Amazing Spider-Man #543
Writer: J. Michael Straczynski
Artists: Ron Garney & Bill Reinhold
After reading Spider-Ben's review of Ultimate Spider-Man this week, I will try not to bash this book as much as he did (even though he gave it a B-) but I might not suceed. After last issue's stunning fight between Peter Parker and the Kingpin, all we have left is the resolution to Aunt May being shot 5 issues ago. Don't let the cover fool you, we don't get resolution, all we get is Peter Parker at his lowest point in his life, ready for One More Day to undo it all.
The whole issue deals with Aunt May's condition. It's not getting any better and Peter doesn't know what to do. His cash is running out and the hospital is asking questions. My main issues with this book have to do with the actions Peter takes. JMS turns him into a criminal, a felon. We know Spider-Man was a felon before, since he has not registered, but he makes Peter Parker a felon, not Spider-Man. A cop comes to the hospital to investigate this "gunshot wound" since the hospital has to file a report with every gunshot wound they recieve. The cop is investigating since there is no police report for this May Reilly/Fitzgerald gunshot wound. The cop talks to the nurse, who spins this elaborate but probable yarn about what she thinks happened to Aunt May. The cop acts like he believes this crappy nurse story, and goes to the hospital room. What happened next is what angered me about the issue. Peter Parker assaults the officer, ties him up, steals an ambulance, and forges hospital papers to move May to another hospital. What the hell JMS? Why can't Peter take responsibility for his actions? Isn't that Spider-Man's mantra? I know this is all set up for the great undo of One More Day, so that Peter will be so down and out that he'd be willing to change it all (or so they'd have us believe). Spider-Man could have intervened with the cop, and surely if he told the truth that this was Spider-Man's Aunt, they would've still taken care of her. I know that MJ would have been arrested for aiding and abetting a felon, but May would at least be safe and being taken care of. JMS makes Peter take these criminal actions, to say, things will never be the same again, etc. etc. But we already know they will be because of all the One More Day hype. If One More Day were a secret until this issue came out, then the story might have more weight to it, but with all the hype around the next issues, this issue just falls flat. It was a great storyarc until this point, when it became set-up for Joe Quesada. D
I still think that the undo-ing of the Peter/MJ marriage is a ruse, just like killing Speedball was...
This issue is a joke. This issue is my last issue of Amazing Spider-man. I have collected this title since 1988 with issue 297 and this is how I get thanks for my many years of faith to the character? I am done with this title and I think I am done with Marvel. Fantastic review and I couldn't agree with you more.
I was dissapointed by this issue as well. It might as well not have existed. The end of the last issue was alot better than the end of this one and they didn't need to keep making things worse for Peter.
Brent,
Good review for a bad book. I agree with a lot of what you said. The things Peter did were so out of character. I talked to Omar on the phone about this issue and he agrees that this was a terrible book.
I want to do the reviews for One More Day when it starts up. I'm not looking forward to it at all, but I bet I'll have a lot to say. I'd even bet money some of the One More Day issues will get either a D or F from me since Quesada is planning to break up MJ and Peter.
Good job with the review though.
I really do enjoy a good story even it it doesn't involve some type of battle. This issue just continues with the dark and darker theme storyline. Enough is enough. This is all redundant and unnecessary. An obvious filler issue until OMD. With all the hype paid to the OMD and BND storylines, I can see alot of upset readers.
GET THIS THING OVER WITH ALREADY!