Best ASM Kelly has done so far.

I enjoyed it, but there’s too many other Absolute books that are better and I can’t get them all.

At this point it feels like Marvel is throwing everything at the wall just to see what sticks....and not much is. This just feels tired and generic. Ewing had one big hit and the big two starts throwing tons of work his way and he's of course taking it because each assignment pays so little. He's good, so give him less stress and more money to write one or two REALLY good books. Venom unfortunately ain't it. more

I don’t really like the reveal but at least it was surprising. This was probably the best issue so far imo. The past issues have seemed stretched just to prolong this reveal and didn’t feel necessary. This issue at least felt like Ewing was trying. Ewing has the ability to pull this off so I’ll stay on to see how it goes. Hopefully MJ eats Paul’s brains haha.

Let's start with the obvious.

The art is amazing. Just so beautiful. Welcome to ASM Pepe Laraz, I hope you are staying for a long time.

As for stories? Kelly did good. This is so much better than #61 was and I think it is because it feels like there is a direction here. We are actually going somewhere and not just waiting for plot to happen. That is great and Kelly uses his time here well. I have seen comparisons to Big Time and it certainly feels like that.

First backup is great. I love that Kelly continues to work on Norman's redemption. And it won't be easy.

Second one is... I do not like it. I hope this isn't a random magical hell-related bad guy that has zero connection to Spider-Man like Cyttorak or The Blight, or a friend turned demon like Kindred (that is actually a demonic AI controlling cloned bodies made from DNA of your nemesis and your former love with memories from your friend). Because neither of them worked. Kindred especially was bad.

And that brings me to my biggest problem here. I am not excited for this run. I have been this down before, and I don't want to be burned for the third time. And it's all because of the editor.

Lowe seems like a nice guy. I have nothing against him personally and he seems cool in his responses on letter pages. But his work output has been mediocre or terrible for the past decade, with some standouts. If two last runs of ASM suffered because of poor editing and somehow opposite mistakes, I think that tells something.

From the getgo, Kelly seemed like a safe pic. And that he is. This is a solid introduction. But for me, not an exciting one because editorial stays the same. more

I really liked this. I think Joe Kelly really stepped up his game here. Maybe it has to do with the freeing nature of this being an ongoing that simply won't be cancelled. Maybe when given as much space as possible, Kelly is able to slow himself down in a way he couldn't on titles like Non-Stop, Savage or even 8 Deaths just before this. I really did like Spider-Man/Deadpool when he was doing that, and I hope we get something more in line with that, pacing wise. I thought the comic was well paced, and refreshing in spite of just how much is being carried over from the Wells run. Everyone's likeable here. There's no forced drama. It felt almost comforting, even if the supporting cast isn't necessarily the classic line up. I saw someone compare it to BND/Big Time, and that's apt. It's just a very clean starting point, but not in a way that feels super disconnected from what came before. The art by Larraz is great. JRJR's art is what you'd expect. He's dynamic, he's got great panel composition, but... it's just kinda ugly sometimes. If you've seen his work on the Wells run, you won't be shocked by what you see here. The backup with Norman is exciting for me, because I do want them to continue his character growth. I really expected him to fade into the background until he inevitably showed up as a goblin again. The final backup is the one part of this issue that's a real miss for me. I just... I don't want what they're selling there. Maybe it'll work better than I expect. more

One of the best Spider-Man books in a long time, although that’s really not saying much. As a standalone book, it was fine but if I was to rate it on being a #1 honestly it felt a little lackluster. It felt more like a palate cleanser for a new arc in the middle of a run more so than a brand new run. Kelly is getting Peter right IMO, so far.

2 big things I didn’t like. The “Nick ‘Loves Love’ Lowe” editors note was REAL rich coming off the last arc. JRJR was still back in some capacity in the backstory. Sorry JRJR, I’m just not a fan. He can draw plenty better than me, but it’s not what I look for in any book I’ve read with him in the pencils. more

Gets a little bump from how gorgeous the art is. The lighting work was phenomenal.

Back stories were cute.

I think this was one of the first issues where Bazaldua's art really shined for me. Ewing's script is great as usual.

I loved it! It ws much better than CATS. I'm going to read it again and again...

Great final page. Fun gimmick. Ewing cooked, this last arc is looking like something special.

He can’t keep getting away with it.
He got away with it again.
He can’t keep getting away with it.
He got away with it again.
This book was brilliant, I enjoyed reading each page 3 times.
He got away with it again.

This is awkward. The message is delivered very well, but the ride? I feel like the whole thing was rushed to an extent. There were bits and pieces where I could see the potential of Kelly’s writing but I don’t know why it was unable to come through all the way.

I just want to act like these 70 issues never happened. I hope Kelly does what Wells did and throws everything the previous writer did in the trash. I’ve never been more relieved for a new first issue. more

Gotta say, art was phenomenal. And I liked what Kelly's idea was for this and message was heartful So, I can confidently say that if the hack fraud who works for the Spidey office as the main editor doesn't quit by 1000, then I will. The sheer level of incompetence this storyline has showcased has been disrespectful and horrible to see.

Like, way to ruin a nice idea by Kelly. Like what the hell was this storyline. What a waste of time with no consequence

What was the point of Peter moping for three issues, cheating Shay or treating her horribly, breaking up with her and then getting back together. The only thing managed was to showcase what a joke that relationship is and how horribly Shay is been treated. At least show some character we saw from her in #55.

What was the point of that one-off between Peter and Felicia. It didn't change anything. Only lessened the relationship between them. Why where the rest of the X-Men here besides Juggernaut. This is the second team-up we see with them and Spidey and it means nothing. Why do they need to bring Cyclops and Magik here, if they don't interact with the main character at all. Don't they have trust that this will sell? Who is this for???

I like the idea of Cyttorak being the new casket. But what we have seen from this storyline, rules don't matter at all, so by the next time we see Cyttorak, Randy Robertson can be the new casket because why not.

And when the Fraud mentioned that it was Kelly's idea they started to work on, I got the idea how it went down. Kelly wanted to do a story where he showcased Peter's love for life and how it can affect even immortal gods like Cyttorak and motivate them to do good by seeing the beauty of life. It's a beautiful idea and Kelly does his best here to showcase it. The rest of this arc pretty much ruins it by disastrous editing, since there is no clear vision how to make it last for 12 issues.

And they even didn't get the name right for this. If all other mistakes and choices weren't enough, they can't even name the storyline correctly. 8 DEATHS OF SPIDER-MAN!!! WHERE HE FACES 8 SCIONS OF CYTTORAK. BUT ACTUALLY IT'S ONLY 5. HE ALSO DIES ONLY 5 TIMES. TWO OF THE SCIONS AREN'T EVEN SEEN, JUST KILLED OFF-SCREEN. more

Definitely a step back from the prior issue with the new level set.

Interesting choices in that one minou.

I can see why people would enjoy this, just not my cup of tea.

Outstanding read

It’s a great twist to end the season, but most of the book is the announcement and then 15 pages of everyone reaching in short panel shots. It makes sense the way they did it, it just doesn’t lead to an exciting read post announcement.

I’m loving the black and white art for the Zanni scenes.