I will start off by saying I am not a big fan of Spider-Man. I have been reading comics for 30 years, and Spidey is a comic, and character, I can live without. I pick up an issue here and there if I have a couple extra dollars to spend, and if there are creators on board that I like. Seeing Dan Slott and Marcos Martin in the credits, I threw ASM 559 on my pile. I was glad I did. Slott is hands down the best writer in comics today in the “wow-that’s fun!” column. From She-Hulk to Thing, he just makes me smile at his storytelling. There’s no smarm to it, and no “hey, look how many cool cultural references I can cram into a character’s mouth (see Rocket Racoon in Guardians of the Galaxy 1) .”  If you haven’t already, get his Spider-Man/Human Torch mini-series from a couple years back. Great stuff.

Martin’s art is perfect for this book. And for a change, Marvel didn’t over-color it. The characters really stood out and let the backgrounds remain where they belong–in the background. Like the scene where Pete is jumping around in the club taking pictures: some other artists might have crammed as many frivolous details as they could and distract from the action.

I loved the new villains; at least it wasn’t yet another battle with a Goblin or Dr. Octopus.

 One thing that bothered me , and it’s always bothered me about Spidey: Aunt May. Instead of that irritating old bat congratulating Pete on making a living, she’s judgmental (always has been). “Really Peter,paparazzi?” I can just hear that awful actress’ voice from the awful movies . If Marvel truly wanted a Brand New Day, for me, the start would have been offing that dead weight in Peter’s world, May Parker.

Can you believe that I’m actually looking forward to a Spider-Man book’s next issue?

Mike