X-Man #37

Background

Spidey makes an appearance in Nate Grey's house. They fight armoured guys and stuff.

Story 'Breaking Point'

Nate Grey, bummed out over the way things have gone in his life, decides to use his immense psi-power to make everyone on earth forget that he ever existed. But, in his distress, he also sends a psionic cry for help to his old buddy Spider-Man. The two meet on whichever bridge it is where Gwen Stacy was killed. (The one that was called the George Washington Bridge but drawn as the Brooklyn Bridge back in Amazing #121.) Pete tries to talk Nate out of it. When Nate starts to proceed anyway, Peter punches him hard in the gut. A super-hero fight ensues that abruptly ends when Nate inadvertantly conjures up the Gwen Stacy from his world of Apocalypse. But this is not the sweet Gwen Stacy that Peter knew. This Gwen Stacy totes a gun!

In the midst of all this, a strange airship arrives. Armored figures disembark. They are heavily armed and shielded from Nate's psi-fields. A blast knocks the other-world Gwen off the bridge and Pete must live the nightmare again. This time, however, he propels himself down and catches Gwen by the wrist. Gwen looks up at the man in the mask and quizzically mumbles, "P-Peter?" But at that moment, Nate Grey is knocked unconscious and Gwen disappears, leaving Spidey very mad indeed.

General Comments

This is the kind of sub-standard Terry Kavanagh rubbish we've come to expect. But let's wait until we've read the concluding second part of the arc before I get out the knives and start dissecting the performance.

Overall Rating

One and a half webs. An unconvincing start.