Superior Foes of Spider-Man 10, Superior Spider-Man Annual 2

Superior Foes of Spider-Man 10
Asmus (w) and Carmenero, Pallot, Plati, Oum, Larraz, and Mossa (a)

The Sinister Six, now down to three members with the disappearance of both Boomerang and Shocker and already lacking a sixth member, lay low while they try to work out their next score. They drop by a nearly empty bar for drinks and end up tying up the barkeeper and any errant patrons while they're there, deciding to get an impromptu score on the bar's safe. While they wait for the safe's timer to allow them entry, they each talk about their biggest professional victories. Overdrive cites a time that he "defeated" Hercules by confusing him mid-job and simply throwing him off the right course (like so much disguised Bugs Bunny). Beetle talks about defeating Matt Murdock in court as a defense attorney. Speed Demon talks about arranging an STD-ridden "mask-chaser" to sleep with Hercules. No sooner does he finish his story than who but Hercules should walk in looking for a place to drink. Speed Demon books it out while Hercules presumably clobbers the other two.

Not a lot to write home about on this one. James Asmus does a fine job filling in for regular scribe Nick Spencer while a slew of artists, a different one for each story and another set to do the frame story, bring their own unique styles to the book in place of Steve Lieber. It's not a bad book to be sure and the tone isn't too far off from the sort of casual tone that Spencer has brought to the book but there's not a lot of meat. The main joke of the issue seems to be that they're not very good villains, a joke that has not so much run its course as it has been presented in better ways. There's a little bit of personality added to the characters in the course of their casual time together but I would have thought this a perfect opportunity to build on those personalities maybe a little more meaningfully. Spencer and Lieber return for issue twelve so we'll see if the next one adds anything different to spice things up a bit more.

Superior Spider-Man Annual 2
Ben Urich: Gage (w) and J. Rodriguez and A. Lopez (a) and J. Rodriguez (c)
Wraith: Gage (w) and Briones (a) and Gandini (c)

The second SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL is split into two parts with story one about Ben Urich, shaken by the recent revelation that his nephew was a goblin for so long. Ben, angry with himself that he didn't see it after all he's been through and all the reporting he's done in the superhero community, tries to find Peter Parker with an incomplete formula for the goblin serum, pieced together from various interviews and tests he's researched. He goes to Parker Industries and tries to give the notes to Sajani but she explains that they have their own source of a test subject with Carlie Cooper, AKA Monster. She has an experimental formula ready but she's not prepared to test it on Carlie without knowing what it might do to her first. Ben says that he'll be able to use it on his nephew and get them the results they want. He manages to track Phil down and attempts to talk him into the possible cure but Phil refuses, enjoying the person he is now. Ben calls out to the Spider-Bots surrounding the neighborhood for Spider-Man's assistance and he arrives before Phil can hurt Ben, though he's already severely hurt a nearby Robbie Robertson. Spider-Man forces Phil to flee and then rushes Robbie to the hospital, leaving Ben to admit that the nephew he thought he had is dead. It's a really interesting story of an extremely interesting character (I've always liked Ben Urich) in a position I don't know I ever would have considered. As Ben points out, he's the guy that figured out Daredevil's identity and he's gone up against Osborn and Kingpin and Elektra and so many others but here he was with a goblin under his nose and no idea about it. Pretty neat story and it very much captures the Ben Urich character.

The second story is about Wraith, waking up at Parker Industries under the watchful eye of the Living Brain. She beats up a not-resisting Living Brain before tracking down Sajani and accidentally instigating Monster into a fight. Carlie has been trying to hold the Monster personality down but Wraith's anger encourages Monster to take hold, leaving Sajani with no choice but to use the formula she's created without testing it properly first. The cure seems to at least work on the outside, knocking Carlie out but reverting her back to a human again. Wraith realizes for the first time that Monster is Carlie and that she's had her facts somewhat backwards in this whole case. She pops out her malfunctioning eyepieces and goes out to join the fight against the Goblins. It's another story that certainly needed telling and it's interesting to me that these two crucial stories (the Wraith one is a little less interesting to me but far more crucial to the events of SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN) are tucked away in a book called SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL. I was a little on the fence about the release of this book if just because we very recently had SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL 1 and it certainly hadn't been another year since then; it felt like maybe a way to get in another Superior Spider-Man story before April finds AMAZING SPIDER-MAN out on the shelves once more. However, it's certainly a pair of stories worth telling and ones that don't have much to do with the Doc Ock Spidey, instead focusing on other characters in his life and on a story that matters a good deal right now. Certainly worth reading and I would call it unmissable for someone keeping up with the events of GOBLIN NATION.

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.