Writer: Zeb Wells
Artist: Patrick Gleason
Last Saturday was Free Comic Book Day. If you found yourself near a comic shop you could pick up a handful of free offerings. Or if you don’t have a Comic Shop near you copies can be found fairly cheap on EBay or for Free Digitally on ComiXology.
I’m focusing on the A story, but for those interested there was also a Venom story by the new creative team and a short Daredevil tease by Chip Zdarsky.
Depth of Field:
This teaser for the Beyond era answers some questions and gives us a taste of things to come.
Focal Point:
The story starts in Dallas, Texas. Bushwhacker has taken an office full of people hostage and is threatening to kill them.
Fortunately a friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man happens to be in the area. Armed with some witty banter and a new suit made from Impact Thickening Polymers, Spider-Man confronts Buskwacker and saves the day….then calls for help when he realises he doesn’t know what to do next.
His voice in the chair assures him that local police and victim counsellors are on the way, so Spidey exits.
In an alley near by Spider-Man meets up with an unnamed representative from the Beyond Corporation. Spider-Man agrees it feels good to be a hero again and having a team backing him up. Then Spider-Man removes his mask and asks that he be referred to as Ben. Ben’s concerned that people will confuse him with the real Spider-Man, but his associate assures him that as far as the Beyond Corporation is concerned, Ben is the real Spider-Man.
First and foremost, the art in this story is stunning. Unfortunately it’s only two scenes, but the action and the panel break downs are kinetic and look great. I like the new Spider-Man suit, and Ben’s design looks enough like Peter but different enough to be his own character. I hope we can see Gleason used more in the Beyond era.
The story is designed to be a teaser, and I consider myself teased. A corporation deciding to replace Spider-Man with their own is interesting, and seeing the story from the replacement’s point of view is an interesting twist. That being said this new era is on thin ice with me. I’m looking for an engaging story not a stunt. This tease didn’t hint more towards one than the other, so I’ll continue to tread lightly. Wait, is the story on thin ice, or am I? For me the deciding factor might be Ben’s motivation, and why he is going along with this.
Ben’s dialogue is funny in parts and feels right for Spider-Man. While I haven’t read a lot of Ben Riley I didn’t understand why he was confused about what to do after beating Bushwacker. Maybe that time in space with Tony Stark really took it out of him. I was disappointed his current role in Iron Man wasn’t addressed, he is a supporting cast member in that book, and currently on the other side of the galaxy.
Photobombed:
The Scarlet Spider suit is briefly seen, before being unceremoniously thrown out. I’ve no emotional attachment to that suit, and this was worth a chuckle.
Negative Exposure:
The reveal of who was behind the mask felt anti-climactic. Imagine not knowing this was Ben going in. Not the fault of the issue, but the marketing.
I mentioned it above, I’m waiting for this book or Iron Man to clarify Ben’s situation.
Developing Tank:
The Beyond Corporation want Ben Riley to be their Spider-Man. Why does a Corp. need a superhero? This reminds me a little bit of Peter David’s All New X-Factor. A (possibly evil) organisation co-op a superhero for some legitimacy. What are they up to?
Grade:
N/A
Zoom In:
What did you think of FCBD Spider-Man/Venom? Let me know in the comments!
Adam
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@Adam – Well, now I feel bad about gloating when your LCS is closed. I mean, not bad enough to apologize or anything (that would be bad for my reputation and would just give Chi-Town hope), but bad all the same! By the way, you didn’t miss anything on what you skipped!
@Adam
Yeah, I agree – this IM run has been really solid!
@Adam – I feel your pain; your LCS closing down is always a sad day. In my town I’ve seen 3 come and go and we haven’t had any local for over 10 years now (right after BND started actually); I’ve been getting mine posted from a couple of places which adds an extra couple of days before I get my issues here in Surrey. It’s not the same either, used to be the highlight of my week to just go talk comics with Tony (the owner) about whatever was going on at the time for my heroes, plus he’d always be on the lookout for stuff he knew I would like. Yes it meant I spent a lot more than I should on comics but it was worth it.
@Prof. Warren
You’re absolutely right. You used the word fun, and that’s something I feel has been lacking in ASM since it was announced Spencer was leaving. It’s become a mad dash to the finish line, (only without any haste). I say this and I do consider myself a fan of Spencer’s run overall.
My Iron Man comment is a nitpick. I appreciate that. It’s probably cause it’s one of the few Ironman runs I’ve actually enjoyed – and Tony was MIA for a whole issue 🙂
Thanks Mark,
My LCS closed a few years ago *sniff* though a new one is opening in a few weeks. Hopefully next FCBD I’ll be able to pick the freebies up properly, rather than rely on online.
I started reading just after the clone saga, so this Ben fella is new to me, lol. I skipped World Wide and Clone Conspiracy.
Like you I expect Peter to be back by 900, so happy to give this a chance. My main problem with Superior is it’s about twice as long as it needed to be. I think we all saw where it was going but it got padded out.
If this ends up being a fun 20 odd issue action adventure, I’ll be happy.
Nice breakdown of the story, Adam! I was pleasantly surprised by this issue. I want to like the new run, especially since this time we know the intentions aren’t to be permanent. In the ’90s, it felt different because their intent WAS to replace Peter with Ben, but this is more like Superior where we know eventually Peter will be back. Armed with that knowledge, I feel like I can try to just enjoy the ride.
I also want to take this time to do my annual brag on my LCS (Ultimate Comics) who gives out one of every free comic book on FCBD. I know many of you live in areas where you can only get three, two, or just one comic. Ha! Ha! Suckers!
I enjoyed this tease quite a bit. It’s inessential but that’s fine for a FCBD story. Most important to me is that it gets across the general tone we can expect in the upcoming era and, based on this brief taste, I’m digging it. Wells’ scripting is every bit as solid as you’d expect, with some good Spidey lines, and Gleason’s art is spot on. I feel like he did not get to really put his stamp on Spidey during Spencer’s run and I hope that he has a better chance to shine during Beyond. There’s plenty of questions to be answered about Ben’s motivations and what’s up with the Beyond Corp but that’s what we’ll be discovering as the Beyond era rolls out. Hopefully the storyline will be a satisfying one. As someone who is presently bored to freaking death by the agonizing end of Spencer’s run, I’m ready for anything that just feels like a fun Spidey comic. And personally, I don’t care all that much about explaining how Ben’s presence in IM fits in with this. I just assume that IM is before. If they clarify that, cool. If not, it won’t be a distraction for me. So, thumbs up for this initial tease. Also thumbs up for the Venom story. Looks like Ewing, Ram V and Hitch are gonna go wild with that book!