(Writer) Nick Spencer
(Artist) Mark Bagley
(Colorist) Brian Reber
(Letterer) VC’s Joe Caramagna
(Editor) Nick Lowe
(EIC) C.B. Cebulski
Date Released 5/19/2021
Issue Number #66/867
Price Tag: $3.99
For a different perspective:
Alford’s Notes and Ryan’s Reads
Story Time: It’s Mordo’s Magic Madhouse, with Kindred stuck in the middle. Norman comes to the rescue with the help of our mystery man that he was talking to last issue, The Spot. Mordo Sedated, Spot Freed, Kindred seems to have come on good terms with his father, but only wins an Emmy for his acting performance, because he was faking it and strikes down Norman. Spidey and his New Avengers aren’t too happy that the Rose is alive and ticking. Robbie and Tombstone come to a truce when their kids love is involved, but everything else is off the table. Meanwhile Overdrive takes Mary Jane for a joyride and they discuss the whereabout of Carlie Cooper who has been missing. Jonah feels betrayed that Peter cut the feed so he vows to get a hero of his own! Any money earned from TNM, Peter donates anonymously to the F.E.A.S.T center and ponders what he’s going to do about his room mate situation. We’re going to have to wait to see how that goes because he got a lot of texts from Betty Brant, a VERY PREGNANT Betty Brant. We then shift to Carlie Cooper locked up in a cage begging to be let out like Jeannie would if she were trapped her her bottle. However that cork is on tight and there’s no escape from this cage apparently, as Harry Osborn kindly points out.
The Breakdown
- Trust Issues
- Family Business
- MJ Joyride
- No Escape
- Motherhood
- Nitpicks
- Grade
Trust Issues: “Cleansed” Norman seems to be still staying “cleansed” and I think it’s a good bet not to trust Kindred anymore. If anything cements that he’s holding a grudge, it’s this particular issue. Kindred is Pre-OMD Harry and that version has A LOT of daddy issues. I don’t really need to remind you about that, but Kindred kind of reminds me of Harry during the 80’s and 90’s. A man, who had a rough father/son childhood life, trying to get over it, while being married with a son. He sure did sweat a lot during that time and eventually became his own version of the Green Goblin. Now the roles are reserved. Harry is belittling Norman the way Norman used to do to Harry. The “Sins of the Father” have come home to roost in Kindred’s mind.
After this beating, I think either Norman will show his “REAL” face or tough parenting will need to come into play. Even for “cleansed” Norman, enough has got to be enough.
Family Business: Norman and Kindred aren’t the only Father/Son evil relationship going on in this book. Wilson Fisk brought back his son from the dead, Richard Fisk, better known as The Rose. Willie wants things to be different this time, I’m pretty sure Kingpin’s plan is for him and Richard to team up and run this city as father and son, perhaps even more and Richard could work with that. Then again, maybe he won’t. Breaking this down, here’s what I propose might happen.
- Fisk INC. Kingpin and Rose work together and establish a position of POWER. Rose could be Fisk’s right hand man. Maybe Rose will control the underworld of crime while Kingpin continues on with his mayor obligations. A Fisk with the power of law and authority and another Fisk controlling the underworld of crime. Either way, Kingpin wins.
- Need to remember that Spencer likes to shake things up, some are expected, others are not. Last issue Kindred informed Wilson “What makes you think she WANTS to come back?” when Wilson asked to bring Vanessa back. After all the drama that Kingpin put his wife through, he knew that Kindred was right. What if Richard feels the same way? Richard Fisk may have a vendetta against his father and is just playing along to obtain the power he needs to over throw Wilson. You can almost see a parallels relationship of Norman and Kindred right here. This could be playing right into Kindred’s hands. Teaming up with Richard to take down their father’s business and reputation.
I can definitely see Spencer playing with both of these situations. Even the New Avengers team know this will not bold well on the streets with The Rose back in play. It’ll be interesting and entertaining to see how Spencer plays this one out. One thing is for sure, we’ll see some more street actions stories in ASM which I’m completely down for.
MJ Joyride: Overdrive is not kidnapping Mary Jane. He just need her help to find his “would be girlfriend” Carlie Cooper. So now MJ knows something is up and wrong. She wants to help and she will since she considers Carlie a friend. However that does put a lot on her plate. She is already doing a movie with Mysterio, that involved a lot of members from Spidey’s rouge gallery. Now she’s taking on mission to find Peter’s “forced” ex girlfriend while working with another rouge. Try to look between the lines here. She’s already involved in the Kindred backstory. Spencer is once again cementing the status that Mary Jane and Peter belong together. I mean look at what’s she’s doing. The support system we loved way back then, that has been missing during Slott’s run. It’s back and it’s more amplified! Let get some more MJ action back in there. Let her save Carlie! Spencer is just strengthen this character importance!
No Escape: Carlie wakes up in a cell and is begging to get released. Now maybe it’s just me, because I was watching late night tv with the MRS and we caught an episode of I Dream of Jeannie, but Carlie high ponytail and this panel does play with some similarites.
Would that conclude that Carlie is a magical being created by Mephisto to insure that Peter stays away from Mary Jane after the OMD deal was made? Would explain her blinking her Goblin Face away quickly. Or have been taking those Wandavision theories way too seriously? I don’t dream about Carlie Cooper, that’s for sure. Anyways, I’m going off topic and need to get back on track. Here’s what we know…
- Carlie Cooper is being held captive, we don’t know where. She was attacked by a Kindred centipede, so this location may be back in the graveyard.
- Harry Osborn or Harry Lyman? Pick your Harry. A lot of us at the Crawlspace have been wondering where Harry Lyman could be since Kindred made his reveal. It’s a good bet that the Post-OMD Harry Osborn in the cell with Carlie is him.
- Before Carlie was kidnapped, she found a body that gave her a shocking revelation. We still don’t know who she saw under the sheet at the morgue, but I’m guessing that’s where Overdrive and MJ are going to head too.
- Best believe that these two characters are going to intertwine with whatever Spencer has planned in the OMD revelation.
Motherhood: George said he was hoping Janice Lincoln would be pregnant with Randy’s kid. That it would make a humor and interesting story. Right idea..different character
BETTY BRANT IS PREGNANT!
I was hoping for this issue to establish were Peter was now going to live due to the fact that his two room mates have other life paths they have chosen to take. Instead we get this shocking revelation! So…who is the father?
My guess, is the Ned Leeds clone. Back in ASM #15 before he turned back into flour, Ned wanted Spider-Man to protect Betty. Haven’t heard from Betty for quite some time. Over on our discord it was said that Betty did encounter the clone and dismissed him. Wasn’t sure, but it sure is my best guess. I really would only make sense. I truly hope it’s not Peter or even Ben Reily when he was playing pretend villain. Whomever the father is, I can only speculate that Peter is going to keep a very close eye on Betty and this newborn. I just don’t want Peter to move in with Betty in order to protect her and help out.
Nitpicks:
Only one. Carlie Cooper isn’t blonde, she’s a brunette. Guess now my Carlie/Jeannie theory now is valid.
Grade: A+. Yep, it’s a perfect score for me. Action, Humor, and each character is written correctly and how they are supposed to be written. Writing and Art is great! My favorite part was when Peter gave his TNM money earnings to the F.E.A.S.T center. He didn’t think that what he was doing was right, so he did the right thing with his earnings. Can’t wait to see what happens with all these cliffhangers that Nick Spencer has left for us.
Dark Mark has the next issue so be sure to check out his review in two weeks!
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Another thing I just noticed… Harry is wearing a green shirt. Out of all the possible colors he could be wearing… I don’t think it’s a coincidence at all.
@Evan: Ahahah, you just made my day!
@sthenurus: I forgot to say: Trapster… Isn’t the girl with tubes from the Syndicate supposed to be his new incarnation? I honestly can’t remember who she was.
@Mark: ASM Volume 5 issue 11, Robbie did say that Betty was in Europe on assignment for months. Too early to tell, but maybe Chameleon does have something to do with it. I’m guessing the Chameleon disguised himself as someone and “shared his tooth bush” with Betty. Would definately lead in to the Chameleon Conspiracy arc that is coming up.
@Aqu@ and Mark:
With names like Crazy Town and Banana Pants, I’ll give you one guess which centipede is responsible.
@Aqu@ and @Chi-Town
Aqu@ – “unless his centipedes are actually sexual organs.” HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Let’s hope the podcast crew didn’t read that! I shudder to think of where JR is going to take that! EWWWW!!
@Chi-Town – Ben Reilly posing as Peter and Betty believes it’s Peter – that’s awesome! I don’t know how that fits Ned’s warning, though. Man! That’s a good one, though! Maybe it was Chameleon which is why Ned is worried? By why would Chameleon want anything to do with Betty? I’m thinking Harry Lyman because weren’t they both in Paris? I’m pulling for Fred, though!
@Gabriel: Yes, please, start that rumor. 😀 Should have probably worded that better. “Right idea, although it’s not the characters he was thinking of.”
@Mark: Harry?! Woah! I don’t think Kindred is THAT messed up and isn’t Harry Lyman in a good relationship with Liz? One thing is for sure, you may be on the right track. Otherwise why would Ned Clone warn Spider-Man about protecting her. We agree on the grade? Wow! Not sure if there is anything Spencer can’t do, WE HAVEN’T SEEN IT YET. I’m just enjoying this ride so much! Yes I am enabling you to do a chart on how many bad villains Spencer has wrote, we all know you like doing Google Sheets and Bad Villains! I bet you have one right now that you are just to eager to share!
@Aqu: I don’t think it’s Peter’s. Oh god I hope not. Would it cause Drama? Yes. The kind of Drama Spencer wants to write about? No…HOWEVER, if it’s Ben Reily’s and Betty thinks it’s Peter. I can see that story playing out…honestly I hope that never happens. My money is on a enemy of Peter’s. OH GOD! What if it’s Fred!? HAHAHAHA!
The baby is clearly Peter’s. I mean, where’s the drama otherwise?
Or the father could be Norman: imagine, when he was still Goblin he decided the best way to destroy his archenemy was getting all his previous girlfriends pregnant! That forebodes bad for MJ…
Harry as the father doesn’t make much sense to me, unless his centipedes are actually sexual organs.
In all seriousness, the idea it could be Ben Reilly’s baby is scarily plausible: didn’t he and Betty get to interact during Clone Conspiracy?
As for Carlie’s location, it could very be in Kindred’s mind, but that would pose the question on the whereabout of her real body… Unless the corpse she found was her own.
Nice review, Chi-Town! I think the father of Betty’s baby is going to be Harry (which one, who knows). I don’t think it will be the Ned Clone because he kept trying to find Betty, but he couldn’t. With the Chameleon in the next arc, I guess he could have something to do with it, but I think Betty is going to be roped into Kindred’s story, not really Chameleon’s.
I know that seeing Harry here doesn’t cement our two Harrys theory, but it is one step closer! Yes! I LOVED THIS ISSUE and completely agree with the A+ grade. Wow! You and I agreed on something? Is there anything Spencer can’t do?
@Evan – “Wow, I really enjoyed reading your review. ” I know – surprised me too. And I certainly wasn’t expecting this issue to be anything more than a set up for the next arc or a place holder where nothing really progressed.
@Michael – I was also thinking that about the New Avengers. Why are they so worried about the Rose. Wolverine could end him in five minutes. I thought maybe I missed something since I didn’t read the New Avengers book back in the day. And I think it is going to be as simple as a Pre and Post OMD Harry, but you may be right on that. Spencer has this revealing just enough to make it both exciting and frustrating down to a tee!
@AC and Chi-Town – You know I have a problem with charts. You should not be enabling me. Shame on you both!
“George said he was hoping Janice Lincoln would be pregnant with Randy’s kid. That it would make a humor and interesting story. Right idea..different character”
Dang, so Randy is the father of Betty’s kid?
@AC- I never though of Speed Demon as one of Spider-Man’s obscure villains. He’s not one of Peter’s main foes but I think he barely misses the cut to be considered part of Peter’s central rogues gallery. He’s had more appearances, than, for example, Silvermane.
sthenurus: Thanks man! Yeah, it would only make sense. Otherwise why have clone Ned Leeds in ASM 14 and 15 right. Just assumed he turned into flour unless there was a purpose.
That’s interesting. Tangle Webs does get you to think but honestly I have thought so hard on where Spencer is going with this and every time I get it figured out, I find out that it’s not the way I’m expecting. Still, the atmosphere is still there and he does get us to think a bit more.
Great review Chi-Town!
I do agree with you on Betty’s baby’s Daddy. My first tought was Ned Leed clone.
So it seems you guys were right about the 2 harry’s. Congrats!
After reading Thomas’ Tangled web article about OMD one has to wander… what if spencer is taking that and running with it. What if Kindred is a Harry that saw a world where Peter turned in Norman, where Gwen survives etc… thanks to the deal with Mephisto? And went mad with that knowledge?
So now he wants Peter to pay for being selfish and not making THAT deal with the devil!
@Evan: I so agree with you ! While I was… disappointed by Sin Rising and Last remain’s lack of progress, it is now 100% clear that Spencer had everything mapped out from day 1 and is now making all the plot points converge. Once his run will be finished it might end up being one of the most cohesive, most interesting run in ASM history. It’s a far cry from Slott’s run where there didn’t seem to have any growth for Peter or his supporting cast or endgame beyond “that idea sounds cool, lets make a 30 issues story with it”.
@AC Have we seen Trapster, Kangaroo, Rocket Racer or Big Wheel? If Spencer manages to bring these guys in somehow… Mad respect!
@Michael: Those are some wonderful and interesting theories. Kinda siding on those a bit. I really like that Carlie would be imprisoned inside Harry’s mind! Spencer could really play with that one.
@Evan: Thank you very much! Awww, you listened! Yep, just enjoy the ride. Really liking the character growth, surprises, revelations, humor and action that we are experiencing while taking this Spencer-ASM-Train Ride.
@AC: That looks like a job for Dark Mark. He can make that chart. No, you are spot on when it comes with the Rose. He tried to dethrone his father and it didn’t work out, who is to say, he won’t try again. Only time will tell us the tale.
Have I missed something on the Rose? I thought the whole reason he became a criminal was to get close to his father and take him down, and when his best friend died he went sort of nuts and became a sort of punisher type?
And is it me, or is it weird that he would be brought back to life in complete Rose outfit, including the mask? I don’t think this was even his identity when he died.
Also, I think someone bet Spenser a dollar he couldn’t put every single villain who has ever appeared in an Amazing Spider-Man comic in his run somehow. Mirage, Robot Master, White Rabbit, the Tri-Sentenial, Grizzly, Speed Demon, that’s just a small sample of the obscure people we’ve seen. Now Spot. (originally Spectacular, but he was in an Amazing story too, I think) I love it if its actually true, and I think someone should do a chart and figure out who we see next.
@Chi-Town — Wow, I really enjoyed reading your review. With so many loose ends to be tied, I’m excited to see where this will go. I’m glad that Kindred’s story, which began so long before Last Remains, is a thread through King’s Ransom and Chameleon Conspiracy, lest we start to wonder if Spencer will leave these threads — or us, the readers — hanging. But he always seems to come through, so, as you’ve said so many times before, we can just have some faith and enjoy the ride, which should be what reading comics is all about. For whatever reason, I wasn’t expecting so many revelations in this issue, so it was all the more surprising and makes me anticipate the next one all the more. It all just makes me sit back in awe of the craft of a writer who really knows what he’s doing. And I’m so glad the day came when I could say that about a Spider-man writer.
I didn’t think it made sense that all of the New Avengers were treating Rose like he was a major threat. None of them have fought him- the only heroes he’s fought are Spider-Man ,Daredevil, Captain American and Falcon.
The mystery patient was the Spot! That makes total sense. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that.
I’m not sure that it’s as simple as Kindred being pre-OMD Harry and the guy in the prison being post-OMD Harry. It’s possible Mephisto resurrected Harry and split him into two people, like Peter was split into two people at the start of Spencer’s run. Alternately, it’s possible it’s a split personality thing. Harry did say “I don’t want to hurt anyone” at one point during Last Remains- maybe the good personality was trying to come out.
If it is a split personality thing, then maybe Carlie is imprisoned inside Harry’s mind somehow- that’s why Harry said there’s no escape.
Whatever the explanation, it does seem like “good Harry” was the one who disappointed Normie by hiding a stockpile of Green Goblin gear, which is an interesting twist.