Amazing Spider-Man came out of the blocks sharp and resilient with a younger feeling Peter Parker and a new direction. Amazing Spider-Man #2 is out this week, legacy numbering #966, and writer Joe Kelly and artist Pepe Larraz keep the pedal to the metal as Spider-Man fights his entire rogues gallery. Or are they even there at all?
Picking up directly where we left off, the first full-page splash shows Spider-Man diving through a wall and window, with captions detailing his fear and things that are not there. The very next page shows Kraven, Lizard, Carnage, and Scorpion attacking him, all cast in a red glow. The captions detail bystanders he’s trying to save, yet we don’t see them. It’s a touch confusing, but in a great double-page layout, we see that none of it is real while police stand around in shock. Lucky for Spider-Man, he’s not hurting anyone, but there’s a lot of vehicular damage.
The very next page enhances the discombobulating nature as Peter is back with his middle school friend at a job he just got and is screwing up on. Again. The jumping ahead in time and space continues, and it’s done in a way that proves Spider-Man is going through some serious stuff.
Peter swore!
Credit: Marvel
While most of this issue concerns the seriousness of his poisoning that lingers until the last page, there are some nice touches to key characters in Peter’s life. Kelly weaves in Shay naturally, for instance, teasing the fact that she may not see Peter as a boyfriend. Norman Osborn also enters the story at one point, and it’s nice to see his darker goblin side may still be present. More importantly, the darker, more rebellious side of Peter in middle school is touched upon. It’s here where a more grounded look at what makes Peter tick will continue to be explored.
As far as art, Larraz is doing incredible work. A panel of Spider-Man swinging into Ravencroft is downright gorgeous, with the towers and coloring by Marte Gracia casting it like some kind of haunted manor. Any time a supervillain is on the page, you’ll linger; it’s just that good. Possibly the scene stealer is a two-page scene with our main villain and a mysterious one. The scene is told from the feet of the characters, which shows just enough mayhem and death to convey the grotesque murders they committed. In one panel, we have to guess that one villain is holding another by the throat due to them impossibly hovering over the floor. It’s a clever way to add some mystery to who these characters are while keeping the violence they did at the edges.
Amazing Spider-Man #2 continues Joe Kelly and Pepe Larraz’s bold new direction with a trippy, emotionally-charged story that fuses psychological turmoil with visual flair. It’s a Spider-Man comic that challenges perception and plays with time and trauma in meaningful ways. There’s visual inventiveness mixed in with plenty of mystery.
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