Mark Waid returns to ASM for a new Daredevil crossover story that gets some things as right as you’d expect from a writer of his caliber, and as wrong as you’d expect based on the current climate at Marvel. Its overall strength actually depends on how much you like Black Cat: this is by far her best appearance in recent memory, while the steady and efficient work of trashing Peter Parker in every way possible gets kicked up a notch. Why does Marvel hate him so much?
The Amazing Spider-Man #677: The Devil and the Details Part 1
Words by Mark Waid
World-class, issue-saving pencils by Emma Rios
Colors by Javier Rodriguez
Letters by Joe Caramagna
You know, I hadn’t started reading Spidey on a monthly basis back during the clone saga, so it could be that I’m a bit off about this, but the impression I’m under is that one of the things Marvel wanted to change with Ben Reilly was to be able to have him date a variety of hot women – to create a character who was a bit “cooler.” If that was the case then perhaps it explains what they’ve done to Peter Parker over the past few years, because if he keeps getting forced in the opposite direction at this rate, he’s soon going to be web slinging in diapers. This issue might just top the time that he supposedly thought he got “drunk” on apple juice. He’s freshly broken up and broken-hearted, having been “crazy in love with the perfect woman” (BS, of course, but let’s talk about things we didn’t already know) who just dumped him. So what does he do? He conveniently runs into Black Cat and attempts to suggest that they start up their friends with benefits arrangement again, and he does it with all the class of a fourteen-year-old who’s never kissed a girl.
Whether or not I’ll end up considering this the lowest point of the post-Straczynski Peter Parker is dependent on this story’s followup in Daredevil. Why? Because I’m waiting to see if the spider tracer ends up being a twist. As it stands right now, after Felicia rejects our pathetic protagonist’s clumsy advances and gets home, she finds a spider tracer on her and justifiably wonders exactly how desperate he is. That moment is interrupted by the NYPD, and I have a feeling that even Waid isn’t going to push it this far: I kept waiting for the tracer to come up, but Spidey never mentions it when he’s talking about the situation with Daredevil. My guess is we’re going to find out next issue that it wasn’t Pete’s tracer. Please.
Wow, you look great.
I’m really bummed out that Waid’s going so far out of his way to make Peter look pathetic in this issue, because there are a lot of things I really like about it. First and foremost is Emma Rios. I was tricked at first by that Ramos cover, but it’s a very false alarm: Emma Rios is an artist. In fact, I wish that Ramos would take some lessons from her. She’s stylized in the same way he always tries to go for, but her powerful grasp of anatomy and layout clearly underlies the artistic embellishments she makes. I don’t always like her rendition of every character — there are some panels where I think Pete and Black Cat look a little “off.” But they’re rendered beautifully nonetheless. Where she really shines, though, is rooftop and battle scenes. Her costumed heroes stretch, swing and spread in creative but always believable ways, and the sense of motion and impact she conveys is highly impressive. When Spidey trounces a thug in the book’s opening scene, you really feel the impact of his foot colliding with this guy’s face, you hear the slush of the snow giving way underneath him and you sense the weight of these two heavy bodies coming down on the earth. For the next few pages I was having such a great time staring at the way Rios posed Spidey and Cat as they leaped between buildings that it almost made up for the obnoxious dialogue about how much of a desperate loser Spider-Man is. There’s an even prettier scene where Spidey and Daredevil converse on a rooftop and then have a fastfalling race as they make their exit. The sense of motion and perspective is breathtaking.
I’d also like to point out that Rios’s art is a perfect example of what female illustrators can bring to comics and why we need more of them. I love her rendition of Felicia because she’s proving that it is, in fact, possible to have stylish and sexy women in your comic without tarting them up, and I think that the industry’s male artists all need to read this issue and take some notes. Felicia’s design hits all the right notes here: she’s smooth and sultry, full of confidence and obviously out to look damn good while she’s pulling heists — but she’s not spreading cleavage across every page or shoving her ass out for readers to gawk at. There’s a fine line between a sexy character and an objectified character, and having more women doing art would probably help make that line clearer to the sausage fest that is the comic book industry.
The art was by far the strongest element of this issue, and I would really love to see Rios’s take on Spider-Man again, especially on a book where I like the writing more.
Why so timid? What are you worried about?
As much as I hate Waid’s Peter, I have to give him credit for the rest of the issue. The story is tight and action-packed, with no decompression at all. It’s a rare quality in comics these days that I finish reading and feel like I got a substantial amount of story packed into twenty-two pages, but this issue really delivered in terms of story content. I love a good mystery, and so far Waid’s done a great job of setting it up to keep me interested. I’m looking forward to finding out who would be able to steal from Horizon and frame Black Cat (and, hopefully, plant a fake spider tracer on her — come on, Waid, make me right about this). In fact, the plot itself is so strong that the whole book would have been better if it committed the crime I was so hard on last issue for and left Spider-Man out completely. Because that is ultimately the effect that Waid’s writing of the character has. It makes everyone, especially Daredevil and Black Cat, look cool and competent while Spidey is constantly wrong and making mistakes.
Why is the dynamic between him and Daredevil so skewed that it borders on condescension? Why is Spider-Man his “go-to for full grown men whose voices still crack”? Why is it implied that Daredevil is the smarter of the two because his sonar-sight doesn’t pick up holograms? Maybe it’s all because Mark Waid is writing Daredevil right now, and part two of this story is happening in Daredevil, and… this should just be a Daredevil story, shouldn’t it?
Maybe there’s just no place left for Spider-Man to go in this new age. Maybe this isn’t even Spider-Man, and the real Peter Parker died when Mephisto rearranged the world, replaced with his hilariously bumbling clone sidekick. Why not? Make it so, Marvel. Let’s a get another retcon in here. At this point, it would be euthanasia.
Pros:
- Gorgeous art from Emma Rios, who needs to start doing more comic work immediately.
- A compelling first-part to a well crafted mystery.
Cons:
- Why is Peter Parker stupid? Should we bother asking at this point? Does anyone care except Crawlspacers anymore? Does everyone else just like him this way?
Grade: B-
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Don: Thanks, and I agree – I was enjoying your reviews before I ever thought I’d be doing this, and now that I am it’s even more fun to read them to see what we both got out of it and where we differ.
Agent Michigan: the podcasters have done very well with that one. I would rather leave it for them to get all they can out of it before it’s beaten into the ground. 😉
@#22
You missed the one in the podcast…
Mark Waid and no Dick Move jokes?
Great review. You know, I just went back and re-read AS#s 351-352 and your comments come out in HARSH relief when compared to that era Spidey. this is no spectacular story, just a random sample. But, you know what? Spidey used to be a hero. Guys like Nova looked up to him. He was smart AND powerful. Nova is actually a little intimidated by him at one point. Sure, that was then this is now, but I miss that Spidey.
Another great review Erik! Honestly, I appreciate the second opinion your reviews provide for the Crawlspace.
You people do realize that be it a 0 or a 5, you can still go out and buy the book and come to your own opinion of it regardless, right?
But whether you like it or not, that makes Marvel happy… because you still bought it.
Look, I’m going to voice my opinion here only once so listen–err, read up! My friend showed me his issue Saturday so I’ve read it. I ended up wondering why he spent the cash on it. So does he.
The art… I’ve seen better. Much better. Good action scenes and respect for female characters but still. I guess I should blame the coloring, and somewhat of the inking, as the biggest problem. And the mask eyes… *shudder*.
The story? Hmm, seems more like a one-time filler to me. I don’t like fillers. AT ALL. A rather simple plot idea; Black Cat was framed, Spidey needs to help her. Feel like I’ve read that before. Spidey and Devil’s friendship is put back in the spotlight. I personally prefer Spidey and Wolverine’s friendship of insanity but it’s nice to see Webs and Devil teaming up. It’s no ‘Death of Jean DeWoulf’ though.
What grade would I give it? None. No 0-5 or F-A for me. Nope, I keep it simple: should I buy it or not buy it? Ta-da. What qualifies as ‘not buy it’? Any comic I would end up reading only once then putting away for a few months only to be rediscovered, reread, and recycled. Then I lament *wink, wink* spending money on it in the first place. What qualifies as ‘buy it’? Any comic that makes me read it over and over after it hooks me and entertains me. Ofcourse I’ll put away but when spring cleaning comes I’ll keep it and occasionally reread. That’s why I’ve kept most of the Civil War tie-ins. Last ASM issue I’ve kept? I forget. House needs a cleaning now but it was one of the ‘Back in Black’ issues if I recall.
So… I guess you can say I’m real picky, which explains why I come here. I admit I have high standards when it comes to comics but I want the bang for my buck! Okay, rants over. Just needed to get that out. And my opinion was already voiced in the first paragraph. Good fortune to all and to all a good night. Err– afternoon…?
~Lament~
I’m pretty much in agreement with Mr. Lexie. The weakest part of this issue was Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Definitely the first decent Black Cat appearance since BND started. I just don’t get this stuttering Spidey thing when it comes to her. When has it ever been like that between them prior to BND? I’m really trying to remember. Also, didn’t the solicit say something about a romance or a love triangle starting up here? I was kind of excited about that.
@Two-Bit Specialist – Man, you’re either very lucky or infinitely more tolerant than me if you’ve never been in that situation. I had a difficult time getting past the first box of dialogue in this issue. I actually groaned/laughed out loud.
Gerard,
Ok that’s not cool. You’ve been banned after three warnings yet you break the rules and come back and post. Then you call me out on my own site. Doubly not cool. I have been your biggest supporter and defended you against several other admins, yet this double insult isn’t cool. I’ve banned this latest IP.
@Enigma – I haven’t had that happen to me (yet), but I do see where you guys are coming from with this.
@#12
Let me answer your question with a question. Have you ever tried to enjoy a book, only to have something in it so glaringly faulty that it taints your entire experience with it and makes it impossible? Perhaps that’s the case here. In fact, he actually mentioned that he liked Waid’s take on Felicia… god know’s why, I hate the b**** myself.
That’s how I’m seeing this. But like I said, differences in opinion.
P.S.: Jim Lee drew Superman: For Tomorrow and All Star Batman and Robin… would you believe they BOTH sucked out loud?
Whoa… settle down, killa.
I think the main thing to remember is that reviews are still just opinions. Everyone had differences in them, and it’s no guarantee that everyone agrees with yours. That’s just common sense.
Now I was just about to kindly point out the VERY POLITELY WORDED potshots myself before you chimed in. Yes, I think he was pretty polite, but I know a dig when I see it. But I think you might want to step back and take a deep breath, GD. Don’t get too worked up over it. It’s not worth it.
@Gerard – Relax. I AM talking about Don. But this is what I posted in the other review:
“So what did you think of the art? Was the story any good? I felt like this was more of a rant than a review. How did you reach 0 out 5? Does characterization outweigh it all? I’m sorry if I’m being harsh, but I feel like this are all valid questions.”
Then I posted this:
“Just to be clear, Donovan is entitled to his opinion, and I would never ask a reviewer to change his grade. However, not everyone makes their purchases decisions based exclusively upon characterization, so I feel like going a little deeper into the other aspects of the comic is warranted.
A 0 says to me that the pencils, inks, colors, writing, and everything sucked. Completely. I happen to like Waid’s and Rios’ work, so I find that a little hard to believe.”
So it’s no secret that I didn’t agree with Don’s review, but just in case it was, I didn’t agree with Don’s review and told him that.
I’m saying this from the perspective of a buyer, not a reviewer. As a buyer, there are things I wanted to know about the issue that I felt weren’t sufficiently covered by Don’s review. I’m not saying that his review was inferior to Erik’s. I’m just saying that, as someone for whom characterization doesn’t necessarily kill an issue, I appreciate the nods to the art and other writing aspects.
@Two-Bit Specialist: Why don’t you stop being a coward and just refer to Don by name? We all know you’re talking about him.
See, this is why I was against the two-reviewer system when Brad introduced it to me. This whole business essentially pits the two ASM reviewers against each other, and that’s bullshit. “You suck, I’ll wait for the BETTER review.” “This review is so much better than the other one.” “You don’t know what you’re talking about, I’ll wait for the other guy’s review.” “Fire this guy and just have the other guy review the book.” “I hate you, I hope you die.” (Okay, the last one is a bit much.) The point is, it just leads to potshotting and lines drawn in the sand for stupid reasons. There’s no better an example than this issue’s reviews — Don’s comments section is full of people calling him out for giving the issue a zero (because God forbid somebody actually use the entire review scale instead of giving everything 3/5 and up) and asking for him to be fired (hmm … sounds familiar), and this review’s comments are full of potshots at Don’s reviews. I would ESPECIALLY expect better from Aaron, considering that he writes reviews for the site as well.
Is any one review more valid than the other? Hell no. However, that’s not the point. I got into a rip-roaring argument the other day with one of my friends over which movie sucks more — Star Trek V: The Final Frontier or Star Trek: Nemesis. We were getting legitimately pissed off at each other, vehemently arguing our points … until we busted up laughing over the (at that point, intentional) ridiculousness of our arguing. Talking about this stuff is FUN as long as you don’t get too mean-spirited and nasty about it. The whole point of comments sections on these reviews is to open a dialogue about what you just read — agree, disagree, whatever. My favorite part of writing reviews for this site was getting into mini-discussions with people like stillanerd and Spidey-Dad in the comments, eloquently and convincingly agreeing and disagreeing with the points made in the review. (My LEAST favorite part was having to pass through the troll muck to get to these aforementioned good comments, and the relatively unmolested ease with which these trolls were allowed to operate. That, however, is an argument for another day.)
The TL;DR version is that you guys need to lay off of “that other guy” whenever “that other guy” has the audacity to express an opinion opposite to yours, whoever “that other guy” may be. Take it from somebody that’s been there, it hurts a lot to spend hours of your time and effort toiling over reviews without compensation (or even appreciation, at times), only to have people roast you for no reason other than the fact that they don’t like the number or letter you assigned at the end.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to return to the Phantom Zone from whence I came.
Gerard
P.S. Star Trek: Nemesis sucks more. My friend is an idiot and should be fired from reviews.
Thank you for saying more than one line about the art, Erik. I like Rios’ art, and I appreciate what you said about more women artist in comics.
Thank you also for dedicating part of your review about the interaction between DD and Spidey. Sounds like it was handled pretty well.
And thank you for not ignoring these crucial parts and giving your issue a zero.
Liked Waid’s writing except for Peter, Rios’s pencils are NOT for me. Yuck.
Good review. I pretty much felt about this the same way u did. Can’t believe that Slott actualy feels like a good fit to spidey now :s
I liked it but if I knew that it was part of a mini-crossover, I would not have picked it up. Now I’m stuck with half of a story. I really should learn to look for solicits at other sites, or does the crawlspace post them here too? [relatively new to this site]
You may want to patent the following plotline “Maybe there’s just no place left for Spider-Man to go in this new age. Maybe this isn’t even Spider-Man, and the real Peter Parker died when Mephisto rearranged the world, replaced with his hilariously bumbling clone sidekick. Why not? Make it so, Marvel. Let’s a get another retcon in here. At this point, it would be euthanasia..” as this may become the plotline to ENBND (Even Newer Brand New Day)…:)…excellent review..thanks for saving me a few bucks:)
Very different, you found this issue tolerable
Not a fan of the art. The only art that I like is the race between DD and Spidey. I wish Ramos drew this issue.
I don’t like that variant,too. Lee Bermejo is not a good fit for Spider-Man or the new Daredevil.
I love the way you put your images in the review…
I like that variant
Nice review. Totally agreed on Rios and Ramos’ somewhat similar art style