A Massacre
Cover:
I'm not a big fan of this cover. I like that it's a new suit, but looking at future issues and their previewed covers (especially the FF crossover stuff that will, I believe, come in at AMS #658-659 with Caselli), this leaves much to be desired.
The Good:
Even though Peter Parker has a great job, it's still very touching to see how vulnerable Spider-Man is after the repercussions of his combat with Smythe. We see this early on in the issue, and it leads much later as the reasoning for the new suit. Personally, I like the connections to previous story arcs and I am fond of the introduction of new characters, whether they are villains or heroes. This particular villain, though somewhat rushed (as pointed out by other reviewers), is one that I hope becomes a regular character in Spidey's rogue gallery. I also like the realism behind the villain (not necessarily his back story) but his truly lunatic and terroristic behaviors are some of the most believable that I have seen in a villain in a while. They may seem cliche, but I feel it was well done here.
The Bad:
I really do like the art, it is much better than that which we saw in the previous arcs (Origin of the Species comes to mind), but I am really, really missing Caselli's art. I wish he drew this series for a while, and I guess my main peeve is the fact that in series like these, artists seem to alternate much. That in itself can sometimes ruin a series for me. Just when you're getting used to an art style (not that I had to get used to Caselli's; I loved his from the get-go), they switch artists up on ya. Hopefully, once I read more of this series, then I may become accustomed to the entire alternating creative team and not have such an issue with this dilemma.
Overall:
A strong issue, but lacking a bit compared to the Big Time arc, where Slott took over completely in writing. Don't get me wrong, this is a great issue and Slott really gets Spider-Man, in my opinion, but I felt that there could've been more.
4/5
I'm not a big fan of this cover. I like that it's a new suit, but looking at future issues and their previewed covers (especially the FF crossover stuff that will, I believe, come in at AMS #658-659 with Caselli), this leaves much to be desired.
The Good:
Even though Peter Parker has a great job, it's still very touching to see how vulnerable Spider-Man is after the repercussions of his combat with Smythe. We see this early on in the issue, and it leads much later as the reasoning for the new suit. Personally, I like the connections to previous story arcs and I am fond of the introduction of new characters, whether they are villains or heroes. This particular villain, though somewhat rushed (as pointed out by other reviewers), is one that I hope becomes a regular character in Spidey's rogue gallery. I also like the realism behind the villain (not necessarily his back story) but his truly lunatic and terroristic behaviors are some of the most believable that I have seen in a villain in a while. They may seem cliche, but I feel it was well done here.
The Bad:
I really do like the art, it is much better than that which we saw in the previous arcs (Origin of the Species comes to mind), but I am really, really missing Caselli's art. I wish he drew this series for a while, and I guess my main peeve is the fact that in series like these, artists seem to alternate much. That in itself can sometimes ruin a series for me. Just when you're getting used to an art style (not that I had to get used to Caselli's; I loved his from the get-go), they switch artists up on ya. Hopefully, once I read more of this series, then I may become accustomed to the entire alternating creative team and not have such an issue with this dilemma.
Overall:
A strong issue, but lacking a bit compared to the Big Time arc, where Slott took over completely in writing. Don't get me wrong, this is a great issue and Slott really gets Spider-Man, in my opinion, but I felt that there could've been more.
4/5
