Okay, Doctor Octopus is one of my favorite Spider-Man villains, possibly my favorite altogether, so I may be a little nicer to this issue than the last.

Honestly, I fear that this review will be too short in comparison to my last two. This was bound to happen due to this issue only consisting of one story, but I find myself having less to say when I truly enjoy something. It's much harder to articulate positive thoughts over negative thoughts for me, but I'll try.

This is my favorite issue of the run so far, and I know that doesn't mean much when I'm only 3 issues in, but when people tell you to read the Lee/Ditko Era of Spider-Man, it is issues like this one that truly bolster that recommendation. That, despite the antiquated feeling, the story shines through as something worth reading. This is the first full-length Spider-Man issue, and you can tell that the extra space has given Lee and Ditko more freedom. Things don't have to be quite so rushed. The villain gets his time to shine, and as a whole, things are fleshed out. Spider-Man can have more of an character arc as well.

We finally get to see a villain that actually puts Spider-Man to the test. The Chameleon, the Vulture, the Tinkerer and gravity itself have nothing on Doc Ock. Spider-Man gets handily defeated, and it's not through some bullshit blindsided kick to the head like Vulture. Spidey is simply bested by Doc Ock, in a fair fight. The ego exuded from Doc Ock when he bitch slaps Spider-Man is character defining. And what happens next? Spider-Man adapts; he uses his smarts and he proves he's not reliant purely on his powers. Now, I'm aware that this issue kind of mirrors the Vulture story from last issue, but it's done better and we get a nice little character beat for Peter where he doubts himself. It's just a lot better.

Continuity wise, we get a few more big events here. The introduction of the Spider-Signal. It does come out of nowhere, which is something I praised last issue for *not doing.* But I am pretty sure they eventually get into more of why Spider-Man has it. J. Jonah Jameson is back at the Daily Bugle, as it should be. There's not much focus on the Parker financial woes, but I'm sure that'll come back soon enough. We also get to see the first inkling of the friendship Spider-Man and the Human Torch will form. That's covered more in the Strange Tales second annual that would soon be hitting shelves. But I'm not covering that, because taking on all the Spider-Titles themselves is more than enough of a workload. But we see the friendship start to bud here and that's what's important.

Overall, like I said, the longer story format works better and Doc Ock is one of the biggest Spider-Man foes for a reason. He's great.

Quote of the issue: "Where Are Your Brave Words and Taunts Now, Spider-Man?" more

Almost flawless issue. This is the first really good spider-man story (if not count his origin). The one big story with a good script instead of two half-sized + new greatest and iconic spider-man villain. They even showed his origin here!

Also this story is interesting, because Spidey even was defeated, but with the help of Human Torch cameo, he finally succeed!

It is a masterpiece. more

It’s different for everyone and everyone likes what they like. I loved the fact that we get an exact explanation of how and when Jon went through time, space, and dimensions. The questions were answered which is so dang refreshing to see in comics. I love that someone finally answered something in a way that wasn’t vague! And it was kind of important too!

I love time travel, I love alternate earths and tales, and my only wish is we got more of the fight and more of a story with the crime syndicate.

We have great art, great action, big ass guns, cool tech, and tons of villains, including Rogul Zar again! What’s not to like? Give me more! more

I really enjoy to read this issue...absolutely amazing

This is gonna be a lengthy review about not just this comic, but Zdarsky's work on Spider-Man. Zdarsky is probably the only writer in the past decade that truly understands Spider-Man as a character. Slott had his moments, but his run went off the rails pretty quick. Spencer's run seems to be more focused on dragging itself out telling a story that could be finished in 3 arcs. Zdarsky's Spectacular Spider-Man run, Spider's Shadow, and Life Story shows that Zdarsky understands what makes Spider-Man such a great hero and character. The humor, the character moments, the story itself are all perfect. Not only does he understand Peter, he writes all of the surrounding Spider-Man characters perfectly. He writes all the villains perfectly, laying out their motivations and why they are antagonizing Spider-Man. He also provides them with some humanity so we can empathize with them as well. If Marvel had any sense, they'd put him on Amazing and be done with it for the next 5 years. The art here is also so good. Bagley's art style has aged so gracefully. I have to give a shout out to the colorist as well. The warm colors here really provide a great throwback vibe to the story. I can't recommend this issue enough, but you'd probably want to read Life Story first before reading this. more

I used to put a quarter in that Spider-Car outside the Toys R Us. This plus the Anti-Venom symbiote being used throughout the tale gave clout to a book that can easily be slept on.
Black Cat's crew are comedy relief, but still manage to be cool. A ghost dog? Better than Harley Quinn's beaver. Hell, this whole team shits on the little kittens Catwoman got in her hometown right now (the whole reason I stopped reading that title for now).
A high-soeed chase against symbiote dragons spells out just how action-packed this issue is, but then to throw in a cliffhanger similar to when Wonder Woman picked up Mjolnir in Marvel vs. DC will keep me locked in for anotber issue.
Exploiting my fond memories for attention - MacKay & Villa got this Cat's number.

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cvrthebard.tumblr.com more

This is a stupidly enjoyable comic.

There is no reason for this to be so good. But it is. One of the best tie-ins this event has.