+  First of all, Marcos Martin did a great job with the art in this book.  His Mysterio cover with the other characters seemingly trapped in his costume is very cool.  The artwork inside is also very well done and consistent throughout the issue.  I think of all the artists that have worked on ASM recently, he draws one of the best Spider-mans and draws the best Peter Parker.  I would be perfectly fine with Martin taking over the job on ASM on a regular basis though I know that is not going to happen.

+  Dan Slott is the writer this week, and while his story is not near as good as Joe Kelly's Rhino story last issue, it is another solid part of The Gauntlet arc.  The issue focuses on a gang war between the Maggia family and Mr. Negative, with Mysterio providing the Maggia family with his services to fake their deaths.  Slott tells the story well, mixing in flashbacks and a couple of different storylines, including Aunt May discovering that Mr. Li is Mr. Negative.  The issue seems to be setting up what could be a great confrontation between Spider-man, Mysterio, and a host of gangsters.

+  Along with Mysterio's return, I really like the inclusion of Silvermane and Hammerhead in this issue.  It's nice to see so many classic villains reappearing in Amazing Spider-man.

+  I know I already complemented the art, but I thought I should give a special nod to the really cool "title page", where all the names are cleverly listed on a gaming table.  This just struck me as a really cool, and clever, and was a great start to the issue.

Bad:

-  There was not a lot wrong with this issue, but one complaint would be the very end with Carlie and her father.  It is written like it is supposed to be a dramatic and shocking cliffhanger, when is should be fairly obvious that this is Mysterio messing with her head.  If not then it will take one hell of a story to explain why her father isn't dead and suddenly appeared in the middle of a gang war.

Overall, this was a very good issue and if not for Power Girl, this would have been my pick of the week.

My rating: 4.75/5

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