don't mind this book but dropped it mostly for financial reasons but your impassioned plea has convinced me to give it another chance and now that Secret Empire is over I have some spare change.

It's fascinating to learn why characters are so important to different people. Thank you for sharing

[Pav]

I don't mind this book but dropped it mostly for financial reasons but your impassioned plea has convinced me to give it another chance and now that Secret Empire is over I have some spare change.

It's fascinating to learn why characters are so important to different people. Thank you for sharing

And thank you for giving the book another try! I hope you really dig the upcoming issues!

-Pav, who likes a friendly internet...

[Venomous Mask]

Good thing Ben Reilly IS Peter

Careful, that attitude led to Ben having a two decade dirt nap.

[Huntsman Spider]

Careful, that attitude led to Ben having a two decade dirt nap.

And then being brought back as the villain of The Clone Conspiracy just so it could be made very clear that no, he isn't Peter Parker and isn't going to be. I'm still kind of sore about that, to be honest. I can understand the narrative intent behind it, to explore how someone who originally had the same moral compass as Peter, perhaps even stronger than Peter's in some ways given certain unfortunate incidents at the time, could turn bad and believe he was doing it for the right reasons, but the execution wasn't the best.

[Pav]

And then being brought back as the villain of The Clone Conspiracy just so it could be made very clear that no, he isn't Peter Parker and isn't going to be. I'm still kind of sore about that, to be honest. I can understand the narrative intent behind it, to explore how someone who originally had the same moral compass as Peter, perhaps even stronger than Peter's in some ways given certain unfortunate incidents at the time, could turn bad and believe he was doing it for the right reasons, but the execution wasn't the best.

Couldn't agree more. It's unfortunate that Dan chose to make Ben look exceptionally villainous at some key moments during Clone Conspiracy; if he would've been left extremely grey, I have to assume more people would've been pleased with the story: because Ben shouldn't be a Peter with no morals - the point is that he has more or less the same morals, but is led in different directions than Peter by those same morals.

The only really difference for Ben is the nature of his birth contributing to his life outlook: Ben should be less traditional than Peter (because he is).

I can see Ben taking the kinds of extreme philosophic positions in his heroing that Pete avoids in favor of more comforting and familiar ones.

-Pav, who is dying for the next issue...