Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #3

Background

When this reviewer began reading Spidey in '62, Peter Parker was in High School, and I hadn't gotten there yet. Now Parker is still in his late 20s or early 30s and I'm, shall we say, much older that that. Hence the need for this title, which is targeted towards new, and younger readers.

Born out of the retro-reprint-cum-retellings of Marvel Age Spider-Man Marvel Adventures Spider-Man is a back-to-basics kind of book telling tales of Classic Spider-Man in a modern-day setting.

Last issue, Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #2 Spider-Man went up against not one, or two, but six (yes, six) of his most nefarious foemen who had determined that they should group up to take out Spidey altogether. So Doctor Octopus, gathered five other formidable foes (Kraven The Hunter, Sandman, Electro, Vulture, and Mysterio), together, and organized them against our favorite hero as The Sinister Six. Given as this was originally presented in an annual in an expanded format in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1, this issue is the second of a two-parter.

Story Details

When we left Our favorite hero last issue, he was trapped in a warehouse without his powers. Spidey was lured there when Doc Ock kidnapped JJJ and Peter's Aunt May. Betty Brant contacted Peter to tell him about the incident, and Peter changed into Spider-Man, and rushed off to save his aunt. As the story starts out, the powerless Spidey is attempting to avoid being killed by his most powerful foes while Jameson and May are tied together in a back room. As usual Jonah is whining about it is all Spidey's fault, and how the Arachnid is probably in cahoots with the Sinister Six. Unable to take it any longer, May yells at him to shut up and be a man.

Spidey manages to slip away from the group of villains, and they split up to track him down in the warehouse. The first one to locate him is Mysterio who traps Spidey in a room full of mirrors so that Spidey can't tell which image is him. Using his own resourcefulness, Spidey tips the light in the room to reveal which is the real Mysterio, not an image, and tackles him, knocking him through a wall and knocking Mysterio out. Only he winds up in a new room facing off against Kraven and one of his jungle cats. While dodging the cat, Spidey manages to trap the over-sized feline under an open box, only to come face-to-face with Kraven himself.

It is at this point that Spidey's fickle powers kick back in and he manages to snare Kraven in one of his own traps. Meanwhile, Jameson manages to get his hands on his cell phone (see, we told you that this was a modern re-telling of the classic tale), only to realize that he doesn't have any reception. Next up, Spidey faces of against, and makes short work of Electro and Sandman as he cracks open a water pipe causing Electro to short-circuit and knocking the two of them out at the same time. Only he has no time to gloat as the Vulture shows up. Only, as they are still within the confines of the warehouse, Spidey quickly manages to overcome the flying sr. citizen in short order.

Angered by his team's inability to defeat Spidey, Doc Ock seeks out his captives to play them as his trump card. Confronting Spider-Man while holding onto both May and Jameson, Ock draws Spidey out onto the open dock behind the warehouse. With his powerful tentacles, Ock cracks the boards of the dock causing both Spidey and Ock to fall into the river as Ock drops JJJ and May on the dock itself. Underwater Ock and Spidey go at it mano-a-mano, with Spidey coming out victorious (naturally).

Upon regaining the dock with the unconscious villain, the police are called and cart away the whole passel of them. Leaving behind JJJ, Spider-Man and May Parker. JJJ is still grumbling about the whole incident and Spidey and May verbally gang up on him to agree to re-hire Peter (whom he had fired last issue) and apologize to him as well. Upon returning home (as Peter) Peter checks in as his Aunt and confess worry about her kidnapping. The two bond as the six villains are re-incarcerated at Rykers' Island and plot about how they will extract their revenge over Spider-Man the next time they face him.

General Comments

Completely faithful to Stan and Steve's original tale, the story is presented in a new light while retaining all of the fun and innocence of that original story, as it plays it out for a new generation of fandom.

Overall Rating

This book is really all about the fun of the Spider-Titles, with none of the burdensome crush of 40+ years of continuity. It is offered up as a great jumping on point for new or younger readers who would like to get into an action tale of superhero adventures.

Footnote

On a personal note. This reviewer feels that over the last several years of comics many of the younger readers that helped found this genre have been mostly ignored. While Marvel has attempted to reach this audience in the past, I have always felt that it never truly but the full weight of the company behind those outings. However, with it's flagship character now in a new comic with stories, not adapted from some little-seen animated adventure, but straight from the heart of the Marvel Universe itself, this series should hopefully last for quite some time.