(2008 Cover Date Issues - Most current first)

March 27, 2008

Spider-Man appears in Spider-Man: With Great Power #2.

Story
"Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends" got very interesting just after it was revealed that Peter Parker's fellow student at Midtown High School Liz Allen has mutant powers, after showing the ability to flame-on and fly away in a blaze of glory. After Liz's mutation was "activated", Magneto (as well as the X-Men) have ways of tracking a new mutant "birth", so he showed up at the end of last issue. Yes, we have a battle in the first couple pages of this issue, but Iceman and Spider-Man are not much of a match for the extremely powerful master of magnetism. Magneto is not there to hurt young Liz, but rather to take her to her father, who is also a mutant and a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Liz very much wants to meet her father, but she is very confused by everything that has recently taken place in her life, and she flies home where she is greeted by her mother. Her mother obviously knows all about Liz's father, but has kept Liz sheltered from the truth for all these years. Magneto again shows up, fulfilling a promise he made to Liz's father years ago. Magneto is still waiting for an answer from Liz regarding going with him, but she is very confused and then turns on her mother and calls her a liar. Out of nowhere, the entire team of X-Men appear in front of everyone, as well as Spider-Man. They too, would like Liz to come with them, which further confuses Liz, and she flies away one more time. Liz lands in the backyard of Mary Jane Watson, and is soon joined by Spider-Man. Iceman joins a couple minutes later, and Liz finally makes a decision on what to do with her new life as a mutant. As for who exactly is Liz's father, all is revealed in a two-page flashback that ends the issue. Very satisfying ending to this storyline.

Art
Very Good.
Best Page: The three-quarters double-page spread of Magneto, Spider-Man, and Iceman.

Continuity Police
No tickets given.

Spoilers
Peter reveals his secret identity of Spider-Man to Liz Allen.
Liz chooses to go with the X-Man rather than Magneto.
Liz's father is revealed to be the Blob in the flashback.

March 19, 2008

Spider-Man makes an out of continuity appearances in Marvel Adventures The Avengers #22.

Story
Don't look now, but three whole months of "Brand New ay" has now come and gone. This month's storyline introduced a brand new villain by the name of the Freak. No, not the old Iron Man villain by the same name, but rather a drug-addict who goes by the name of "Freak". The Freak stumbled into the lab of Curt Conners, thinking that he arrived at a friend's meth lab. the Freak used some needles that he did not know where part of a stem cell project. Not good. The Freak has since transformed into a powerful monster with the physical traits and partial appearances of various animals. He also blames Spider-Man for his condition, and has tracked him down at a campaign event for Mayoral Candidate Randall Crowne. At the end of last issue, the Freak threatened to begin killing people if Spider-Man does not show up, so Peter Parker quickly changed into his Spider-Man costume. Spider-Man begins this issue by saving Crowne's life, but Crowne is far from thankful for his efforts. The Freak appears to be a much tougher foe this time around, as he now has the ability to scale buildings and walls. Right in the middle of battling Spider-Man, the Freak gets a whiff of a nearby meth lab, and then changes his course to go to the meth lab. Spider-Man throws a spider tracer on his tail, and then follows him to the lab, where the Freak is getting high. The two battle it out amidst a fiery blaze that begins to engulf the building, before the Freak catches on fire after being covered in acetone. Spider-Man gets out of the building safely, but the Freak is thought to be dead once again (Peter, of all people, should not be this naive). The issue winds down on a rather slow note, and without much action for the last half. Peter does learn more about how the Freak became to be, after he has a talk with Doctor Curt Connors in his lab. Connors informs Spider-Man that the hypodermic needles that the Freak took, where full of serums of animal stem cells such as mammals, amphibians, and insects. One of the serums was caterpillar cells, meaning that the Freak would eventually return to a chrysalis state, and begin to "evolve". What this means is the next time that Freak returns, he will be more powerful than before. We the readers will not see that too soon however, as the character appears to of a proprietary nature in relation to the current writer.

The Freak has definitely become more of an interesting character over these last two issues, and the supporting cast has been given just about the "right" amount of time. Unfortunately though, it is now apparent that certain characters appear to be proprietary in nature according to which writer is at the helm during a given month or tenure. Next issue is in two weeks.

Art
Excellent.
Best Page: The fiery page with the Freak catching fire.

Continuity Police
No tickets given.

Spoilers
Peter gets paid $2,000 for the photos he took of Spider-Man at Crowne's campaign event.
Dexter Bennett creates news by stating that he thinks that Spider-Man was attempting to assassinate Crowne.
Peter, dressed as Spider-Man, makes a visit to see J. Jonah Jameson in the hospital.
Peter mistakenly tells Jameson that this paper would sold to Dexter Bennett, and has another heart attack.

Story
A mysterious new villain named the Crime Lord has possession of the Kingpin of Crime's old files and is auctioning off the disk to the New York underworld. The Hobgoblin believes he has the winning bid -- the life of the Amazing Spider-Girl! Hobgoblin has captured the heroine and brought her to the gathering. Anyway, Spider-Girl ends up fighting a room full of bad guys -- alongside the Hobgoblin?!?

Reviewed by Bruce Buchanan.

Art
You can bank on the consistent excellence of Ron Frenz & Sal Buscema. This issue is no exception.

Best page:  The full-page scene of Spider-Girl punching out Deadspot.

Continuity Police
No tickets given.

Spoilers
The Mindworm, the Hobgoblin's ally, turns on his fellow villain.
Deadspot, a hired assassin who battled Spider-Girl in issue #16, murders Charlie Kunkle, who originally possessed the Kingpin's files.
The Crime Lord unmasks as Mona Claro, Charlie's girlfriend. Her actions have inadvertently led to the death of her lover.

March 12, 2008

Spider-Man makes a cameo appearance in Mighty Avengers #10.
Spider-Man related characters Norman Osborn and Venom (Mac Gargan/ Scorpion) appear in Thunderbolts #119.

Story
A brand new villain was introduced last issue in the form of a drug-addict who goes by the name of "Freak". After stealing money from a shelter where Peter's Aunt May volunteers, the Freak was chased after by Spider-Man, and stumbled into the lab of Curt Conners. Thinking that he arrived at a friend's meth lab, the Freak took some needles, and used them. Unfortunately for the Freak, the needles were part of a stem cell project that Conners was running at the time. The Freak has since slowly transformed into some grotesque monster, who has just showed his face to the public amidst a large crowd. Spider-Man does not get to battle the Freak this early, as the Freak is shot at by a policeman, and he falls into the sewers where he forms another chrysalis. Several pages later, the Freak is "born" once again, this time with the physical traits and partial appearances of various animals. Disguising himself as a city worker, the Freak somehow blends in with the people on the streets of New York City, until he conveniently stumbles upon a piece of Spider-Man's clothing that he torn-off during last issue's chase. The Freak now has Spider-Man's scent, and he intends on finding him. Outside mayoral candidate Randall Crowne's campaign event, the Freak tracks down Spider-Man. Peter Parker, who is there to cover the event, has to quickly change into Spider-Man, after the Freak makes himself known. The Freak threatens to kills people if Spider-Man does not show himself, then is shot a second time by a policeman, but this time the bullet only "tickles" the Freak. Things do not look good for anyone attending the event, Spider-man finally shows up on the final pages, but is it too late?

The Freak becomes a more interesting character, straying away somewhat from the Lizard "knock-off" label of before. Story moving along very well, with plenty of welcome supporting cast development. I still would like to see more on the development front concerning Jackpot and Menace's identities, even if it's just a panel or two (lets keep things flowing). Next issue, next week.

Art
Excellent.
Best Page: The full-page shot of the Freak standing up in the sewer.

Continuity Police
No tickets given.

Spoilers
Peter takes some "unflattering" photos of the new mayoral candidate Hollister on orders from his boss Dexter Bennett.
Peter creates a new wide-angle lens camera that follows a tracking sensor on his chest.
The Freak throws some heavy debris towards Randall Crowne on the final page, ending in a cliff-hanger.

March 5, 2008

Story
It's now in the third month of "Brand New Day", and that means another change of creative team. This month is Writer Bob Gale and Artist Phil Jimenez's turn in the "rotation", and they begin with a look at many of Peter Parker's supporting cast. J. Jonah Jameson, recovering from a heart-attack in the hospital, still does not know that his beloved Daily Bugle has been sold to Dexter Bennett. Betty Brant, Joe Robertson, and many other workers at the Daily Bugle are having a tough time readjusting to their new work environment, after the change in ownership. Peter is sent out to get some photos from the funeral of councilwoman Parfrey, who was impaled and killed by Menace's glider last issue. After one page, scenes change to a homeless shelter where Peter's Aunt May volunteers, and a new character who merely goes by the name of "Freak" is introduced. The Freak, a drug-addict, grabs the shelter's donation box and quickly flees. Peter, who just arrived himself, changes into Spider-Man and goes after the Freak. The chase goes on for several pages, the Freak escapes, and the donation box opens and scatters all over the streets. Some time late, the Freak breaks through a rooftop window, and into what he thinks is his friends Meth Lab. Little does the Freak know, is that the lab is none other than Dr. Curt Conners, better known as the Lizard. He steals some needles without realizing that they from a stem cell project, and later that night, the Freak is beginning to feel the effects of the needles he obviously used. It's not a pretty sight!

Very well written and the art is again, gorgeous. Story is unfortunately on the bland side, with yet another Lizard "knock-off" introduced. No more "teasing" concerning the mysterious identities of both Jackpot and Menace. It appears that the writer's have "claims" on certain characters, which makes things somewhat predictable, and does not make for a more "free-flowing" story to story pace. Several villains make cameos as part of a two-page re-introduction of the Bookie, a man who accepts and pays off bets relating to superhero activities. This issue also comes in a variant cover by Adi Granov. Again, next issue is next week.

Art
Excellent.
Best Page: The page with the Bookie being roughed-up by old-time Spider-Man villain and Enforcer Ox.

Continuity Police
No tickets given.

Spoilers
A new police officer, Vincent Gonzales is introduced, and he wants to apprehend Spider-Man.
Gonzales' partner on the other hand, appears to be a "fan" of Spider-Man's.
The Freak transforms inside a cocoon-like object, breaks out, and then appears like, well...A Freak!

Story
Young Peter Parker has always been harassed, tortured, and bullied by the likes of Flash Thompson over the years at Midtown High School, and he has never fought back. One reason is simply that Peter never really had the ability to fight back, with another reason being that he does not want anyone to get suspicious about his secret identity as Spider-Man. With the help of a new friend, Peter decides to do something different this issue: Learn to fight back by taking self-defense classes. Peter and his friend are welcomed by their new teacher, and the teacher gives Peter his first test as he send a couple kids to attack him. Peter easily evades the kids, and more than defends himself, and impresses everyone in the room. In the next few days, Peter becomes one of the teacher's prized pupils, and is even offered a job to "work" for one of several organizations that the teacher is affiliated with. After a talk with his teacher, Peter leaves but has to come back to retrieve his backpack he forgot. When he arrives back at the school, Peter overhears his teacher talking to some unknown super-villains, and discovers that he is no ordinary teacher. It turns out that Peter's "sensei" is none other than the Taskmaster, and the Taskmaster is doing a "search" for the next generation of henchmen. Peter changes into Spider-Man, and confronts the Taskmaster, and fight for a couple pages. The two stop battling when they get a couple of surprise visitors, and in the end, the Taskmaster is on his way to prison.

Art
Very Good.
Best Page: The full splash page with the Taskmaster fighting Spider-Man.

Continuity Police
No tickets given.

Spoilers
The other students make a surprise visit to the school while Spider-Man and the Taskmaster battle.
The students team-up and beat the you-know-what out of the Taskmaster.

This site & all scanned images created & maintained by Eric Gillette
Thank you very much for your visit!

Spider-Man   ™  and © 2008 Marvel Characters, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at:
http://www.marvel.com