It’s a pretty special thing when a comic book can punch you in the gut.  To me, this means that the creative team has crafted a story and a character that makes you care.  In this issue, we see Remender and company compose a story that makes you feel for Flash Thompson.  This character is more than just a reformed bully and alcoholic.  He’s a man with deep seeded issues, and these issues are central to the path that he takes.  Like Spider-Man, Flash faces choices everyday that makes him who he is, and like Parker, sometimes those choices aren’t the right ones.  This is not an issue packed with action (although there is a great sequence at the beginning versus the Human Fly).  This is an issue that takes you into the mind scape of a character, and since it is done so well, it makes you reassess just who you thought this character was.  Remender and company have done a fine job of making Flash Thompson an interesting hero, but even more importantly, they’ve made him an interesting man.  I would encourage folks that are fans of character studies to give this issue a look.  I don’t think you’ll disappointed by the journey we take with this character.  When stories hit like this emotionally, it invests readers in the character’s life, and I can definitely consider myself invested in Thompson’s future.  I can’t wait to see what happens.