Amazing Spider-Man 33
PLOT: Morlun and Spidey engage in a knock down drag out for the whole issue. Spidey decides he can't beat Morlun on his own and goes to Ezekial for help. Ezekial refuses saying Spidey is destined to die.
LIKES: Romita, Jr.'s art continues to be top notch and he has a field day with the action here. If you like battle royals this one's for you. The mention that Morlun feels something is "wrong" with Peter hints at an interesting resolution as well as the possibility that Spidey doesn't quite fit into things as Ezekial thinks he does.
DISLIKES: Is anyone else out there tired of Spidey getting the snot beat out of him? Fusion. The Green Goblin. The geek who kidnapped MJ. And now Morlun. They all have beat Spidey to a pulp. Enough already! Also JMS needs to cool it with this stuff about Morlun being the biggest baddest Spidey has ever faced. He's also way off base having Spidey say Morlun is the first villain who really ticked him off. This doesn't fit with almost 40 years of web spinning history. JMS may want Morlun to be an epic-like Spidey villain but he can't force it to happen. Finally what's with the Campbell covers? Can he make some effort to have the cover relate to the story inside instead of just being a potential poster?
RATING: out of 5 web-heads and slightly slipping.

Amazing Spider-Man #32
PLOT: Ezekiel tells Peter some about the ancient origin of their spider powers along with the terrible threat posed by Morlun. Peter declines Ezekiel's offer of a hiding place and, as Spider-Man, is lured into a showdown with Morlun.
LIKES: JMS offers an interesting reflection on Peter's sense of responsibility especially when compared to Ezekiel's regret at not using his powers for anything other than his own financial gain. The explanation of Peter and the other's with spider-powers being part of some kind of prehistoric link between man and other species is an interesting twist. However it still not clear how this lead to Peter obtaining his powers and to what purpose it may serve. The point about Spidey attracting so many villains with powers and identities based on a variety of animals sequence is insightful and offers JR, Jr. the chance to apply his chops to other heroes and baddies and he doesn't disappoint. JMS also injects enough humorous dialogue to counter balance long stretches of borderline mumbo jumbo about totalistic powers, cellular needs, checks and balances and the like.
DISLIKES: The explanation of the missing link between man and other species is only a partial explanation. Why are there so many others with spider powers as shown last issue? What is the purpose of keeping this link alive? The more JMS elaborates the more questions he raises. Ezekial says he used his powers to amass his fortune. How? Other than the fact that Peter plies his super hero trade in public why can't Morlun sense and track down Ezekiel and the others with spider power. JMS also may be pushing it a bit by insisting that Morlun is the greatest threat Peter ever faced. Like we haven't heard that one before.
RATING: out of 5 web-heads Although falling short of the hype the good still outweighs the bad here.

Amazing Spider-Man 31
PLOT: Peter's inadvertent stop at his old high school last issue leads him to return with the idea of becoming a teacher. Once he's there the school is assaulted by a gunman. Using the picked upon science geek he met last issue Peter, as Spider-Man, brings down the assailant without anyone getting hurt. At the end Peter becomes the school's science teacher as the trouble is the last straw for the current one. On the villain front, Ezekiel presides over a board meeting of some kind of corporation of possible spider-powered people and Morlun launches some kind of fear inducing mind missile at Spidey as he passes by.
LIKES: The most striking thing about this issue is the artwork. It is stunning. The inking and coloring especially seems to be a cut above. Story wise JMS proceeds with the changes he began last issue. However for everything positive about this issue there is a negative. He presents a believable scenario for Peter's return to his old high school and I'm sure he thinks this is fertile ground for relevant stories. I hope he's right but I found this one to be clichéd and predictable. The Ezekiel angle is given little attention here but the mystery expands and deepens. It's too soon to really have a feel one way or another where this is headed. Morlun also has a limited appearance but exhibits a power that sets him apart from Morbius to whom he bore too strong a resemblance in last issue .
Dislikes: It's good that Aunt May and Peter have a meaningful discussion but I found May's actual dialogue to be out of character for her as she has never been presented in such a sophisticated fashion. It's fine for May to attempt to subtly give Peter advice but the words JMS chooses show he has a tin ear for Aunt May. As I mentioned above the whole school shooter thing has been done ad nauseam since the tragedy at Columbine. Oh who could have guessed the shooter was a student who had been picked on unmercifully? Also I wonder how Peter can teach without significantly curtailing his Spidey activities. Why would the school put up with his frequent absences? And how often will there be a chemically created fog for Peter to change into his costume?
RATING: out of 5 web-heads. For all my misgivings JMS has done enough right to keep the anticipation high for his next move. And that is more than could be said for most of what has come before in the reboot.

Amazing Spider-Man 30
PLOT: Peter goes out for a night of web-slinging to blow off steam after Mary Jane's departure. He takes out his frustration on an abandon building, ultimately demolishing it. The next day as Peter Parker he wanders past his old high school and chases a group of bullies who were tormenting a geeky boy. For his trouble he catches the ire of the boy and a PE teacher from the school who explains to Peter than the boy must learn to stand up for himself. 
I gave the details on this as it greatly effected Peter and he does need a way to make a living. That night, as Spider-Man, Peter frightens the three bullies as they try to steal a car. Afterwards he meets an enigmatic stranger named Ezekiel who knows Spidey's secret identity and also has spider powers. Ezekiel poses a question that casts doubts about Peter's (and our) understanding of Spidey's origin. From there we are introduced to a new super-villain, Morlun, who seems Morbius like and was feeding in some way on an unknown super-hero from Germany. Having depleted his captive he is ready to search out a replacement, namely Spider-Man.
LIKES: Well here it is, as the cliché goes, the dawning of a new era for everyone's favorite Web-Crawler. J. Michael Straczynski has arrived. While I would prefer that Marvel return to portraying Spidey as an adult with a wife and child (after all he did age during the Stan Lee years through high school and into college) I guess we are stuck with the idea of Peter as the eternal twenty something, unlucky at love and unable to earn a living. (Check out Joe Quesada's comments on the Marvel.com message boards that having Spidey grow older, get married and have a child was a terrible mistake.) JMS begins at the very heart of the Spider-Man mythos by questioning his origin. Ezekiel seems to have the identical powers and plenty of knowledge of Spidey. Whether he's the real deal or not remains to be seen but the premise is intriguing. 
The demolition of the abandoned building is a good sequence and a natural response by Peter to MJ's leaving. The high school bit foreshadows events in Peter's civilian life and JMS makes Peter's interest here entirely plausible. Until more is revealed about Morlun I can't judge how effective he will be as a new villain. However, if he's a vampire he'll never be referred to as one as long as his book keeps the seal of approval from the Comics Code Authority. Vampires are a no-no under the code. As usual, Romita, Jr.'s artwork boarders on stunning. At least know he appears to have a writer worthy of his talents. Finally the return of the original "Amazing Spider-Man" logo to the cover is a great and long overdue move.
DISLIKES: I will give JMS the benefit of the doubt here but he is traveling down a slippery slope toying with Spidey's origin as Peter's whole psyche and character is tied to it. Of course this depends on exactly how he toys with it. How and why the spider came to bite Peter could be different from what we and he believed without changing the dynamic behind Uncle Ben's death. As I said before I do not like the idea of keeping Peter perpetually twenty something and down on his luck. The basic idea behind the book has always been Peter's struggle to live a normal life while also living up to the responsibilities of his spider powers. Having him move on to become a husband and a father would be a natural extension of this and something rare in comics. Enough with all that. Back to JMS. He obviously wants to be bold, which is good, but he also needs to tread carefully in some areas.
RATING: web-heads out of 5 (now rating on a scale of 5 for a little more leeway)

Amazing Spider-Man 2001 Annual
PLOT: Mary Jane is back and she and Peter attempt to put their lives back together. She is still spooked by things that remind her of her kidnapping and confinement The couple moves back in with Aunt May and during an intimate moment Peter,as Spider-Man, leaves to thwart a terrorist attack. Left alone Mary Jane ponders their life together and makes a decision about their future.
LIKES: Nice concept but not so nice execution. Sadly that's about the best you can say of most of Mackie's run. The idea of devoting an entire annual to the after affects of MJ's deliverance from the kidnapper is a good idea. The two best things about this annual is that it tries to explore the relationship between Peter and Mary Jane and it is the end of Mackie's time on this book. Oh, and at least we finally found out what was in that darn box.
DISLIKES: Mackie can't quite pull it off. Whether or not you agree with MJ's ultimate decision is irrelevant. The rub is how well the story is done and I just don't buy it. Just before the emergency at the United Nations is brought to Peter's attention MJ says, "I feel as though I am where I belong, I feel happy...safe." By book's end she's saying she and Peter have changed so much they can't go back to the way they were before. And Peter agrees saying he's known the same thing for awhile?! And just how have they changed? Think back to the start of the Mackie/Byrne debacle. Peter was hiding the fact that he had returned to being Spidey from MJ and she was furious when she found out. Shortly thereafter she boarded the plane to a 16 issue absence. Seems they both forgot all about this. And why would Peter going off as Spidey so profoundly effect her that she would change from saying everything was perfect to feeling she had to leave? Did she forget she had to deal with Peter being Spider-Man? There are ample reasons for Mary Jane to feel she needs time by herself for awhile but they're not presented here. And as for Joe Bennett's artwork; I've enjoyed it in previous issues but he's better suited to action issues. A little more subtlety is required in some of the faces and at times the bodies seem strangely contorted. Finally a note to editor Axel Alonso: Anna Watson appeared in Peter Parker: Spider-Man 29 so how could she be in Florida since November?
RATING: out of 4 web-heads and that's because I'm feeling generous due to the official end of the Mackie era.

Amazing Spider-Man #29
PLOT: For no reason whatsoever Peter is again totally convinced Mary Jane is alive. We finally get to see who is holding her: some nut case who hears everyone else’s thoughts. He explains to MJ that ever since Spidey saved him from falling debris during a Spidey/Goblin fight he formed some kind of link with Peter . He not only knows everything about Peter’s life but can experience everything Peter does. He then explains to MJ that he drugged her with a lollipop and in disguise removed her from the ill-fated airplane as she appeared to be sick. Probably due to their “link” Spidey is drawn to the hideaway where he finds MJ and is ambushed by the wacko.
LIKES: MJ’s back! MJ’s back! MJ’s back! Lee Weeks subs for John Romita, Jr. on pencils here and does a nice job as Joe Bennet did last issue. This is Mackie’s last issue! This is Mackie’s last issue!
DISLIKES: If this was issue 15 or 16 and if there was any foreshadowing at all you might have the making of a pretty good story arc here. However, the stalker/kidnapper comes out of nowhere. We were never given an inkling of his existence. He’s essentially a character who prior to this was a mysterious blank slate who disappeared for about 15 issues. This leaves us with the suspicion that Mackie had nothing planned when the stalker storyline began and only now, bowing to pressure to bring MJ back, made up this part. After all the trouble and issues with Peter accepting MJ’s death he now mysteriously becomes convinced she’s alive again. Talk about rendering the bulk of over a year’s worth of stories irrelevant. Will we ever find out what was in the box that convinced Peter MJ was dead? What kind of lame reason will Mackie come up with to explain why MJ had to be held captive for so long? Will he sluff that off on poor Paul Jenkins.
RATING: web-heads out of 4: would be much higher if there was any decent foreshadowing and the story came about 10 issues ago.

Amazing Spider-Man #28
PLOT: The story is framed by showing an unidentified woman held captive in a closet by an unidentified man. Meanwhile at Randy Robertson’s request Peter delivers a TV to an amazon like woman named Fallon. It is obviously a set up and just as obvious that Fallon is not good for Peter. Peter returns home and finds out that Glory and Jill Stacy were also in on it although Randy had vouched for Fallon. Jill and Peter have a moment of staring longingly into each other’s eyes. Later that night while patrolling Spidey comes across the Enforces ambushing mobster Jimmy-6 and his family. Spidey fights awkwardly against the Enforces, enemies he should dispatch easily. While the fight continues we see that the mysterious captor from the beginning begins to feel the same sensations as Spidey. The webspinner finally prevails against the Enforcers and convinces Jimmy-6 to end the hostilities for the night. Returning to the scene of the beginning of the fight Spidey stands before a billboard that a worker just stripped to reveal an ad featuring Mary Jane while the mystery captor opens the closet door to reveal a woman who apparently is MJ.
LIKES: Joe Bennett subs for John Romita, Jr. on pencils here and does a nice job although he relies too much on shadow like progressions to illustrate Spidey’s acrobatics. Also any story that seems to bring MJ back to the book is certainly more than welcome. The Enforces are gangland foes of Spidey from way back in the days when the Green Goblin battled the Crime-Master for control of the Mob and their return is a nice touch. The cover by JR, Jr. is great (but what does it have to do with this issue?)
DISLIKES: The whole incident with Peter and Fallon which is suppose to be humorous is just plan flat and awkward. Compare Randy Robertson in Peter Parker: Spider-Man 28 and here and you’ll see how lame Mackie’s characterization is. None of the supporting characters have been major contributors to this book and that is one of the many short comings of Mackie’s run. The story with the Enforcers and Jimmy-6 is rather pointless, just like last issues story and plainly serves only to fill the space between the opening and closing bits with the kidnapper. Does anyone really have confidence that Mackie can bring the MJ saga to a satisfactory conclusion.
RATING: web-heads out of 4: the extra ½ is for MJ’s apparent return.