Review: Amazing Spider-Man #76 (Lgy 877)

Lets get a couple of things out in the open; I HATE Ben Reilly! I also HATE the whole Clone Saga stuff and the Scarlet Spider. In fact if truth be told, it was Marvel’s never ending Clone stuff and Maximum Carnage that drove me out of comics way back, a situation which was reversed when Steph Brown became Batgirl! Now that’s out in the open, we shall begin.

Peter is still recovering from the mental stress and strains of the Kindred and the “death” of Harry. So what could be better timing for Ben Reilly to re-appear into Peter’s life, with a legally sanctioned, tech spider suit. Of course things don’t go to plan with Ol’ Timer Spidey put through the wringer and ending up in hospital in a very serious condition. It’s life and death time once more for Peter Parker.

Zeb Wells may be one of most under appreciated writers when it comes to Spider-Man. In essence he has been the caretaker between the departing, and overall disappointing, Nick Spencer and the onboarding queen of the banter Kelly Thompson. Wells had a choice; play it safe or go for broke. Gladly, he went for broke! With the recent changes in Peter’s life, Wells has decided to bring the action, in the shape of Ben Reilly and the U-Foes. Wells takes a clever approach in how to get rid of the incumbent Spider-Man, what to do when the danger is inside? the dialogue between Peter, MJ and the alway dangerous Aunt May brings back memories of many an emotional Spidey story. Then there is the crux of my situation; my obvious distaste of Ben Reilly and techie Spidey suits (mentioned on a recent No Prize Podcast episode), there is a genuine emotional impact to Wells work.

The art is provided by Patrick Gleason whose art here may seem a little heavier than normal. Between the opening and final acts there are a lot of grimacing faces as you would probably expect. What is surprising is how pacy the art is given that the book is set around a hospital bed. Obviously, Gleason has been channeling Grey’s Anatomy! The characters all look like they should, probably in their more classic look, with Vapour from the U-Foes getting the cheesecake treatment. Colors are provided by Marcio Menyz who delivers some nice nuances amongst the boldness of the Marvel process. VC’s Joe Caramagna letters remain some of the best in the business. Variant covers exist; as much as I love Art Adams, the Gleason one is the winner for me!

Despite containing two of my most hated aspects of Spider-Man, this book was a fantastic read, for the most part. The key for the books success will be how different Ben is to Peter and will the villains know the difference. Next up is Kelly Thompson who has been on fire on Captain Marvel. Thompson excels at the dialogue between characters, so it will interesting to see that style, even if it isn’t Peter Parker.

Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 4 Stars
Colors – 4 Stars

Overall – 4.5 Stars

Written by; Zeb Wells
Art by; Patrick Gleason
Colors by; Marcio Menyz
Letters by; VC’s Joe Caramagna
Covers by; Art Adams, Patrick Gleason & Joe Jusko
Published by; Marvel Worldwide Inc.

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network