Vulture wants Spider-Man dead, but the cover says it all: Spider-Man gets a new suit in Amazing Spider-Man #8! Okay, it’s honestly not that big of a deal–he just got a new one last year–especially since there’s no way Spider-Man can avoid death while falling from a great height with no web fluid left. Right?!
As the preview shows, that’s wrong! Give it up to writer Zeb Wells who comes up with a clever way for Spider-Man to escape death. Add in John Romita Jr. showing him narrowly avoiding death by inches and you have a fun opening to Amazing Spider-Man #8. The new series with Wells at the helm has set up a big mystery and given few answers, but if there’s one theme, it’s classic Spidey villains kicking Spider-Man’s butt. Last story arc, it was Tombstone, and now it’s Vulture’s turn.
And Vulture does a bang-up job of it. Once again, Romita Jr., Scott Hanna on inks, and Marcio Menyz on colors draw a very good Spider-Man. He takes battle damage, he gets thrown into brick walls, and you feel the beating Spider-Man takes. Romita Jr. was a great choice as an artist on a series that has mostly been about Spider-Man getting beat up mercilessly. The art team will make you appreciate the details in shards of glass in one scene or the well-placed motion blur in another.
That’s a tough fall to land.
Credit: Marvel
There’s some good fight choreography in this issue that sees Spidey get dragged through the sky and eventually ride Vulture. More than once, I pondered if Stan Lee would have marveled at some of the stuff they have Spider-Man doing to Vulture in the issue, as we’ve never seen a fight like this in the air.
The costume reveal is exciting in a full-page splash, but it has little setup or explanation. It doesn’t look that cool, nor does the helmet Spider-Man wears make much sense. Essentially it’s the primary costume save for a glider and some gold glowing bits.
Aside from fighting Vulture and showing off the new Spider-Man costume, this issue does a decent job of making you not so sure about Spidey trusting Norman Osborn. There’s a resolution of a sort by the end, but I’m still not sure. Peter’s rage is also apparent, a new element in Wells’ take on the character. I can’t say I appreciate more teasing and mystery in a new direction that dropped a big mystery on readers at the start, but here we are.
Ultimately, Amazing Spider-Man continues to push forward too slowly. This issue takes place over an hour or so, leaving all the questions we have unanswered. Spider-Man’s attitude and anger remain a mystery, and throwing Norman into things only continues. Sure, there might be a big payoff and answers later, but this series demands a lot of patience from its readers.
If you dig Spidey fights, pick up Amazing Spider-Man #8. Seeing Spidey and Vulture go at it in the sky the old-school way is a delight. Aside from that, there are no new answers and not much else to cling to for enjoyment.
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