For most of his existence, Spider-Man's secret identity has been his Achilles' Heel. Villains who could not defeat Spider-Man could exact their revenge against Peter Parker - or, worse, against his loved ones. The fear of having his secret identity exposed has long been one of Peter's greatest fears (which made his voluntary unmasking in the Civil War storyline all the more head-scratching), but it makes for some good drama. The best example of this is in the classic Amazing Spider-Man #39, when Norman Osborn, the original Green Goblin, learns that Peter Parker and Spider-Man are one and the same.

This same conflict is used to good effect in the three-part storyline that begins here. Spencer Smythe, the unethical scientist who has built Spider-Slayer robots for J. Jonah Jameson in the past (first in Amazing Spider-Man #25 and again in Amazing Spider-Man #58), is back with a new scheme. He has convinced Jonah to fund a new Spider-Slayer and this one actually looks like a spider, instead of the humanoid robots of the past. With all due respect to Steve Ditko's design, this one looks more menacing. "It can beat Spider-Man at his own game!" Smythe tells Jonah. "It thinks -- and strikes -- with uncanny speed."

He hands over the remote controls to Jonah, who intends to use the Spider-Slayer to capture Spider-Man. "So I can enjoy laughing in his face when the police unmask him," he says. That's why I like Jonah. He hates Spider-Man, but he's not truly evil. He never wants to kill or even harm Spider-Man, just humiliate him and put him in jail. Although Jonah has some troubles with the remote control, he tracks down Spider-Man swinging over the city. But he can't force the robot to act. "It's almost like it doesn't want to catch Spider-Man too fast!" he says. What Jonah doesn't realize is that Smythe is playing him for a fool. Smythe secretly is overriding the commands, making the Spider-Slayer do only what he wants it to do. And Smythe wants the Spider-Slayer to lure Spider-Man to a certain laboratory building. "I don't get it -- why would Smythe design another robot to fight me?" Spider-Man asks. "He doesn't need the money Jonah might pay him. So what's his motive?" That, dear Web-Slinger, is directly related to the aforementioned laboratory! Spidey doesn't have much success in fighting the improved Spider-Slayer. The robot herds Spider-Man to the research lab, knocks him for a loop, but then abandons the fight - much to Jonah's dismay. "It's not responding to any of my commands! It's like my control panel's gone dead!" he says. Not dead; simply under the control of Spencer Smythe, who commands the Spider-Slayer to steal a complex computer unit from the research lab.

Smythe reveals that the New York City Police Department hired him to manufacture a network of video cameras on rooftops around the city. The cameras were intended to fight crime, but Smythe intends to use the video network to commit crimes! And now that he has the computer unit that controls the cameras, he can do it. "I can see everything they see -- everything that happens anywhere in their range! There's no one I cannot spy upon -- no secret I cannot learn!" he boasts. As we will see in the next issue, he intends to use that knowledge to launch a full-scale career in crime. Best of all, he's framed Spider-Man for the laboratory break-in, as the police see Spidey swinging away from the lab.

The issue ends with a cliffhanger: Spider-Man swings to a nearby rooftop to change clothes, unaware he is being watched by one of Smythe's spy cameras. He pulls off his mask to reveal his true face - and Smythe now knows what Spider-Man looks like under the mask!

This issue also features some nice content from the supporting cast. A protest group, led by Joe Robertson's son Randy, marches in front of the Daily Bugle office early in the story. They are mad that the Bugle did a series on the Savage Land (in Amazing Spider-Man #103-104), rather than spotlighting the issues facing the poor, unemployed and minorities. Joe Robertson shows up and as the Daily Bugle's City Editor, you might think he would be mad to see his son protesting his employer. Instead, he's willing to listen. "Do what you wanna do, Randy -- long as you believe in it," he tells his son. Jonah has a completely different reaction, talking trash and even getting into a shoving match with one protestor. "You got something on your mind? Write us a letter! No one tells me how to run my paper! No one!" Jonah tells one angry demonstrator. Leave it to Jonah to exercise diplomacy, although, to be fair, the protestor did call Jonah "the head honky"! JJJ almost starts a riot until Spider-Man swings in to break it up. He hangs Jonah off the ground by his collar, much to the delight of the crowd. The laughter helps calm the crowd's mood, although the public humiliation at the hands of Spider-Man only makes Jonah madder.

The gang throws a surprise "Welcome Home" party for Harry Osborn, who has been away in drug rehab since the unforgettable "Drug Trilogy" storyline concluded in Amazing Spider-Man #98 (and you really owe it to yourself to read those issues - they are some of the all-time greats). Harry wells up with tears and it's a nice, touching scene beautifully illustrated by Gil Kane. Issues like this one show why Spider-Man has such a great supporting cast. Flash Thompson also is back and this time he's back for good, as his tour of duty in the military is finished. But Peter senses something is wrong with Flash. We'll learn more about that in the next few issues.

Next issue: Spencer Smythe has seen him without his mask! How will Spider-Man get out of this jam?

Reviewed by Bruce Buchanan.

Reprinted In:
Marvel Tales #84