Savage Wolverine 17, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 12, What If? Age of Ultron 4

Savage Wolverine 17
Isanove (w+a) and Petit (l)

Wolverine has managed to get Sophia and Matti out of town to go to their aunt's home in Colorado, hoping to get away from the action they've been up against. However, their assailants still have Peter, who hadn't quite died in the shootout and who tells them of his aunt's house before they officially kill him. As Wolverine gets a coffee in town, ready to leave, he hears that the two have been there and he races back to the house to find their uncle Burt already dead, their aunt Adele tied up to a mounted hunting trophy, Matti beat up on the floor, and Sophia getting stabbed in an eye. Wolverine dives into the fight and, with the help of the wounded Sophia and Adele ripping the trophy off the wall, he overcomes the villains. Eighty years later, he meets with Sophia again, now an old woman in a retirement home with family of her own and they talk and reminisce peacefully.

Story
The exciting gangster story continues and only gets darker and darker. Marion and Frenchy are driven by their need to finish this job, unable to live with the idea that they've been bested in even the slightest of ways, and will kill anyone in their way to prove they're the best. Wolverine plays his role, preferring only to get the kids to safety and not to attack the problem head-on, which he admits to Sophia isn't the way he's used to working. Framing it that way makes the issue and the story a little more interesting in retrospect as it does really showcase a younger Logan, pre-X-Men and really pre-Wolverine (for all I've been calling him Wolverine), needing to think about the responsibility he has on him during all of this. The downside of this arc is that it does feel like the story dragged a little bit, especially considering this was just a four-issue arc. Now that we've come to the end, it feels like this has been all the series has focused on, like we've never seen another SAVAGE WOLVERINE issue outside of this arc. Still, it's a nice look at another time in Logan's life. 4/5

Character
Isanove led off SAVAGE WOLVERINE 15 with a deeper look into Marion and the Frenchman in the hopes that we'd understand who Logan is dealing with better but, now that the arc is done, it seems like it was a strange move. We did get more understanding of what Logan was dealing with but there's not really a sense of sympathy to them and, truth told, I still largely forget about them until like, midway through an issue. That's probably on me but it still struck me as odd; a pair of villains driving an arc who I can't remember details about except that they liked Houdini? Kinda weird. Logan is ever Logan here and Sophia gets built up a little bit in this final issue as she convinces Logan that she understands him, that no one could have saved Vicky and that Peter died because he didn't listen to Logan. Good work with our main protagonists, a little less so with the antagonists. 3/5

Writing
It's hard to judge the writing of this issue. I don't think it's bad, per se, but I think Isanove's art drives the tone more than the writing. The writing is what it is and it conveys the plot well enough but it's the art and particularly the colors that give this issue some weight. Still, the writing does what it needs to and that's more than plenty of other books can say. 4/5

Art
As I hinted at, the art does a phenomenal job here in storytelling. There are some times where faces look a little bit off or the blurring sort of technique doesn't quite work on people but by and large the art tells the story as effectively as any writing. There is a sense that you could flip through this one and not read any of the words and still have a solid grasp on what's happening. The colors are wonderful and create a sense of the area these characters travel through and live in. It's a strange book because it's not my favorite art by any stretch but it's seemingly perfect for this story, helped, undoubtedly, by the fact it's all Isanove. 5/5

Miscellaneous
Not a bad little arc. One likely that will impress readers as they read it but maybe not stand out in their memory after the fact (okay, that's definitely a little too much personal opinion coming out).

Total score: 4/5


Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 12
Shinick (w) and Frenz and Checchetto (p) and Buscema and Chechetto (i) and Rosenberg (c) and Caramagna (l)

In the wake of Goblin's attack on Doc Ock's one-time love Mary Alice, Doc Ock pounds on the Goblin and vows revenge, prompting them into something of an arms war in their separate battles against Spider-Man. While Goblin continues to try to shatter Spider-Man's mind, Doc Ock continues to try to use science to shatter his body. Finally, Doc rather wins as he replaces Spidey's mind with his own and watches him die in his own frail body. In addition, he becomes the superior hero and fixes up the city through science. However, when Goblin takes Anna Maria, Doc Ock realizes he's not strong enough to face Goblin again and turns over the controls to the growing Peter Parker, allowing another defeat over Goblin at the cost of himself.

Story
I had some problems with this story last time as it feels like it's trying too hard to link Goblin and Doc Ock in a really farfetched sort of way. Those problems persist here as they're the driving force of this book too. Still, the issue races through years of backstory to see where we are today and to wrap things up rather hurriedly as Peter Parker tags back in. Maybe the problem is it's hard to be invested in these characters or in this story with strange and previously entirely unreferenced connection to today. It leaves the story feeling boring and a bit of a slog to get through, particularly considering how wordy it is. 2/5

Character
Though the Mary Alice Anders stuff was there already, this retcon to have Goblin essentially kill her feels really forced, like it's just a way to raise stakes that already seemed high enough in the main story. The idea behind the retcon, though, is kind of interesting, the idea that we've now finished reading Otto's story over in SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN but that there was a little more to his character and to his history with Goblin than ever met the eye. I don't think it particularly works here but I think that it's an interesting concept in the way it was executed. Still, not much else to be gained from character that we haven't seen done better over in SUPERIOR. 3/5

Writing
Doctor Octopus is rather verbose as a character but the narrative here over-explains like crazy. On top of an extended segment where he's pounding on Goblin and each thought is bookended by Ock thinking "and strike" as he strikes Goblin, we get an entire summation of their relationship to Spider-Man and to each other as the years have gone on, all in narrative. It makes for a slow read of ideas that shouldn't really be new to readers and it certainly doesn't help make the story more interesting. 2/5

Art
Ron Frenz and Sal Buscema team up for the bulk of the art on this book, just about anything that took place in the past and they give the book a more simple feel, as does Rachelle Rosenberg, whose colors are very strong but have fewer gradients in the flashback stuff. Marco Checchetto picks up the reins late in the book as he draws current day Spider-Man and Peter Parker when they re-emerge and the art style shifts to reflect the change. Both art styles are great and work well in the time they're addressing and the shift between the two distinct styles works to let the audience know what's happening. Solid art here. 5/5

Miscellaneous
Not a whole ton more to add, I think I pretty much said what I wanted to say.

Total score: 3/5


What If? Age of Ultron 4
Keatinge (w) and Kowalski and Edwards (p) and Kowalski and Magyar (i) and Major (c) and Sabino (l)

It's Captain America's turn in the spotlight (or specifically out of it, I suppose) as the Age of Ultron shockwave kills a Cap in another universe and leads the world to lose faith in their heroes. When Cap suddenly died, the other heroes tried to cover it up to keep a world already upset from finding out but when they found out they turned even more on their heroes. The world fell into disarray and distrust. Iron Man's new plan is to find someone who could embody the spirit of this new America and lead the world into a new day. He picks Frank Castle and they pump him up with a new sort of super soldier serum developed by Reed Richards and put him in a costume and set him to work. Things work out far better than anyone could have guessed and it leads to an even better world than the 616, one where invasions are stopped more quickly, Civil War never happens, etc., all leading to a new initiative of having a Cap in every state and eventually a Cap in countries all over the globe.

Story
Okay, these WHAT IFs have been a little shaky in some of their logic (as is often the case with WHAT IFs) but this one is boggling start to finish. The idea that the world would lose some hope with the death of Captain America isn't too farfetched (though it's hard to say exactly when he died from the shockwave and the art makes it look a little like it's right as he came out of the ice so that's kinda weird that it would even have an effect) but the idea that heroes would try to cover it up is strange and that the world would turn on heroes for it is even weirder. Ultimately, though, the idea that Punisher becomes Captain America, an even better Captain America, is the least believable bit. Keatinge has enjoyed experimenting with these sort of scenarios through the run of this improbable series and has enjoyed turning things on their head a bit to see if they worked but this one seems like the premise is flawed. 2/5

Character
Castle is the character we see most here and he seems to be the same general Castle from the 616, making the shift from Punisher to Captain America exactly as weird as it seems. Still, there's not much character to look at here until the end, when a young girl has discovered the retired Castle and tries to get him to stop being surly and teach her to throw a trashcan lid, eventually prompting her to become another Captain America in the future. Just weird, this issue. 2/5

Writing
The story is the weirdest element and the writing then stays out of its way in a book that has almost no conflict, just a series of events that seem to be going everyone's way. Still, the writing starts to get a little grating as two children start talking about whether or not Old Man Castle really was the Captain America who kicked this all off. It suffers from that sort of "this is how kids talk!" style writing that makes it almost intolerable. Okay, so this is maybe a little bit of a nitpick as it only happens for like, a page, but it's the most notable writing in the book that isn't just explaining what's happening. 3/5

Art
The art, split up between Piotr Kowalski and Neil Edwards, does its work. Kowalski's stuff is pretty great when looking at setting or even at figures but looks a little cartoonish in faces, which comes at odds with the rest of his drawing. Edwards' stuff is a little more uniform but doesn't give the sort of sweeping looks at setting or the really stand-out figures that Kowalski did. Still, both do what they set out to do and certainly don't hurt the book. 4/5

Miscellaneous
How is this book still going?

Total score: 3/5

Superior Spider-Man 30, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 11

Superior Spider-Man 30
Slott and Gage (w) and Camuncoli, Dell, and Pallot (a) and Fabela (c)

Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2099 are locked in combat with the new wave of Spider-Slayers when Goblin reveals to Spidey that he has Anna Maria and that he'll have to leave 2099 to fight a battle he can't possibly win by himself if he wants to save-oh, he left? Okay, cool, he's going after Anna Maria, leaving 2099 by himself. Spidey doesn't know where to go but he's intercepted by Menace as she flies by, taunting about their new captive. He follows her underground while, inside of Doc Ock's mind, Peter Parker continues to see Doc's memories. He gets to the point of Ock's memories where he manages to swap consciousnesses with Peter and, just as Peter's whole life flashed before his eyes then, it flashes before the ethereal Peter's eyes now. Suddenly, instead of losing himself to Ock's personality, he's regained all of his memories, all of the Spider-Man times and the Peter Parker times and all of his entire history. Fully charged by this, Peter jumps into Otto's mind again just in time to find that he's wavering about saving Amy Chen, the girl Otto saved alongside Cardiac and another captive the Goblins have taken, worrying that he'll injure himself and there will be no one left to save Anna Maria. Peter leaps into action, taking over the body and forcing Otto to swing in and save the girl. Peter, his presence again known to Otto, yells at his enemy and tells him that now isn't the time for plotting and planning, it's the time to act. Otto admits his weakness and the two leave, discussing what's happening. Otto reveals that he has overcompensated and has deemed himself superior only because he didn't really believes himself to be, whereas Peter always played down his intelligence and abilities because he was never so arrogant. Otto concedes that Peter truly is the superior one and rushes back to Parker Industries. He goes into his lab and enters the mindscape, deleting all traces of Otto's villainous history and even of his recent history, making sure to wipe the slate clean and leaving only the consciousness of Peter behind. Back in control at last, Peter dons his original costume and prepares to once more face off against Green Goblin.

This is the major turning point for the series, no question. Finally the moment we've all waited over a year for has come and we're rewarded by Peter taking control in his ever impressive way. The planner is replaced by the man of action in a time where action is most necessary and Otto's seemingly final act in the body he took such measures to steal is to learn a real lesson about heroism FINALLY. It's a huge moment and, while this is clearly the A-story, it's not the only thing happening. The Avengers continue to fight their fights (all the while reminding us their current feelings on Spider-Man and so on), Spider-Man 2099 continues his fight against the Slayers and Alchemax (all the while reminding us he's from the future), and the city is turning on J. Jonah Jameson thanks, in part, to Alchemax revealing that he commissioned and signed off on the Slayers despite Liz Allan's warnings that he shouldn't. On top of that, Liz is hiding something to do with this whole goblin mess and that will likely come to a head as we reach the conclusion of this storyline. Lots still to come here. Worth picking this book up for the reappearance of the triumphant Peter Parker and the special reprint of BLACK WIDOW 1 that comes tied to the book.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 11
Shinick (w) and Checchetto, Frenz, and Buscema (a) and Rosenberg (c)

In the middle of Goblin Nation, we take a quick look at a former relationship between Otto and Norman Osborn as Otto reminisces on a time when the two teamed up after (one of) the death(s) of Norman Osborn. They managed to put aside their differences and got along amicably enough as they built up plans to destroy Spider-Man, building up a friendship in the process. Of course, Norman's a bit crazy for Otto's liking and the craziness rears its head on more than one occasion, finally coming to a head when, after a heartfelt talk about their friendships in the past, Norman tracks down and hospitalizes a woman to whom Otto was once engaged, hoping that the pain in Otto's soul makes him realize what Norman is trying to accomplish with Spider-Man.

I'm not a big fan of this issue simply because I don't really buy it. Sure I can see a tentative team-up between Goblin and Doc Ock happening but I don't believe that either truly would form any sort of bond. Also, there's a sense between both this and SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN right now that they want Goblin built into the Joker of this universe (there were even chases in SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN this week that reminded me a little of the famous Batman story THE KILLING JOKE) and I have some amount of trouble believing this if only because we've seen enough of Osborn's backstory that it's hard to draw those comparisons. We've seen him be human and simply cold without any sort of craziness to him and then, on occasion, we've seen that craziness come back up. This one feels very all or nothing and, in truth, is more all than nothing. I have some trouble buying the conceit of this book and, on top of it, I don't love the writing as a whole. Maybe I just don't care and there's more to be talking about in the middle of Goblin Nation.

Daredevil 36, Punisher 2, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 10

Daredevil 36
Waid (w) and Samnee (a) and J. Rodriguez (c)

Matt Murdock is up on the stand and he's man-without-fearing it as he reveals that he, in fact, is Daredevil. The whole courtroom goes crazy, journalists book it out to file reports, district attorneys let him keep talking (it pays that he saved the man's life not five issues ago...probably, I'd have to look that up and do I look like someone who looks stuff up?), and racist cult leaders exchange dirty looks with corrupt judges. Everything is working to Matt's plan and he continues to confirm that he's Daredevil, giving his origin story and, in the meantime, figuring out who really committed the crime his client is charged with. He realizes just in time that the judge and Ogilvy have called in a Serpent strike team. While the strike team is assembling, Matt tells the audience why he's lied about not being Daredevil, even going so far as to sue people who claimed he was. It's a nice speech that hinges around the idea that telling this lie saved lives and hurt no one so it was well worth it, but suing the newspaper was giving power to the lie and so wasn't. Right before the Serpents burst into the courtroom, Matt reveals that the judge is vying with Ogilvy for control of the Serpents and so framed Ogilvy's son for the crimes committed and tried to kill Daredevil as he investigated. Matt changes into DD and brings down the strike team, managing to protect the DA (the real target of the attack) and Kirsten and expose the Serpents in the justice system of New York. Of course, after everything dies down, he's disbarred for the ethics of his vigilanteism as it ties to his law practice. With both he and Foggy disbarred, Kirsten reminds him that there's only one way it might be possible to be admitted to a different state's bar: if he's practiced in that state before. Daredevil and Foggy Nelson are OFF TO SAN FRANCISCO!

It's a triumphant ending to a really triumphant book for Daredevil, whose rebirth here is every bit as meaningful as his rebirth in Frank Miller's BORN AGAIN. This is a Daredevil who cares very much about what he does and who he is but also isn't willing to go as dark as he's gone in the past, to let the darkness that's surrounded him corrupt him. It's a major status quo change both in terms of where it's landed him and the tone that the book has taken. As cool as the courtroom scene and his fight with the Serpents is, the heart of the issue is in the very first scene of the book where we see Matt discussing his decision to go public with Foggy in his hospital bed. Foggy is entirely supportive of it and gives a really meaningful and heartfelt speech where, though he is certainly afraid of losing the health care coverage he'll lose when they're disbarred (as they both know they will be), he admits that Daredevil's integrity and strength inspires everyone it touches and that he refuses to be the conduit whereby Daredevil loses some of that integrity. It's really touching and it's a wonderful scene for the two of them. Very excited to see where they go next when Waid and Samnee rejoin...next month to kick off with DAREDEVIL 1.

Punisher 2
Edmondson (w) and Gerads (a and c)

Five months ago, Punisher had chased a drug trail to Mexico from New York only to discover that the trail ended with a whole slew of deaths from some untraceable weapon. From there, he ended up in LA going after Dos Soles only to find that the possessed the very same weapon. In his attempts to discover what that weapon is, his sniper's scope shorts out and he attracts some attention from the Soles. They fire on a coyote who leaps out at them and it gives Frank the chance to shoot his would-be attackers. He calms the coyote before quickly adopting it because what other kind of pet is Frank Castle going to have? Later, he dumps the coyote on arms contact Tuggs while he goes to stake out the Soles some more. Unbeknownst to Castle, Tuggs is now being monitored by the new Howling Commandoes, who are desperate to take Punisher down. It's not all bad for Punisher, though, as he manages to save his policeman friend Sammy Stone from death to the Soles' weapon as he raids their warehouse. He's stopped from pursuing the Soles by a lightning bolt and, later, when he's recovered and gotten back into his RV, he's struck off the road by another lightning bolt, landing him face-to-face with the Soles' weapon: Electro.

There's a solid idea here for Punisher as Edmondson defines the street-level hero by showing punisher as someone who handles the criminals, villains, and cases that are too dangerous for the cops and too small for the superheroes. Kind of the perfect embodiment of this is that the big bad he's going to have to face this arc is Electro, a villain who is far too dangerous for regular police but really doesn't register on the Avengers' scale (except for when he breaks other, more dangerous criminals out of prison). He's also a compelling villain because he's a lot harder to just straight up shoot and who can manipulate electricity, which Punisher enjoys using to punish. Hard not to notice here that Edmondson shows another somewhat involuntary pet adoption (to go along with Natasha's not-cat Liho in BLACK WIDOW) and shows Punisher silence and calm a wild dog in the same way Natasha had last BLACK WIDOW issue. This just after a week where he put Punisher up alongside some crocodiles at the same time Natasha squared off against some as well (they may have been alligators, I don't know, I just know that they're equally terrifying). FORTUNATELY FOR EDMONDSON, he's crafting two really interesting books and two intriguing characters in as little as five books combined so we'll let him slide on this limited bag of tricks.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 10
Shinick (w) and Checchetto (a) and Rosenberg (c)

It's up to Spider-Man, Daredevil, and a somewhat blind Punisher to stop the corrupted spider-henchmen who are trying to bring down Spider-Man's Spider Island from the inside but that doesn't mean that Spider-Man is ready to believe it wasn't Daredevil or Punisher who brought this upon him. After such a huge betrayal from what seemed to be his men, he is willing to trust no one and still believes he requires the help of no one, making it difficult for Punisher or Daredevil to actually give him that help. As they're beginning to get overrun, Daredevil assures Spider-Man that the only way out of this is to self-destruct the entire floor, leading Spider-Man to believe even more that this could all be Daredevil's doing. However, he also understands the trouble they're in and floods the lair, washing the rest of the bad guys out to sea. Suddenly everything becomes more clear to him and he, to confirm his beliefs, checks one of the betrayers only to find a Goblin tattoo on his neck.

Still a pretty strong issue out of another compelling team-up (featuring two characters who have since gone west and BOY I really hope that Punisher and Daredevil run into each other in California and both are really aggravated that the other came) and one that gives a pretty good look into the fractured psyche of Doctor Octopus, who trusts no one and does not believe in friends or help. Of course, some of that is explained as he thinks back to a time where bullies "befriended" him just to make it easier to torment him at school. I'm not saying that we can't understand why he doesn't believe in friends or in trust, but his madness here does start to feel a little forced. Then again, this is a Spider-Man who has upset the superheroes of the world with his sudden personality shift so I guess it's not hard for Doc Ock to make the leap that these would-be pals would turn on him, especially since he doesn't really have any recollection of what their relationships with Peter may have been. Fun stuff and Marco Checchetto's art continues to really shine just as Rachelle Rosenberg's colors continue to impress.

Comics this week

I've got nothing particularly astonishing to say about the books coming out this week or about the process of picking them so let's just dive right in, shall we?

Captain America 17
It's time to find out what this whole Dr. Mindbubble business is all about. Things are as bad in Cap's life right now as they've ever been and he can't seem to get a moment's respite. Bank on Dr. Mindbubble to be someone who is tailored to remind Cap of all things horrible going on recently and who is prepared to toy with a fragile psyche. Let's hope Falcon has his mind together.

Daredevil 36
The "final" DAREDEVIL of Mark Waid and Chris Samnee's run aims to shift the status quo of Daredevil as the last panel of the last issue found Matt Murdock under oath revealing himself as Daredevil to break any sort of hold the Sons of the Serpent may have had on him. What will this revelation, making the identity everyone speculated official, do for Matt's life? Well I suppose we'll find out this time out or when the new DAREDEVIL series, written by Mark Waid and illustrated by Chris Samnee, kicks off next month.

New Warriors 1
We're still in the midst of a new release season and NEW WARRIORS is another one of those somewhat risky, possibly really fun new titles Marvel has in store. NEW WARRIORS will follow the exploits of a new team run by Justice and Speedball with ties to Nova, Scarlet Spider, and more as they try to acclimate themselves to superheroing. Some of them have been at it longer than others but those ones have more of a tragic past with it, so this is a bit of a learning experience for everyone. Chris Yost, writer of SCARLET SPIDER and AVENGING SPIDER-MAN among many others, is at the helm for this one so expect an appropriately fun book with a real grasp on its characters.

Punisher 2
The first issue of Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerards' PUNISHER was certainly interesting enough to justify an interest in the second issue. Punisher has found himself out west in a gang-filled land that needs him and that has already granted him a surprisingly stable surrounding cast. I'm interested to see how this one progresses.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 10
We'll return to the team-up of Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Punisher as they realize they're surrounded by Spider-(hench)Man traitors actually working for Goblin. On top of that, Spider-Man himself finds him in the company of two justice-driven heroes (hero is in quotes for Punisher) with real trust issues who believe something is up with Peter Parker. Kevin Shinick has done a good job in the little bits he's done here and there for Marvel of recent and Marco Checchetto's art is always superb so there should be plenty to like about this issue.

This week's picks

Pretty good week for comics. I'd say there were a solid handful up near the top, worthy of consideration for the top three (marred by the fact that two pretty quickly took two of the top spots), plenty of books that drifted between "fine" and "good" and really none that slumped into "unreadable" or even "irredeemable." This blog should be called the Irredeemable Unreadable. Anyway. Picks!

Black Widow 2

After a very impressive debut just two short weeks ago, BLACK WIDOW lands on the top picks again with another thought-provoking, character-driven and absolutely gorgeous book. This one is particularly neat because you open the comic and the very first page is a beautiful full-page panel of Natasha flipping away from a car crash ("flipping" perhaps implies a little too much intent). There's a lot to like here and it's not hard to find it all. The action scenes are very impressive and well choreographed, the quieter moments hold their spots perfectly, Natasha's dialogue is exactly what you'd want it to be, the art continues to be amazing (guys, I can't stress how pretty this book is), we get some plot both with the introduction of the Iron Scorpion and with Isaiah's sudden ability to take care of problems. It's just a very interesting, very well made book. I'm really looking forward to this one and I think everyone should probably get in on the ground floor of it now.

Hawkeye 16

Proving that sequential numbering isn't for everyone, HAWKEYE 16 leapt ahead of HAWKEYE 15 in release date and shows, for anyone who may have been asking, that Kate Bishop can absolutely kill in two issues back-to-back about her. I don't know who possibly could have been asking that but, as much as I like the idea of the alternating story and I rather miss seeing what's happening with Clint, Fraction has made Kate such a compelling and entertaining character, pulling her from her more rigidly set YOUNG AVENGERS past and giving her solo adventures the likes of which have never been seen and she's knocking it out of the park every time. Add to that Annie Wu's incredible art and her uncanny ability for expression and emotion and this is a book with both immediate payoff and re-readability through the roof. Look, I love this title anyway and I don't know what else I can say to convince you but this book is amazing.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 9

I like the Spider-Man team-up books in general, with AVENGING SPIDER-MAN earning a special place in my heart and now SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TEAM-UP pulling in good issue after good issue, but this one feels different in a way because of just how tied to the current plot of SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN it appears to be. Up to now, the team-up books have been good and extremely entertaining for the most part but have been pretty self-contained. Instead, this one has its roots very much in the GOBLIN NATION arc from SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN and has repercussions that must be felt throughout both books. Also, the writing is impressive, the art is fantastic, and the characterization is spot on. One of the things that always impresses me about this book and AVENGING SPIDER-MAN before it is the adaptability of the writer to pull in a score of other characters, write them for only an issue or two, and somehow nail down the personality. Impressive feat and Kevin Shinick does it every bit as well as people like Christos Gage and Christopher Yost. Great stuff here, enough even to beat out other top picks contenders X-MEN, CAPTAIN AMERICA, and IRON MAN.

FF 16, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 9

FF 16
Fraction and Lee Allred (s) and Lee Allred (w) and M. Allred (a) and L. Allred (c)
Backup story: Kesel and Lee Allred (s) and Lee Allred (w) and Quinones and M. Allred (a) and L. Allred (c)

It's Scott Lang vs. Doom in the battle that the entirety of this run of FF has been building towards. The team has depowered Doom and kept him from the power he so desperately craves after getting his hands on it for such a short time last issue and wielding it like the god he wants to be. So it's man-to-man for Scott and Doom and Scott starts pounding on the evil dictator and giving him a piece of his mind. There's a lot to do with Doom being a sociopath and Lang being an ex-con Cassie's death and so forth. Just as Lang's preparing for his final Doom beat-down, the Living Tribunal shows up to punish Doom for striking the Watcher. He decrees that Doom's face gain a new scar for every horrible crime he enacts going forward. Then he leaves and Lang beats him up some more. The story ends as Ravonna brings Franklin and Val to Scott and gives Doom a vision that he killed Val in the same way he killed Cassie and I guess all is as it should be maybe? The issue ends with the same backup story as in FANTASTIC FOUR 16.

The fatal flaw of this issue is that it just seems to want to do a little too much. Between the really long and somehow rather preachy speech from Scott Lang as he pounds on Doom and the sudden appearance of the Living Tribunal and a somewhat ham-fisted explanation of how powerful Scott Lang is and how he harnessed the true power of Pym Particles and all sorts of other things, the issue really starts to drag on to the point where I was reading it and kind of saying "okay, we get it." It leaves you almost feeling bad for Doom who is very CLEARLY the villain here but who doesn't really come off that way after Scott's long speech. I think the problem has also had to do with focus as the series wound its way down. Bit of a strange send-off, really, and one that, like FANTASTIC FOUR 16, felt a little like maybe it snuck up on the creators a bit. Ah well.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 9
Shinick (w) and Checchetto (a) and Rosenberg (c)

Spider-Man can't help but feel like things are a little tense in the city despite his anti-crime campaign. Everything is eerily quiet until bullets start flying at him. He dodges them and decks his stomach and chest area in his webbing before flying down at his assailant. Spidey is surprised to find that it's Punisher shooting at him (and unaware that his new webbing is bulletproof) and quickly learns that Punisher was trying to get his attention for Daredevil, who is also hanging around. The two are suspicious of the way Spider-Man has been acting lately and they both suspect that he may have had a hand in the theft of a goblin glider from one of Punisher's armories. Spider-Man consents to bring them to Spider-Island to show them his own armory and to prove that he didn't take Punisher's stuff. They talk about how secure Spidey has made the place and how protected he's made the arms he's found but, of course, when he opens the weapons room everything is gone, save one pumpkin bomb flying at them. Punisher shoots it out of the air and he and Daredevil manage to see (or "see," in Daredevil's case) someone trying to escape, disguised as one of Spidey's henchmen. Daredevil sniffs the guy out and the guy reveals that he's covered himself in pumpkin bombs, ready to take the whole place down if need be. He asks for directions from the person he's working for but said person (who we know to be the Green Goblin) does not respond, realizing that Daredevil would hear him and preferring not to be in the open yet. Punisher shoots the trigger out of his hand but it doesn't stop the henchman from dropping a smoke grenade followed by a flashbomb, effectively blinding Punisher (wearing night vision goggles). Punisher throws a knife at the man, upsetting Spider-Man who hoped to get answers about other people that the man referenced. Soon, though, his answers come as seemingly his entire henchman army turns on the three superheroes.

Geez, plenty going on for a typically pretty self-contained book. AVENGING SPIDER-MAN also had a team-up between these three and it was a bit more tense in terms of the relationship between the three established characters, even though that one featured Peter Parker as Spider-Man. This one ties very nicely into the events of SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN and builds well off both the imminent GOBLIN NATION arc and the pretty obvious building antipathy between Spider-Man and his henchmen. It also kicks off with the typical accusation that maybe something isn't quite right with Spider-Man, an accusation well-leveled here (geez Daredevil, get in on the action) and one that slots nicely into a time when everyone is at their most suspicious of him. In fact, the only real flaw I see with this book is that, as the back cover indicates, it takes place between SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN 26 and 27, meaning that it comes out before the books its supposed to take place between. It's not bad enough that it really damages the issue in any significant way, just kind of gives you the sneaking suspicion that maybe there's even more to this story that we haven't seen yet. Otherwise, though, really good issue, fun and quick-paced. Lot of action and a solid team-up between these three oft-teamed heroes. Also really good Marco Checchetto art. I think I keep accidentally confusing his name with maybe Carmine Di Giandomenico (I know, don't ask me how) and I like Checchetto's art a good deal more so I'm excited whenever I get a book from the one I like more.

This week's picks

FOR THE HOLIDAYS, I GOT YOU GUYS AN EXTRA LONG POST WHERE I PICK THREE BOOKS BUT NOT-SO-SECRETLY ACTUALLY PICK SIX.

This was one of those weeks where it was exceedingly difficult to pick the top three for any number of reasons. Unlike most weeks where that's true, I had to actually break down my full list of comics into ones that could make the top three or at least could snag an honorable mention on here. That brought me down to six titles that were all worthy of some amount of higher praise.

The first one I eliminated from those six was INDESTRUCTIBLE HULK 17, which was a solid and fun book that really managed to tell a good story that ties in to current MU events while also giving us a great breakdown of characters.

The second one down, surprisingly, was UNCANNY AVENGERS 15. I honestly thought going into this post that UNCANNY AVENGERS was a lock as a top pick. It's a huge story that manages to actually ramp up tension after an issue where three major Marvel characters died but it still spends enough time with individual characters to show us their personal stakes, like Wolverine's belief that his violence had rubbed off on Rogue too much or like Cap's belief that his splitting up the Unity Squad led to the deaths of two of his friends and two heroes (he hasn't heard about Rogue yet) or like Thor realizing that the Earth might be executed in retribution for events kicked off by his enchanting Jarnbjorn way back when. Really, really good stuff in here but ultimately I pushed it aside to make room for things that may have been better in different ways.

Astute readers (and ones who are still reading this much-longer-than-average picks post - I felt behind on every single post this week except for this one so I'm relishing it and extending it, okay?) will notice that we've eliminated two contenders from the original six in an attempt to pare down to three, leaving ONE MORE on the chopping block. Unfortunately, this week's final cut went to the surprise "wow, that hung on for a while longer than I'd've predicted" book, SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TEAM-UP 8. Chris Yost has a way with looking at characters and getting right down to the most compelling parts of them. There has been something compelling about Doc Ock in Peter's body from the get-go, which is why the series is doing so well, but there's only so much you can do with "egomaniacal sociopathic genius learns value of responsibility and justice" before it starts to feel a bit stale. Yost took a different angle after the first full arc on SSMTU (don't think that acronym is going to catch on) and showed us an egomaniac whose pride has been bruised and who has to deal with the weight of a massive failure with this newfound sense of responsibility. On top of giving us a great look at that character, we get the character who perfectly represents an egomaniac who will almost undoubtedly never feel the weight of a massive failure like this one because he doesn't see himself as a failure in Namor. Really great issue but one that ultimately just barely falls short of my actual list which may seem inexplicable and judged by whimsy and caprice more than fact but SURPRISE, THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING FOR A YEAR NOW.

Daredevil 34
What Mark Waid has done best with DAREDEVIL is hard to say. This is a book led by a character who, since Frank Miller took the reins on him, has been known as an exceedingly dark character. There have been moments of light and he's had a certain playfulness to him but, since Miller, it's been underlined by a distinct rage and violence which had only escalated in the years preceding Waid's run with Brian Michael Bendis and Ed Brubaker before culminating in Andy Diggle's finale, SHADOWLAND, which saw Daredevil snap and live out his darkest moment. Mark Waid then jumped onboard (following Diggle's follow-up DAREDEVIL: REBORN) and turned the character back to a far more light-hearted, happy to put down any connections to Daredevil as Matt Murdock (although everyone knew), happy to interact with others character. He still has his darkness and Waid has still put him through his paces but this is a far different character than the one Matt had evolved into while somehow staying entirely the same. If this series hadn't been so extremely good, it would have been a disaster. Instead, here we are, 34 issues later and Waid is still putting out gold for Matt Murdock. This issue adds to the fun and light-heartedness of the series while still showing Matt at a time that's particularly dark for him as he sees his legal system, the one thing that hasn't truly hurt him in the past, in the hands of horrible racists and corruption. Also, Waid has built Kirsten McDuffie into what is already the best Daredevil female supporting character since Echo (who only appeared in two DAREDEVIL arcs and those were separated by a sea of issues). Great book, great fun. Really long post today, huh?

Scarlet Spider 25

Okay, so SCARLET SPIDER has definitely benefitted this week from the bump I tend to give good books as the series closes but, in truth, that bump needed to do less work than you think it did. If anything, it skipped it over UNCANNY AVENGERS and SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TEAM-UP. Like with SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TEAM-UP, it's hard not to point to Christopher Yost's mastery of character as the driving point in all of his books. Yost took a character in Kaine who was only ever a bad guy; even when he worked for the right side, he was still something of a jerk about it. Here's the thing of it: after 25 issues of what turned out to be a really good series, I'm not sure I can definitely say that Kaine isn't still just a jerk. That's not to say that the book has been vague about it or his character hasn't gone deep enough; the opposite, in fact. Yost didn't want the audience to come out of this book saying "Kaine is the most morally upstanding citizen, a true hero, in the Marvel Universe." Yost wanted people to come out of this book saying "gee, how about that Kaine guy?" And I think he did it. The fact that this book doesn't wrap cleanly, that Kaine ends up fleeing Houston without the girl, without the friends, without the esteem, and winds up ignoring a street mugging in his new Mexico home is both such a wonderful choice and such a punch in the gut. Back in the Stan Lee days of comics, the idea was to leave every book the way you came into it; at the end of the month (or, as arcs started to grow, the end of every story) the team or the individual would be right back where he started. That's kind of happened with Kaine but now we have a wealth of knowledge about who he's been and who he's capable of being. It's solid work and truly defining for the character and it's the best promotional work I can imagine for Yost's NEW WARRIORS next year.

Young Avengers 14

I think I'm actually incapable of leaving this book off my recommendation lists. Throughout its 14-issue run (concluding in two weeks, as I will not stop reminding you) YOUNG AVENGERS has done thing that no other superhero comic has ever done, and that's coming in an age where you can say that about a handful of books so it's safe to say the medium is stretching out a bit. The story, the self-awareness, the art, the layouts, everything about this book has offered something new to its readers and I think this is the sort of book that will reverberate in the years to come. This issue even goes so far as to do something that isn't entirely uncommon in ending a series with a number of guest artists on a giant-sized issue (the finale is two issues but I have a feeling it'll read just as well as one) but still does it in what feels like a revolutionary way. This is a series of vignettes about our characters as individuals more than it is a closing chapter for a team book. That's not to say that the next issue out, our true finale, won't bring the team together again to let us look on them as one, but this one has skirted that by separating them into the pieces they were when the book started; Billy and Teddy are together, America is alone, Kate is alone, Noh-Varr is alone, David is alone and slinking off, and the book is a team book that featured a team that was, overall, hugely successful. Again, I'd be very surprised if the series doesn't end on a more team-centric feel (I would not be surprised, then, if it ended around a diner's breakfast options) but this issue has seen to it that we get some sense of our team as individuals first and foremost. In addition to great character work, the art of this book is tremendous. I will forever champion Jamie McKelvie but I can't even say I'm upset that this book isn't entirely made up of his art, which is something I can't say about many books he's not even attached to. Emma Vicielli, Christian Ward, and Annie Wu (good God that woman draws a great Kate, what a steal to have her on HAWKEYE too) supply some of the best art I've seen this year in little five page pieces. Amazing stuff.



CHARACTER OF THE WEEK

I know, this post really should be over. The one time my post-game post actually takes longer than my everyday post and I'm LENGTHENING it, something I almost never do these days? Well I couldn't help it because how do you ignore the fact that Dr. Strange, a favorite character in his own right, appeared in FOUR SEPARATE BOOKS that he had almost NO connection to previously. We got to see Dr. Strange in LONGSHOT SAVES THE MARVEL UNIVERSE (which he did, in fact, have a connection to previously), DAREDEVIL (okay, again, he has some long-standing connections to Matt that make him something less than a series regular but something more than a strange appearance) (HA), DEADPOOL, and THUNDERBOLTS ANNUAL. Guys. Four Dr. Strange appearances despite no ongoing Dr. Strange book and no NEW AVENGERS, the only book he's regularly promised in. WHO'S COMPLAINING? I'm willing to speculate right here and now that we're in line for another attempt at a Dr. Strange ongoing in the near future. Between these four appearances and talk of an upcoming movie (nothing official yet but pretty much as official as unofficial can be) in the works for something like 2016 or something, time seems ripe to get someone on that. Hopefully it's Fraction or Gillen/McKelvie's next gig. Or, you know, someone else.

Superior Spider-Man 24, Scarlet Spider 25, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 8

Superior Spider-Man 24
Slott and Gage (w) and Ramos and Olazaba (a) and Delgado, Fabela, and Gandini (c)

The Venom symbiote has jumped on to Spider-Man and Flash tries to call it back, hoping he can coax it back to familiar territory before Spider-Man loses control. Doc Ock, though, assures everyone he can control it and attacks anyone who thinks otherwise, namely Cardiac. He points out that, if he couldn't control the symbiote, Cardiac would be dead instead of just seriously wounded. Sound logic. He decides to show the world his control of the symbiote by tracking down some crimes and brutally and efficiently stopping them. In the midst of doing this, Anna Maria calls him and he hurries to her, where she's upset that she's damaged his relationship with Aunt May. He vows to take care of it and storms to May and Jay's, where he immediately begins yelling at her for bombarding Anna Maria with questions. She relents but things get crazier as MJ, trying to obey Carlie's wishes on her voicemail, goes to warn May and Jay to stay away from Peter and also gets screamed at by Peter, who reveals the Venom symbiote and leaves. MJ contacts the Avengers as Carlier, deep underground with the Goblins, gets sprayed with the goblin serum.

There's almost too much happening here. There's not and it actually works pretty well as a coherent storyline and as a good example of Doc teaming with Venom but, for someone trying to summarize, there's almost too much happening here. Still, the majority of this issue is dedicated to showing Doc Ock with the Venom symbiote and the effects it's had on him. Though he swears he can control it and loves the additional power it grants him, it's clear that he's extremely unbalanced with the symbiote. Well, more so than usual. He's at everyone's throat and his rage is bubbling at the slightest provocation. Calling the Avengers in on him is certainly going to shake things up as they'll be tasked with taking down Spider-Man, already a worthy foe, powered up by the symbiote, a worthy foe in its own right. Interesting storyline and one that lets us see a slightly different side of Doc Ock, or perhaps an amplified side of him. I'd like to, before I wrap this review up, thank my incredibly aggressive autocorrect for not trying even once to correct the word "symbiote," even though its repeated use is clearly driving autocorrect nuts.

Scarlet Spider 25
Yost (w) and Baldeon (a) and Sotomayor (c)

The final issue of SCARLET SPIDER fluctuates between showing us the immediate aftermath of the explosion in Kaine's hotel and his new life in Mexico with Aracely. He was forced to flee Houston after saving the lives of everyone in the hotel room and below by webbing them all up and webbing up the falling debris on its way to Earth. When he hit the ground, he was attacked by Shathra, the Spider-Wasp that has had run-ins in the past with Peter but who was posing most recently as Annabelle to get close to Kaine. She's seemingly unstoppable and ready to kill anyone in between her and Kaine, namely Wally who tries to step up and protect him. Kaine refuses to let it happen and unleashes Prey, who dispatches Shathra quickly and extremely brutally. Everyone is horrified and Wally tells Kaine he has to leave, promising to take care of the police in Houston but that he cannot stay. So began Kaine and Aracely's journey into Mexico on the hunt for her parents. Kaine is back to where he started, albeit with the addition of Aracely and a world of now painful memories. He doesn't consider himself a hero and he doesn't believe he can get a happy ending. Fortunately, it's not entirely an ending for him as he'll pop up again in Chris Yost's NEW WARRIORS.

Fitting end to a really surprising series. Yost has really nailed down Kaine's character through the course of this book and has been sure to never stray too far from it. He had given Kaine friends and relationships and grudging amounts of friendship but he'd never allowed the darkness in Kaine to leave him or for him to feel fully comfortable in his new life. There was always the chance that Kaine would pick up and leave Houston at any given second but there was also always the chance that he'd stay forever, making his eventual forced exit all the more painful. Even still, in a somewhat depressing final note for the series, there are fun moments here and there, including a moment where Kaine, in Houston, yells that he's not a superhero before watching his Scarlet Spider costume, still impervious to the flames that are hanging around it, float down to him. There's a lot to really like about this series as a character study for Kaine and the book ends in exactly the sort of fashion it should. You like your superhero books to typically end on an up-note, telling us that the hero has done may worthwhile things and has learned from them and made a better world for everyone else, but this book would have felt a little wrong if it ended that way. The truth is Kaine ended up being pretty right. Maybe he's not a hero. Maybe he can't have a normal life. Maybe the evil clone of Spider-Man was never meant to do more. Good series, solid ending.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 8
Yost (w) and Sliney (a) and Fabela (c)

Fresh off the disappointment of losing control of his reformed Sinister Six and the fact that his arrogance nearly caused the death of millions, Spider-Man is in a bit of a more somber mood than we've found him since the death of Peter Parker. After examining himself and being thrust into self-doubt (wondering how Doc thought he could have done any better than Peter, who constantly beat him, among so many others), he's decided he's going to go to the Avengers and hand himself in, explain everything, and hope that they can reverse it still somehow (which would be the absolute cleanest way to get Peter back). On his way to Avengers Tower, he comes across Namor, hunted by invisible-to-the-naked-eye Hatut Zeraze in the war between Atlantis and Wakanda. Despite his negative feelings for Namor, Spider-Man jumps into the fight (able to see the Hatut Zaraze with his lenses) and gets the injured and protesting Namor out of harm's way. They bicker for a bit but eventually sit for a spell under the Brooklyn Bridge where Spider-Man reveals his doubts to Namor and Namor laughs at them, reminding Spider-Man that they are always more important and more powerful than the sheep they protect. The Hatut Zeraze show up there and Spider-Man again dispatches them but quickly learns that these aren't actually Hatut Zeraze, or at least not authorized by T'Challa or Shuri; these ones have been sent by some coward wishing to use the war as a way to attack Namor. These fighters are actually robots with self-destruct options inside, options that will destroy the bridge if they go off. Namor doesn't really care, saying that the perpetrators will face justice at some point, but Spider-Man wills himself to stop the bomb, reminding himself of the promise he made a dying Peter. Namor shares a moment with Spider-Man, telling him that he's shown true bravery and that his display here was superiority. Spider-Man punches him and tells him not to come back to his city, emboldened by his recent victory and even by Namor's words.

Okay, of the three books here, this shouldn't have been the longest summary. I do tend to slip into longer summaries when I'm excited about a book or when I get really interested in a book. This was just such a case as I found just about every beat of this issue to be delightful and a really well-thought out look into Ock's mind. Take Doctor Octopus, a crazy megalomaniac who believes himself to be the smartest person in any room. Now give him morals somewhat based on Peter Parker's unflinchingly good guy mentality. Now make that ego solely responsible for nearly destroying New York City. It wracks Ock with guilt and doubt and it's absolutely a perfect and logical step. However, it also means that Yost may have dug himself a hole because how do you make anyone break out of that? Who out there can both be considered a hero and can support the way the Superior Spider-Man parades himself? Who can have that same sort of ego and talk him out of his perceived inferiority? Well, Namor, of course. It's a great issue with a great premise and near perfect dialogue throughout. It's a much deeper look into this character than we're thus used to and, maybe, than we've had so far. Even the ending, which could very well have just copped out and had Spider-Man swinging away while Namor flies away as grudging allies, is pitch perfect as Spider-Man retakes his pride and punches Namor before demanding that he leave the city. Great issue, solid art and writing and character.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 7, Marvel Knights Spider-Man 3

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 7
Yost (w) and Checchetto and Diaz (a) and Rosenberg (c)

Spider-Man's control over the Sinister Six has been removed and now he's indeed improved the Sinister Six by filling them with rage and unifying them against an enemy: him. While Sandman holds Spider-Man, Electro decides to try to use his own powers to power the quantum particle engine, which Spider-Man warns will destroy the city. As he starts to power it up, Sun Girl, thought dead, emerges and rescues her father, who had been thrown off the roof of the Empire State Building by Vulture, before attacking the rest of the Six to free Spider-Man. One-by-one the Six fall but the QPE is still detonating and primed to take the city down with it. Spider-Man can't get close enough to stop it but he is able to tell Sun Girl to destroy the device in time to stop everything. She does and everything is barely saved, but everyone knows this was all Spider-Man's fault.

There's a lot of introspection here for Spider-Man, particularly as he faces a foe he cannot defeat himself. Pinned down by Sandman and suddenly realizing the damage of getting the Sinister Six to unite like this, Ock has the time to think about the way his hubris caused all of this and to evaluate what he's done. Of course, it's not necessarily likely that this will change things for Ock as a person, but it is likely to change the way the world views him even further, given that the next arc is advertised as "The Worst Person in the World." It's nice to see Ock a little deeper here than his normal egotistical and angry self over in SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN. Now he can't help a new wash of emotions, from a mild shame to a mild surprise to a mild regret to what might be disappointment that NOW the Sinister Six are actually doing something with themselves. It's only categorized as "mild" in each point because Ock isn't exactly brimming with emotions at any point but mild means that he's capable of feeling some. Should be interesting going forward as we see the way the world turns on him now.

Marvel Knights Spider-Man 3
Kindt (w) and Rudy (a) and Staples (c)

The plot to pit Spider-Man against 99 of his enemies continues as Spidey falls through the water from the plane to a submarine, where he's brought in and taunted by the Spider-Queen, Ana Soria, which creeps Spidey out more than a little. He makes his way through the sub and passes a number of his villains, including a despondent Scarecrow and Tombstone, neither of whom seem thrilled to be there or particularly willing to fight, with which Spider-Man is satisfied. Of course, that's not the case with Venom and Carnage, who seem more feral than ever. As they tear into him, Spidey notices a subwoofer set in their presence emitting a constant low pulse which is setting them more on edge. He destroys it and they start to control themselves a little bit more, enough for Spidey to move forward to Scarecrow and Tombstone. Once past those two, he enters the last room of the sub, where he finds Nitro strapped up to a bomb. Nitro, like Scarecrow and Tombstone, regrets his involvement and is sadder and more discouraged than ever. He talks a little about his past and his motivations in the past, as well as his seeming inability to die despite his wishes, but also makes it clear that he's not able to stop what comes next, which appears to be Nitro exploding.

Each issue of MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN has brought something new to the forefront including, this time out, Spider-Man's discovery that his villains here aren't necessarily here because they want some sort of vengeance on Spider-Man but rather they're not sure why they're here. Maybe they want to die and maybe they knew this part of the plan could lead to that. Maybe they were crazy and kidnapped just like Spider-Man was tricked into coming. Still, while the plot has enough going on to keep it interesting, the draw continues to be the gorgeous art that really flows through the issue. This is definitely a series to check in on and to acknowledge the art on. There's definitely a chance, as with all art, that it won't appeal to you or that you think it's being too showy or something but it's certainly with going to your LCS and picking up a copy and at least leafing through it. If it's the kind of art that will draw you in, you'll probably know immediately and you'll want all of the issues available, no questions asked. If it's not your thing, the story probably isn't enough to trump the art. Personally, I think it's really interesting and very beautiful but I can see this being one that really divides people into "ehhhh, not for me" and "oh man, this is wonderful."

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 6, Superior Spider-Man Annual 1

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 6
Yost (w) and Checchetto (a) and Rosenberg (c)

News that Spider-Man is working with the possibly-reformed Sinister Six has broken and it's not making anyone in Spider-Man's life particularly happy. At the moment, though, he has bigger things to deal with. The quantum particle engine he took from Alchemax is still highly sought after and Spider-Man is lured from the new Parker Industries to fight the Masters of Evil with his Sinister Six and with the help of Sun Girl. Unfortunately, he figures out too late that they were just a distraction while Lightmaster goes to Parker Industries to steal the QPE, which has the ability to teleport matter and could potentially do so destructively. Spider-Man manages to bring the fight back to Parker Industries and catch up with Lightmaster, who he turns the Masters of Evil against without much persuasion. It also turns out that Sun Girl is the daughter of Lightmaster, complicating things a bit. Before the Masters of Evil can regain their footing, Spider-Man directs Sun Girl to activate the QPE using her powers, which creates a solid distraction but also gives the Sinister Six the break they need from Spidey's control to free themselves.

This arc is hurtling towards a conclusion which is both probably for the best and also a little bit sad. Yost used a good deal of the previous series, AVENGING SPIDER-MAN, to set up the idea that Spidey was gathering his former foes/companions (depending on what Spidey we're talking about) to some end and now we're seeing that end, only to have it wrenched away from us an issue or so later. On the one hand, I'm a little sad that this isn't lasting longer to build intrigue and suspense and to kind of pay off more dramatically from how long it took him to assemble this team. On the other, I really don't want this idea to overstay its welcome and stagnate, which I think it could pretty quickly run the risk of doing. I think it's a really cool idea and one I'm glad Yost took advantage of, but it feels like one that could end every issue with the Six going "we'll get you someday, Spider-Man!" and kind of burn out over time. Happy with the way it's headed now, though, and I'm excited to see just where this one takes us. I also constantly find myself really liking Marco Checchetto's art, even though I confused him in my head with Giuseppe Camuncoli, who worked on SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN last week and I was startled and how much I wasn't loving his art last week. MY BAD, YOU GUYS. Still really like it.

Superior Spider-Man Annual 1
Gage (w) and J. Rodriguez and A. Lopez (a) and J. Rodriguez (c)

Though Otto Octavius has taken over as Peter Parker, the link between Parker and Spider-Man is, perhaps, more amplified than ever. People still know, as much as Peter and Otto have tried to keep it on the down low, that Peter makes the tech for Spider-Man and so he's a target. Among those targeting him is out-of-the-limelight demon/unrepentant killer Blackout. He appears at Peter's Aunt May's house and kidnaps her, leaving a burner cellphone to contact Peter on. Peter begins to do his own research on Blackout and learns from former Ghost Rider Daniel Ketch about his powers and his brutality. When Blackout eventually calls Peter, he traces the thought-to-be untraceable call and sets up shop outside of Blackout's base. The inevitable fight is a tough one but allows Spidey to save May and get her out of the base in time for him to break down Blackout. He flat-out tortures the villain and examines him a bit while instilling true fear into him, a fear that Spider-Man hopes will spread throughout the villainous community and leave Peter clear. It immediately pays dividends the next day when a simple mugger steals Peter's wallet and immediately returns it, horrified. The person who it seems won't be scared off, though, is the Green Goblin.

I like Christos Gage and I feel bad that he kind of only gets called upon to do these single issues now and again. A book like SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL requires Gage to go in, tell a compelling story, give a lot of characterization, and, amidst all of that, explain what's gone on in Spider-Man's life to people who may not have been reading too much recently or who may not be overly familiar with the past of the characters involved AND it still has to be able to link to the ongoing story in SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN in the hopes that it will bring new readers onboard. The smart move, then, is to go with a lesser known villain like Blackout so explaining him to newer readers doesn't wear so much on long-time readers. That doesn't mean that explaining Otto Octavius' role in Peter's body for what feels like the thousandth time doesn't still wear but there's little avoiding that. Still, Gage does a good job telling an engaging story (en-GAGE-ing, get it?) and packing it with character. There's real concern from Otto about May and it translates into real anger and viciousness that Peter didn't really ever have, or had so infrequently that it counted as surprise. Here, Otto turns it on without hesitation and without any sort of moral aftermath. He does what he feels needed to be done and he does it quickly. Good little story, not without its flaws but they're necessary flaws, in a way, and only flaws that long-time and up-to-date Spider-Man readers will be annoyed at. Really not so much flaws. That's a poor word choice. Still, good book and Javier Rodriguez brings good art and his typical great colors to the story, though there was one panel where I couldn't help but notice, on a reflection of Peter in a window, that maybe Rodriguez forgot for a second that he wasn't drawing Matt Murdock's red lenses.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 5, Superior Carnage 4

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 5
Yost (w) and Checchetto (a) and Rosenberg (c)

Alchemax has hardly opened its doors and already its the site of a supervillain attack as the Wrecking Crew start busting their way in, in search of an experimental particle engine. Spider-Man 2099 is inside getting ready to fight them when the Superior Spider-Man shows up with his own team, his new Superior Six. Finally we learn Doc Ock's plan for his former Sinister Six teammates as the villains he's captured are now working for him, mind controlled to fight and move on his behalf. It is...sketchy, morally, but it's effective. Spidey admits to himself that maybe he brought them out a little too early and he requires a little help from a new Sun Girl (apparently a hero! Wikipedia has little to say of her as yet) to bring the Wrecking Crew down. They scamper back to their boss Lightmaster, who assures them that next time they will have a bigger team to fight off this new Superior Six. Meanwhile, Spidey settles things out at home with the imprisoned ex-villains and Sun Girl, who was knocked unconscious during the fight and brought back to Spider-Island while she recovered.

An interesting repurposing of the Sinister Six that fits with this new do-what-it-takes Spider-Man and which has just the right level of absolute sketchiness and kind-of brilliance. It also slots nicely into the current events of Superior Spider-Man as we catch a glimpse of Spider-Man 2099 (albeit being very ineffective) and the newly formed Alchemax. Clearly there are some big plans going forward in the Spider-Man universe that will involve everything going on right now on both sides of the ball. How the superhero community (and the civilian community) will react to the new Superior Six is still up for debate and won't be answered immediately but BOY, someone's going to have to start realizing that, as off as Spidey's been acting lately, he's branching out into all new levels of crazy. Right? Like, one person will have to be like "hey guys, I know we already scanned him with our non-scientifically inclined people, but maybe we should like, kick the tires again?" Right?

Superior Carnage 4
Shinick (w) and Segovia and Chrisostomo w/Mexia (a) and J.D. Ramos, Gandini, and Rosenberg (c)

Spider-Man was lying in wait for the Wizard, Klaw, and Carnage at City Hall but it turns out even Spidey might not be enough to stop them. They out-power him at every turn before he eventually grabs Wizard, the one clearly in control of the situation (sort of) and escapes with him. He holds him above an ally in an attempt to get him to call off Carnage but Wizard reads his mind briefly and realizes he's Octavius, which causes Spidey to drop the villain onto a car below. Wizard's hold on Carnage is released and Carnage goes to town, killing Spider-Man's minions and following Klaw out to where Spidey and Wizard are talking. Spider-Man admits to Wizard that he is Otto and promises to get him to his son if he controls Carnage and puts him down. Klaw, thinking Spider-Man's attacking Wizard, charges him before being run through himself by Carnage's secret vibranium weapon, taken from Wizard armory. Klaw explodes in a burst of sound, launching Carnage off of Dr. Malus and onto Wizard.

Solid penultimate issue as we get an impressive fight scene with the ever-threatening Carnage managing to put the fear into the typically collected Superior Spider-Man. Wizard continues to shift back and forth between dastardly genius and sad, old man trying to reconnect with and impress his son, adding some pathos for both the character and the crowd who overhears his hopes. Spider-Man, for his part, keeps trying to fight what keeps looking more and more like a losing battle and whose only serious misstep is allowing Wizard to fall after hearing his own secret identity revealed. As Carnage launches from Malus to Wizard, we're in for an exciting last issue that could certainly go any direction and might even keep Wizard, a longtime Marvel villain, from completely losing his mind. Or maybe it will accelerate that EVEN MORE. Who knows? Certainly not me. Absolutely fantastic cover too, one that would certainly makes me interested in picking up the book if I saw it in my LCS. Mission accomplished, you guys.

Thor: God of Thunder 14, Fearless Defenders 10, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 4

Thor: God of Thunder 14
Aaron (w) and Garney (a) and Svorcina (c)

Malekith is running rampant through the Nine Realms and, first on his list of to-be-murdered is the Queen of the Dark Elves, who is currently hiding out in Nidavellir. In order to try to stop him, the Congress of Worlds has decided to make a strike force comprised of warriors from each of the realms in a Lord of the Rings style team-up. It turns out that they're not fast enough, though, as they arrive in Nidavellir to find slain dark elves and dwarves everywhere. The squad squares off somewhat successfully against Malekith but their inexperience with one another shows as their dwarf causes an explosion in the mines, which kills some of Malekith's supporters but allows Malekith the chance to escape. As the squad considers breaking up, Thor insists they stick together and bring down Malekith.

It is a little hard not to draw the Lord of the Rings comparison here, even if their goal of killing Malekith is a bit different than bringing a ring to a volcano. It's hard, at this point, not to compare fantasy-esque worlds with the tropes of elves as Aryan sharpshooters and dwarves as miners and so on. So thanks for that, Tolkien. Also, banding together from all the various realms to take down an enemy. Look, it's awfully similar, is what I'm saying. That's not to say it's not a fun book still, with a formidable foe and interesting supporting characters, even if you're only going to think of them in terms of their Lord of the Rings counterparts. Seriously, that's all you'll do. You won't even try to. Also, Thor has a nice pro-Mjolnir line that I won't ruin for people planning to read it. Malekith still remains a worthy foe for these guys which means this story still has more to offer. Continued good art from industry vet Ron Garney and really solid colors from Ive Svorcina.

Fearless Defenders 10
Bunn (w) and Sliney (a) and Gandini (c)

Thanos has struck Attilan and Black Bolt has activated Maximus' machine, which has triggered Terrigenesis for anyone with Inhuman DNA all over the world. This includes Ren Kimura, a young woman who excels at dance. Her power? Ribbon dancing with, like, really sharp ribbons? It's more visual than practical, really. Anyway, she finds her way out to the street to find Thanos' army killing anyone they find who is in the midst of Terrigenesis. Caroline Le Fey is trying to save them, hoping to harvest their powers herself, while Valkyrie and the Defenders are trying to save them, hoping to save them. After a fight, which involves Ren joining forces with the Defenders to stop Le Fey, despite her confusion about the whole situation. As Le Fey's team leaves, Valkyrie changes to Annabel and Annabel welcomes Ren to the Defenders.

I talked earlier this week about how I feel like Brian Wood's X-Men is getting unfortunately interrupted at a delicate time in its start as all of the many interlocking X-Men books get tied down to Battle of the Atom. Although Fearless Defenders is only ten issues in, it's tied into two separate events with Age of Ultron and Infinity both getting the Fearless Defenders involved. This doesn't feel the same, though, as X-Men getting a tie-in with books that directly connect to it. This feels a little like a book that's stumbling and is trying to pick up extra sales in typically sale-heavy events. This is pure speculation as someone with absolutely no knowledge of sales figures but it does still feel like grasping at straws. If they are having troubles, it's both deserved and undeserved. I don't think the book has been spectacular, with an incongruous tone and a villain who purports to be both threatening and unwelcomely snarky. The whole book, in truth, has this weird feeling of unwelcome snark to it, like the book wants to be something cool and fresh but can't quite feel its way there. Still, it's also undeserved because it's the treatment that female-led books get. It's a tricky situation because female-led books need to sell to keep getting female-led books made but they also have to be worth reading and worth telling and this one hasn't really proven it. That's also tricky because it is continually getting interrupted by events.

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up 4
Rodi (w) and Del Mundo (a) and Del Mundo and D'Alfonso (c)

Spider-Man is trying to stop Thanos' army alongside the Mighty Avengers when he has to suddenly stop to try to deal with Fulmina, the electricity based super hero/villain he may have accidentally inspired into her villainy. She's systematically shutting down power to New York while in the power grid, which is coming at a particularly bad time as, since I mentioned, Thanos' army is currently attacking. Spider-Man insists that he has this under control and advises Luke Cage and Monica Rambeau to stay clear of it. He manages to get enough out of Fulmina's range to access his own generator-based power grid. He hooks up the neurolitic scanner, the device he used to expel Peter from his mind, and uses it to trap Fulmina in his mind, trapped by the electricity in his brain. He reminds her that her goal to bring the world back to the Middle Ages means bringing the world back to plague and darkness and disaster, even if the sentiment of separating from technology is somewhat understandable (it isn't to Spider-Man, but you get the idea). She relents, even restoring power to the city and destroying a second fleet of Thanos' ships before disappearing.

Another solid issue for this book. Maybe a little preachy on both sides but maybe necessarily so. Comics are interesting because they're an immediate evaluation of our concerns and fears. We've seen more and more AI-based foes as AI and technology grows more and more rampant in our society. This story is spawned directly from a focus on smartphones and computers and the like. There is a real discussion in this debate of how dependent humanity is on technology and this shows both extremes of it. So it's a somewhat heavy-handed argument that a technologically driven world is absolutely meant to win. Still, it's a decent little story with solid writing and good characterization for Doc Ock with really good art and colors particularly raising the book up. Pretty excited for the next issue which seems like it will get back to the story we left Avenging Spider-Man with; a Sinister Six's worth of villains captured by Superior Spider-Man for purposes still unclear.