The Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows #16 Review

“I totally get it. She thinks her dad is embarrassing. She doesn’t realize some of us never got the chance to be embarrassed like that…”

It’s back to school time for the Parkers! That’s right! Parkers plural! Peter makes his not-so-triumphant return to Midtown High! Can Annie survive the embarrassment?

WRITER: Jody Houser

ARTIST: Nathan Stockman

COLORIST: Ruth Redmond

LETTERER: VC’s Joe Caramagna

COVER ARTISTS: Ryan Stegman & Brian Reber

EDITOR: Heather Antos

SUPERVISING EDITOR: Jordan B. White

SPIDER-MAN created by STAN LEE & STEVE DITKO

STORY: Peter heads to The Bugle to sell the latest shots of their romp with The Lizard, only to
find a despondent Jonah who can only afford to pay him a lower rate. Talking with Glory gives
Peter an idea-substitute teacher! Spidey informs his daughter he will be joining her at Midtown
High while they’re on patrol, causing a family squabble and leaving the heroing to Spinneret.
Annie rushes to school the next day solo and tries to avoid her dad as Peter tries to be a “cool”
teacher. A Spider-Sense vision of an explosion sends Annie racing to the school’s theater, but
she doesn’t stop it from occurring. Peter, as Spider-Man, races over to find his daughter there
and she shoos him away, saying it will raise too much suspicion and that things are fine.
However, as she reenters the theater things are definitely not fine as two students have been
transformed into people with abilities!

THOUGHTS: As far as Ryan Stegman covers go, he puts in his usual stellar work. This one doesn’t excite me as much as some others, but it’s technically well done and Spiderling is swooping in at a suitably dynamic angle.

Serving almost as a recap, the story opens on a splash page featuring Jonah’s computer displaying the photos Peter took during his family’s latest tangle with The Lizard. Stockman is back handling art chores and he gives the page the same cartoony minimalism that Roche did. I love the squinty eyes he gave Spidey’s mask in the bottom left photo, but found everyone else’s expressions too simplistic.

Houser sets the stage focusing on the decline of print media and how photographers aren’t that rare of a breed in the digital age. Getting offered a lower pay rate, which is the second pay cut this year for Peter, just screams classic Spider-Man troubles. I’ll give Stockman some props here; his Jonah seems more mature and worn down than I’m used to, almost like he’s at the end of his rope. His shame is palpable as he offers Peter less money.

Peter looks a little sad-sackish, too, with his shoulders slumped and forlornly looking at his trusty
camera that’s enabled him to eke out a living up till this point. Glory’s suggestion of getting
snaps of internet celebrities might seem like retreading old ground for Brand New Day era
Spider-Fans, but Houser keeps Peter in character, mocking the idea, asking if he looks that
desperate. I had to smile at that.

Cutting over to a day in the life for Annie, Houser sets her up as this issue’s sole narrator. I
found it refreshing that we seemingly aren’t going to go down the same route of Peter’s POV,
then MJ’s, followed by Annie’s before we get to the conclusion. Also, just because she’s
narrating, that doesn’t mean we don’t get scenes where Peter is the focus without Annie
present.

I found it interesting how alone and isolated Annie seemed at school. I would’ve assumed that
with what we’ve seen of her personality that socially she would take after her mom, but the
picture that Houser paints actually more closely mirrors Peter’s early experiences at Midtown.
She claims to have friends, but she is clearly the loner.

Going out on patrol later, Spidey pops the news that he’s going to be subbing at Annie’s school
as a photography teacher. Annie blows her top to such a degree that Peter is shocked and a
little crestfallen that he is facing parental rejection from his daughter. Stockman easily gets their
emotions across with body language and expressions, even through their masks. Granted, it’s a
little easier to tell on Annie as her face is more revealed and she’s more aggravated than Peter
is hurt and defensive.

Spinneret for her part, lets the two bicker for a moment and takes care of the crime in progress
below. I’d like to view it as Spidey is so confident in his wife’s super-hero abilities that he leaves
her to it and not as him being so self-absorbed in family matters that he’s being negligent.
MJ doesn’t get as much spotlight this issue as her husband or daughter, but Houser portrays
her as a strong, capable character. Not only does she stop the crime in progress by herself, but
foils the victim from retaliating, showing off her experience. She tells her family how it is, putting
a stop to their squabble and defiantly leads the way to the next block on their patrol. I’m really
enjoying how Houser is writing my favorite fictional redhead.

Houser is no slouch when it comes to her characterization of Peter, either. As Peter swings
through the city lost in thought, Houser was breaking my heart with Peter’s statement that he
never had the chance growing up to be embarrassed by his parents. Then you add to that with
him going back to his old high school, site of where he was tormented by bullies every day, and
it’s no wonder why he is seeking approval from students, not to mention the daughter who is too
embarrassed to be seen with him. Stockman does come through on Peter’s expression when he
figures Annie didn’t see him wave hello. He really sells the lonely puppy dog.

I thought it was a nice touch to have Annie show an interest in the school “paper”, especially as
it gives Houser another chance to show the challenges that print media and The Daily Bugle are
facing. The school no longer does print, relying on social media and their website to get the
word out. Of course, Annie’s introducion gets interrupted in true Spidey fashion as Stockman
gives her an explosive Spider-Sense Vision.

Stockman has done quite a few issues now on this title and I still go back and forth on how I feel
about his art. At times it is far too crude and simplistic for my tastes, but then other times he really sells a character’s emotions. His splash page at the end was pretty decent, too.

As for Houser, she has really started to win me over with her writing. Her Peter feels relatable and in character and she balances the three leads well. I’m not sure how long Peter will be teaching again at Midtown, but when he originally was working there during the JMS run it felt like a good fit and I’m happy to see a return for however long it may be. Despite my misgivings about the art, I’m looking forward to where this book is going and am more confident in its direction than I was during the first arc.

MY GRADE: B

JAVI’S HUH?: Is Stegman a clothes designer on this Earth? Check out the artist’s Stegosaurus
signature on the mugger’s hoodie!