Before I dig into this issue, let me give you a few disclaimers. I’m a DC guy. I’ve all but abandoned Marvel. For a while, I was following the big events. But Secret Invasion left a really foul taste in my mouth. The first issue of Dark Reignmore or less chased me out of the Marvel Universe.
Back when I was reading more Marvel, I casually read Spider-man. I liked a lot of JMS’ run, but the last few years were pretty bad. From “The Other” on, it seemed like the Spider-books were constantly being derailed by cross-overs and events. “One More Day” was as bad as everyone says it is. And while I liked the first issue of “Brand New Day” it wasn’t enough to keep me coming back for more.
So, on a whim, I picked up this issue. It’s in the middle of the story and I have very little background info on Peter’s current status quo or these Dark Avengers guys. But you know what? I liked it. I liked it a lot.
Way back in the day, I was a big fan of Joe Kelly. His run on Deadpool still holds up. But gradually, he got into more experimental story-telling. And eventually, he just lost me. His run on Supergirl was horrendous. But I was pleasantly surprised to see the Joe Kelly of old on this book. Kelly’s always been good with the one-liners. And that makes him a perfect match for Spider-man.
The story itself is a pretty simple one. Peter poses as Venom to try to infiltrate the Dark Avengers. It’s a pretty stupid plan as is pointed out repeatedly. It doesn’t take long for Peter to be discovered. And the only one who can save him is Harry Osborne. But where do Harry’s loyalties lie?
I’m impressed that someone with as little background information as I have can jump into the story mid-way and pick up everything I needed to know. It was a simple story engagingly told and I’m looking forward to the next chapter.
Could this be the start of something?
Good God you read a lot of comics this week!
I always think of you guys reading less than me, but you’re going for the no-prize, DC!
Again, Marvel comics you SHOULD be reading:
Astonishing X-Men
Invincible Iron Man
Secret Warriors
Daredevil
Captain America
Ghost Rider
Fantastic Four
I do read Cap. I almost picked up FF, but I opted for Spide-man instead. I plan to sample a few more Marvel titles in the coming weeks/months.
Well those are the ones to sample.
Sadly, they’re all knee-deep in their own arcs, but I guess that didn’t stop you with Spider-Man.
But before any of them you should read Animal Man.
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