Spider-Man: Life Story #6 The ’10s Review

“You’re my heart, Mary Jane Watson…you’re my jackpot.“

The Amazing Spider-Man is now in the 2010s! Will his life experience be enough to defeat a superior foe?

WRITER: Chip Zdarsky

PENCILER: Mark Bagley

INKER: Andrew Hennessy

COLOR ARTIST: Frank D’Armata

LETTERER: VC’s Travis Lanham

COVER: Chip Zdarsky

VARIANT COVER: Paul Pope & Bruno Seelig

ASSISTANT EDITOR:Shannon Andrews Ballesteros

ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Alanna Smith

EDITOR: Tom Brevoort

SPIDER-MAN created by STAN LEE & STEVE DITKO

STORY: 2019. Peter and Miles Morales leave on a mission to Stark’s old space lab to use a doomsday machine that will shut down all of Dr. Doom’s tech on a global scale. Once aboard the lab, Peter runs afoul of Kraven the Hunter, who has bonded with the Venom symbiote (Kranom? Venven?) The two Spider-Men launch into battle, with Peter using a device on his webshooter that blasts the villain apart, revealing that the Kraven aspect is nothing but bones now. That’s not the only secret, though, as Peter has deduced that Otto Octavius has somehow possessed Miles. Combat resumes, with Otto engaging with Peter inside their minds, thanks to his tech. Ock conjures up a mental Sinister Six while Peter counters with versions of himself in his various costumes from each decade. However, it’s Peter bringing up the memory of Aunt May that wins the day. With the station now breaking apart, Peter straps “Motto” into an escape pod and jettisons him to safety. With the machine’s countdown activated, Peter just has to hold everything together until it goes off. Structural integrity is about to fail until the symbiote steps in to assist. Peter sees MJ in his mind as the station erupts from the pulse’s successful detonation.

Back on Earth, Miles and Otto are back in their respective bodies. After Peter’s funeral, Mary Jane presents Miles with the original Spider-Man costume.

THOUGHTS: End of the line, folks.

Zdarsky’s cover alludes to an end, an empty costume abandoned on the floor. The blackness speaks to a finality, while also offering a clue to this issue’s setting. It also reminds me of J. Scott Campbell’s cover to ASM vol. 2 #35 (Legacy #476), but far bleaker. Strap in, Spider-Friends, this is gonna be a bumpy, tear-jerker of a ride!

Zdarsky opens on Peter retelling a dream, one that harkens back to his beginnings as Spider-Man-the night he let the burglar get away. Mary Jane interrupts him with a kiss, revealing them to be still very much in love, but far older than when this tale began. Thirteen years have passed since we’ve had a glimpse into Peter’s life story and much has changed. His daughter and newcomer Miles Morales have taken up a Spider mantle, while Benjy, still alive and relying on a cane, assists on the sidelines. Peter’s narration tells us that both sides of the super-hero Civil War lost and the villains came out ahead. As he and Miles go off into space to set things right, he breaks down the plan to his protege, making a movie reference to remind us of Tom Holland’s cinematic portrayal no doubt, but just serving to make me feel old, too.

Peter’s Spider space suit is a cool mixture of things, part MCU Ant-Man, part Edge of Spider-Verse Aaron Aikman, with a bit of ’70s tv show thrown in. Miles’ suit design stays fairly close to his 616 counterpart’s with a bit of a reenforced slim-fit jacket look. I’m assuming this is for this space mission only and not his everyday costume, but either way, I dig it. Bagley did well this time out!

Once our heroes arrive and start carrying out their mission, I finally get my long awaited (well, okay, it was only three months) answer as to what became of the symbiote and Kraven. Presumably, it isn’t Spidey’s first time encountering this amalgamated menace. While Doc Ock isn’t part of the Kraven/Venom hybrid, I felt Symbiote Kraven’s line about “ends of the earth” was a nod to the storyline that came out during this era. The way the lion’s mane aspect of Kraven’s vest blends with the black suit reminds me of another symbiote, Scream. Peter once again using his brains to defeat a villain was a highlight and the reveal that only Kraven’s bones were left was a creepy idea, but one that works, speaking to the Symbiote’s desire to not let go of those it has bonded to.

If that reveal and homage wasn’t enough, Zdarsky isn’t done yet. Arguably the biggest story of the ’10s is the Superior Spider-Man and Zdarsky makes that a Miles Morales story in this universe (hats off to Neil Bogenrieder for pointing out to me that it’s the super-hero version of Us). Given a choice between a 72-year-old Spider-Man and one in his late teens/early 20’s, I can’t blame Ock for targeting the younger model and kudos to Peter for figuring it all out. Ock’s ego proves to be his undoing, be it his speech, technical prowess, or wanting to best Peter with his mind.

Things get a little trippy here. Zdarsky has already taken Spidey to space this issue and now he has him voyaging into the infinite void of Otto’s mind. The stark white backgrounds serves to highlight the stellar work of Bagley, Hennessy, and D’Armata as a new lineup of the Sinister Six appear to mentally destroy Peter.

In one of the series’ best moments, Bagley delivers an exciting two-page splash of a Spidey from every decade joining battle against one of his fearsome foes. It’s brilliant! As the fight rages on, the mental projection of Octavius gets younger and larger, dwarfing the 72-year-old Spidey. He looks quite mad…until Peter plays the ace he has up his sleeve and conjures up a memory of Aunt May. Otto immediately shrinks back to size at the sight of his former wife, his face softening with regret and humility. It’s not spider-strength or a scientific mind that do Ock in, but the power of love. This May memory doesn’t just have wisdom for Otto, but for Peter, too. She boils down what this story has been about-Peter wants to save Ben, but can’t, so he saves everyone else. It’s this self-realization, this self-acceptance, that leads us into the final act.

All the fighting has caused too much damage to the station and all Peter can do is place “Motto” in the lone escape pod like he’s a spidery Kal-El and jettison him safely back to Earth. As he does, he makes Otto swear to May’s memory to reverse the body swap. Having been inside his mind, it feels like a good guarantee that it’s a promise he’ll keep.

True to Parker Luck, there’s always something to go wrong and it’s not just the sole escape pod. Even using the last of his webbing to hold things together, it’s not enough and Peter will not only have failed a loved one, but ALL of Planet Earth. However, before tragedy can strike all Peter cares about one final time, the Symbiote comes to the rescue, spreading its mass to help the structural integrity where Peter cannot, blanketing the large opening that appeared before Spidey. After all the pair have been through, at the end of the day, it all sprang from the love the Symbiote had for Peter and Zdarsky gives the sentient costume a chance for redemption.

I can’t find the words to adequately express how Bagley renders Peter here as he meets his end. You really just have to look at it yourself as he masterfully portrays an aged Peter surrendering to his fate and finding solace inside his mind.

Zdarsky once again goes back to the mindscape, but it’s a happy moment. Peter and Mary Jane are back in the prime of life, laying across from each other in bed. MJ reassures Peter that everything will be alright, even with his absence, giving him a moment of peace and love as he acknowledges what we all know-she’s his jackpot. As we get one last look at our hero before the end of his life story, I’ve got to admit that this story got to me. Writing this, it still does. Of course, we all want Spider-Man stories to go on forever, but Zdarsky puts a perfect period on the end of the sentence that is Peter Parker’s life. To borrow from another alternative history, this one by the Distinguished Competition, this is a good death.

 

Peter’s life my be over, but the story goes on. It was a smart move for Zdarsky to give us an epilogue where we see that things went back to normal for Miles and Otto. Well, maybe not normal normal. Miles understandably has some PTSD from the exchange and Zdarsky quickly conveys how all of Miles’ experiences feel tainted now, backed up by the body language Bagley imbues him with. I love the sense of hope the story begins to close with as MJ presents Miles with Peter’s original costume, officially passing the torch and giving her blessing.

The story closes by going full circle and revealing the dream Peter was talking about. This dream isn’t the tragic reliving of the worst moment in Peter’s young life. No, instead, as the burglar passes Spider-Man, he reaches out, shooting a web to stop him. With that dream, the circle is closed. By saving the entire planet, Peter can be at peace about his greatest mistake. Redemption is finally his. Peter might have died, but I can’t help but feel happy when I see that final black panel with a Spidey symbol putting a button on everything. He won. At the end of his life, he looked back, saw all the good there was amidst the strife, and could celebrate all the love he had.

I love this story. I feel it’s easily one of the best Spidey stories of the past decade and I can’t wait to find a lazy afternoon and read all six issues at once. Zdarsky has already revealed his cover for the trade and once it’s in hardcover I am definitely adding it to the bookshelf. It’s that worthy of it. The writing captures the different characters well and this has got to be the highlight of Bagley’s last three decades working on Spider-Man. His art is pure perfection here. It’s amazing how Zdarsky was able to weave in so many milestone story arcs in an organic way. On one hand, I’d love to see all the in-between moments that we missed out on, especially as with these quick glimpses we only saw Peter’s life at its most dire, but I also enjoy this being its own standalone continuity where I can imagine things however I want.

So, if you’re waiting on the fence for this whole thing to be finished, go ahead and dive in. Buy the issues, buy the trade, buy a friend the trade and share the love. You (and they) won’t be disappointed. Spider-Man: Life Story is a modern classic that is gonna set the bar for decades to come.

MY GRADE: A+

JAVI’S HUH?: So, we finally got Kraven/Venom paid off, but what happened to Gwen’s clone?