It’s all come down to this, one big ole fashion Spider-Wooping but this time its not his own. Read ahead and see what waits for us at the end of the What IF Tunnel. Will the Parker’s make it out alive?
WRITER: Dan Slott
ARTIST: Adam Kubert & Scott Hanna
COLORIST: Justin Ponsor
LETTERER: VC’s Joe Caramagna
ASSISTANT EDITOR: Devin Lewis
EDITOR: Nick Lowe
PLOT: Our issue begins with Regent easily disposing of Hawkeye’s resistance. When Barton uses the super secret arrow disruptor Regent easily catches it using his Spider-Sense. Then we cut to Peter having a flashback about all the good times in his life (something that happens frequently in this series) and feeling like he has finally lost. Before Peter can wallow too much however Annie and Mary Jane arrive in the hall of tubes and quickly dispatch a pair of scientists monitoring the supers. After defeating the scientists Mary Jane puts on one of their powersuits, and Annie quickly runs through the hall tearing wiring out of the pods searching for her father. Regent then bursts in super angry about his powers being disrupted to fight Mary Jane and Annie. Peter hears his family in trouble and breaks out of his containment tube. Spider-Man then gets ready to fight Regent and save his family. The two end up on the streets duking it out classic Spidey style. Regent in gaining the upper 
hand until Annie leaps down and stabs Regent with the remnants of Hawkeye’s inhibitor arrow. This brings Regent down to a more manageable level severing his connection to his power armor. Once Mary Jane joins them the Parkers start to lay a smack down on Regent which goes well until he manages to grab Annie by the throat. Peter breaks off an piece of Mary Janes power armor seemingly planning on giving Regent a good ole fashioned prison shank, however using his keen joking skills he manages to distract Regent enough to knock him out. After saving the day the Parker’s go home and eat a nice breakfast together as a family. Life will continue for the Parker’s happily married til the end of time.
STORY: This issue was what I hoped for when this series was announced. Its fun, interesting, and puts all of the characters in important active roles. The mere fact that Peter, Annie, and Mary Jane work together really shows you how these characters are truly meant for each other. Although it is worth noting that Mary Jane using the power armor at all is definitely killing another superhero locked within the tubes as its revealed the powers slowly eat away at anyone inside them. This is a difficult issue to review because the plot isn’t overly complicated, and it leaves you feeling happy imaging what could have been in an alternate time and place.
If you go through and read my reviews for this series in order you’d really see how my opinion grew and how I was slowly won over by the charming “What If” storyline. Contrary to my initial rantings in my first review this wasn’t a story about how the Spider-Marriage was bound to fail. Instead it was a well thought out meditation on how this story could have unfolded. Am I a fan of all the decisions made within this storyline? No. I still think he didn’t need to kill Venom. In contrast had he killed Regent in this issue I would have totally been okay with it. Compare the levels of actual danger his family is in during both scenes. In one Venom is having a solo fight with 
Peter with his family watching from afar, in this issue REGENT HAS HIS DAUGHTER BY THE THROAT. However it did lead to a sense of tension within this story, and it shows that Peter understands that killing is not the answer.
The only downside I have within this issue is Regent breaking down in laughter over Peters joke. I mean is it really that funny? Would an all murdering obsessive psycho really break down in laughter as the world falls around him. He seems super somber the rest of this issue, so it seems unlikely that this would occur. This issue further explains with the ending that Doom isn’t well known is it possible that this isn’t even in Battleworld? I mean yes its on all of the Battleworld maps, but other than that do we have any concrete proof this isn’t like a Pre-Secret Wars event? Perhaps Doom hasn’t even created Battleworld yet and this is actually the “Last Days” of a soon to be taken over universe.
Overall I throughly enjoyed Renew Your Vows as a whole, its a fun unique storyline that makes me have hope in Dan Slott once again. This is the Dan Slott that wrote Spider-Man and The Human Torch all those years ago. If this skill and style continues into the new reboot I will be pleasantly surprised. Slott the entire Spider-Fandom has some hope in you once again please don’t waste it.
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P.S. I’d really like to see the box which allows me to see responses in my e-mail. Is that going to come back?
I finally picked up, and read, the final installment of Renew Your Vows. As a mini-series, I really liked it. I’m still shocked it’s a product of Slott’s creative mind. However, I can’t help but feel like the ending was anticlimactic. There was a lot of build-up surrounding the return of the Parker marriage. So many were speculating what might come of it. And the answer I got, was nothing. We get a mini-series and that’s it. I thought something was going to come of it and I’m disappointed nothing did (aside from another Spider-Girl).
I’m shocked that Slott didn’t kill off MJ, his child and Peter so he could say “See I told you the marriage was bad!”
Peter Parker killing Eddie Brock Venom was a stretch for me but otherwise I enjoyed this story. After Spider-Verse I’m surprised that Slott could find a way to entertain me with a Spider-Man story.
Too bad that this Peter Parker is not making it out of Secret Wars and we will be stuck with that guy who is terrible at running a company and leading a double life as Spider-Man as Anna Marie is always quick to point out. Sigh…
@11 Yeah, it’s official. MJ will be with Tony Stark. Such a slap in the face…
Yvonmukluk: I remember, that’s one more reason he’s perfect.
Well, fans… hope you’re happy. And thanks for the money. We’ll get back to doing the regular books now, which will have NOTHING to do with this mini, BTW…
Wow, Slott actually did a pretty good job with this mini series. Honestly, I was expecting a crappy ending like Regent killing off the Parkers…. thankfully that didn’t happen.
The Parkers did good teamwork in this issue. After last four “I’m done being funny” issues, Spidey finally used his sense of humor. He made a “dad joke” to distract and defeat Regent. He also stopped himself from stabbing Regent.
This mini series just showed that Slott can write good Peter and good MJ if he wants to. But when it comes to the main 616 ASM, he makes Peter a manchild for some reason. Who knows why?
It’s funny that Quesada made a variant cover for this issue. Especially since, He’s the one who came up with garbage like One More Day and One Moment In Time.
I would like to point out, though, that this entire series takes a dump all over everything Quesada, Brevoort, and Wacker (+ their CBR sycophants) kept maniacally chanting for eight years. MJ was dynamic, and didn’t just “sit by the window worrying.” Married Dad Peter was exciting, and highly motivated. It didn’t “age” him, it made him an even BETTER Spider-Man. He wasn’t the least bit irresponsible, any more than a fire-fighter, police officer, or soldier (given the scenario Slott set up, Peter was the smart one who DIDN’T charge in and just get slaughtered, which is how he lived to fight and win another day). He even used a dumb spider-joke to win! This series demonstrates on paper that nothing that Brevoort & Wacker have been saying about the marriage being a mistake, a burden, an obstacle to good stories. was ever true. That was always nonsense, which most of us knew all along. Now we have Slott, of all people, proving we were right.
I flipped through it at my LCS before I went to class. I wanted to see how it all ended and despite the fact that Regent went down to easily in the end, it was a real nice conclusion. As JR has said: “Will the real Dan Slott please stand up?” I think what’s really bad about the end with the Regent was not how he was defeated by then the crowd was: “He’s trying to kill a little girl!” “That’s it, get him!” He murdered tons of heroes and put the entire section of Battleworld he was in under lock and key for a decade. Seriously? They choose to revolt now. I think it was funny when the entire Parker family called him a moron and a loser because he was. Guy who killed his sections Avengers and X-Men but without his suit, he couldn’t keep his powers or keep them regulated. Makes him look pathetic and defeated and built up too easily in the end. Hope he never makes it over to the NU 616, he’s horrible villain who’s motivation was: “I wanted to kill Dr. Doom, so I killed other heroes and children to do it.” “I’m the good guy, but you hate me now. Waaaahhhh!”
I liked it. A few eyeball rolls here and there. The joke should have been more believably played as a moment of confusion or distraction for Regent, allowing Peter to strike, rather than Regent convulsing in a laughing fit. It still would have supported Peter’s strategic use of humor but without the over-the-top silliness. Nevertheless, I found this series to be a reverent, even loving, take on the Spider-Man mythos. Dan Slott could write this book well if it were ongoing–that’s what makes the end a bit bittersweet. I think if someone had told us at the beginning of RYV that it would provide what could be an eternal happy ending for a version of Peter and MJ, something that marriage fans could always have no matter what happens, many of us would have been satisfied with that result. That’s what we got, and it made me happy.
Nice review. I did note just before I gave my grade that I can see how someone can enjoy it. A fair deal of what ruined it for me were problems surrounding the issue, arc, and publication, rather than directly RYV #5 itself. If it were part 5 of 6, just one issue in an ongoing, or the promotional work for the entire mini were different, I would likely have given a full grade higher. I imagine I would also have been a little more lenient if this mini were a normal mini released alongside the main series, rather than replacing it for half a year. If you’re going to replace Amazing Spider-Man for half a year to tell an epic scale story where the X-Men and Avengers are killed and only Spider-Man is left to save the world from a totalitarian regime, I expect more from the conclusion.
Funny how our opinions changed over time. While I wasn’t reviewing at the beginning, I was happy with the story at large and excited with where it was going. Over time, while I enjoyed the individual issues, I had a feeling of dread that the conclusion couldn’t satisfy the set-up. As your opinions of the arc improved, mine worsened.
Yeah, that joke was not funny at all. Typical “dad joke” like it was refereed to. But for the Regent to laugh? and then for Peter to say “This is why I make jokes, to disarm the bad guy?” Whatever… At least the whole Parker family shinned, like they’re supposed to.
That’s quite a grade disparity between you and Justin!
Aziz: Well he did preside over the ceremony back in ’87 at Shea Stadium…
Man Stan Lee on the cover is like staring into my inner soul….(shivers)
Can’t have a more ideal pastor for this wedding.