A lot has happened in the previous six issues of Amazing Spider-Man. The Kingpin stole an ancient petrified tablet rumored to have vast powers. Spider-Man recovered it, battling and defeating not only the Kingpin but also the Shocker along the way. But in Amazing Spider-Man #73, a new villain, a Maggia tough guy named Man Mountain Marko swiped the tablet for his boss, the legendary, but aged, crimelord known as Silvermane. Silverman's thugs have kidnapped Dr. Curt Connors and plan to force him to discover the secret of the tablet. Of course, what they don't know is that mild-mannered Dr. Connors could turn into the savage Lizard at any moment.

"You better do what Silverman wants, see?" Marko warns Dr. Connors. "Even if ya don't care about yourself, remember...we also "invited" yer wife and kid up here to keep ya company!" Dr. Connors and Wilson, the Kingpin's former assistant, are given 24 hours to translate the strange hieroglyphics on the ancient tablet - or else! Speaking of Wilson, Spider-Man learns from the Daily Bugle that Caesar Cicero, a Maggia lawyer, bailed Wilson out of jail. Cicero wants to take over the Maggia's (the Marvel Universe equivalent of the Mafia) leadership. Spider-Man figures this may have something to do with the missing tablet. "So if the syndicate is mixed up in this, then Caesar Cicero is the lead I want!" Spider-Man says. He pays Cicero a visit, but before he can get any information, some Maggia goons come to his aid, guns blazing. Spider-Man fights them off and during the battle, one of them reveals that they have taken the Connors family captive, which Spider-Man didn't know. "Suddenly, it's all beginning to add up! The Maggia has the tablet -- but it doesn't know what the secret is, and that's where Doc Connors comes in!" Spidey thinks.

Cicero tries to duck out through a secret passage while Spider-Man is mopping up his henchmen. There's a nice four-panel scene here where a determined Spider-Man rips open a solid steel door to pursue the criminal Cicero. However, Cicero has booby-trapped the next door with a bomb. It explodes and Cicero thinks he has killed Spider-Man, as he drives away with Mrs. Connors and her son, Billy. However, you've got to be smarter than that to trap Spider-Man. "It's lucky I was suspicious enough to stand back and use my webbing to yank open the door from a safe distance. But while I'm busy congratulating myself...Big C managed to make his getaway!" Spider-Man says.

Meanwhile, Dr. Connors reveals to Silvermane that he has figured out the secret of the ancient tablet. "The hieroglyphics stand for bio-chemical symbols, not for words!" he explains. Now, he can use the symbols to create a serum for Silvermane, whose bad heart is growing weaker by the day. However, after working under so much stress, Dr. Connors wonders how much longer he can hold back transforming into the Lizard. Dr. Connors does make the serum and Silvermane eagerly drinks it, even though it is untested. "Today, none would believe! But years ago...in the old country...they knew what this serum could do! Just as I know now!" Silvermane drains the vial and collapses to the floor. When he rises, he no longer is an 80-year-old man. Instead, he is a young man of about 30 -- in the prime of life. The secret of the ancient tablet is revealed: it contains the formula to the legendary Fountain of Youth!

Whew! While the 8-part ancient tablet storyline dragged a little in the middle, it more than picks up steam with this issue. The secret of the tablet is worth the wait and Silvermane is an intriguing villain. It's interesting to note that Stan Lee and John Romita created him years before the first Godfather movie, yet the aged mobster certainly has similarities to Marlon Brando's title character from that classic film. It's yet another case of comic books being ahead of the cultural curve.

With all of the main plot developments, there's not much secondary stuff in this issue. Peter Parker makes a brief appearance on the Empire State University campus, where he walks around in a complete daze and doesn't even notice Harry Osborn's new mustache. Harry is puzzled by Peter's lack of reaction, but Gwen Stacy sticks up for her man. She tells Harry, "The man is uptight! He needs help -- not hostility! If you are his friend, then act like one!"

Next issue: The final chapter of the ancient tablet saga, as Spider-Man must go against the revitalized Silvermane!

Reviewed by Bruce Buchanan.

Reprinted In:
Marvel Tales #55
Spider-Man Comics Magazine #8
Spider-Man Essentials IV