Featuring: Spider-Man
Release: October 11, 1966
Cover: January 1967
12 cents
Story: Smilin’ Stan Lee
Illustration: Jazzy John Romita
Lettering: Swingin’ Sam Rosen
Luggage: Honest Irving Forbush
20 pages
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| Amazing Spider-Man #43 | Amazing Spider-Man | Amazing Spider-Man #45 |
Ditko and Lee created a number of great villains for Spider-Man: Chameleon, Vulture, Tinkerer, Dr. Octopus, Sandman, Lizard, Living Brain, Electro, Big Man and the Enforcers, Mysterio, Green Goblin, Kraven the Hunter, Scorpion, the Spider Slayer, Molten Man, the Cat, Looter, Robot Master, a Guy Named Joe…
A temptation when writing a Spider-Man story is to have the premise: “Spider-Man fights _ again.”
Which is the worst idea for a Spider-Man story. In fact, two of Ditko’s weakest issues, written after he had basically given up on the series, involve Spider-Man fighting Kraven or Molten Man again.
That’s not to say these villains shouldn’t return. They should. But their return needs to tell a different story with them or move their own story forward.
That’s the big question. Is this story advancing the saga of this villain or bringing it in circles?
Dr. Octopus fought Spider-Man. When they fought again, it led to the death of Betty Brant’s brother and Spider-Man being unmasked. The villain returned but it was a new story. When they fought again, Dr. Octopus assembled six of Spider-Man’s most sinister foes to battle him. Again, a different story. Finally, they had their greatest battle with Dr. Octopus in the guise of the Master Planner. I heaped plenty of praise on that saga at the time. But suffice it to say, I think there was more of a premise to that story than “Spider-Man fights Dr. Octopus again.”
Spider-Man fought the Lizard, but then learned he was a good man Dr. Connors transformed by his own science experiments.
We saw that man again, cured of his Lizard ways, now acting as a scientific advisor to Spider-Man. We saw him again last issue in a similar capacity, advising against the Rhino. That time he idly wondered if the powers of the Lizard could be used against the Rhino. Spider-Man convinced him that thinking is dangerous.
So as we read stories where Spider-Man fights a classic villain again, I have a couple thought questions. Is the story moving the villain’s story forward? Is it telling a new story with the villain? Is there more to the premise than “Spider-Man fights _ again”?
I’m not objecting per se to Spider-Man fighting the Lizard again. Romita is an artist with a distinctive style from Ditko, so it’s fun to see his take on Ditko’s villains.
And the story will be good because Romita’s art is good and because he’ll do a good job with the side characters and soap opera. But will the story be good?
Continue reading “Amazing Spider-Man #44”