Wow, just wow. I can honestly say this is one of the best Spider-Man stories I’ve read in years…and it doesn’t even feature Spider-Man. Nick Spencer brilliant spins a tale about a D-List villain the Gibbon. He does the seemingly impossible by making me care deeply about the fate of a character who I just never even think about. For those not in the know Arcade is running a safari hunt allowing rich folks to safely hunt animal themed super villains in safety by using robot Kravens via neural cyber links. It’s a really neat concept and it works so much better than the appalling story where Arcade played Hunger Games with a bunch of young heroes.
This comic focuses on the Gibbon a mutant not unlike the Beast in that he shares ape like features and attributes. The Gibbon is being ruthlessly hunted by a bunch of these Kravenbot Proxies and reflects on the few ups and many downs of his life as he fights for survival. Spencer shows that he either knows his lore or did his homework as he recounts the Gibbons exploits switching fluidly between the here and the now and the past. He also shows a deep understanding of a rather obscure character. The Gibbon has never been a prominent villain as he admits to himself he lacked the killer instinct or the thirst for vengeance that spur many of Spider-Man’s foes in repeated encounters with the web slinger. It’s the sad tale of a man who is out-of-place in the world and who desperately tries to carve out a niche for himself but ultimately always fails and his last fateful decision has likely decided his fate.
Spencer’s deft handling of this character has me rooting for him the entire issue while dreading the potential outcome of the comic. Its a noteworthy accomplishment to make a reader care so much for a character who has been kinda lame for most of his history and my hat is off to the author, bravo sir. In my opinion this is a real master class in creating empathy for old and even new characters and many a writer at Marvel would do well these days to study this story and take notes. This is how you write a sympathetic and relatable character even if you have nothing in common with them, a great writer can take any character and generate genuine empathy in their audience.
ART
The art team also delivers on this book in a big way. Lashley’s art gives us everything that made Marvel great! The action is dynamic and packed with energy and excitement, the action sequences flows beautifully from panel to panel and the shots are varied and interesting. The story telling is brilliant and the faces are incredibly expressive, some panels just drip with emotion! Even the quiet moments are engaging. Lashley changes up his style for the flashbacks, simplifying his strokes and cutting back on the detail to harken back to the art style of the forty years ago.
The colorist, Arciniega, likewise shifts his palette and technique between the past and the present to match the art style of each and it’s the coloring in particular that sells the flashbacks with muted tones and simplified rendering. The present day action sings with emotion, mood and energy and it always serves the art and story perfect.
LETTERING
I don’t mention lettering often but I’m compelled to do so once again here. The work of Joe Caramanga in this book is spectacular. The font choices are clean and modified to effectively enhance the story. The balloons lead around the art and the page in the most complimentary way and the sound fx are well placed and ad to the scene in a visceral way.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I’ve read the previous issues in this particular arc and they are pretty good but this issue, man oh man, it’s a real stand out. For me its an instant classic. 5 out of 5!
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #18
Writer: Nick Spencer
Art: Ken Lashley
Colors: Eric Arciniega
Lettering: Joe Caramanga
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