Well guys, it’s my birthday and Nick Spencer saw it fit to make sure he put out a fresh Amazing Spider-Man just for me! So, what will this issue bring us? Spider-Man vs. Black Cat in a fight to the death? Spider-Man vs. the Thieves Guild in a fight to the death? The Return of Debra Whitman? Read on, folks, and let’s find out!
Giving the Devil His Due
Story Title: The Heist part 2
Writer: Nick Spencer
Pencilers: Humberto Ramos and Michele Bandini
Inkers: Victor Osazaba and Michele Bandini
Colorists: Edgar Delgado and Erick Arcinega
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramanga
Cover Artists: Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado
Designer: Anthony Gambino
Asst. Editor: Kathleen Wisneki
Editor: Nick Lowe
Published: November 14, 2018 (Date correct. From your Lovable Sarcastic Chi-Town Spidey 😀 )
Remedial ASM 101
A new group (which is really just an old group that we’ve never seen before) called the Thieves Guild is making their name known by stealing something from every superhero. They’ve even stolen Spidey’s web shooters! Black Cat saves our favorite webbed menace only to attack him! Plus, Mary Jane has a mysterious encounter.
The Story – Pay Attention, This Will Be on the Test
The Thieves Guild is still at it and they add the Fantastic Car, Hawkeyes’ arrows*, and Squirrel Girl’s favorite squirrel Tippy Toe. Black Cat explains that she only attacked Spider-Man because he came on to her a while back.
The most frustrating thing about this I predicted this as the reason, but not in my post – just to Neil on Facebook, so it doesn’t count as a win. No t-shirts this time. Black Cat also explains more about the Thieves Guild and how her father taught her to respect it. Now, she wants to steal all the superhero stuff that they have already stolen and wants Spider-Man’s help. They work well as a team and find all the stuff, but Black Cat reveals that she has no plans on giving the goods back. She just wants it for herself. Before Spidery can give her a lecture, they get caught. Meanwhile, Mary Jane meets her mysterious visitor – Carlie Cooper (bet you now wish my Debra Whitman prediction was correct). Carlie gives Mary Jane information about a not-at-all suspicious support group for supporting characters called the Look Ups. Mary Jane goes to a meeting and finds it is run by no other than Jarvis.
What Passed
Mary Jane – when Carlie Cooper says Mary Jane is always there for Peter, but who is there for her needs? Her response:
The panel speaks for itself.
OOTI (Onomatopoeia of the Issue)
On a scale of 1 (POW) to 10 (BLRKBQRKPQRBLNB), this rates a 0. There is no sound in this other than sounds MJ makes. Unless, of course, you count MJ saying Thwip Thwip to reference Spider-Man activity, which is ironic since in Spencer’s book, that is the only time you’ll hear that sound.
Being part of a crack team of reviewers here at the Crawlspace, I did manage to get my hands on some original art that was supposed to be in the comic, but was later changed for some reason:
What Failed
Too expositiony.** I have nothing against exposition. It’s the first part of the plot line, after all. It’s just that last issue was a set up issue, so I was hoping for some fights to the death or something.
Analysis
Cat and Spidey – Spencer wows us again with his understanding of the relationships between characters. Spidey and Felicia like each other, but fundamentally will never be able to make it work. There’s that part of Spider-Man that always seems to be there where he hopes that the best he sees in Felicia is the dominant part of her. Alas, it is not and he knows being around her is not a good thing, but still…. He cares for her, not in a way that should jeopardize his relationship with MJ, but cares for her all the same. There is that part of her that wishes that they were what they used to be, but she too knows that is not to be. This complex, convoluted relationship comes through clearly in their interaction.
The Thieves Guild – Since Felicia said they were all over the world, then maybe I can buy that they, for reasons, have mostly not been in New York. I need to believe that all of these ninja thieves have been elsewhere and are now in New York, rather than the idea that hundreds of ninja thieves have been waiting around dormant for decades. I do have to call bull on the fact that we need Spidey to solve this. They stole Squirrel Girl’s favorite squirrel Tippy Toe. The fight is over. Squirrel Girl will win and everyone will get their stuff back. However, I guess since Spidey might not know that has happened, then maybe that explains his insistence on trying to solve this.
Carlie Cooper – Well, her showing up was not my preferred mysterious guest, but Spencer does it well. She is still a whiny punk and I can only assume that she is back in New York because she maybe had hoped that she and Peter could make it work somehow now that she has a support system. She seems awkward around MJ which tells me she was NOT expecting Peter to have moved on. At least that is how I read her dialogue. Carlie is so angsty about being a supporting character that she could have fit right in on a recent episode of Arrow. I am so glad that MJ is not being written that way. When David Michelinie first took on Amazing, he was given the married Peter and MJ. He decided that there is enough angst and conflict in Peter’s life without making the relationship another major source of uneasiness. I am glad to see that Spencer is keeping Peter and MJ in that sort of relationship.
The Look Ups – This support group is highly suspicious. I was certain at first that this was a way to out superhero identities. But when Jarvis appeared, and I can only assume that it is the real Jarvis by the fact that he knows Mary Jane and makes references that he knows her association with Spider-Man (does Jarvis know Spidey’s identity? I don’t follow the Avengers). There are certainly lots of protections put in by Stark tech and Dr. Strange’s magic, but I can see that no good will come from this.
Extra Credit
The members of the Looks Ups have been pixelated, but I recognized the last three as Ganke, Pepper Pots (I think), and Willie Lumpkin. However, I do not know who the first three are. Extra credit to whomever is first to name them!
Final Grade
I would have preferred more action, but was pleased with the character interactions. I’m actually more intrigued by the Looks Ups than I am about the Thieves Guild.
B
Your Turn
What grade do YOU give it?
What’s Next?
Can Spider-Man work with his once-foe-once-friend-once-crime-boss Felicia Hardy, the Black Cat!?
I love the joke of the stolen cover. I found the real one and it is a picture of a stolen cover!
Nick Lowe has asked people to let the Spider office know how they are doing by sending an email to spideyoffice@marvel.com and to make sure you mark it “OK to print”. If you get published, make sure to draw our attention to it! Of course, chances of getting published are pretty slim if they don’t have a letters page….
So go ahead and post you thoughts, your grades, your extra credit guesses, and most of all, your birthday wishes to me in the comments section!
* Yes, the phrase Hawkeyes’ arrows is correct in this case. I did not make a typo. Plurals and possessives. Fun grammar stuff.
** It’s a word. No, don’t look it up. You can trust me. I’m an English teacher.
‘Nuff Said!
Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
Spotify
Pandora
Amazon Music
iHeartRadio
Podbean
Amazon Alexa
Player.fm
Listen Notes
Stitcher
@ hornacek, Kyle Lowe, and Jack ___________________________________________________________________________ @Hornacek — I don’t think so. It is all purple, so maybe, but who would he be here for? Chase the Blues Away says it is Wong, so I’ll go with that. _____________________________________________________________@ Kyle Lowe — I would think that all colorist and artists have a template to look at, but maybe they don’t. Maybe too many of them just do it the way they want to and don’t care about the real color. Maybe we’ll get that interaction, but I’m betting that Spencer is just going to pick it up as resolved and move forward. My prediction skills are pathetic, so that probably means it will be the focus of all the next three issues. 🙂 __________________________________________________________ @ Jack — You’re right, that completely kills the “gray” in her. I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t know if there will ever be a good enough fix for it. The reason Carlie left is because she couldn’t take Peter being Spider-Man. Now that she has her support group, she’s back home. I suspect that she also wanted to get back with Peter, maybe, but can’t now that they are an item. Maybe we’ll see her devolve into a pyscho ex-girlfriend character that keeps trying to pull them apart. Or, if Know-It-All Vic’s guess is right, maybe it is not her at all, but a demon construct sent to move MJ into position (which would seems to fit your amusement!).
@ Evan and Know-It-All-Vic ———-
Evan — Thanks and thanks! The lack of onomatopoeias is sad to me. I really enjoyed looking for the best one and that is one thing that Slott did superbly well, but if that is the price to pay, then that is the price to pay *cue vision of me standing on a snowy cliff with Red Skull behind me and me shoving my OOTI feature off to it’s death* ———— Know-It-All-Vic — That would work, especially if he is being guided by Centidemon. I’m hoping this is it’s own thing, separate from Peter’s story, but I could see that happening.
They could a few ways with rectifying BC: (1) The encounter with Otto deranged her somehow. (2) The people she killed are just hospitalized. Spencer could say that Felicia held back, and the people only looked dead (yes, I know, but this is an emergency character repair job).
Alonso should never have allowed Slott to have BC outright murder anyone, because it ruined her “gray” character dynamic.
Do they explain why Carlie is there? It would be darkly amusing to reveal her as some sort of servant of Mephisto.
@Mark Alford
While the color of Felicia’s eyes is a minor detail, it’s a recurring problem with many colorists (not specifically Delgado). Her eyes are emerald green and prominently featured throughout many classic panels in the 1980s. Others claim the contact lenses she wears as Black Cat give her the appearance of blue eyes, but this nothing more than an excuse to explain the discrepancy. You’ll notice Delgado colored her eyes blue in the flashback to her childhood.
As for the actual story, many readers have waited six years for an explanation or resolution regarding Black Cat. This isn’t it. Felicia’s first act as ‘Queenpin’ was an attempt to publicly expose Spider-Man’s identify to the world. In Spencer’s run she isn’t the slightest bit interested in his identity despite all their past intimacy? I appreciate what Spencer is trying to do and his reported fondness for the character, but he’s not addressing the problem or confusion – he’s glossing over it. The last meaningful dialogue between these two characters occurred in a brief side story arc authored by Gerry Conway (The Amazing Spider-Man: Spiral) in 2015! That’s unbelievable considering neither was killed off or displaced. Spider-Man and Black Cat need to have a heart-to-heart talk not as enemies or masked vigilantes, but as Peter Parker and Felicia Hardy. (I’ll add: even the Black Cat of the recent video game adaption is aware of his identity!)
@Kyle Lowe & Enigma_2099 ————–
* Kyle Lowe — I’m not as observant as you. I didn’t notice the eyes being the wrong color. Looking at the previous comments, this wasn’t the only coloring goof. Again, I don’t think an explanation would make the story better. I also can’t say I think Felicia knowing his identity works for me. Maybe it would be good, but that worked well in the ’80s because he was dating her. I’m not sure what it would bring to the table now. But I trust that Spencer could make it work. ——————- *Enigma_2099 — I used to swim for my college team. I can hold my breath a really long time…. I bet you give the next issue an A! *takes deep breath and starts holding it*
@Chris Reis and PeterParkerFan —————
– Chris Reis — Thanks! I agree the cover was misleading. It didn’t bother me too much because I was already going to buy the issue, but I’ve bought issues in the past based on what I thought was going to be in it due to the cover and that is frustrating. Chi-Town shares your view that she could get a job running the group. That may not be too bad and could lead to guessing “Who’s this pixelated character?” feature in the future! ————— PeterParkerFan – I don’t like ignoring her character devolution, but I think I would enjoy less their discussion of it. I loved that she was going to keep half of it. She’s never been fully straight-forward so this turn of events I thought felt like the old Cat. I would not be adverse to bringing back Cat’s Eye, though. Could be some good potential story lines there. I forgot that was even a thing.
@Stuart Green – – 1. It is sad. My words can’t do him justice. 2. Thanks! 3. Not wrong to nitpick at all. I didn’t notice it when I read it, but it does seem like a pretty obvious coloring scheme, so why it was different, who knows? Maybe someone will clue us in on the new shield color scheme. 4. I am enjoying the two back together, so I’d be happy with that. If Spencer wants to bring back the marriage, I’d be happy with that. However, I think the likely scenario is that they will be made aware of what they lost and have to deal with it from there. I’m hoping not since that path would lead to lots of angst and possible bitterness. Add to the fact that I am usually wrong in my predictions and you can probably feel pretty safe there. Notice BD hasn’t rushed out to print ‘Mark was right’ shirts yet.
The pixelated person in the middle – I don’t know who they are from their words, but their suit appears to be a shade of purple. Even the neck and pixels appears to be purple. I have no idea how this could be (or who they are talking about) but is there any way this could be the Purple Man?
I hope you had a happy birthday, Mark! Great review, as always!
Even with the glaring lack of onomatopoeia, this new era of Spider-man is a vast improvement over the previous ten years.
@Mark Alford Don’t hold your breath.
My guess would be Mysterio (or Chameleon, as a close second) is behind the support group, as a way to repay his debt to his supernatural benefactor. He assumed the identity of Jarvis, having deduced he is a common thread among the heroes, and is now trying to lure someone who knows Spider-Man or, at least, shows him(or her)self to be close to him.
@Enigma_2099 — I’d hardly call Peter forgiving Felicia to be a glaring plot omission. It has already been established before Spencer that he and Felicia have somehow buried the hatchet. She isn’t the first murderer for this to be the case, either. Peter stills deals with Eddie Brock, still works with Punisher, and has even let Otto off the hook. Spidey is a sucker for giving people a second (third, fourth) chance. Not saying that these are good things, but it is already established continuity and if we couldn’t move on, we’d be stuck with bad plot results forever. It was referenced that they had worked out their disagreements, Spencer has moved on, and I, personally, think the plot works better that way. It allows me to enjoy the comic more, which is ultimately what this is all about. As far as the sleazy pick up line, well, that fits Cat’s crazy ex-girlfriend persona. I like the character this way. It is much better than what we have been given. But that’s the beauty of literature – what one person likes, another sees it in a different way and vice versa. So I liked this one, maybe you’ll like the next one better than me.
Nitpicking, but someone please inform Edgar Delgado Felicia’s eyes are GREEN.
This three-issue story comes across as a “soft reset” for Black Cat. She has hardly resolved a single issue with Spider-Man and is unaware of her entire past with Peter Parker. It’s a decade-old narrative problem. Slott and Bendis did little to revise Black Cat during their concurrent departures, therefore it’s on Spencer to provide an explanation. Now it feels as if everything is being pushed aside or ignored for an MJ side plot. This could all be avoided if Felicia were to re-discover the identity of Peter as Spider-Man.
@Chris Reiss
OHHHHHHHHHHH… so Spencer just pulled a “Superior Spider-Man,” so to speak. And lemme guess… Peter doesn’t even try to explain what really happened, or he did try, and she didn’t listen. But that Queenpin thing… water under the bridge. Let us not speak of it again. It didn’t happen. Which is funny since the book is STILL being affected by something that was done over TEN YEARS AGO.
NO I’M NOT LETTING IT GO, MARK, AND YOU DON’T GET TO PICK AND CHOOSE THIS TIME.
What a misleading cover. I mean, seriously… THAT was the reason why Felicia attacked Spidey?? And here I thought they were finally going to have much-needed discussion about the whole Queenpin thing(She tried to burn two elderly people alive for cryhng out loud). Well Spidey does mention it in this issue, but that’s simply not good enough. They seemed to get along well afterwards… that is until Felicia reveals she wants to sell half of the stolen goods. *sigh*… You know what? I wish Cat’s Eye Private Agency was a thing again.
MJ’s response to Carlie’s question was obviously the best part of the issue. It’s great to see someone writting her the way she’s supposed to be written.
B
@ Alford Happy late birthday!
The end of ASM #8/809 and cover of ASM #9/810 suggested some kind of epic battle with the Black Cat. Inside: just kidding! They’re still friends and they’re going to go on an adventure together! I’m irritated because I feel the story is interesting enough that I don’t need to be tricked into keeping reading.
I think it would be cool if the Lookups turned out to be a legit support group, and not just a device that ties in to some evil plot later on. MJ’s such a strong character, I could see her giving a lot more support than she receives. Even becoming the leader of the group or something.
@Stuart Green 1. I was looking at Captain America shields and immediately found an issue in Spider Island where the shield stripes vary from one panel to the next (2 red stripes and 1 red stripe in one, 2 red stripes and 2 white stripes in the next). I’m assuming it’s a mistake? Good eye! 2. I had the same thought about centipede demon guy. I’m hoping he leads to Spider-Man finally having a showdown w Mephisto and breaking the pact they made in OMD. I hope it’s like the clone saga where they tried to ignore it and pretend it never happened for a while but now enough time has passed that the issue can finally be addressed.
@Enigma_2099 The sleazy pickup happened when Spider-Man and Peter were physically separated in Spencer’s first story arc. That Spider-Man had no sense of responsibility and wouldn’t have considered MJ before trying to hook up with Black Cat.
First of all, it’s still hard to believe that we lost Stan Lee a few days ago. R.I.P. Stan.
Second of all, nice review, but did anyone else notice the coloring goof in the room full of Iron Man armors, weapons and equipment? Is it wrong of me to nitpick Captain America’s shield missing the red ring around the blue circle of the shield? Unless Cap got a new shield I’m unaware of, it looks like it’s either been colored blue by mistake or was skipped entirely. Wonder what’s up with that.
While I am pleased by the awesome M.J. “HE IS.” moment, which still makes me smile, I sincerely hope Spencer’s “no comment” as to whether or not the mystery demonic man who’s been popping up since issue one is what eventually undoes One More Day and brings back the Spider-Marriage really does bring the marriage back. It’s nice to see Mary Jane acting like her old self we know and love and actually being written as a character again instead of a way to boost sales. Since Nick Spencer gets what works so well between Peter and M.J. as well as Spider-Man and Black Cat, who wouldn’t want to see Spencer be the one to have Peter and M.J. back as husband and wife?
I hope you all have a great night and have a safe, wonderful weekend as well.
@Mark Alford
The so called justification of Felicia’s attack. Sleazy pick up line? What, remnants of Slott seeping through? Isn’t he supposed to be on the mend with MJ? And if I could ignore glaring plot omissions like you , I’d probably be reading Slott’s Spider-Man.
This is no surprise to anyone that knows me, but I ******’ hate Black Cat. I luv Ashley, but If she comes in here, I will say it to her face.
@Jack, Chi-Town, and Enigma – –
Jack – I rarely get excited when reading comics (maybe it comes from reading so much as a teacher), but when she said that, I wanted to shout, “YES!” but as I had students in the room, I just wrote it big in my notes. When Carlie started that line of questioning, I was worried that we were going to get angsty MJ. Spencer – sorry I doubted you!
Chi-Town – You know in your heart that while MJ is great and wonderful and all that, she will always be second best to Deb.
Enigma – I’m willing to ignore dealing with past continuity that I don’t like as long as I’m enjoying these stories. I know not everyone can do that, but I’m enjoying it now and can’t see it being better by dealing with it even though it leaves a big plot hole. I don’t get your question about him doing something stupid.
@ Christopher Reiss and William Sinclair
-Christopher – My son is a big Miles fan, so when I saw Ganke I knew he would get excited for it too!
-William – I’m split on the Thieves Guild and Look Ups, but intrigued by both of them. This could be great or it could be a flop, but either way, I’m enjoying the ride now. I’m right there with you on the way Spencer shows the relationship between Spider-Man and Black Cat. Spot on. Feels like it did during the ’80s, but with both of them knowing it can’t work due to past history. Much better than Queenpin.
@Calvin and Chase the Blues Away
Bonus points to both of you! Calvin for being first and Chase the Blues Away for getting Wong! I had no clue to any of those first three, so you both out did me!
Chase the Blues Away – agree with every word? Wow! I knew ‘expositiony’ was the right choice! Thanks for the kind words!
… so what should he have done in response to her killing those people during her villainous turn? And when did he do something so stupid?
Great review Mark, but damn…you won’t let that Whitman thing go, will you?
That one line, “He is”, makes the whole thing for me.
That Carlie Cooper would even ask that, implies how much she did not understand Peter; and/or, how needy she is compared to MJ.
I really love the concept of both the Thieves Guild, and the Lookups, can’t wait to see them explored more. I also love the relationship between Spidey and Black Cat in this issue, I really wish they could always be written this way together. Letting them have a conflict while still being two people who care a lot about each other is much more interesting than Black Cat becoming the Queenpin of crime or whatever. Overall, not a bad issue, it is entirely set-up though, and my enjoyment of it in future will definitely depend on whether what comes next is any good (and it probably will be, given this run’s track record!) Also, I guessed most of the members of the Lookups, and it seems that others here agree with my guesses!
The bottom left lookup is Ganke Lee, best friend of Miles Morales!
Foggy, Wong (astral projecting from Vegas after Spencer’s Damnation mini series) and Scott Lang’s ex-wife.
Loved this issue. Great review – agree with every word!
1st one is obviously Foggy Nelson. 3rd is Peggy Rae (Scott Lang’s ex-wfe). Not sure of the middle one. Rick Jones would have been my guess but he is dead apparently.