Comics : Rampage (UK) #11

Background...

Rampage appears to be aimed at an audience perhaps a couple of years older than Spectacular Spider-Man (UK Magazine). There's a slightly grungy, deliberately-messy feel to Rampage, compared to the relatively clean and bright look of the Spectacular Mag.

While Rampage features the occasional Spider-Man story, that's only a small part of the line-up. Rampage also covers Movies, TV Shows, Computer Games, plus a bunch of other toys and gadgets. Rampage is definitely the more commercial of the magazines, with a good dose of advertisements, TV schedules, and promotional competitions.

The creative team from Rampage seems to cycle through the same basic list of UK creative talent that produces the Spidey stories for Spectacular Spider-Man (UK Magazine), so it's perhaps not surprising that the look and feel of the Spider-Man stories is very similar between them.

In Detail...

"The Good, the Bad and the Hungry!"

	Rampage (UK) #11  Summary: 07-Sep-2005 (Spider-Man Appears)
	Editor:  Tom O'Malley Writer:  Ferg Handley Penciler:  John Haward Inker:  Stephen Baskerville	Staff Only Images Review Edit
	Sep 2005 : SM Guest : Rampage (UK)

The magazine opens with the usual eclectic mix of news and random stuff... a quick roundup of the top four UK football teams, some random facts (World Record for blowing a marshmallow out of your nostril is 4.96 meters). There's a Marvel Mini Toon, some celeb jokes, and some promo competitions. Heh, there's a promo for the Ghost Rider movie. There's a six-page fantastic four story, a Johnny Storm pullout poster, and a few more ads and computer game spotlights. Finally we get to the six-page Spidey story.

With only six pages, you really need to hit the ground running. On the first page we have a strange creature of the night attacking muggers and criminals and draining their blood dry. Mmmm! We also have Bullseye attacking an armoured car. On page two, we combine the two. Morbius attacks Bullseye, saying "Masked man, now you will pay for attacking those guards..." What Morbius has gone all vigilante? But before you've figured that out, Spidey joins the fight by attacking Morbius. It's all happening.

Spidey and Morbius battle each other, until a vagrant interrupts them by throwing a bottle. Morbius attacks the bum, calling him "lowly vagrant, how dare you interrupt Morbius?!" I'm totally confused about Morbius's motives now. He kills free market capitalist (muggers), protects capitalist lackeys (security van drivers), but assaults victims of capitalism (vagrants). I'm completely confused as to Morbius' politico-economic agenda.

Spider-Man fights Moribus some more, and the battle moves next to a parked petrol tanker. Morbius KO's Spidey, and is just about to eat him, but Bullseye interrupts, saving Spidey. He says that he's doing it because he wants to sell Spidey and Morbius's DNA to A.I.M. or The Hand. What? One minute Bullseye's doing armoured car jobs, the next he's trafficking DNA? And why save Spidey? Does he need web-slinger's body alive? Swapping from "stealing cash" to "capturing Spider-Man and a Vampire both alive without any preparation" is a big change of plan!

Well, Bullseye has been planning in the past two minutes. He found an abandoned chair and whittled some wooden stakes, and also picked up a silver holy cross off one of the unconscious security guards. He uses both on Morbius, to no effect. So then bullseye spits the match that he happened to have in his mouth, at the petrol tanker. Why did Bullseye have a match in his mouth? I dunno how come he didn't have it earlier? Dunno. What makes the match strike? Dunno. How come the petrol tanker explodes instantly? Not sure. How come Bullseye can spit stuff, when we thought he could just throw stuff? Beats me.

Anyhow, Spidey webs up Bullseye for the police to find. Morbius escapes.

In General...

The usual complaints about the mag apply. Poorly arranged, lacking in any substance - it's unappealing to me both in terms of content and presentation.

Overall Rating...

By The Editor (E-Mail)