The Superior Spider-Man #1
Written by Dan Slott
Art by Ryan Stegman
Color by Edgar Delgado
Letters by Chris Eliopoulos
$3.99 / 32 pages / Color
Published by Marvel Comics
The damage has been done. The dust has settled and with the end of The Amazing Spider-Man #700, Dan Slott did the unthinkable and has ruined the lives of legions of Spider-Man fans. The mind/body swap that occurred as The Amazing Spider-Man‘s 50 year run came to close left the mind of Otto Octavius, also known as Doctor Octopus, in the body of Peter Parker, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. But in a surprising twist, this diabolical villain, after being given a glimpse of the life and experiences of Peter Parker, swore to use his intellect along with Parker’s body to be a Superior Spider-Man. With the first issue of The Superior Spider-Man out in stores this Wednesday, we now start to find out exactly what that means.
At first glance, what The Superior Spider-Man means is that we get a new number one issue, continuing to be written by Dan Slott along with art by Ryan Stegman. In my book, that’s a very good thing. Whether or not your entire history of comics fandom was unraveled or not by the events The Amazing Spider-Man #700, you have give Marvel Comics and Dan Slott credit. They got you talking about Spider-Man again. Not that the book was awful and pulled out of the gutters–quite the opposite. Slott’s run as the lead writer on The Amazing Spider-Man has been nothing but tons of fun by my measure. I’ve enjoyed the comic week in and week out and so when we saw the events featuring Doctor Octopus reveal themselves, I applauded Slott for pulling off a story that had seemingly been in the works for 100 issues. To massage and mine that sort of story without getting redirected by crossovers and events is an accomplishment in this age of comic books. Even if the byproduct is a Spider-Man with Doctor Octopus’ mind inside. Even if it’s The Superior Spider-Man.
After reading The Superior Spider-Man #1, I can only say one thing: Long live The Superior Spider-Man!
Maybe it’s because I’ve never been a die-hard Spider-Man fan, or maybe I’ve gotten to the point with my comic reading where I really like crazy ideas, but as I read The Superior Spider-Man #1, all I could do was giggle at the insanity of it all, how we got here, and the fact that as issue #1 progresses, you realize that Slott and Stegman are indeed pulling this off. The switcheroo between Peter Parker and Doctor Octopus now puts this book in a very interesting place. Can Octavius keep up Peter’s life without giving away who he is and what happened? It was clear from the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man #700, and continuing into The Superior Spider-Man #1, that Doc Ock wasn’t going to alter the way he talked or approached life. Sure that leaves many around Spider-Man scratching their heads, and you can only assume it’s a matter of time before people start reacting negatively, because I think we all can admit that Doc Ock is kind of a jerk. It’s that pins and needles situation, the moments of wondering if someone is going to figure it out, or speculating when and how Doc Ock blows it, that gives this book it’s edge. As readers, we know something is very, very wrong with Spider-Man and watching it play out in front of us is infinitely compelling. Additionally, Slott has taken the opportunity to examine who Peter Parker was as Spider-Man and point out his flaws, where he went wrong, and answer that question that we all asked ourselves as kids, “What would I do if I was Spider-Man?” But in this case, we see what a megalomaniacal super genius villain would do.
Part of the charm of Slott’s writing of Spider-Man is the simplicity of it. He gets the core of the character and the world that he lives in. I can understand some of the criticism and frustration folks have had with his stories, as the conversations and situations tend to feel overly clear and overly obvious, to a point of seeming unrealistic. Now while Slott is guilty of this from time to time– and this issue is no exception–I believe that he makes it work for him, and furthermore, it fits for a mostly all-ages approach to an iconic hero.
Visually, there is no better artist to launch this book than Ryan Stegman. It’s almost like he was born to draw Spider-Man, even if it’s Doc Ock inside his head. I want to say Stegman’s work here is reminiscent of McFarlane, not just in the cartoony style and visual approach to characters, but in terms of a kinetic energy that explodes off every page. When Spider-Man jumps, you get the sense of him springing into action. The subtleties of capturing action, be it a fight with the new Sinister Six, or the drama of a conversation with Mary Jane, are done in an exciting way that keeps you turning each to page to see what will happen next. My only criticism is that I find myself wishing for a cleaner line from within his art and I wonder if the art could be a bit tighter and benefit from having an inker on board, as opposed to Stegman handling all the art chores himself. But if anything, that’s a nitpick, because if this book featured every issue by Stegman like this, I would be the last guy to complain.
Since this review is spoiler-free, I’m bound to not give away details or specific plot points, but it’s safe to say that Spider-Man fans, ranging from the ones who have been on suicide watch because of this to the ones who understand how comics work will want to read this issue, if anything to see just what the new world of Spider-Man will be like.
The Superior Spider-Man #1 is the next chapter in a grand epic and I have all the faith in the world that it will continue to be as entertaining as ever, if not more so from the looks of it.
Story: 4 / Art: 4 / Overall: 4
(Out of 5 Stars)
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I’m pretty jazzed by this premise, after being pretty down on Spider-Man since OMD, I’ve had a hard time getting back in except for the very beginning of Big Time, but even that fleeting. Glad to hear it’s pretty good. Still behind on single issues, but I’m thinking of giving #700 a whirl off of comixology.
And, yay!, we’ve finally gotten rid of The Devil-Worshippin’ Spider-Man. 😉
If Pete actually worshiped the devil I would like him SO much more.
Satan is Jesus to me.
Nothing is going to phase me on this one, I think it’s a terrible idea, I’m still somewhat pissed off at the whole thing, and frankly the quality of the writing of the issues (698 is superfluous and conventionally bad writing) and I am hoping that the book flops.
This strips out every reason I read Spider-Man, and normally I’m against saying this, but we can’t get back to the status quo fast enough.
Who cares if someone finds out? He goes to jail. He’s Doc Ock. Should we care about him not being discovered and why?
The thing I’m most excited about is that Slott said he would be using Norman Osborn in the future and I hope to god Norman figures out Ock’s secret and just loses his shit. Imagine if Joker got put into a coma and woke up and found out The Riddler had killed Batman? This is about to get real.
The sex-with-Mary Jane element prevents me from trying this title. The subject is just too distasteful for me, I do believe it is rape.
Is he actually going to have sex with her? have they said that?
Yeah it’s amazing how many people KNOW that he’s going to have sex with Mary Jane. They must have seen some advanced previews….
For real, I’ve seen the cover where’s he’s kissing her and she seems not pleased about it. i doubt sex is coming after that face during a make out session
There has been zero…I repeat…zero mentions in the previous few issues of anything insinuating a sexual encounter. This is just reaching.
Let’s give MJ some credit here, guys. She is smarter than that. All you guys screaming “rape!” are dumbing her down. She is going to know something is up and after that the remnants of Pete in there won’t let Otto straight up… Well, you know.
I’m the dumb one on this site. I’m not supposed to be the voice of reason.
@comicBOOKchris There was a scene in issue #700 that insinuated a sexual encounter. It was kind of blatant too.
@sweetesttoaster It insinuated Doc Ock was planning on having sex with her, it did not insinuate it happened.
That’s preposterous. That’s like saying that the romantic Italian dinner scene in Lady And The Tramp insinuated that the dogs got down and dirty after their date. Yes, there was kissing and some shirt ripping, but not only was there no actual or directly implied sexual acts to occur, but it’s also out of context. Yes, in real life, these things often lead to sex. But this isn’t real life, it’s a fictional story…a fictional story in which the universe is 100% dictated by the storyteller. They didn’t write a scene where Spidey-Ock took sexual advantage of MJ because that’s not the direction they want to take the story in. On the same coin, a scene involving shirt ripping in this case doesn’t imply that they’re going to have sex at some unseen time for the simple sole reason that the storyteller isn’t referring to it at all (Plus, Slott has been quite adamant in saying that this is the case). If the only place where sex is being referred to is in mind the of the reader and not the storyteller who is dictating the universe, then quite frankly, the person who is imagining that is wrong.
I’m not saying RoiVampire is preposterous, by the way. I don’t remember Doc Ock planning sex, but I definitely remember that nothing was said to imply anything was going on.
How about when the Chameleon had sex with Peter’s roommate? To me that was rape and it was played for laughs. So there is at least a history of Marvel allowing something like this to occur in this comic.
Yeah, except if you actually read it, you’d know that it didn’t go down like that. The characters said several times after that they just made out. Making out doesn’t equal sex, as I’m sure you know.
From an email attributed to the author of the book:
“My understanding of the definition of rape is that it requires force or the threat of force, so no. Using deception to trick someone into granting consent isn’t quite the same thing.
Which is not to say it isn’t a horrible, evil, reprehensible thing that Chameleon did. He is a bad man.”
Nice job Marvel! #Sarcasm
My mistake, apparently. From what I have read online it looks like they did call it a make out session two issues later. My apologies to all.
Dear God, will people please stop saying that anyone that does not like what they have read so far with the current storyline does not “understand how comics work”? It’s disrespectful and a lousy thing to say, especially to those of us that have been readers for quite some time.
Again, we’re not talking about you. We’re talking about those who think Peter being dead is permanent (or that he’s even really dead at all). Again, no where have we said that ANYONE who doesn’t like this story doesn’t understand how comics work, just SOME people.
Conor while I agree with your line of thinking there are a lot of people out there that use that line of thinking as a shield against any kind of criticism of this storyline. Like hey I’m happy for you if you like this and Dan Slott’s run on Spiderman but I (and a lot of others out there) think it’s pretty dumb and sloppy.
Why care? 1) I assume there will be awesome superhero action but with a POV character with motivations that we have rarely seen if ever. 2) Stories of redemption, when successful, are at the core of lots of popular literature. The challenge here is that the character is not just unsympathetic in a general way, but there is reason to actively hate him for his role in the Marvel universe.
As to Peter Parker coming back… he’s already shared memories. This series will no doubt play with the notion of what makes a personality – brain chemistry or something indefinable. Modern science doesn’t have the answer to that. Down the line, Octopus may find himself being haunted by Peter Parker thoughts and ultimately possessed by them. Will that mean Peter Parker is back? Or will some fans demand a reboot or a scene that involves Dr. Octopus’s corpse and a Reed Richards gizmo connecting it to Peter’s body for a brain swap? Or will it be a psychologist saying that Peter was mentally ill and had a personality split that made him think he was Dr. Octopus?
I don’t think Peter is coming back. I think he’s already here and has some issues to work out.
“Maybe it’s because I’ve never been a die-hard Spider-Man fan, or maybe I’ve gotten to the point with my comic reading where I really like crazy ideas.” –
And THAT is why we are completely different and will never agree on this. I gave this whole storyline a chance but to me it’s simply ridiculous and more suited for an issue of ‘What If”.I agree with Walterama, in that people seem to be grouping any of us comic fans that DON’T care for this change in with all the “crazies” or “newbs” that have reacted in blind anger or without research. The truth is i did give this whole storyline a chance and simply don’t care for it at all. Some may think it brilliant and edgey. A welcome change. But to me it’s unbelievable, out of character on many levels, distasteful and done for shock value. Killing off Peter Parker was a mistake in the first place and even IF he had to be killed the story used to do it simply didn’t give him the exit he deserved. I’m not reading anymore of this comic because quite frankly i just don’t like it. It’s not the Spiderman that I grew up reading. If it were a stand alone comic of it’s own in a different universe then maybe i could enjoy it more. But to think THIS is what my favorite comic has become just depresses me.
Like 🙂
I think what this really means is…we need to get good What If? comics back? Marvel version of Elseworlds maybe?
Ron, may I ask what your opinion would be of a book where the Juggernaught and Scott Summers swap bodies, and characters like Jean Grey and Beast don’t notice? And where we are ask to see Juggernaught in a heroic light for committing the identity theft?
Careful, Ron loves crazy stories and that sounds crazy as hell
OH! When you put it THAT way….what was I thinking?? 😉
I found the situation peter found himself in at the end of the amazing Spiderman the most compelling thing about the book, and although he didn’t go out in a “blaze of glory” like ultimate Peter Parker, I found it a emotionally provoking idea to end on. I can only feel it would have been better if we didn’t need a new Spiderman and it had ended their and then. I don’t have a lot of love for the Doc Spider man, if for no other reason than the fact he’s (supposedly) getting back together with Mary Jane. I find it very of putting (I didn’t even like splitting them up without Gwen or Felicia being involved).
The reason people are getting as mad about this as they are is because frankly, they’ve been tricked. The marketing, what Dan Slott’s been saying and the fact that this is a new series all leads the reader to the false conclusion.
Again, I don’t want to spoil this issue, but if this had simply been the next issue of Amazing Spider-man, (perhaps even with the arc named “The Superior Spider-man”), people wouldn’t have been so easily duped.
agreed
What “false conclusion?” He said it wasn’t going to be Peter Parker under the mask, and he’s right. It’s not Peter. He may wear Peter’s body and have his memories, but it ain’t Peter.
Haters gonna hate. I think it sounds awesome.
Loving this. I’m now interested in Spider-man again. Body swaps have always been in comics, but this story is very interesting and it’s not your typical quick-body-change-one-shot issue. There’s many place this can go and it’s going to be fun seeing what Slott has in mind. (To those whose are negative about this, you know Peter will be back.)
My only concern is consistency across the Marvel universe; Will all of the other future appearances of Spider-man be Dr Ock? Or will some still be Peter?
I guess it depands on where they take place in continuity.
Not to spoil it, but if you’ve read Daredevil #21 you’d know we’re already starting to see some appearances of Spider-Ock outside of the Superior Spidey book. I’m assuming the Spider-Man in Hickman’s Avengers #2 is Peter. So either that takes place before the events of ASM #698-700 & SSM #1, or they take place after Peter’s inevitable return.
That’s the funny (and sometimes annoying) thing about continuity. You never really know when events take place unless Marvel (or DC, etc) come out and tell you specifically.
Snuck a peak at this issue and loved it. If you’re still pissed off about the ending of 700, wait until your read the end of this issue.
Usually when a bit of news dominates our little world and I have nothing invested in it (cosplay), I keep mum. But since this is a big enough story to change the header of our site (which I think was genius, fellas), I’m gonna throw my cents in. I’m gonna preface this by saying that I’m not currently reading any spider titles, but I have been a faithful fan in the past, and I do have great fondness for the wallcrawler. I think I have a comparison that may help stir the pot a bit.
I’ll be a Batman fan until I die (stay with me). Gotham is my fictional home. It’s where I’m most comfortable, and I can always go there and everyone will know my name. When Bruce Wayne was “killed” during Final Crisis, I honestly mourned. It shook my world down to its very foundation. I loved the manner in which he went out, and as a huge Morrison fan I really loved the way it was handled leading up to that moment where Superman carries Batman’s charred body (not-body) out of the rubble. AFTER that though, I got nervous. I would get ojida every time I thought about how they would handle it going forward. Of course I knew that Bruce would be back. Just as I’m sure most of the irate Peter Parker fans know full well that he’ll be back. That wasn’t the point. The point was that editorial and the creative involved made a bold decision to turn the status quo on its head, and the story that followed was a slippery slope that could potentially lead to a year or two of painfully bad storytelling in the absence of my favorite hero. I had faith in Morrison, but beyond that I was nervous about whether or not I would be able to enjoy my favorite line of titles without it’s titular character. “What if it’s bad?!” I never stopped to breathe and consider the possibility that it may not only be good, but great.
And it was. The year+ that followed in the Batfamily of titles was one of the most interesting, entertaining, and downright memorable lengths of time in the character’s entire history. It wasn’t for everyone, of course. Nothing is. But there were things in that time frame that are still being referenced and fleshed out four years later (a long time in comic time). Damian Wayne grew to be the only new character with any kind of staying power in the DCU since … I dunno … Kyle Rayner. Dick Grayson was made relevant again. The dynamic of the Dynamic Duo was literally reversed. Bruce Wayne was lost in time, forced to rely on his resourcefulness like never before, and grew in the process. The entire supporting cast was out of their comfort zone, and forced to adapt in his absence. It was the most challenging time to be a Batman fan since No Man’s Land, and ultimately the most rewarding. But most importantly, people were talking about Batman again. Which is what is happening now with Spider-Man, albeit on a much large scale.
There are as many differences as there are similarities, of course. Back then, Bruce Wayne was replaced, but by his oldest ally, not one of his greatest nemeses. Still, Dick appeared in other books under the cowl, and it was almost always entertaining to see who figured it out and who didn’t. Back then, we had Return of Bruce Wayne to wet our Wayne Whistle (eww), and so far nothing’s been announced to give Parker fans their dose. I guarantee that’s not far down the line, though. There will be some kind of mini where we can see Peter struggling to get back. On the fan side of things, the backlash back then wasn’t nearly as severe. Though I do remember people making similar vows to drop the line until Bruce returned, and blaming Morrison for ruining Batman, etc. I’m seeing some complaints about people feeling duped by the marketing of Superior, and it instantly reminds me of how people thought the death of Bruce Wayne would happen in RIP, and being annoyed when it happened in Final Crisis. Even though DC nor Morrison said he would be killed in RIP, fans took it very personally. Some might say it was shady, I say it was business. But it the long run, once things were underway, no one cared. We were too busy talking about what was actually happening in the story to bitch about how it was advertised. Another difference is that Dan Slott is not Grant Morrison. But that’s a matter of taste and that discussion could go on forever.
My point (if you’ve stuck with me this far) is this; the story is what matters. Editorial decisions, marketing, and creative decisions have their place, but at the end of the day the story is what will be remembered or forgotten. Some of those Batfans made a serious decision to bail (and the discussion surrounding the books was better for it), but many of them came back. The press and word-of-mouth about “Batman and Robin” was so great that people were jumping back in every month and talking about how happy they were that they had done so. I hate to reduce this longwinded post down to “way and see”, but there is merit to that idea. Don’t dismiss it. Check it out. From what I understand, this guy Slott seems to really like this guy Parker. If this thing called comics didn’t have the potential to surprise as well as entertain, I wouldn’t have dropped Batman back then, I would’ve dropped comics. There is no greater feeling than being proven wrong when it comes to negative predictions. If you’re the kind of person who can admit it.
I apologize if this reads as some kinda wanna-be op-ed article. I’ve just had the comparison floating in my head all week, and hadn’t seen anyone else articulate it.
Well said, and i too loved that era of the Batman books
Seconded (or Thirded?). I loved what was happening with the Bat Books after Bruce “died.”
Especially Scott Snyder’s Detective run (“Black Mirror”). I loved Dick Batman!!!
I hadn’t read Batman in a few years and Morrison’s run got me right back into it.
This was very well-written and insightful.
I think this is the best defense I’ve seen for Superior Spiderman. I woud say that for myself I have not liked Slott’s run from the beggining but felt like checking out some of this 50th anniversery stuff because I like spiderman. This is obviously frustrating for someone who really likes Spiderman but doesn’t like Slott. Because of my feelings on Slott I don’t read much of what he does on Amazing Spiderman (save for a check in here and there) but if I was a fan that stayed on because I liked Spiderman in spite of my feelings on Slott I can imagine this being the proverbial straw that broke the camels back. The Batman RIP/post Brucs batman was pretty awesome but you also had the story being handled by Grant Morrison, somone that is arguably the best comice book writer of all time (an argument I believe in) and later a future star DC writer Scott Snyder. Now it’s yet to be seen what Slott will do with this story line but based on history I (and many other comic fans) have good reason to be pessemistic. And yes I know this is opinion but I have a hard time believing anybody outside of elementry school kids thinks that this story arc was anywhere close to being written at anywhere near the quality of writing that Batman RIP was.
“… but it’s safe to say that Spider-Man fans, ranging from the ones who have been on suicide watch because of this to the ones who understand how comics work will want to read this issue, if anything to see just what the new world of Spider-Man will be like.”
Be a little more insulting about it, why don’t you? How about those of us who avoid the nerdrage and understand that these gimmicks happen in the biz; what if we’re just genuinely let down? You’re right, Slott has been building up to this climax for 100 issues easy, but does that excuse him for the poor execution of the finale? Does that mean that by pointing out his poor effort at a finish that we simply do not understand how comic companies work?
*gets of the soapbox*
If you read this issue, you’ll see that 700 was anything but a climax.
Why would I be angry about it if I didn’t even read it?
I understand that it wasn’t the end of Peter Parker. They are always brought back. What I am pissed about is that Slott has been building this story up for a very long time and it has been mostly good. I’m pissed because the climax to Amazing Spider-Man was nothing more than a way to charge $7 and “killing” Pete but leaving a very open cop out to bring him back.
It was like watching that Nicholas Cage movie “Numbers.” It was out there and a bit ridiculous yet still you’re interested and look forward to what comes next only to find out that they gave up and and just threw some aliens in there for the fuck of it so they could end it.
I saw this whole event as nothing more but a way to void the pact made between Pete, MJ, and Mephisto. We’ve all seen the cover of Sp-Ock kissing MJ so we know that’s a factor in all of this. Once this whole mess is sorted out and Peter is back to being Peter you will see him back together with MJ like nothing ever happened.
My mistake, the movie wasn’t called numbers it was “Knowing.”
@jonny: “Does that mean that by pointing out his poor effort at a finish that we simply do not understand how comic companies work?”
Nope. It means you didn’t like the story and that you’re not who we are talking about.
I think a Nicholas Cage movie is a good analogy for Dan Slott’s run on Spiderman.
Great review Ron.
Since everyone’s turned the comments into the discussion on how much they hate this story…
I for one am fine with it and I’ve been a Spider-Man fan all my life. Comics change, this story will go away. YOU CAN BUY OTHER COMICS WHILE IT’S HAPPENING. Try something new. Give an indy title a shot for a change. In other words if you don’t like the story, stop complaining about it and hit Marvel where it hurts: their wallet. That’s exactly what I did when OMD and BND happened (I eventually came around to BND).
If you want something to change back incredibly fast, don’t buy it. Sales mean everything in the comic industry (Any industry for the matter) and if something like Spider-Man started slipping thousands of copies MoM or even upwards of 10k+ copies, they would listen to you. It may take some time because comic shops are the ones that need to know you don’t want those books first and they order three months in advance, but trust me it’ll happen. Especially for a flagship title.
Ultimately at the end of the day comic companies do this because there’s too many of us that start buying a comic one day and buy it till the day we die, literally. You want change to happen, stop blindly buying a title because you want to have every issue. Only alternative covers will be worth something, and usually that something is in the first couple years (unless it’s an RRP or something insanely hard to find, but will cost you an atrocious amount of money to begin with with little ROI).
I stopped blindly buying books a while ago and am way happier with the books I read then I was 5+ years ago when I would continue buying a book because it was a character I felt obligated to buy.
I find it funny that so many people will complain about a product, but don’t complain with the best tool they have: The almighty dollar.
Thank god the Internet wasn’t what it is now when Peter Parker hit a pregnant Mary Jane during the Clone Saga. Also, the content being generated by iFanboy in regards to this current storyline has been phenomenal (thanks Jim and Romo!) with insightful, honest and rational articles looking at all sides of this current turn of fictional events. Stress on the “fictional”
Great review, Ron.
I’m looking forward to reading this. There’s a lot of scope for interesting stories and character interactions. My only hope is that Slott doesn’t tread the “Doc Ock has a diabolical plan / Parker part of brain makes him see sense” boards for too long.
My only complaint? The Superior Spider-man logo is really weak. DC logo weak. Marvel are usually pretty spot on with that stuff. I’m off to make a YouTube rage video about it…
Don’t forget to mention how much of a hack Dan Slott is. And tr to swear in the most imaginative ways posible
I’ll re-watch all of The Thick Of It first for swearing inspiration.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjAyazqtQj8 (NSFW)
SPIDERMITE…….THE STORY IS AN EXPLOSION IN MY BRAIN!
Who really gives a shit what it’s called, It’s called number one because they want more people to read it….of course marvel want new readers there a business….aslong as it’s a good story and you like the writer/artisit superhero…what else matters?
Peter ain’t even dead.
Really good review, Ron. Thanks for keeping it spoiler-free.
While I’m not completely sold on the new status quo of Spider-Man, I am trying to keep an open mind. I have loved Dan Slott writing ASM and generally trust where he takes us story-wise. Dan, in my opinion, has been one of the better Spider-Man writers. I have really enjoy ASM since he took over. Love his sense of humor.
Speaking of sense of humor, that is my major concern for the Superior Spider-Man. Peter Parker had a great sense of humor, always cracking wise. That is not in Doc Ock’s personality. What will happen with the witty banter of Spider-Man?
Cheers,
Steve
Ron, yesterday I said in another column that Kraven had already done this in a… pardon the pun… more SUPERIOR story – one of the all-time best. And here’s another chapter that’s part of this book’s “amazing” history. Yet, your comments made me flip how I look at it: This isn’t a “ha ha, now I’ve taken over his body and evil triumphs” storyline. Nope, for Ock, this is a very real CHALLENGE. Just in #700 and Avenging alone, Ock has seen that being in Peter’s body isn’t as easy as it looks. He’s surprised that, although he “has a superior intellect”, he still can get it wrong. That realization, that flaw, will keep me reading. Thanks for that.
Oops, one or two more things: Not saying Ock-Man won’t have moments where I grimace (“ewww, he’s doing THAT?”), but that being said, you take the good, you take the bad, you put em all together and you have…
@WheelHands: “the story is what matters. Editorial decisions, marketing, and creative decisions have their place, but at the end of the day the story is what will be remembered or forgotten.” BINGO! This didn’t have to be a new #1 issue. Could’ve been just another arc. Whatever, it’s still another chapter in Spider-Man’s life.
@RoiVampire: “The thing I’m most excited about is that Slott said he would be using Norman Osborn in the future and I hope to god Norman figures out Ock’s secret and just loses his shit. Imagine if Joker got put into a coma and woke up and found out The Riddler had killed Batman? This is about to get real.” YES! And thank God it’s not Norman in Peter’s body. THAT would be a boring, predictable book.
“…The Facts of Life! The Facts of Life!!!”
couldn’t resist 🙂
I LOVED the superior #1. Really. I hope the new Spidey stays.
“After reading The Superior Spider-Man #1, I can only say one thing: Long live The Superior Spider-Man!”
I have a feeling that this is going to be a similar situation to when Bucky became Cap. Everyone was complaining. But when time came for the return of Steve Rodgers, everyone was saying they wanted Bucky to stay as Captain America.
Maybe once Peter returns, they’ll have a Winter Soldier equivalent for Ock. Maybe he’ll be a new Carnage or Tarantula or the like.
Got to say that I wasn’t a fan of the idea but the execution was pretty good. I liked what I saw so ill pick up the next issues or so and see where it leads.
Completely agree!
I’m the kinda of guy who sometime roots for the villain to win, so this is right up my alley. Very excited for this and I’m glad Slott had the balls to try something different.
“I’m the kinda of guy who sometime roots for the villain to win.”
You must get disappointed a lot in superhero comics.
Sometimes Wheely Sometimes
I’m not a fan of #700 and how it ended (despite it having a good story twist), but I agree with your article. I ready Superior #1, and it has potential. I picked this issue up and will get the next issue, but I will where it goes from there.
Wow, am I apathetic to this.
We all know this situation won’t be allowed to stand forever. A villain cannot be allowed to take over a hero’s body permanently. Later this year, I’m sure Peter will be back. Because if you die in someone else’s body, obviously your soul reverts to it’s proper body. So the real Peter is in there with Doc Ock somewhere, lying dormant. Once his consciousness wakes up it will end with Peter taking back his life.