During J. Michael Straczynski’s six-year-run on “Amazing Spider-Man,” the Web-Head celebrated his 500th issue. (Cover art by J. Scott Campbell and property of Marvel Comics)
By: Jacob Elyachar
Warning! Spoilers are ahead!
In the next couple of weeks, Amazing Spider-Man will release its 50th anniversary issue.
To celebrate the issue, I will be looking back at several of the crucial stories told in during the past 12 years.
J. Michael Straczynski’s Amazing Spider-Man (John Romita, Jr./Mike Deodato, Jr./Ron Garney/Joe Quesada; 2001-07)
For six years, T.V. writer J. Michael Straczynski delivered incredible stories to Amazing Spider-Man. He wrote impressive narratives that mixed emotional moments with witty dialogue and created incredible memories from Aunt May discovering Peter’s secret identity to Peter and Mary Jane’s emotional reunion to the reaction to the 9/11 events to One More Day, J. Michael Straczynski’s run should be essential reading for comic book lovers and Spider-Man enthusiasts.
Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s “Spider-Man: Blue” showcased the ultimate love triangle between Spider-Man, Mary Jane Watson and the late Gwen Stacy. (Cover by Tim Sale and property of Marvel Comics).
Spider-Man: Blue (Jeph Loeb/Tim Sale; 2002-03)
Taken place during an early part of Spider-Man’s career, iconic comic creators Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale told a story about Spider-Man’s early encounters with some of his deadliest adversaries including Green Goblin, Lizard and Kraven the Hunter plus it also focuses on Spider-Man’s first love: the late Gwen Stacy.
Spider-Man: Return of the Goblin (Paul Jenkins/Humberto Ramos; 2002)
In the second volume of Peter Parker: Spider-Man, Paul Jenkins and Humberto Ramos delivered an incredible tale that explored the relationship between Peter Parker and his ultimate nemesis: Norman Osborn also known as the Green Goblin. Osborn begins a revenge plan that targets everyone in Peter’s life and critically injures one of Peter’s oldest friends: Flash Thompson.
Marvel Knights Spider-Man (Mark Millar/Terry & Rachel Dodson/Frank Cho, 2004-05)
When the Scorpion kidnaps and buries Aunt May alive, Spider-Man goes on a witch hunt that attracts the attention of the Avengers, Fantastic Four and the X-Men but also several of greatest opponents including Green Goblin, the Vulture, Doctor Octopus and a deadlier version of Venom.
Spider-Man: New Ways to Die (Dan Slott/John Romita, Jr.; 2008)
Due to the events of Marvel’s Civil War, Spider-Man has become an outlaw because he did not sign up for the Superhuman Registration Act. While he has to tackle Norman Osborn and his team of Thunderbolts, Spidey also has to deal with the mysterious goblin-like Menace and a new opponent: Anti-Venom.
Spider-Man faced off against the Kravinoff family in one of the most explosive stories of the 2000s: “The Grim Hunt.” (Cover by Leinil Francis Yu and property of Marvel Comics)
Shed and the Grim Hunt (Zeb Wells/Joe Kelly/Chris Bachalo/ Michael Lark; 2010)
Throughout 2009 and 2010, Ana and Sasha Kravinoff, the daughter and widow of the late Kraven, put Spider-Man through the ringer. After tackling reincarnations of several of his opponents, Spider-Man put to the test when he faced off against a deadlier Lizard before facing off against the entire might of the Kravinoff family, which featured a resurrected Kraven the Hunter. These two stories showed Spider-Man at his lowest but he overcame these obstacles to save the city.
Spider-Man: Big Time (Dan Slott/Humberto Ramos/Marcos Martin/Stefano Caselli; 2010-11)
At the end of Siege, Spider-Man was at the top of his game. He had a new job at Horizon Labs and got comfortable with his relationship with Carlie Cooper. However, some of Spider-Man’s forgotten opponents began to climb out of the work to try to ruin his happiness. Unfortunately, Alistair Smythe was successful in attacking Spider-Man’s world when he killed J. Jonah Jameson’s wife: Marla.
To learn more about Spider-Man’s milestone and what Marvel plans to celebrate Spider-Man’s milestone, click here: http://marvel.com/
Great picks! The only thing I would add to the list is Spider-Island. I would also give a shout-out to Straczynski’s Civil War issues. I have to admit, I’m one of the few who approved of the storyline where Peter chose to reveal his identity to the world. I thought it was a huge, character advancing period for Peter, but of course they had to magically undo all of that! Still good stuff.