stillanerd
Sidekick
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All right, might as well kick this thread off with my thoughts about this issue:
All in all, a pretty solid issue. Nothing really groundbreaking by any means, but a just pretty decent, well plotted, beginning to a two-part story nevertheless which doesnt waste any time.
*Out of all the stories told in the Gauntlet so far, this first part by Mark Waid (and also Tom Peyer) is one of the more tightly plotted, faster paced issues that have come out from Amazing Spider-Man in a good while. Theres none of the soap opera nonsense involved in Peter Parkers life happening in this issue; in fact, not once is Peter out of costume in this story. This is basically a straight-up revenge tale, with allusions to organized crime dramas and even a touch of horror considering the nature of the new Red Vulture. Its also another examination of Spideys rivalry he has with J. Jonah Jameson, in that even though, as he says, hes the cheapest, most arrogant, most annoying carbon-based life form in the galaxy hes still deserves help.
*The Red Vulture isnt the only villain, here, as we get a surprise cameo by Electro. I loved the scenes in which he breaks out the Red Vulture, as you really get a feel what a self-important thug he is from his interior monologue, especially how he complains about what a creep the Chameleon is and comparing the Old Vulture to Larry David. Not to mention it helps to provide another direct link to the Gauntlet story involving the Kraven family quite nicely.
*We also get a fight with another ridiculous pie-throwing villain (no seriously, THATS his superpower--throwing pies) named Simple Simon, a fight Spidey (in a case of meta-fictional commentary) compares to an Electric Company skit and ironically was the villains attempt to actually get on a reality TV show. Course this leads into a scene in which Spidey gets revenge on Jameson by webbing his phone since Jolly Jonah was the one who gave the permit for the reality TV show to begin filming in the first place. Its all pretty harmless, light-hearted stuff, really.
*This is issue is also an explanation behind the new Vulture. Personally, Im not sure if we were supposed to feel sorry for Jimmy Natale, the new Vultures real name, considering how we learn that he was a cleaner for the mob. Essentially, if youre going to use horror tropes of having a man transformed into a monster via a scientific experiment and/or seeks revenge on those he holds responsible, its usually better that the character in question didnt start out bad. Didnt exactly work for Hollow Man. Still, the sympathetic villain route is pretty standard, too, so I guess this is the better alternative. Plus, it allows Waid to use the opportunity to remind readers that J. Jonah Jameson was responsible for the creation of the Scorpion as the mob fingers Jameson as the guy responsible for Jimmys transformation in order to get them off their back. I thought that was a nice way of having Jamesons past come back to haunt him, even though hes actually innocent in this case.
*Something else I wasnt quite sold on was Paul Azacetas art. Granted, it has that gritty quality which, this time around, seems appropriate for the story being told. And again, I like the way he uses light and shadow during the night time scenes. At the same time, however, it just comes off as not being dynamic or energetic for a Spider-Man story, especially in the day time scenes. Although, the most impressive scenes were the rather gruesome, but not graphic, demonstration of the Red Vultures acid vomit on a rat, and the cliffhanger full page splash panel at the end with the Red Vulture over J. Jonah Jameson.
*The Red Vulture isnt the only villain, here, as we get a surprise cameo by Electro. I loved the scenes in which he breaks out the Red Vulture, as you really get a feel what a self-important thug he is from his interior monologue, especially how he complains about what a creep the Chameleon is and comparing the Old Vulture to Larry David. Not to mention it helps to provide another direct link to the Gauntlet story involving the Kraven family quite nicely.
*We also get a fight with another ridiculous pie-throwing villain (no seriously, THATS his superpower--throwing pies) named Simple Simon, a fight Spidey (in a case of meta-fictional commentary) compares to an Electric Company skit and ironically was the villains attempt to actually get on a reality TV show. Course this leads into a scene in which Spidey gets revenge on Jameson by webbing his phone since Jolly Jonah was the one who gave the permit for the reality TV show to begin filming in the first place. Its all pretty harmless, light-hearted stuff, really.
*This is issue is also an explanation behind the new Vulture. Personally, Im not sure if we were supposed to feel sorry for Jimmy Natale, the new Vultures real name, considering how we learn that he was a cleaner for the mob. Essentially, if youre going to use horror tropes of having a man transformed into a monster via a scientific experiment and/or seeks revenge on those he holds responsible, its usually better that the character in question didnt start out bad. Didnt exactly work for Hollow Man. Still, the sympathetic villain route is pretty standard, too, so I guess this is the better alternative. Plus, it allows Waid to use the opportunity to remind readers that J. Jonah Jameson was responsible for the creation of the Scorpion as the mob fingers Jameson as the guy responsible for Jimmys transformation in order to get them off their back. I thought that was a nice way of having Jamesons past come back to haunt him, even though hes actually innocent in this case.
*Something else I wasnt quite sold on was Paul Azacetas art. Granted, it has that gritty quality which, this time around, seems appropriate for the story being told. And again, I like the way he uses light and shadow during the night time scenes. At the same time, however, it just comes off as not being dynamic or energetic for a Spider-Man story, especially in the day time scenes. Although, the most impressive scenes were the rather gruesome, but not graphic, demonstration of the Red Vultures acid vomit on a rat, and the cliffhanger full page splash panel at the end with the Red Vulture over J. Jonah Jameson.
All in all, a pretty solid issue. Nothing really groundbreaking by any means, but a just pretty decent, well plotted, beginning to a two-part story nevertheless which doesnt waste any time.
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