I know that it’s barely 2025 but I’d like to wind the clock back to 2016. Back to Parker Industries, webware and Peter Parker as a globe trotting industrialist. At the time it felt like I was reading Iron Man comics more than Spider-Man. It didn’t feel right. Being successful seemed to take Peter far from being the neighborhood “Everyman” that he’s always been known as. Still, I couldn’t completely hate it, as it seemed like a natural progression of the character if he were to focus and apply himself to more than web swinging. After a while, the Parker Industries phase ended and he was back to being Peter from the block.
Nearly ten years later, we have a brand new creative team on Amazing Spider-Man with Justina Ireland, Marco Menyz, Gleb Melnikov, and Joe Caramagna. They are spinning a story of Peter Parker being convinced by Doctor Doom (who took over as Sorcerer Supreme from Doctor Strange) to become Earth’s newest “Champion in the Covenant of Cyttorak.” Long story short, Peter is taking Doctor Strange’s place as Earth’s Champion against the Scions of Cyttorak, an unearthly creature that Strange had made a bargain with years ago. Spidey has had to quickly learn the ways of magic to fight the eight children of Cyttorak before they conquer the world.
I have no problem with Doctor Strange showing up as a supporting character from time to time but his M.O. is completely different from Spider-Man’s. Peter being an assistant Sorcerer Supreme is very different from being a tech bro industrialist. I could stand a fish out of water story but the first issue of “The 8 Deaths of Spider-Man” felt rushed. There was no build up to Spidey taking over as Champion. A monster showed up, Spidey got his butt kicked, Doom told him what he needed to do and suddenly Spider-Man had mystical armor and was fighting demons.
My feelings about the end of Zeb Wells time on Amazing Spider-Man are the same. He built up the conflict between Spider-Man and Tombstone for his entire time on the title just for the ending to be rushed. The tension between them surrounded an assassination attempt, a gang war, Spider-Man pulling the plug on Tombstone’s life support and a painful to think about beating taken by Spidey. An epic conclusion had been growing, just for Tombstone to get off because he bribed a judge. That’s it, story over. Ditto a story that had begun to take shape around Sandman and Anna Watson. They became friends in prison but there seemed to be a split personality thing with the villain that was being introduced. Just as suddenly as Tombstone got off the hook by bribing the judge, Sandman was a villain without the identity crisis, smashing up the street without the peaceful aspect that enjoyed making pottery.
Why was the storyline’s ending rushed? Fan anger. Wells’ storyline was very unpopular regarding the treatment of Peter’s relationship with Mary Jane and the introduction of her new lover, Paul Rabin. Granted, “Dead Language” was a badly written and nonsensical story featuring fake children, a math god, human sacrifice and differing rates of time flow. Wells resigned as writer of Amazing Spider-Man early, which I assume lead to the rushed ending of the Tombstone story as well as the rushed beginning of “The 8 Deaths of Spider-Man.” That’s what happens when you are expected to publish twice per month, no time to waste.
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I started this rant about three months ago and put it on pause to let "The 8 Deaths of Spider-Man" play out. Spidey faced an existential crisis after witnessing the deaths of millions of people and the inevitability of them eventually being forgotten. He had saved one pedestrian's life early in the story only for him to die later on, making Peter surrender as a hero. Peter only redeems himself after realizing that the pain of failing your loved ones is worse than the knowledge of our brief existence. At the end of the story, he gains the power of the Juggernaut and then gives it up.
On one hand, I can't blame Peter for becoming frustrated with his never-ending cycle of violence and death but the way it was put together felt lazy and amateur. It's an oddly nihilistic feeling story and feels out of place. Where did this come from? Who asked for it? It felt like the writer was having a personal struggle and trying to work it out, trying to find a silver lining on a cloud.
Up Next: The Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 7) #1!
I really wanted to quit after "The 8 Deaths." Wells run ended on an unsatisfying note and "8 Deaths" left a bad taste in my mouth. To top it off, they were pulling the old "cancel the series just to immediately restart it as a new volume" trick. There is a confused, panicked vibe coming from Marvel regarding what to do with Spider-Man. The fans hated Wells, so he stepped down. Then they wrote a story where Spidey acted as both a Sorcerer Supreme and the Juggernaut. Before that story ended, the new volume was announced.
As I said, I didn't like that they made Spidey into Iron Man ten years ago and I didn't like that they made him into Doctor Strange. Peter isn't alone in being amalgamated into other characters, though. A few months ago, Eddie Brock bonded to the Carnage symbiote after the events of "Venom War." He is now his own worst enemy. At the same time, we have a new comic title called, "All New Venom." Who is the new Venom? Mary Jane Watson. Last and most surprising, Gwen Stacy is back. The real Gwen, not a clone or doppelganger from another dimension. She will be resurrected by Weapon X and remade as a brutal, grim vigilante. The girl that cried at the drop of a hat is now coming for you.
Norman Osborn is no longer the Green Goblin and has developed a conscience. Gwen is getting payback.