“Not the most Amazing/Spectacular/Sensational/Astonishing Untold Tale in the intricate Web of Spider-Man titles. Ultimately.
The whole thing makes for a very bizarre read.
So we had One More Day, in which Spider-Man and Mary Jane traded their relationship to basically start fresh. Aunt May is alive again. People don’t know his secret identity anymore. And the catch is that Peter Parker and Mary Jane are, somewhat mysteriously, not in love anymore. Thanks to a deal with good ol’ Mephisto. Always a wise move, making a deal with the devil.
OR IS IT!?
Making a deal with the devil is like buying a new Jeep instead of a Honda. It’s very fun, and for a while you are happy with your choice. And then you get about three years down the road and would trade your soul for a car that didn’t require major repairs every quarter. EXCEPT YOU ALREADY TRADED YOUR SOUL FOR THE JEEP, DUM-DUM!
Okay, back to the book.
Not the best-woven plot here. Basically just a continuity reset with the caveat that the characters did something as opposed to the kind where it’s all done outside the comics. But, BUT, I enjoyed the hell out of Brand New Day and The Gauntlet, so the results were well worth it. And let’s face it, an unmasked Spider-Man is going to be a tough thing to work with, long-term.
This volume, this addition, however, seeks to clarify things that I just felt were better left in the past. Honestly, the the One More Day storyline wasn’t all that strong, but it was a means to an end. I was willing to go along for the ride.
But why rehash the part of the ride that was most unfulfilling? It would be like going on Splash Mountain, and after you take the huge plunge, going through another ten minutes of boring forest bullshit. What the hell for?
It’s a very bizarre choice. And that’s coming from a guy who just read some 70’s Spider-Man that included a trip to the Savage Land, a jungle located in the arctic…somehow.
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