If you like fun (and who doesn’t?), you should be reading Amazing Spider-Man. There’s something about reducing Peter Parker’s life to struggling to pay the rent that makes him that much lighter and easier to swallow. It helps that writer Nick Spencer is delivering on all fronts, be it pop culture references or clever turns in the story. In the second chapter of “Trivial Pursuit,” Peter must fight nearly all the bad guys…as Peter Parker.
So what’s it about?
Read the preview.
Why does this matter?
Peter Parker’s roommate happens to be Boomerang, which is throwing the whole bad roommate narrative into a new direction. This issue also reveals more info about the mysterious new villain introduced in the Free Comic Book Day comic!
Fine, you have my attention. What’s good about it?
Not a good spot to be in. Credit: Marvel Comics
You know a writer is good at what they do when they can take a no-name villain and make them more interesting. Tom King did it with Kite Man and this issue continues Spencer’s trending Boomerang upward. The character gets some humbling bits as well as some fun ones. You get the impression if he wasn’t so interested in making money the illegal way he’d probably be an okay dude to hang out with. Peter sees that too and that adds a new layer to their relationship which will be fun to see.
The main crux of this issue revolves around Peter having to hide the fact that he has powers. That’s not easy to do in a cramped bar where supervillains are trying to kill you. Spencer uses this sequence to add a bit of action so we can cut to Kingpin who is the very jerk who has put Peter and Boomerang into this situation. As things unfold, new details emerge about Kingpin as well as how far he’s willing to go to get what he wants.
Ramos once again doesn’t draw Spider-Man in this issue, a major issue I had with the last issue, but does a great job with flashback moments and Peter’s predicament. The new villain is quite cool looking too and has a creepy vibe that seems unique in the Spider-Man rogues gallery. It does have an animal nature to it though, so he’ll fit right in.
Don’t shoot to kill, Pete! Credit: Marvel Comics
It can’t be perfect can it?
The last few pages with this new villain take a turn that isn’t earned. Avoiding spoilers, but there hasn’t been much setup about this character and we’re lead to believe they have great power based on a character’s response. I’m sure we’ll get more info about this character and their powers, but as it stands it’s a cheap way to establish a status for the character. It’s clear the story needs to get this character up to a certain speed more time and issues would require, but it’s unfortunate since you won’t buy it when it could all be blown away and you wouldn’t care one iota.
Is it good?
A good issue that continues the super-fun trend this series has had from the get-go. It’s a strong statement as the most fun era of Spider-Man ever.
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