Beware the Basilisk My Son!

Terrible issue. I take issue with both physics and linguistics stuff in this issue, both of which are sticking points with me. It’s about an alien rock giving some loser powers, and then Spider-Man and Captain Marvel trying to stop him.

Rating:

The Kangaroo Bounces Back!

Kangaroo sucked the first time around, and he was boring this time. Luckily there was enough else going on in this issue to keep things moving. Take, for example, this tidbit: Harry Osborn was, as I suspected, the one who removed his father’s costume. Furthermore, Harry has lost it and has taken on his father’s role – he is now the Green Goblin!

The most interesting thing about this issue is that Spider-Man gets approached to build a Spider-Mobile. BEST. IDEA. EVER.

Rating:

The Dark Wings of Death!

The Vulture Hangs High!
Scripter: Gerry Conway
Artist: Ross Andru
Inkers: F. Giacoia, D. Hunt
Letterer: J. Costanza
Colorist: M. Brand
Originally published: January 1974

Fantastic issues. Stuff with Harry comes to a bit of a head, Spider-Man has to relive Gwen’s death when the Vulture drops MJ from the sky, there’s a brand new Vulture, and the Spider Mobile nears completion. These were a really good read. The mystery was pretty well done, and it had me going the whole time. Woot.

Rating:

If an Eye Offend Thee…

Pete and MJ go on a date to see Johnny Blaze, and Spidey ends up teaming up with the Ghost Rider against a fan-freaking-tastic eyeball-headed bad guy named the Orb.

At first I was dismayed to learn that the eyeball was just a special helmet. But then I saw what was underneath and that was also super sweet.

Alright issue, but I think the long bike-chase scene would have worked better on the screen. I’ve noticed there’s been a lot of death lately in the Spider-Man comics. Pretty much every Team-Up issue seems to end with the bad guy dying, and Spider-Man never really bats an eye at it. I guess he’s becoming desensitized to death. It’s kind of weird.

Rating:

The Orb

Mayhem is…The Men-Fish!

As usual for this book, Spider-Man picks a fight for no reason. This time, it’s with the Sub-Mariner. Again, as usual, the quickly team up to fight a baddie. In this issue it’s some guy named Dr. Dorcas and his minion, Tiger Shark. Despite the formulaic structure, this was a really enjoyable issue. The dialogue and pacing were both snappy, and some of the art was really cool.

Also, there was this:

Hehe.

Rating:

To The Death!

I’m back to my correct chronology, and it’s the Avengers and the Defenders vs. Dormammu. I’m not a fan of these super-hero orgy issues, where every damn last Marvel character is thrown in. This issue manages to overcome this a little, but is still a little on the weak side.

Rating:

Wolfhunt!

• Half the art is underwhelming, but the other half is fantastic – like this John Jameson panel blow. In fact, John’s whole flashback is super sweet.
• John Jameson’s origin as Man-Wolf is from some crazy moon rock. That’s pretty badass. The moon scenes was great.
• MJ’s problems with harry, and the subsequent cold shoulder she gives Pete, are intriguing. I’m curious how they’re relationship will develop.

Really great issue overall. The writing was snappy and had really good pacing. Peter’s attitude and behaviour comes off as real and, most importantly, interesting to read. I absolutely loved the scene with JJJ at the end.

Rating:

The Mark of the Man-Wolf

Ten days since Gwen and Norman Osborn bit it, and things aren’t getting any better for Spider-Man. The issue opens in the rain, and it’s a perfect way to set the mood. Mysteries still abound – who is covering up Osborn’s secret identity? What was up with that guy in Montreal that wanted to see Aunt May?

Those questions won’t be answered here, unfortunately. This issue shows Peter’s continuing struggle to deal with Gwen’s death, as well as introducing a new problem: J.J. Jameson’s son John has become a werewolf!

First, the Gwen stuff. Pete oscillates between trying to convince himself that he’s fine and ready to move on, and having wild outbursts and mood swings that point to the exact opposite. He attempts to go to class, can’t handle it, and flips out at MJ and Flash. These school scenes are the best in the issue. Later, he cracks up and smashes a newspaper box, destroying its content. (Sure he often destroys way more property than that, but it’s usually in the form of Spider-Man and usually for a greater good. This time he was just venting.) He then takes off, fully intending to attack Jameson. He’s become unhinged. The anger fades, but still…pretty shocking that it bubbled up in the first place.

Man-Wolf: Dave Hunt’s colouring gets lousy marks for his work on John Jameson. The Junior JJ has always been a striking brunette, but Hunt has given him completely grey hair. I realize that his hair could have greyed over time, but it’s obviously just a screw up. It irks me. And what’s with all the werewolf stuff? This is from September ’73. In August ’73, Spider-Man was dealing with the Werewolf. Now he has Man-Wolf? Gerry Conway wrote this one and plotted the other one, so it isn’t just a crazy coincidence. Conway’s wolf-crazy.

This issue wasn’t bad, and it’s nice to get back into an issue that’s taking a larger look at the ongoing arc, rather than just wrapping everything up super neatly. The Man-Wolf stuff doesn’t get resolved here, and is continued in the next ASM.

By the way, I think this is the last Gil Kane appearance in Amazing Spider-Man. His art here pretty much sums up how I’ve felt about his whole run – it’s a total mixed bag. There are some things in here that I love, that look totally awesome. And there are some panels that just look uninspired and bad. I don’t know if it’s just me, but Kane’s work has never seemed consistent. I’m usually excited by artist changes, and this isn’t an exception. I just hope the new stuff is by someone good!

Rating:

The Granite Sky!

Hmmm…Len Wein’s narration is almost as annoying as Gerry Conway’s. I’m also not digging Gil Kane’s work here. I’m totally back and forth with him, it’s crazy. I really liked what he’s been doing recently, but here everything’s too rough, there are too many lines. It makes all the characters look old.

In this issue Spidey and Captain America team up to help S.H.I.E.L.D. fight the Grey Gargoyle (spelled both “Gray” and “Grey” in the same issue!) and A.I.M.

My favourite part of the issue:

This was pretty typical fare. Other than the fact that Spidey is still ostensibly considering quitting, this issue doesn’t serve to advance the greater story arc.

Rating:

…Then Came Ramrod!

Ok, so I’ve caught some mentions at the Daredevil and the Black Widow being together, but I don’t really know the details. Are they a couple? Why are they in San Francisco?

I’m not really into this, so here’s a couple of notes:

• Don Heck has Spider-Man walking along his web like a tightrope, exactly like Daredevil would. Did Heck forget who he was drawing? It’s not that it’s impossible that Spidey would do that, but it certainly comes across as weird. The pose doesn’t help.
  
• There was a nice mention of Pete’s ulcer, even if it was just him covering for his spider sense. Nice to see that the ulcer hasn’t been completely forgotten.
• I really hate the monologue-flashback-origin-story crutch. There are other, far less artificial ways to tell a character’s origin, but comics too often resort to this.
• Ramrod’s kind of like Wolverine, in that his skeleton has been replaced with metal. That’s kind of neat.
• Daredevil and the Black Widow are barely in this, which is really weird. You know, since it’s their book.

Very villain-of-the-weeky, nothing really special here at all.

Rating:

Wolf at Bay

Spider-Man is in San Francisco. Why? Mostly he’s hoping it’ll help take his mind off Gwen’s death; he’s convinced Jameson to sponsor the trip as a way for him to get away from the city for a bit. This little relaxing getaway is interrupted, though, by some werewolf guy. As this werewolf attacks, Spidey just pretty much sits there dodging while feeling sorry for himself. The battle has none of Spider-Man’s usual quick quips; he just spends the whole time thinking to himself silently. It makes sense given his current situation, but it’s kinda boring to read. I know Pete has his share of mopey moments, but interesting writing shouldn’t be sacrificed for them.

Eventually one of Spider-Man’s dodges sends the werewolf plunging over the side of the Golden Gate Bridge into the water below, in a scene very reminiscent of Gwen’s demise. Surprisingly, and a bit annoyingly, Spidey doesn’t even make the connection. I mean, if you’ve just seen your girlfriend plunge from her death off a bridge, and then a few days later you send some dude plunging (presumably to his death) off another bridge, isn’t that going to stir some shit up in you? Why even bother having the attack go down that way if it isn’t going to have an affect on Peter?

As Spidey watches the water below, a weird creepy face appears in some clouds behind him, watching. This is when the issue finally shows an interesting spark and grabs my attention. As Spider-Man swings away he actually asks himself some pretty reasonable questions, such as why there might be a werewolf in San Francisco and why it might be after him. I am interested in those answers too, but also more interested in the creepy cloud face.

Later, when Pete goes to a diner for a cheeseburger on rye (a dish I’ve never tried, but which sounds really great), he notices everybody in the joint is totally hypnotized and zombified. JUST THEN THE WEREWOLF BARGES IN!!! Presumably relying on his canine sense of smell, the wolfman has tracked Spider-Man — now in the form of regular Joe, Peter Parker — to the diner, and attacks him while all the blank-eyed zombies go about their business. My current state: definitely interested in what’s happening. Peter manages to knock out the werewolf, but he still perplexed by the completely entranced San Francisco populous.

Before Spider-Man can follow these people, though, the sun starts to come out and the werewolf turns back into a man. The man, Jack Russell (hehe), is a werewolf visiting San Francisco from LA. Finally it’s answer time. Other than an amazing use of the word “prestidigitation”, these answers are unfortunately very boring and uninspired. Jack and some other jerks were at a lame magic show by this guy, Moondark, who hypnotized everybody and unleashed Russel’s wolf side. Moondark then ordered the Werewolf to go after Spider-Man.

Everything goes downhill after this, story-wise. It just becomes a typical bad guy showdown. Moondark is barely explored, there’s no explanation given for his scheme, and he ends up being nothing more than a lame cliché. Jack, unsurprisingly, turns back into a wolf for awhile so there can be another Exciting Fight®. The only semi-interesting thing is that Spider-Man and Moondark end up getting transported back to the Golden Gate Bridge, where Moondark goes over the edge into the water. Yet again, though, Spidey speculates on his death without a single mention of Gwen or anything. Lamesauce.

The issue ends with Spidey still in San Fran, now presumably about to start his actual assignment there.

This issue got me with a couple of sweet hooks, but it totally squandered that good will. I almost wish it had just been lame all the way through, instead of getting my hopes up. It wasn’t terrible, but it was a letdown.

Oh, and I love the title of the issue. Puns are the best. Seriously.

Rating:

…Just a Man Called Cage!

Chemistro!
Words: Steve Englehart
Pictures: George Tuska, Billy Graham
Lettering: Charlotte Jetter
Coloring: Petra Goldberg
Originally published: August 1973

…continued from where the last issue left off. the mysterious person from the last issue has removed goblin’s costume, so that spider-man is now being blamed for osborn‘s death, rather than the goblin’s. jameson has vowed that spider-man will die for this and decides to hire luke cage to take spidey out.

gwen’s funeral gives a good chance for conway to over-narrate. once that’s over, the funeral scene is pretty good i guess. pete and flash bury the hatchet, everyone’s sad, and pete admits to mj that he feels lost without gwen. jjj doesn’t show up, which surprised me. i know he can be a self-centered jerk, but he often has a caring side that comes through. robbie defends jameson, saying that sometimes jj can just be tactless, but it still seems a bit out of character. i guess maybe it can be explained if we assume jj’s just distraught by his friend norman osborn’s death. the reason jj missed the funeral was to go hire luke cage to capture spider-man, dead or alive.

later, pete’s swinging around to try and clear is head, but it’s not working. unlike with uncle ben and george stacy’s deaths, this time pete doesn’t feel any guilt. he does feel intense sadness and loneliness. once again, peter considers retiring from the whole super-hero game, but this is right when luke cage takes the opportunity to tackle him. spidey gets pissed and temporarily kicks cage’s ass. all thoughts of quitting are gone, at least for the moment.

when pete gets home harry is there, and he gives old petey the coldest shoulder i have ever seen. it’s a pretty bitchin scene.

pete leaves, goes out with mj to the uni. cage shows up, they fight. spidey comes to his senses, and they end up talking it out. cage returns jameson’s money. the talk apparently also made peter realize he isn’t alone…because he’s friends with luke cage? that’s just weird and dumb. maybe if they showed the talk it would make more sense, but it comes off as trite.

the issue is not terrible, but the luke cage stuff falls a little flat. pretty weak cross-over in my opinion. it would have been nice to have an issue dealing with pete’s grief that wasn’t just a shameless promotion of another book. oh well. the personal stuff – funeral, mj, harry – was all really good, and i’m excited to see who the mystery man is that messed with osborn’s body.

spider-man appears in the splash page of luke cage’s book, as a flashback to their fight from asm. the story then goes completely elsewhere. this is spider-man’s only appearance in hero for hire, by the way. the issue is not half-bad, and it’s really interesting how different in tone it is from the spider-man books. i liked it, but this ain’t a luke cage blog.

Rating:

The Goblin’s Last Stand!

Spider-Man is furious after the Green Goblin has killed Gwen Stacy. Before attacking Osborn, though, Pete takes the time to bring Gwen’s body down to a nearby pier. He then launches into a very fast and, unfortunately, very sloppy attack. The Goblin is able to escape.

Returning to the pier and Gwen’s body, Pete finally has a chance to say goodbye to her. In fact, he says much more than goodbye and has a quite lengthy conversation to her, which is really quite sad and slightly disturbing. Again, Conway does a fantastic job of capturing Peter’s anguish. The police have also arrived, though, and when they demand a little attention, Spider-Man loses it and ends up getting into a bit of a brouhaha. Blaming himself for Gwen’s death, Spider-Man takes off to try and quash his guilt the only way he knows how – by seeking revenge on the Green Goblin.

Peter’s first stop is the Osborn mansion, to see if he can get any information out of Harry. The poor sod is in the midst of a major freakout and, disgusted and angry, Pete turns to leave. When his friend begs him to stay and help, to not abandon him like everyone else has, Pete just turns his back and literally slams the door in Harry’s face.

This scene is another example of Conway’s surprisingly great writing in this issue. Rather than have Peter be a hero and help his friend, Conway instead makes him much more human. Pete is overcome with grief and revenge is all he can think about. Yes he acts like a complete dick to Harry, but it’s understandable and makes for a much more powerful issue.

Next, Pete – as Spider-Man – heads over to the Daily Bugle in hopes of rounding up some info about Norman Osborn. With the help of Robbie Robertson, he’s able to track the villain down to a warehouse. The Goblin, meanwhile, is expecting Spider-Man and lays a trap. When Pete finally arrives though, he outsmarts Osborn and is able to take him by surprise.

While they fight, the Goblin makes the very unwise move of calling Gwen useless, and saying that “she never did more than occupy space”. This, naturally, riles Peter up like nobody’s business and he just starts wailing on the Goblin. He’s just seriously beating the living crap out of Osborn and, I must admit, it’s very satisfying to see. After awhile, though, Peter begins to come to his senses and realizes that if he continues, if he kills the Goblin, he’ll be no less of a murderer than Osborn is.

Taking advantage of this break, the Goblin uses a remote control to activate his flyer, behind Peter. As Peter struggles with his demons, Osborn sends the glider hurtling towards Spider-Man. What he hasn’t taken into account, though, is Pete’s spider sense. Just at the last instant, Spider-Man ducks out of the way and slams into the Green Goblin instead. The razor sharp tips of the glider, propelled by its jet engine, pin Osborn’s body to the brick wall. Only after the jet dies down does Osborn’s lifeless body slump to the ground.

Realizing that his foe is dead brings no satisfaction to Peter. He realizes that the death is meaningless, and that he now feels even more empty and alone. As Pete sulks away, we see that he is being watched by a mysterious man in the shadows.

In an epilogue, Pete finally arrives back at his apartment and finds Mary Jane. With grief and anger still washing over him, Pete snaps at MJ. He basically calls her shallow, and uncaring, and he orders her to leave. But, unlike Peter only a few hours earlier, she stays behind to help her friend.

This issue is no worse than the last. Conway finishes up his story with great skill, and creates a very powerful turning point for our hero. Basically every praise I gave for issue 121 still holds true here. I was very pleasantly surprised with the quality of this book.

Rating:

The Night Gwen Stacy Died

I had written a glowing review of this issue, as well as reviews of the next three things on the list. Then I accidentally deleted them. So this is my second go-around at it. Normally I wouldn’t be thrilled at the prospect but, frankly, this issue was so good that I don’t mind re-reading and re-reviewing it.

Amazing 120 ended with Peter wrapping things up in Montreal. At the start of this issue he’s back in New York, ready to go visit a very sick and drug-addled Harry Osborn. Harry has been taking LSD and is quite sick. Harry’s diagnosis says that the drugs, combined with Harry’s existing state of depression has led to schizophrenia. When Peter actually tries to go see Harry, he is confronted by a very angry and very unhinged Norman Osborn. Osborn accuses Peter, along with Gwen and MJ, for Harry’s situation and orders them out of his house. Freaked out by the episode, Peter can’t help but wonder if Osborn is starting to lose control and slip into the grip of the Green Goblin again. After they leave, Norman Osborn, consumed with legitimate worry for his son and concern over his dwindling fortune, is beginning to crack up. Outside, Pete and Gwen wonder aloud about Harry’s motivations for taking the drugs, Mary Jane casts her eyes downward in shame and mumbles a half-hearted “I don’t know.” I suspect that MJ might know more about Harry’s troubles than she’s letting on.

Later, Spider-Man is heading to the Bugle and finds himself winded and dizzy. This is the part of the issue I have the biggest problem with, for three reasons. This “Peter has an illness” sub-plot has been used before, I believe even used the last time Pete fought the Goblin. It’s sole purpose is to provide an excuse for Peter fighting at a level below his norm. Having been done before, the sheer mention of his illness comes across as being tired and unoriginal. Furthermore, the reason for this illness is extremely flimsy – Pete speculates that because he’s not used to the “zero-degree weather” up in Canada, he must have picked up a virus. Here’s the problem:

1. Montreal’s weather isn’t that different from NYC’s
2. Viruses have nothing to do with temperature

Anyway, I know this is a small problem to focus on. Frankly, it’s really the only weakness in the issue, so it’s easy to blow it up out of proportion. Onwards…

Back at the Osborn home, Harry’s doctor has just left and Norman is feeling guilty about everything. As his sanity starts to slip away he has a hallucination of Spider-Man attacking him and, as he vows to kill Spidey, all of Norman’s memories flood back to him. He remembers that he is the Goblin, and he remembers that Peter is Spider-Man. Taking off into the night, Osborn heads straight to one of the Goblin’s old hideouts and makes his transformation complete.

As Pete heads back to his apartment, he’s looking forward to a long overdue talk with Gwen. Little does he know that the Green Goblin, aware of Peter Parker’s secret identity, is heading to the same apartment where Gwen is waiting. When Peter arrives he finds the apartment a mess. A small, unmistakeable pumpkin sits atop Gwen’s handbag on the floor.

Desperate to find the Goblin and Gwen, Spider-Man heads out into the city, trusting his spider sense to lead him in the right direction. He is finally drawn to the top of the George Washington Bridge, where he finds his prey. As Spidey approaches, the Goblin calls out his conditions – either Spider-Man dies, or Gwen Stacy does.

Not satisfied with this offer, Spider-Man attacks and, after a fairly brief fight, delivers a massive blow to the Goblin’s ugly mug. As Spider-Man races towards an unconscious Gwen, he doesn’t realize that the Goblin has recovered quicker than anticipated. Just as Spidey reaches her, the Goblin swoops by on his glider and sends Gwen toppling towards the icy water hundreds of feet below. Thinking quick, Spidey shoots out a web to catch Gwen and he does!

Giddy with relief, Spider-Man pulls Gwen back up… only to find that she is dead! There is some controversy over the cause of Gwen’s death. The Goblin tells Spider-Man that the shock of the fall killed Gwen, that nobody could live through a fright like that, and Spider-Man accepts this explanation. Some people believe that Gwen was dead before the Goblin even sent her over the edge, that she was dead before Peter arrived.

I believe most people – myself included – think that the cause of Gwen’s death was Spider-Man’s own web. There is an unmistakeable “snap!” as the web stops her descent, indicating that the sudden stop caused a massive whiplash and broke her neck. Unknowingly and quite unintentionally, Peter has killed his own true love. Of course, that’s only in the most direct sense. Has Pete done nothing, Gwen surely would have died anyway. The Goblin had condemned her and there was really nothing Peter could have done, but the details really do make it a much sadder situation.

The panels when Peter realizes that Gwen is dead are incredibly moving and convey very realistic emotion. It’s impressive that Conway and Gil Kane manage to make Spider-Man so expressive behind his mask. In a way, it reminds me of Hugo Weaving’s performance in V for Vendetta – there is a surprising depth of emotion coming through, even though all the features and details of the face are hidden.

The issue ends with Spider-Man, clinging to Gwen’s body, shaking his fist in the air and vowing that the Goblin will die for what he’s done.

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I usually hate Gerry Conway’s writing. The drastic shift in quality from his usual output to this issue is startling. Conway manages to tell a very human, very touching story here. I don’t know if maybe he’d been putting in so much time and effort on this issue that his other work suffered, or if he really just finally hit his stride here. All I know is that this issue was great and lived up to my very high expectations.

Besides Conway’s writing, the art by Gil Kane (along with Romita, Mortellaro and Hunt) and even the lettering by Artie Simek were fantastic. Other than the annoying bit about Pete’s virus, this issue was damn near perfect.

Having reached this point in the project is weird. Gwen Stacy’s death has always been a milestone in front of me, and now that I’ve passed it I’m not sure what I have to look forward to. Part of me is eager for the Secret Wars, for Venom and Carnage, for the Clone saga. But none of these are as iconic and important to Spider-Man’s history – and the history of comic books – as Gwen Stacy’s death. This issue was a very important marker in the project, and I’m very glad it was as good as I had hoped.

Rating:

The Doomsday Gambit!

Woo! Conway didn’t write this one, though he does have a plot credit.

The Inhumans’ pad is sweet.

Cool time travel thing – Spidey gets returned to the future a few minutes before he left. Unfortunately, he doesn’t meet himself or anything.

Rating:

Thundra at Dawn!

What, is Gerry Conway taking over Marvel? Jeez man.

It’s New Year’s Eve, almost 1973. Reed Richards, Johnny Storm and Medusa, the Thing and Alicia are at Times Square being miserable. Apparently, Susan Storm has left Reed and taken Franklin with her. Crystal and Johnny are no longer together, either. So yeah, sad time.

Spidey appears when he hears about the fight between Thing and Thundra and bets on Thundra.

Rating:

The Fight and the Fury

The comic says Montreal is the largest city in Canada. Was that true in 1973? I’m assuming they mean by population, and I find it hard to believe. I’m pretty certain Toronto would have been bigger then, just as it is now.

Thankfully, the whole Hulk storyline seems to get wrapped up extremely quickly when the Hulk just decides to leave. Lame, but definitely a relief.

Before figuring out the Aunt May situation, Peter calls Gwen to see how Harry’s doing and finds out that Harry’s back into the drugs! :O Pete doesn’t have much time to focus on this, though, as he realizes that he’s being tailed. After a quick costume change, Spidey discovers that the guy has been hired by none other than Dr. Octopus. Spider-Man doesn’t have the opportunity to learn more though, as just then the stupid army shows up to bug him about the Hulk’s disappearing act.

After getting away from that mess, Pete heads off to meet the mysterious Mssr. Rimbaud, the man who claims to have extremely important information for Aunt May. On the way to the meeting, Peter’s car is once again followed. Everything’s getting interesting, which means it’s time for Hulk to show up to interject some lameness. The Hulk stops Pete’s taxi and forces another long, boring fight.

Once that’s finally out of the way, Pete finally meets Rimbaud and is about to get the important information, when Rimbaud gets shot! Come ON! Such a tease. Hopefully this will get resolved soon, but for now we’re left with the knowledge that the Green Goblin will appear in the next issue. And you know what that means!

Rating:

The Gentleman’s Name is…Hulk!

Spidey’s last adventure (though not last issue) before the whole Gwen Stacy thing goes down. Shit. The suspense is killing me.

Pete reads a telegram for Aunt May that came from a mysterious man in Quebec. Once he gets there, he has to fight the Hulk in an extremely long, boring sequence. The issue ends with both of them falling over a dam into some icy cold water.

Note: Harry and Norman Osborn act super weird at the beginning of this issue. Foreshadowing!

This issue was a stinker, but hopefully the story will pick up with the next issue.

Rating:

Time Bomb!

Zarrko sends back three “time bombs” to 1973. Once they land, these bombs start radiating some kind of wave that turns time back in the surrounding areas. Spidey heads back to stop them and, once there, enlists the help of Johnny Storm. Once they’ve taken care of all the bombs, Storm tells Spider-Man that the Inhumans might be able to help stop Zarrko and Kang.

This episode was weaker than the last.

Rating:

The Tomorrow War!

Spider-Man and Iron Man are brought to the 23rd century by Zarrko, the tomorrow man, ostensibly to rescue the Avengers and stop an invader from the future – Kang the Conqueror. On the surface this is true, but once Spidey and Iron Man breach this invader’s fortress, Zarrko allows Kang to defeat them and tries to take control of the situation. His plan? To attack 1973!

Pretty good so far! The story continues in the next issue.

In addition to being funny, this panel is the first hint at Harry’s troubles-to-come.

Rating:

The Man-Killer Moves at Midnight!

Terrible narration as usual, but I sorta liked the characters and the story. It’s a female empowerment story that comes off as extremely dated. The art, especially, is interesting. The Man-Killer is violently pro-woman and anti-man, and she’s drawn in such a manner to remove a lot of her feminine qualities. She is strong, but her character design removes a lot of her femininity – she has relatively short hair, her suit has built-in abdominal muscles that blend in with and conceal her breasts, and she wears large shoulder pads that give her a wider, more masculine frame. She also attacks using a tank with a very phallic battering ram, and en equally phallic laser gun thing.

On the flip-side, the equally pro-woman but less anti-man Cat is a prototypical comic book heroine: a curvy body in a skin-tight suit, long hair, and large luscious lips. She is no less powerful than the Man-Killer – in fact, she’s arguably more powerful – but she retains her femininity.

Sure they’re both caricatures and a little hackneyed, but that’s alright; it was interesting and I dug it. Not in that I thought any of the points were well-made, or that I thought it was thought-provoking, but more as a neat view of the ridiculous way I’m sure lots of people thought about feminism and women’s liberation at the time (and maybe still do?).

Conway still gets on my nerves. He has some rather weak points: the Cat and Spider-Man agreeing that, without a demonstration, a super-heroine might easily be dismissed based on gender; the premise that the Man-Killer’s attacks might turn the world against women and feminism as a whole; the fact that a feminist heroine in a feminist story needs to seek help from Spider-Man to beat the bad guy girl; the Man-Killer’s plan to punish men by taking out a power plant; the nonsensical and unresolved theft of radioactive material; the fact that, after making her sad, Spidey and the Cat don’t actually do anything to punish/arrest the Man-Killer. Whew that’s a lot.

So…well-made points about an important social issue? No. Plot holes? Yes. But overall, it’s still a step-up from Conway’s normal output.

Rating:

Suddenly…The Smasher!

The Deadly Designs of the Disruptor!
Script: Stan Lee, Gerry Conway
Art: John Romita, Jim Mooney, T. Mortellaro
Lettering: Sam Rosen, Artie Simek
Coloring: Stan G.
Originally published: February 1973

Countdown to Chaos!
Script: Stan Lee, Gerry Conway
Art: John Romita, Jim Mooney, Tony Mortellaro
Lettering: Sam Rosen, Duffy
Coloring: Stan G.
Originally published: March 1973

Ok, these three issues are weird, because they’re basically a reprinting of the story “Lo, This Monster” from Spectacular Spider-Man Magazing #1, only updated to fit into the current story line. I’m reading them, but basically ignoring anything that deals with the recycled plot (which I will consider non-canon and non-existent). Instead, I’ll be focusing on all the subplots that get resolved and forwarded over the course of this retread.

So here’s what happens:

• Spider-Man gets his real mask back from the Bugle
• Gwen feels guilty about the Aunt May situation
• Peter confronts Gwen about Flash, finds out he’s an idiot
• Peter still has an ulcer
• Aunt May likes working for Dr. Octopus, and his “business associates” are being nice to her while Ock is in jail

Rating:

Gog Cometh!

Gog is back! He’s not dead!

So some fucking awesome-looking dude named Gemini is working with Ka-Zar’s brother, Lord Plunder. They have a super-soldier serum stolen from S.H.I.E.L.D. that will be used to create a super army for A.I.M., which Gemini plans to control. In addition, Lord Plunder controls Gog.

Apparently, Lord Plunder was in the jungle while Spidey and Jameson and Gwen were there visiting. Plunder came to the rescue of Gog, after Spider-Man had apparently drowned him in quicksand, and earned Gog’s obedience. It’s during this flashback explanation that Spider-Man briefly appears.

This is an extremely convoluted and confusing story. It wasn’t unenjoyable, but it was really all over the place. I didn’t really know some of the backstory going into this, but I don’t think that was the problem. In reality, this issue was just kind of a jumble of a bunch of crazy crap that happens, without very much direction.

Dan Adkins art was really great here.

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A Hitch in Time!

Andru’s art is pretty sweet, but Conway’s writing makes me want to barf. I can’t even recap this issue, I don’t have the energy. Spidey and Thor fight some guy named Kryllk. There’s your recap.

What the fuck is with Conway calling everyone “bright eyes”?! Jesus that’s annoying.

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…As Those Who Will Not See!

Continuing where the last issue left off, Spidey is hanging out in the Baxter building with an unconscious Puppet Master. The Vision has left. In walks the Thing (and his girlfriend, Alicia), and he’s pissed to find intruders. Once the Thing sees the Puppet Master, he focuses his anger in that direction.

Then…a bombshell: the Puppet Master is Alicia’s step-dad! WTF? The scene continues in soap opera antics when the Thing drags the Puppet Master off to another room to beat some startling information out of him: Alicia’s blindness might be cured. Apparently back in the day the Puppet Master was a scientist working with Alicia’s dad. In a jealous rage, PM killed Alicia’s dad and caused an explosion that blinded Alicia. Later, he married the mom.

Everybody piles into the Fantasticar to go to the Puppet Master’s old lab and try to find a cure for Alicia. Once they arrive, a booby trap temporarily takes out Spidey and the Thing. He runs off into the lab to hang out with his buddy, the Mad Thinker; apparently this is their secret lair. When Thing and Spidey come after them, the Mad Thinker uses a bunch more traps to try to stop them. The traps don’t work, the good guys save the day. At the end it kind of seems like the Puppet Master kills himself (and the Mad Thinker with him), but I’m guessing this isn’t actually the case.

Another really bad issue courtesy of Gerry Conway.

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