Amazing Spider-Man #2
Writer: Nick Spencer
Penciller: Ryan Ottley
Colorist: Laura Martin
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Price: $3.99
Release Date: 07/25/18
Rating: T
Plot: Peter Parker is back in school and his new teacher is Dr. Curtis Conners (a.k.a. the Lizard). While Connors explains his new class to Peter, the lab is attacked by Taskmaster and Black-Ant. Fortunately, Spider-Man stops the criminals and saves Peter Parker. Wait, what?
Story: Nick Spencer writes excellent dialogue in this issue. Not only does he give Spider-Man some funny clips but he keeps the tone very upbeat and positive. The best example is the scene where Spidey fights the Ringer and Man Mountain Marko. This tone in dialogue is a nice refection on Peter’s newfound happiness since he got back together with Mary Jane Watson. Speaking of which, Spencer also does an amazing job showing how Peter and MJ don’t skip a beat after their time a part.
This issue adds some more information regarding Dr. Conners’ role in the series. Conners reveals to Peter that his class is about making discoveries for the sake of science, which really speaks to Peter. Also the way Conners is being set up as Peter’s mentor is a nice calback to the character’s role in the 90’s Spider-Man animated series. However there isn’t much revealed about what happened to Conners after the Clone Conspiracy arc. When we last saw him, Conners injected his wife and son with the lizard formula to save them from the Carrion virus. Maybe this could explain why Conners tells Peter the class is looking for a cure for the Lizard formula.
This issue also sets up the two Peter Parkers arc. The idea of two Peter Parkers has some potential but it feels like we’ve been down this route every time the Chameleon appears. However this time there’s no real evidence about how this happened. Some people theorize the isotope genome accelerator is responsible but it didn’t active at all this issue. Hopefully this idea will get more entertaining as the story progresses.
Art: This issue’s artwork is spectacular. Ryan Ottley is one of my favorite superhero artists and one scene really stood out for me. While Peter’s talking to MJ about their history, he says something’s always got in the way right with a shot of his Spider-Man costume in plain sight. This is a clever reference to the reason behind their break up was Peter’s superhero activities. Also the colors used in Peter and MJ’s morning scene was beautiful. Laura Martin really nailed the morning sunlight which made the setting more authentic.
Verdict: Amazing Spider-Man is still going strong. Nick Spencer writes some excellent dialogue and shows readers why Peter and MJ is good for Spider-Man. Ryan Ottley and Laura Martin create some artwork that really bring the story to life. Although the two Peter Parkers idea feels repetitive, this team could probably bring a new twist to story. Overall, this issue is pretty amazing.
Rating: 4 out of 5