This is it, folks! The saga concludes – it’s right there on the cover! Will Kraven87 find the loving father he yearns for? Will the Lizard save his little Lizard Clone Boy? Will MJ have more critters in her hair? Well, stop asking questions, folks, and read the issue! Then join me as we break down the story!
Credit Where Credit Is Due
Story Title: Hunted part 6
Writer: Nick Spencer
Penciler: Humberto Ramos
Inkers: Victor Olazaba and Humberto Ramos
Colorists: Edgar Delgado Erick Arciniega
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramanga
Cover Artist: Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado
Asst. Editor: Kathleen Wisneki
Editor: Nick Lowe
Published: May 29, 2019
Remedial ASM 101
Kraven had 87 sons a la Jango Fett style, but only has one left now. Lots of rich hunters have come to the Plaza hotel to join up with Kraven and Arcade to hunt animal themed villains while stuck under a Hydra dome that covers Central Park. The Vulture is rallying the villains to fight back. Black Cat and Lizard Clone Boy are trapped inside and Spidey and the Lizard are trying to get them out. Spidey even possibly killed the Lizard (maybe sort of) to help out. Kraven87 keeps dressing Spidey in black costumes. That should do it! Let’s get on with the story!
The Story – Pay Attention, This Will Be on the Test
Kraven is waxing philosophical about life, the universe, and everything and comes up with not 42, but Spider. Spider-Man is trapped in a cage in the Central Park Zoo. Kraven sets him free so that he can mess with his mind a bit, rehashing the whole man or spider routine. Spidey is already messed up and worn down to previous fights, plus Kraven is drugging him to equal the playing field. He’s not trying to kill Spider-Man, but to goad Spider-Man into killing him. Spidey can end everything and save everyone (left) if he just kills Kraven. Cue drug induced MJ vision.* Kraven’s plan almost works, but Peter is a smart guy and he figures out what is going on and stops short of beating Kraven into lasagna. Meanwhile Kraven87 has found Black Cat and starts to hit on her. Due to his accelerated growth factor resulting in poor socials skills, this means actual hitting. And stabbing. The Lizard comes in and saves that day, but freaks his little clone boy out in the process. So he runs off trusting that Black Cat’s maternal instincts will get his little clone boy out of there safely, which I’m sure she will do right before running off to her own series coming out in June. Vulture, being the charismatic old geezer that he is, leads the loser villains in a charge against the Kraven Bots. Kraven then has a revelation that Spider-Man is right and well this was all a big mistake and in a move reminiscent of Prospero in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, he foregoes the climatic conclusion and just forgives Spider-Man and sends word to release everyone. Spider-Man wavers a moment on letting Kraven go versus going to make sure MJ is safe, and chooses to make sure MJ is safe. The hunters and villains are free to go. Kraven cosplays as Spidey and fights Kraven87, dying in the process. Kraven87 celebrates the win by doing his best Darth Vader impression from Revenge of the Sith.
What Passed
This nod to Kraven’s appearances in Squirrel Girl.
OOTI (Onomatopoeia of the Issue)
On a scale of 1 (POW) to 10 (BLRKBQRKPQRBLNB), THD rates a 7. You know I’m a sucker for unpronounceable onomatopoeias! Go ahead, say it out loud wherever you are.
What Failed
The end sequence being out of chronological order with no guidelines to read it. I don’t mind not being shown that it was Kraven actually in the costume, but to make it deliberately confusing to read to try and hide the reveal took away from the impact. I would have rather had the final panel in order and then it being left up to me to see if I notice that the black suited figure is bleeding from his abdomen or not.
Analysis
MJ vision – I want to point out that the vision still goes out of its way to not show us the face. That means that it is either not Mary Jane, the marking on the face will give away some important detail, or it is supposed to be so gruesome, that showing it is a bit too extreme. My money is on it not being MJ. Why else hide the face? I know that in the vision, Peter is positioned so that he could see the face, but these visions are drug induced and not necessarily 100% accurate.
Kraven’s death – I know some people are going to be upset that Kraven dies by the hand of Kraven87 and that the Spider part of the prophecy was played out by Kraven’s choice of costume. Much like Macduff pushing his glasses up his nose and yelling out, “Well, technically, I wasn’t ‘born’ so stabby stabby to you!”** But I’m going out on a different limb here. I think the whole Kraven can’t be killed by anyone other than Spider-Man bit was nonsense. His family is full of a bunch of loonies. Why should we trust them on that bit of knowledge? However, I’m of two minds on this death. The first one says that this death is meaningless since we’ve killed Kraven to replace him with Kraven. The second part, though, points out that Kraven’s usefulness as a villain was really over after Last Hunt. He had reached his full potential. Bringing him back was eye catching, but now what do you do with him? You can’t really send him out on the glory of the hunt. Kudos for the Squirrel Girl department for trying by sending him off to fight sea monsters and seeking to reform him, but it really doesn’t do the character any justice. Spencer knows that bringing him back cheapened a good story and so he not only resets it by killing him, but he also leaves us with a younger copy of him that can still generate classic hunting and honor stories.
The arc – As a whole, the arc was just a little too long for my tastes. It felt like the Luke Cage Netflix series – one or two episodes too long. But, like Cage, it was a fun story regardless. I liked seeing the character sketches of Kraven, Black Cat, Gibbon, and the Vulture. In fact, I’m not a Vulture fan, but I LOVE the way he was in this arc.
Spidey Leaving – I am perfectly happy with Spidey cutting his losses and going to check on MJ. Why shouldn’t he? It is not he Spider-Man curse to put his family in danger because he chooses to ignore them. It is more about being stuck as Spider-Man and not being able to be there when they need him. There is no reason for him to go out and try to take down all of the villains and Arcade and such. He should go and check on his wife! Thank you Spencer for giving our hero some common sense!
By the way, the legacy number is still #823, but shouldn’t it count the .hu issues and make that #826?
Was It Worth More Than…
This arc is 11 issues (counting prologue and the .hu tie-ins). That’s $44 worth of comics. I looked up what I could buy for $44 and found this Make Your Own Mouse Taxidermy Kit.
While I am sure that the whole family will absolutely love taking mice corpses and stuffing them, putting then into funny positions, and then displaying them inside the house, I think I will still choose to spend the money on the comics. It was a bit steep for the story, but at least it doesn’t require touching actual dead bodies.
Extra Credit
THD is out OOTI, but there is ONE word in the English language without a vowel (a, e, i, o, u, y, and w (yes, w can be a vowel, but not in any words you are likely to know unless you are from Wales)). Put what it is in the comments section so everyone knows how smart you are. It cannot be an onomatopoeia or abbreviation.
Final Grade
B+
Your Turn
What grade do YOU give it?
But Wait! There’s More!
“HUNTED” now runs through AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #23!
- The fallout from “HUNTED” is felt and much of Peter’s life is called into question.
- What is left of Spider-Man after living through the harrowing hunt?!
Or, “Ha! We tricked you! Give us four more dollars, chumps!” I am digging the word ‘harrowing’, though.
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!
* For my money, I can’t get enough of these. Not because I hate MJ, but because I know it gets Chi-Town worked up.
** Yet another Shakespeare reference. Bonus points to those to point out play in the comments.
‘Nuff Said!
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Less comments about the issue(which was really good) and more comments about meta stuff? Just another day at spidermancrawlspace.com I guess.
@Mark I don’t rant about Mary Jane. Rant: speak or shout at length in a wild, impassioned way. I speak passionate about the characterization of Mary Jane and the Peter/Mary Jane relationship. Rant usually requires negative feedback which I have a TON to say about the MCU Spider-Man better known as “Iron Man Jr.”. THAT I rant about. Your ranting about how Deb Whitman should even MATTER is compared to like talking to a wall.
@Mark — That made me laugh! (That’s not a quote, I promise. Or is it? No, it’s not.)
@Evan – Don’t you dare start quoting that movie again! Don’t make me ban you!
@Mark — If I recall, that whole Shawshank Redemption thing was my fault. Sorry! No wait — I brought it up, but since you didn’t catch the reference, you mentioned you hadn’t seen it and then Hornacek let you have it. Ah, memories. It’s like nothing has changed. “Hornacek got two weeks in the hole for that little stunt.”
I always imagine that I’l get all these comments on the article, the review, my analysis, or even the actual issue, but instead, whenever I go over 20 comments, it is usually about citations, words, or other English stuff (plus that one unfortunate article that go so many comments on _Shawshank Redemption_).
From Dictionary.com:
Words with no vowels
Cwm and crwth do not contain the letters a, e, i, o, u, or y, the usual vowels (that is, the usual symbols that stand for vowel sounds) in English. But in those words the letter w simply serves instead, standing for the same sound that oo stands for in the words boom and booth.
Dr., nth (as in “to the nth degree”), and TV also do not contain any vowel symbols, but they, like cwm and crwth, do contain vowel sounds. Shh, psst, and mm-hmm or mmk do not have vowels, either vowel symbols or vowel sounds. There is some controversy whether they are in fact “words,” however. But if a word is “the smallest unit of grammar that can stand alone as a complete utterance, separated by spaces in written language and potentially by pauses in speech,” then those do qualify.
Psst, though, is the only one that appears in the Oxford English Dictionary.
@hornacek – You doubt me? The dictionary includes entries on letters, abbreviations, acronyms, periodic symbols, and common onomatopoeias – none of which are words.
“Inclusion in the dictionary does not equate to word” Um, did you really just say that?
From the Oxford English dictionary: psst
EXCLAMATION Used to attract someone’s attention surreptitiously. ‘Psst! Want to know a secret?’
@Mark — Maybe we should change our names to Evn and Mrk.
Sorry, Hornacek. Inclusion in the dictionary does not equate to word. PSST is the sound you make, so it is a mere onomatopoeia and is thus ineligible for our contest. Sorry Richard, the ‘y’ is acting as a vowel in that word, so no dice, but nice find. Danny D. is CORRECT! NTH is the only word that is not an onomatopoeia without a vowel (inlcuding y and w (for our friends in Wales)). You can use it in phrases like, “I’ve had it to the nth degree with Chi-Town’s Mary Jane rants.”
Why print “THD” and not “THUD”?
@hornacek — I missed your answer when I was reading through the comments earlier, but “psst” sounds about right. But I wonder if maybe Mark has another word in mind besides that one. Or if, in that case, there are other words in the OED that lack vowels. I like to play Scrabble, so I’m perhaps (admittedly) overly invested. Granted, the Scrabble dictionary is different from the OED. In any case, nice going!
@Evan – I still think I’m right. “psst” is in the Oxford English dictionary.
@hornacek — Yeah, I was just about to comment that technically a “y” can count as a vowel. Otherwise “sty” would work just as well. I thought we had it. Oh, well.
@Evan and Richard – “rhythm” contains “y”.
@Mark Alford
I doubt he’ll kill Kraven87. I always figured if Kraven87 survives Hunted it’d be specifically in order for him to act as a Kraven replacement.
I don’t think Kraven ever needed replacing but given how Marvel have been trying to do that sine Grim Hunter in the 11990s, then Alyosha, then Xraven, then Sasha then finally just bringing Kraven back, it seems we’re doomed to have someone in that role.
Spencer found a way to have his cake and eat it via giving us a replacement who was indeed Kraven’s heir (like Sasha, Al, and Grim Hunter) but was also more legitimately the real Kraven because he is his clone. Kraven87 is Sergei literally on a biological level, emotionally his ‘son’ and in terms of his values is the heir Kraven always wanted. In fact he’s the one heir Kraven got to choose and mould himself in his own image.
OK, so is the word without vowels “nth”, by any chance?
Hooray for Richard Cosgrove! Well done.
Rhythm 🙂
The word “psst” doesn’t contain any vowels. It’s a word – it’s in the Oxford English dictionary.
Chi-Town & Evan ———————————-
@Chi-Town – You got a letter printed? Cool! I hadn’t noticed…. And by the way, there are at least for of us who give a flying fart, so there! ———————————— Evan – Nope! TSK is the sound made with your mouth, so it qualifies as an onomatopoeia. Contest is still up for grabs!
@Stubborn Old Guy & Adam Schingle – Too much math already for me! You guys figure it out and I’ll go with it!
Danny D. & Alex ————— @ Danny D.- If you followed that last jumbled of out of time sequenced panel, you’re a better man than I am. I had to look it over a second time to piece it together. You got the Macbeth reference, so head of the class! You’re Crawlspacer of the week!
@ Alex – Your passion wins me over. I quasi-take back some of my ending issues. I do hold on to Spencer found a way to have his cake and eat it too. I love Kraven and am fine with killing him off because KLH ends the need for him and ends any future stores as evident by the real lack of use once they brought him back. I’m hoping that Spencer doesn’t kill 87 next issue.
Also, with Kraven now being played by Kraven87, I’m having a hard time remembering who’s a clone and who isn’t. I fear that in the future the fact that certain characters are clones/duplicates/resurrections/etc. will be glossed over and forgotten. At least I can be confident that Nick Spencer seems to be able to keep everything straight.
@Mark — At first glance, I saw the panel with Vulture in victory pose and thought, “Wait, where did Mysterio come from?” Mysterio should be the only one with a fishbowl helmet, if you ask me.
Danny D. already beat me to the MacBeth reference, but I’m stumped on the English word without vowels, unless it’s “tsk.” I don’t want to cheat and look it up.
Why I outta…. You’re just upset because no one gives a flying fart about Deb Whitman. Let it go, Mark. Just let it go. I personally like this issue AND YES I’M WORRIED ABOUT MARY JANE!!! So is Peter. It’s a “Peter” thing, don’t be hating. I don’t know if I saw this coming or didn’t, but the characterization on all these characters are pretty spot on. I can’t wait for the next issue. Not only will we see that Mary Jane is alright, but happy I did a hat trick and my letter got printed again…which I KNOW you love. 😀
You are correct that they did not count the Point 1 issues. So canon would be to not count the four Point HU issues.
However , they DID count the Imaginary 5 issue mini-series called Renew Your Vows (which I am probably never going to recover from) making the whole legacy numbering system for Amazing Spider-Man five too high from the get-go. Ahhh, if only there had been an Issue 17.HU then I could at least pretend they got it right through some sort of Endgame time travel gimmick to include the Point HU issues.
I don’t think they counted the .1 issues when they added up to 800, so I believe the legacy numbering is correct.
@Alford: I strongly disagree about Kraven’s death. First off I loved it and felt it made so much sense. Second of all dying by the hand of the Spider wasn’t merely he wore the costume. Kraven’s arc in KLH hinged upon him NOT understanding Spider-Man. He codified that he was superior to Spider-Man because he brutally murdered and assaulted people, including Vermin. But that didn’t prove him superior to Spider-Man because that fundamentally isn’t who Peter is.
In Hunted Kraven FINALLY gets it. He FINALLY understands who and what Spider-Man really is and follows his example of mercy and self-sacrifice. On a certain level he finally does become Spider-Man. Putting on the costume was just part of that, and a way for him to trick Kraven87. Thus he died by the Spider, because he BECAME the Spider.*
Kraven’s arc from came full circle from his death to his second life to his second death. The first time he threw life away by his own hand over misunderstanding Spider-Man. Now he sacrificed his life because he finally did understand Spider-Man. And rather neatly it was metaphorically also by ‘his own hand’, because his clone killed him.
Thirdly I disagree that his death was pointless because we killed Kraven only to still have him around. Whilst clones have the same DNA as their host, they are in the marvel universe their own people. Ben Reilly and Kaine prove this and from a realistic psychological POV their different life experiences also shape them into different people.
Kraven87 is not the same as Kraven. He doesn’t have his memories that shaped him into who he is. He hasn’t got the chip on his shoulder over the Russian Revolution, he has no emotional connection to Chameleon, he wasn’t recruited into the 1950s Avengers, he wasn’t the lover of a voodoo Priestess. And he’s guilty of fratricide which Sergei wasn’t.
Sure he’s a hunter. He’s got essentially the same idea of jungle code thus in terms of his villain gimmick he is the same as Kraven, but that’s sort of like saying Ben Reilly was interchangeable with Peter Parker because they had the same powers and same sense of responsibility. It’s true but it’s coming from a different angle.
Killing Kraven this way and having Kraven87, essentially creates for us a character not dissimilar to Alyosha Kravinoff from DeMatteis’ second Spec run before Get Kraven ruined him. We get to have a jungle hunter themed villain with a clear motive to kill Spider-Man, but the OG Kraven gets to remain dead.
*I’ll also point out that whilst you aren’t wrong that Kraven’s family being nuts doesn’t mean their word is absolutely binding, thus Kraven didn’t need to die by the hand of the Spider. However putting aside how in fiction unless presented with reasonable doubt the rule is you should trust that most characters are telling it as it is, Kraven’s appearences in Kaine’s solo book seemingly confirmed that part of the ritual.
No way is it #826.
I can see an argument for #822.
Btw, the play was “Macbeth”. specifically referring to the character Macduff and why he was able to kill Macbeth.
…I just sucked the fun out of the room, didn’t I?
Gotta say, I didn’t find the final sequence confusing at all.
I’d honestly give this issue an A+. Outside of some of Ramos’ occasionally odd anatomy, it was darn near perfect to me, and a terrific way to cap off this arc. We now have a “Kraven” who can be used in the future with proper motivation for coming after Spider-Man, and Kraven finally learned the TRUTH of “The Spider” and found his rest.