Captain America 13, Captain Marvel 17, Iron Man 18

Captain America 13
Remender (w) and Klein (a) and White (c)

Back in the late '60s, Nick Fury calls in undercover operative Ran Shen, meant to be infiltrating the Communist party in China to question him on why he hasn't reported back in two years. Of course, Fury doesn't really ask questions he doesn't already know the answers to and the interrogation pretty quickly turns south as he accuses Shen of creating his own party to rival Mao's, a claim Shen doesn't back down from. He then reveals his own enhancements and attacks Fury and Dum Dum Dugan, breaking out of his containment and rushing, with a scan of Fury's eye, to a high security location at the SHIELD hub. He's not the only one, though, as the Russian spy/assassin the Winter Soldier has watched the whole thing go down and attacks Shen once Shen gets inside the secure location. After a quick fight, both are attacked by a Dum Dum and Fury-led SHIELD team and both escape, though we see what Shen was after: a giant wing labeled "Weapon Minus." Lot of information here for the first ten pages of the book. Back in the present, Maria Hill calls Steve and a protesting Falcon (protesting on Steve's behalf) to take down Nuke in Nrosvekistan, claiming that it has to be Steve who does that, it has to be the icon of America to show that America doesn't support Nuke's actions. The two arrive and pretty quickly have some trouble taking the broken super-soldier down. It's a fight that will continue into the next issue.

Geez but there was a lot happening in those first ten pages. Sometimes you'll read a book and it will flow or, perhaps, even slow down (I think this book had a little of both) to such an extent that it covers the fact that we've just gotten so much information. I'm fortunate because I write a comics blog and so I end up delving in to help clarify some things but, if I didn't, I imagine I would forget a lot of key plot points (I still kind of do but that's more poor-memory related than anything else). The beginning of the book, with Ran Shen's interrogation and the Winter Soldier's involvement, are particularly interesting, though it starts to slow a little bit when we get into Shen's point of view, which almost entirely consists of a page or so of Shen hating America. I think it serves a purpose here, really giving us a depth of vitriol and catching readers up with the Iron Nail's beliefs, but it does feel a bit like it drags the story out. Winter Soldier's involvement is neat and it's cool to know that there's a deeper story there (perhaps one set to be explored more in WINTER SOLDIER: BITTER MARCH), expressed as Shen recognizes Winter Soldier and Winter Soldier reveals that Shen's target isn't his target; his target is Shen. Plenty happening here and that's BEFORE we get to Captain America himself, my thoughts on whom have been pretty regular of late. I find it really interesting to see Cap this despondent and Remender does a great job to, despite that, still show Cap as the force he was from the start of this book, someone fighting through anything and everything in his way (physical, internal and external, and mental) though there is an added sense of desperation and hopelessness there that didn't feel as present at the onset of this series. Stellar writing for Cap again. Great book. It would take something pretty impressive to follow this one up in a review. SEGUE.

Captain Marvel 17
DeConnick (w) and Andrade (a) and Bellaire (c)

Carol Danvers has returned to New York for the first time since the Enemy Within storyline's conclusion and it's a bit of a different world now. She's very open with her friends (hard not to be with this) about the state of her memories, though it doesn't impact her personality. Ultimately it means that she has no memories of people in her life like self-proclaimed sidekick Kit, personal assistant Wendy, and friends Tracy and Frank. On the flip-side, a ceremony is being held in her honor by the city of New York, appreciative of her efforts in Enemy Within. One individual, though, is not happy with her (really not happy with the world, but taking it out on her), new villain Grace Valentine, a self-made business success and genius computer engineer who wants more and finds herself overshadowed by the superhero events of recent days. She attacks the award ceremony (where Carol is given a key to the city and, perhaps more importantly, a new apartment in the CROWN OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY whaaaaat) and Carol springs into action. Valentine has hijacked several drones and uses them swoop down on Carol, stunning her momentarily. As Carol recovers, Valentine sends a message to the world about who she is and who Carol is and why people should overlook Carol's perceived "achievements" for her own before revealing that she's targeting Carol by her star insignia. The crowd then jumps into the action, revealing their own insignias and shouting "I am Captain Marvel" and confusing the drones while inspiring Carol back into the fight. Valentine decides that she has no problem attacking Carol's supporters and sets her drones to the task when Carol leaps back in and saves the day. The day ends with Kit settling in to the CROWN OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY apartment and showing Carol a comic book she wrote and drew to help re-educate Carol on who Captain Marvel is and what she's done, including inspiring (unbeknownst to even Kit) a young New Jersey teen with superpowers of her own.

A truly phenomenal issue and one that someone with less emotional restraint than I may have even teared up at a bit. Not me, that's not the point, you guys. It's just...it's not the point, okay? Anyway, it's a great issue that pulls on everything DeConnick has built for Carol through the course of this series. I talked about it at length during Enemy Within, which built a nightmare around Carol and enveloped all of her friends, a weight that doesn't feeling weighty if DeConnick doesn't put in the time to create a world around Carol. She did create that world, though, and so the involvement of Carol's friends continued to have resonance throughout the story and it's coming around again here, as Carol suddenly doesn't even remember who her friends are. The characters, though, are so real and so fleshed out that you can feel the love and care from them as they try to work around Carol's recent losses and find a way to get her involved again. What's more is that you're actively rooting for them and for Carol on their behalf. I can't think of another superhero comic populated by non-superheroes where this is more true. Even in Spider-Man, which has one of the most expansive casts of non-superhero characters (though that tends to change pretty frequently as different writers power up different characters in his life, geez), there are a few duds I can point to at anyone time that I can honestly say "yeah, I don't care about that guy/lady." Here, I actively care about everyone in Carol's life and this book doesn't work if you, as a reader, don't. Phenomenal job and a truly wonderful issue.

Iron Man 18
Gillen (w) and Bennett and Hanna (a) and Guru eFX (c)

We get a simulated look at the world of 30 years from now as Tony and Arno Stark immediately get to work on trying to better the world, trying to help the people and protect them. After that simulated 30 years, Tony and Arno have created a self-sufficient and self-protecting city that they can manage from above. As wonderful and idyllic as it is and despite how much it matches their dreams, it's inevitably immediately destroyed as the AI they've had around and based on 451's designs has covertly worked to undermine them, even when it was unaware of doing it. The two are wrenched out of the simulation and Arno emphasizes to Tony, back in the present day, that they cannot trust AI, a fact that Tony keeps glazing over because, as much as he knows he can't trust anything to do with 451, he can't help but be fascinated at the technology. Arno suspects that he's actually just avoiding talking about the adoption. Tony is saved by the bell on that one as an Avengers distress call comes in and he dispatches his Iron Man suit, complete with PEPPER, to handle it. Arno frowns on it but understands Tony's decision to be more proactive in building this new way of life than reactive in trying to stop supervillains as they pop up. Meanwhile, they seem to have a doozy of a supervillain primed to pop up as some sort of possible AI or enchanted ring-dispenser is targeting individuals around the world and making them Mandarins, presumably 1-10 (we see the creation of Mandarin Seven here).

Still a lot happening in this book, though plenty of this issue is dedicated to a simulation of a possible future. That feels like it should slow the book but I didn't even notice how much of the book it had taken up until I flipped through again to look something up for my summary. It moves well and it serves a distinct purpose, showing us what Arno and Tony are set to do. Tony has always been the engineer of the Marvel Universe; it's on his back that the technology and wonders (and sometimes also threats) of the Marvel Universe appear so it's important that we see what his aims are moving forward, as well as what his concerns are. In this case, his aims are perhaps greater than they've ever been, a self-sufficient city that can protect its inhabitants from both natural and alien threats in a particularly threatening new world. We also see some of the newest concerns as Arno warns Tony repeatedly that he can't trust AI, which Tony has more and more begun to trust with time. The addition of a new Mandarin-based threat at the end of the issue is just icing on the cake as we already have more than enough here to talk about and think about moving forward. It would have been relatively easy to take this issue as a sort of break issue, to reorient and keep away from supervillains and the like while Gillen establishes Tony's new life with Arno but, instead, we get plenty of new threats and new promises for Tony. Pretty neat stuff.

New Ms. Marvel series announced!

You did not read that wrong, there's a new MS. MARVEL series coming to Marvel in 2014. This is not the end for Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel who, as I mentioned in my NYCC news post, is getting a Captain Marvel relaunch next year. Instead, this is a new book focused on a new character who, inspired by Captain Marvel and with powers all her own, will be taking up the Ms. Marvel mantle. It's only been announced in the last couple of days but already the news is making waves in both the comics community and the world at large as the biggest reveal of this news has been that the new character herself, Kamala Khan, is a Muslim-American teen, the daughter of Pakistani immigrants, living in New Jersey. It's a bold decision and it's one that, perhaps surprisingly, has been apparently met with a lot of support, according to Marvel editor Tom Brennan on Twitter:

The @marvel e-mail server has blown up with mail from folks excited about the new Ms. Marvel. Way to defy my expectations, humanity!

— Tom Brennan (@Brennanator) November 6, 2013

I think it's a great move and I'm really excited for the series, which will be written by G. Willow Wilson (a woman writing a comic about a woman!) and illustrated by Adrian Alphona. There's not too too much more about the book out there yet but expect to see Kamala's first official appearance in Captain Marvel 17, out this week and reviewed MERE MINUTES FROM NOW (I'm writing both AT THE SAME TIME, dear reader, so there's a little sneak peek at the process, YOU'RE WELCOME). Learn more from Marvel editor Sana Amant on Twitter @MiniB622 and maybe read this article from ABC News about it.

Comics this week

Fewer comics out this week than it looked like when I was recording them. Still PLENTY to look forward to in what amounts to a very interesting week. I could have selected maybe 70% of these books for this list and it would have made total sense. Narrowing it down to just five is actually pretty tricky. Let's try though, shall we, with some QUICK HITS?

Amazing X-Men 1
Another new X-Men book in what feels like a race to compete with the number of Avengers books out there (man, good luck). This one will be helmed by WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN and THOR: GOD OF THUNDER scribe Jason Aaron. I really like half of those books and this one promises the return of Nightcrawler so keep your eyes peeled. Here's hoping for another solid 616 X-Men book, raising the total to two.

Captain Marvel 17
It was really hard to pick between Captains America and Marvel this week for this list but ultimately I went with this one because it's really going to be the first Carol book since her huge transformation during Enemy Within that will really focus on Carol's life. We had some good issues tied-in to Infinity but this will be the first with Carol returning to Carol's life since losing her memory. I think CAPTAIN AMERICA will be just as poignant as he continues to deal with his losses but this book feels more watch-worthy as that one's already in full swing and this one's just starting out.

Iron Man 18
After last issue's game-change reveal of Tony's secret secret origin, we get pretty quickly to see the kind of shape the new news will take. Obviously I'm not expecting the next several years of Iron Man to be laid out in front of us but it's the first issue since the reveal and it'll no doubt give us a much better sense of how things will work going forward.

Marvel Knights Spider-Man 2
I don't necessarily pick the books I'm looking forward to most for this pre-game post, though you could certainly make the case. I tend to look at the strength of an ongoing book or a creator, the importance of a given issue to the book or to the Marvel line (which is why number ones tend to make the cut fairly frequently), the events of the Marvel Universe as a whole and, yes, ultimately, books I'm looking forward to most. MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN kind of falls into all of those categories as Marvel looks to reignite their MARVEL KNIGHTS line and after a startling but pretty gorgeous and pretty neat first issue for this series in particular. I'd like to see MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN take another step forward this week and show exactly what to expect out of the series as the memories of the first issue are, perhaps, behind us.

X-Men Legacy 19
Okay, so SOMETIMES it's the books I'm looking forward to most. I have trouble getting a sense of where X-MEN LEGACY fits in the greater scheme of Marvel and how it ranks up in sales and what-not. I worry about it more than occasionally but the bottom line is that this book has been stunning throughout its run and it's certainly worthy of your time. This issue still certainly does fit the criteria of importance of a given issue as last issue saw the mind prison David had kept so rigidly intact the lats couple of months burst open into chaos and Luca teaming with the evil Xavier in David's head. Plenty going on, plenty to look forward to, plenty to read this book for. Exciting times abound, dear reader.

This week's picks

Did you guys remember that Infinity and Avengers came out this week? I KNOW, it feels like it was so long ago but it was just this week. Well geez, that might complicate some things, right? Let's mix it up a bit though this week, huh? Like, kind of mix it up. Not mix it up so much from my regular picks that I'm going crazy and picking Battle of the Atom or something like that, I'm still me. But let's leave both Infinity and Avengers off this list. Save 'em up for the finale.

Captain America Living Legend 2

I really like the approach on this book. It's a book about Captain America but it kind of feels like it's only tangentially about Cap. You can go a few ways in a mini-series. Your time is limited so you kind of have to hit your points hard and fast. Is this a story-heavy series? Is it a character-revealing series? You can still absolutely make it both, but it's going to find you pressed for time. I'd say Diggle is doing a fantastic job making it about both character and story without having to push too hard in either direction. Cap has had some major character arcs through his existence but, by and large, Captain America is the most unchanged character in the Marvel Universe through his existence and that's intentional. He's the symbol of all things morally right. As such, there's not a huge need to explain his character here so we're seeing little facets of his personality mixed with the personality of those around him and we're seeing the story in bloom. It's well-approached and everyone really comes off as a full-fledged character because of it.

Scarlet Spider 23

Uhh, spoilers, I guess

Scarlet Spider was in a competition with Superior Spider-Man to make the cut this week (both of them edging out Infinity, Avengers, and Cataclysm) and ultimately won out because of its clear purpose. If Spider-Man had won, it would have been because of the "dear god" factor of his fight with Black Cat. The ideas and the character win the day though with Scarlet Spider as we see Kaine officially in a position where he's done killing people, a pretty recent decision, and immediately being forced to kill or watching his friends die. His decision and his desire to be a hero are respectable but his friends are still torn on it as, at current, it directly impacts them. This issue puts Kaine in a place where making the right decision suddenly feels like the wrong decision and his supporting cast doesn't know what he should have done either, though at least Wally has an idea about it. Really solid issue, just another one to add to the bank.

Ultimate X-Men 33

I continue to really like this series, a series that Marvel editor Tom Brevoort called a "sleeper title" on his rather fascinating Tumblr. As far as I'm concerned (and I've said this before but whatever, I'll keep saying it), this book does pacing better than any book out there. Pacing is so hugely important and, though it's a somewhat intangible thing, such a make-or-break factor of the way a book comes across and it's so easy to drop it. Some of my least favorite issues of books from this past year have been paced ridiculously slowly, to the point where I'd end up feeling exhausted by the book and look to see that I was, somehow, only on page 10 or 12. Ultimate X-Men has never felt that way and, as a series, has never really let an arc overstay its welcome. This is hands-down the best book coming out of the Ultimate Universe right now and probably lands somewhere in the top five, definitely top ten from Marvel as a whole, who is putting out a slew of fantastic books. What's more impressive about that statement is that this series was one of my top ten series of 2012 as well so it's not like this is a new phenomenon, this is just a book that has been churning out great issues throughout its run.

Deadpool Kills Deadpool 4, Trial of the Punisher 2

Deadpool Kills Deadpool 4
Bunn (w) and Espin (a) and Gandini (c)

The Deadpool Corps has been decimated, leaving just Deadpool and Pandapool to face however many evil Deadpools remain. The Deadpool Watcher sacrifices himself to re-power the Nexus and send the 'pools to the HQ of the evil Deadpools but, sadly, it turns out they're expected. Bonus, though, there are a few more good guy 'pools waiting for them there and the tides turn again. In the end, though, it ends up with just Deadpool vs. the original crazed Deadpool, the one who started it all. The crazed Deadpool still believes Deadpool is the progenitor of all things and that they can end this by their deaths. He catches Deadpool questioning but, ultimately, Deadpool's beliefs win out and he wins the fight, killing a now-converted evil Deadpool in honor of his fallen friends. Deadpool begins to search out a new way home as his direct enemy Deadpool lurks in the shadows, watching him.

Pretty neat little ending to a somewhat neat little book. Marvel has clearly carved out a little niche for this story and is doing its best to keep that niche going. Still, the story was entertaining and the idea of self and existence all come across pretty well, even if the story felt mostly like a way to draw all manner of different Deadpools, a worthy enough cause. The art was impressive and the variety of Deadpools certainly kept the backgrounds interesting so the idea that we got a plot at all was something pretty unexpected. Nice little book, really felt like it knew what it was and accomplished what it set out to accomplish. Deadpool returns in Night of the Living Deadpool.

Trial of the Punisher 2
Guggenheim (w) and Suayan (a) and Gho (c)

The case isn't going particularly well, considering the fact that there are a number of witnesses out there to attest that Punisher has, for all of his other possible crazy tendencies, very clearly known what he is doing. One particular piece of testimony paints Punisher as a methodical killer, trying to hunt down criminal and known pedophile Vincent Siglio. Instead of going through just the heads of crime families and the like, Punisher went to ground and started working his way through the minor players to find information, which he was never able to find. The story shows how aware of his own plans Punisher is. Matt Murdock is called in as an expert on Punisher but refuses to reveal much, given client privilege. Punisher, meanwhile, insists that his lawyer drag the case to the following Wednesday, which she is able to do. On Wednesday, he testifies on his own behalf and reveals that he has a tape with a confession of bribe-taking from the Assistant DA he killed. He informs the judge of a website he's loaded the video to that requires a password and the judge says that he'll watch the video and review it, but Punisher further insists that he be there for it. His lawyer pushes for him, saying that Punisher is absolutely allowed to participate in his own defense, and the three of them, plus the prosector and some security go into the judge's chambers to watch the video. While it plays, Punisher uncuffs himself and steals the security guard's gun, forcing the attorneys (even his own, who feels incredibly betrayed) and judge to cuff themselves to the desk. He then races through the courthouse according to the map he had drawn himself to another room, where Vincent Siglio was about to be transported, having turned evidence and entered witness protection. Punisher kills Siglio and narrates to us about his plan working out.

It's not a bad little story and it was definitely a good call to make this a two-issue arc. I've talked a lot recently about stories overstaying their welcome or, in the case of something like Infinity, lasting exactly what they need to last. This one feels like one that someone along the line could have said "make it a four-part series" or something like that to try to milk it but two issues told the story concisely and efficiently, never leaving too much or too little on the table. If anything, it's Daredevil's testimony that feels a little padded out but it still fits in the context of the story and it helps resolve any questions about why Murdock stayed out of this case in the first place. Pretty good story, nothing particularly illuminating about the character of Punisher, given that we pretty much already know his modus operandi and the lengths he'll go to in order to punish but it's still a readable and interesting little slice of life story.

Guardians of the Galaxy 8, Cataclysm 0.1

Guardians of the Galaxy 8
Bendis (w) and Francavilla (a and c)

The Guardians of the Galaxy are approaching Earth and have discovered, then, that Thanos' army is pretty well in control of its airspace about now. Gamora insists that they charge in and show her dad (Thanos, you guys) who's boss but Quill prefers they make a plan, which they do after some amount of tension and Gamora setting out on her own to attack Thanos himself. They receive a distress call from Abigail Brand at the Peak and Quill decides it's not a trap and that they have to save her and the Peak before it's turned on the Earth. He and Rocket stealth their way in and bust her out before attempting to fight their way to the command center, counting on air support from Drax and Groot. Unfortunately, by the time they call those two in, they're rather busy and embroiled in their own fight. Plus side, though, when it looks as if all is lost, Angela shows up and busts her way into the space station to save them (probably).

Solid action here as the Guardians get involved in the universe-spanning events of Infinity, albeit in the part that doesn't span the universe but rather just Earth. There's some decent characterization though occasionally it swings hard on an emotion and it comes up just a little short. In this case, it's Gamora bursting with anger at Quill for wanting to plan their attack on Thanos. Of course, there's more to Gamora's emotions than simply the need for haste, adding on the turmoil she feels about her father and the imminent threat he poses, but it does seem more than a little sudden and rash for Gamora. Again, though, Bendis' strength comes out of dropping some of the back-and-forth dialogue here as we have a bit of a faster paced and more coherent book, one that doesn't lose its focus and its tone while those elements battle for control over snappy, out-of-place dialogue. There's a bit here but, as I've said in the past, a bit doesn't hurt. A bit establishes character and the like. It's when you have more than a bit that things go downhill. Instead, it's another solid Guardians issue that brings the Guardians themselves to the fight against Thanos, a place they're rather used to being.

Cataclysm 0.1
Fialkov (w) and Suayan, Pierfederici, and Kirk (a) and Woodard (c)

Galactus is in the Ultimate Universe and it could spell the end for that branch of Marvel. The Vision of that universe, a female android, if we're applying genders, was built to detect and protect the world from the Gah Lak Tus swarm and so is shocked to find that a piece of that swarm ended up beached in the Bahamas during the Hunger event without her notice. She and boyfriend Sam Wilson go to investigate and Vision interfaces with the swarm member, learning of Galactus' arrival in the Ultimate Universe and learning of his history in the 616. She immediately recognizes the threat and needs to go see for herself, understanding that it will likely mean her death. There's a scene where she weighs her Earth's chances against Galactus, given its history, that compares the Ultimate Universe to the 616 and boy does it highlight some things. She eventually arrives by Galactus and urges him to stand down. When he refuses, she attacks with her impressive weaponry. It backfires, though, as he absorbs her shots and turns them on her, ultimately destroying her and leaving her floating in space. Before her system shuts down, she sends a message back to Earth, primarily to Sam Wilson who she realized, in the end, that she truly loved and warning them that they'll need everybody's help to stave off Galactus, including and perhaps centered on the incarcerated and absolutely crazy Reed Richards.

Certainly a nice little book to set the stage for us and Fialkov again delivers on his mantra of showing characters on their absolute worst days. Despite the fact that this story is one mostly meant to illustrate the dangers posed to the Ultimate Universe with Galactus' arrival and, as an aside to that, to establish the differences between the universe Galactus came from and this one, Fialkov does a solid job in one regular-sized issue, creating a full character in Vision, who has a crisis of self (or as much of one as an android can have) and realizes who she really is in her dying moments. On top of that, as I mentioned above, there was a nice little summation of the differences between the two major universes under Marvel's umbrella, particularly highlighting the plight of the mutant in this world, the loss of Spider-Man, the craziness of Reed Richards, the decimation of the superhero community, and the flaws of the Ultimates vs. the Avengers. Really helps put things in perspective while giving off the distinct feeling of "aw man, it's going to be pretty tricky for them to fight off Galactus." Good book, nice way to build interest for the event.

Superior Spider-Man 20, Scarlet Spider 23

Superior Spider-Man 20
Slott (w) and Camuncoli and Dell (a) and Fabela (c)

Doc Spidey has a lot on his plate at present. His time with Horizon Labs is officially ended and its put him on the job hunt once more but, being Otto Octavius and not Peter Parker, he has some big plans for that. He intends to start his own company, Parker Industries, with girlfriend Anna Maria Marconi and former Horizon scientist Sajani Jaffrey at his side. On his way to tell Anna Maria, Spider-Man runs into sometimes-villain, sometimes-hero, sometimes-lover Black Cat and, unlike what the cover would have you believe, swiftly beats her up and webs her for the authorities. Obviously, Black Cat is furious and swears to never forget this. Meanwhile, Carlie Cooper has what she believes is definitive proof of something weird with Spidey now that she's found a paper trail (albeit from suspicious sources) linking Spider-Man to Doc Ock's bank accounts. She calls MJ to warn her to stay away from Peter and that she should tell May and Jay to stay clear too. MJ is busy, though, trying to learn more about the firefighter who saved her life during her nightclub's fire. Finally, Peter goes to present his doctoral thesis, his last step in becoming Dr. Peter Parker. After a seemingly very successful presentation, Dr. Lamaze gleefully jumps up and calls Peter a fraud, saying that he's simply stolen the unpublished work of the late, great Otto Octavius. He swears to have Parker expelled for this and Doc realizes that this could ruin everything he's worked for unless he stops Lamaze somehow.

One of the really interesting things about this series has been Slott's systematic destruction of everything in Peter's life pre-Superior. It's typically come in little waves, with the hero community becoming a little suspicious of him and kind of wavering back and forth on their acceptance of him, followed by his friends getting sick of his new attitude, followed by this and that and so on. This is another great example as Doc absolutely ruins Black Cat. Slott and Camuncoli leave absolutely no room for discussion about it; it's a solid beat-down, remarkably swift and pretty brutal. Honestly, if they hadn't brought Black Cat into it, I probably wouldn't have thought about her as such a staple in his life; she just kind of comes and goes into it as she pleases. Now that it's been brought up and so thoroughly dispatched, though, I realize how important she is to Peter and how jarring this attack is. It's another example of a well-thought out and well-realized story for Slott. I think, as fans, we're all kind of aware that Peter Parker will SOMEHOW, at some point, come back. Of course, it's not a guarantee but it's as close to a guarantee as comics can make. The fact Doc has stuck around this long (ten months now, impressively) has been a remarkable show of restraint. Still, it leaves fans looking at these situations going "gee, that's gonna be tough for Peter to clean up" and the like, but issues like this one make it very clear that Slott knows what he's doing with these characters. Doc Ock isn't treating it like he's a placeholder for Peter; he is Peter now and he intends to stay as Peter forever, hence Parker Industries and his insistence that he become Dr. Peter Parker, even if it means sitting through school again. Really good stuff here and a very complete issue.

Scarlet Spider 23
Yost and Burnham (w) and Baldeon (a) and Sotomayor (c)

It's Kaine vs. Kraven in Kraven's newest hunt that can only be ended by one killing the other. To ensure that Kaine doesn't simply walk away, what with his newfound hero personality, Kraven has tied up all of Kaine's friends and swears to kill them if Kaine doesn't go along. Kraven is still a force to be reckoned with and it proves hard for even Kaine, stronger and faster than Spider-Man, to keep up. He continues to insist that he won't give in, that he won't kill Kraven, but the situation gets more and more dire. Kraven believes that Kaine is the only one who can kill him, as its Kaine's blood that brought him back from the grave in the first place and won't allow Kaine to leave until the deed is done. As they fight, Kraven sends Ana to kill one of Kaine's friends. She chooses Donald Meland and slashes him through the stomach. Furious, Kaine tries to go to him but Kraven holds him back, swearing that Ana will kill all of his friends before this is through. Kaine promptly kills Kraven with a force palm to the chest and rushes to his friends, slashing Ana across the face first. He tries to save Meland and eventually cuts his other friends down so they can help (particularly Meland's husband Officer Wally Layton). Kaine, meanwhile, goes back to Kraven and resuscitates him, bringing him back to life. Now, Kaine reasons, that he's killed him, just like Kraven wanted, and now any connection between them is through. Wally manages to stop the bleeding enough to transport Donald to the hospital but the surgeries are very touch and go and it's hard to say whether he'll live or not. Wally, through with Kaine, researches him for the first time in a superhuman criminal law enforcement database and learns about his past.

Tons happening in this issue and it's really a tremendous book. As much as I was bummed by Venom ending last week, I think I might be more broken up about this book when it comes to its end in the coming months. There's such a solid feel throughout this book and such a nice core to it. Kaine's a very complicated character and this is a great arc for him, as he has to directly face his past as a killer, something he decidedly doesn't want to be any more. It's been a nice transformation for him as the series has progressed, especially considering its start. Kaine was simply leaving New York so he wouldn't be apprehended or anything of that nature; he never intended to stay in Houston, let alone America, and to be dragged into his "brother's" heroic ways. But here he is, doing whatever it takes to try to save his friends and finding out that sometimes it's just not enough. It's a really well-written issue here as there has to be just enough sentimentality placed towards his friends and the way they view him without going too overboard and becoming repetitive. It works well and it creates a good picture of the new Kaine. The fighting is extremely well-paced and we see the pain in Kaine as Kraven works him over for a while before Kaine finally unleashes and immediately defeats Kraven and Ana. There's plenty happening here and it'll be interesting to see where we go from here.