Webs Weekly #5

Combined with last week’s entry featuring Spidey’s long, lost love Mary Jane, I may be working on a theme here. Things that cause a tingling sensation? No, that’s not it. It’s things that I miss seeing out of the current Spider-Man. Thanks to a recent storyline featuring a true act of heroism by Peter Parker, our hero has been without his most unique power – his spider-sense. I think Spidey’s extra-sense is (was) his greatest asset, and recently we’ve seen just how much he had come to rely on that power. Think of all the ways it’d come in handy in your own life. Brad could have been aware of the tornadoes that swept through his home town, I wouldn’t have locked myself out of my apartment the other week, we’d all be aware of when Wacker was about to post on the latest Amazing Spider-Man review! Personally, I was a little let down with how the spider-sense was represented in Sam Raimi’s movie trilogy and hope that we get a much more visual approach to it in the new movie. For now, let’s take a look at how some artists get their squiggly lines on.

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Peter Parker Spiderman cover by Skottie Young (left)

So let’s get some of the professional artists out of the way. Many of us are familiar with Skottie Young’s very distinctive art style, and I think his crazy, sketchy look is a really fine example of Peter’s silent alarm going off. I dig the half Peter/half Spidey look when the spider-sense rings. Young had another chance to showcase the spider-sense when he was a guest artist in Ultimate Spider-Man #150. Some other non-Spidey work Skottie is known for is his brilliant work on Marvel’s Wizard of Oz comics. His style is perfect for the land of Oz and all it’s zany inhabitants, I recommend giving it a look.

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Spider-Man vs Elektra by Frank Cho (right)

Also found in Ultimate Spider-Man #150 is a series of backup stories drawn by various artists. Frank Cho takes on the mini Elektra storyline and has possibly the best example of how severe Spider-Man’s spidey-sense can be when danger is imminent. Cho has Elektra in some pretty questionable, pornstar-esque poses, and since I never followed up with the review for the second part of Ultimate #150, I never got the chance to talk about it. Well I’m talking about it now because not only is her costume in danger or garnering a MA17 rating for the comic, but Spidey’s in danger of being impaled on her sais, and his spider-sense knows it.

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Spidey Sense colors by m-u-d-c-a-t, pencils by kidnotorious (left)

I really like this picture for a couple of reasons. The rectangular shape in the background really frames Spider-Man and I love when characters break free from panels like the way Spidey’s arm does in this picture. The colors are really simple and have some great shading to it. The spider-sense has a nice variation in the thickness and shapes of the lines, and finally because Spidey is upside down in a very nice Spidery pose. Some other plugs for the artists: m-u-d-c-a-t has some other nice color work on his page such as a Sith Lord Smurfette, and kidnotorious shows off his affection for markers and batman characters.

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A Guy’s Gotta Make a Livin’ by Mr-Representational (right)

Another great cartoony-take on Spider-Man. Mr. Rep’s spidey has some elongated, exaggerated features, but it works in this picture. I think this art style would look great in a kid’s show on Nickelodeon or in a Marvel Adventures title for younger audiences. I find the “walk” sign on the lamppost particularly humorous. Mr.-Representational’s account is forwarded to a new Deviant account where he has a lot of character studies as well as a nice cartoony 30th anniversary Star Wars piece.

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My Spidey Sense is Tingling by kay-too (left)

Let’s give a little love to the symbiote suit in this entry. kay-too’s black-suited Spider-Man looks like it could be found in the Epic Mickey video game. The runny, ink-blot look helps give the alien suit that look like it’s alive and has a mind of it’s own. His use of white spider-sense lines is a good counter to the black suit as well. In addition to some cool, stylized versions of Superman, Voldemort and Megaman, he also shows off his love for the Mario Brothers by combining Luigi with Gambit, and Mario with a force-user.

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Pete Spiderman: Daily Bugle by SAGG (right)

When posting this entry, I just noticed the blue-colored blocks in the background make a spider shaped shadow behind Spidey. Very nice. I’m still unsure who the whackjob with the chainsaw is, but he definitely poses a threat to Spider-Man, as evidenced by the spidey-sense going off. I like the very angular look to this piece. It makes me think of an old-timey, ad, but don’t ask me what I mean by “old-timey” because I’m horrible with pinpointing generational fads. SAGG has a very cool Gremlins commission on his site, as well as a piece dedicated to the memory of the recently departed Macho Man Randy Savage. By SAGG’s request: his blog and website, where you can find more samples of his work.

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Alrighty, I have another sense going off now. My hunger sense. Time for me to eat some grub while you guys eat up these latest pics. Enjoy!

“Remember that one time during the fight when it looked like you might actually win? No? Me neither.” – Marvel vs. Capcom 3
“Did I mention I beat up Firelord once? No, seriously. Firelord.” – Ultimate Alliance 2