Peter Parker: Spider-Man (Vol. 2) Annual 2000 (Story 2)

Background

It's an annual, okay? The good thing about annuals is that they're usually not steeped in continuity (for the record, the bad things are that they're more expensive, and it's not uncommon for them to be not overly good). So going into this book, all you need to know is there's this guy named Peter Parker who's had more than his share of bad luck in his life. Oh, and he's Spider-Man, too. You'll pick up the rest as you go...

Story 'From the Rich to the Poor'

We kinda jump in right in the middle of this one, as Spider-Man is foiling a burglary by his ex-flame, the Black Cat. Spidey's miffed 'cause the Cat was supposed to have gone straight, and he demands an explanation. The Cat tells him (amid a flurry of sexual innuendos) that she is trying to dig up dirt on a crooked real estate developer so that she can put him in jail.

Spidey doesn't quite believe her, but that's kind of put on the back burner when Hydro-Man shows up. They all slug it out, and Spidey tries to mop up Hydro-Man in webbing, but he soaks right through, Finally, Spidey distracts him with webbing in the face, and the Cat sneaks up from behind and clonks him over the head with a big seashell. As Spidey is webbing up Hydro-Man (much more thoroughly this time), the Cat gets away.

But a few weeks later, Spidey finds out that the story the Cat told was, in fact, true, as the real estate developer she mentioned is being sent to jail. And now Spidey has a clear conscience for letting the Cat get away that night, while the Cat wishes she could earn the wall-crawler's trust.

General Comments

The second story is basically just filler, and although it's not as strong as the first story, it's not too bad, either. There's not really much of a story to it, as it is mostly just a fight scene, but the saving grace for the story is the interplay between Spidey and the Black Cat. The Cat will make some sort of sexual comment to the web-slinger, who will then get all tongue-tied and flustered. It's really quite funny.

Overall Rating

Good for a giggle, but not a patch on the lead story. Three and a half webs.