ROBIN #8 - July 1994

 

Death’s Door

Credits:  Chuck Dixon (writer), Tom Grummett (penciler), Ray Kryssing (finishes), Albert De Guzman (letterer), Adrienne Roy (colorist)

Summary:  Robin and Nightwing are aghast at Bruce’s actions, as opposed to the recently-arrived Lady Shiva.  She tells Bruce his training is complete and takes the Tengu mask with her.  After she leaves, the master begins to revive, and Robin and Nightwing understand that Bruce used a non-lethal maneuver.  Meanwhile, the cyborg defeated by Jean-Paul implicates Batman to the police in what could be his final breath.  Jean-Paul escapes the crime scene and tracks down more gunrunners.  Later, Bruce dons the Batman costume again, ready to retake Gotham.

“Huh?” Moment:  Bane somehow has a mystic connection to Batman that lets him know when Bruce has donned the cowl once again.

Review:  Hey, wasn’t that cover blurb the name of a crossover in the early ‘00s?  Did that storyline ever expect you to believe Bruce Wayne killed someone, or did we always know he was framed?  Back in 1994, DC was serious about the feint, for the entire week or two in-between Legends of the Dark Knight #62 and Robin #8, at least.  Like the ending of the previous chapter, Dixon gets a lot of mileage out of the shock value, even if it makes the inevitable revival of the master feel like even more of a copout.  Thankfully, this tease only lasted for a week or so.  Given DC’s track record for its ‘90s event comics, I wouldn’t be surprised if a dozen issues teased the idea of Bruce killing someone at the end of his ninja training before we discovered he’s actually innocent.  

After the Shiva training scenes are mercifully over, we’re treated to even more pages of Jean-Paul brutalizing gunrunners while on his hunt for the mysterious “LeHah.”  Those are about as entertaining as you might expect, but fortunately the remainder of the issue is dedicated to Robin and Nightwing’s growing relationship.  Dixon handles both of the characters well, and Grummett shows he’s just as adept at conversation scenes as action scenes.  And seeing Bruce don the cowl again is kind of an emotional moment after such a lengthy storyline, but it’s marred by the knowledge that DC goes another six months before truly restoring Batman.

LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #62 - July 1994

Devils

Credits:  Chuck Dixon (writer), Ron Wagner (penciler), Ron McCain (inker), Willie Schubert (letterer), Digital Chameleon (colors)

Summary:  Robin and Nightwing follow Bruce’s trail, while he’s being ambushed by another group of ninjas.  Their master, a man twice Bruce’s size, soon appears.  After defeating him in battle, Bruce declares the only way to end Shiva’s game is to kill the master.  Robin and Nightwing walk in right after Bruce delivers the fatal blow.  Meanwhile, Jean-Paul’s search for his father’s killer leads to another gunrunning ring.  Their enforcer is a large cyborg that Jean-Paul eventually defeats by triggering a box of explosives.

Review:  I hope you wanted more ninja fight scenes, along with even more pages of Jean-Paul beating up gunrunners.  (This time aided by a cyborg that looks oddly reminiscent of the McFarlane Toys action figure “Overt-Kill II.”)  This chapter is at the very least nice to look at, as the dependable Ron Wagner is paired with a Janson-esque inker, but for the bulk of the issue we’re stuck with even more repetitive fight scenes.  Dixon tries to break the monotony by having Bruce and Jean-Paul’s fight scenes parallel each other, which does lead to a fairly shocking cliffhanger.  We all know Jean-Paul is so far gone he’ll kill an opponent, but having the true Batman kill probably drove fans overboard at the time.  Thankfully, it all turns out to be an elaborate ruse, although I now wonder how many readers of Legends who didn’t pick up the next chapter in Robin were left believing that Bruce really did kill this guy.  Outside of that cliffhanger, which turned out to be a fake-out anyway, it’s another dull chapter.

DETECTIVE COMICS #676 - July 1994

Too Many Ninjas

Credits:  Chuck Dixon (writer), Graham Nolan (penciler), Scott Hanna (inker), John Costanza (letterer), Adrienne Roy (colorist)

Summary:  Bruce is herded by a group of ninjas into the highway, where he’s confronted by another master.  After defeating the master in battle, another appears.  The fight ends prematurely when her chain whip is caught up in a passing semi-truck.  Bruce is disappointed that he didn’t defeat her personally.  In the Batcave, Nightwing meets Harold.  Meanwhile, Jean-Paul continues his search for LeHah.  He finds the body of a gunrunner he believes was killed by LeHah.  A vision from St. Dumas tells Jean-Paul that LeHah didn’t personally kill his father, but instead sent a surrogate.

I Love the ‘90s:  One of the hoods Jean-Paul is chasing is annoyed that his friend now has a “portable phone.”

Total N00B:  I believe this is the first story in all three of the Knightfall trades to actually explain who Harold is.

Review:  It’s hard not read any meta-commentary into that title.  This is the third chapter in a row of Bruce fighting nameless, personality-less, martial arts masters while the ongoing storylines advance at a snail’s pace.  To Dixon and Nolan’s credit, the action in this issue is pretty entertaining, if only because a martial arts duel on a rainy multi-lane highway is kind of unusual for a superhero comic.  And there is a nice moment where Nightwing voices the audience’s frustrations with Bruce for selecting Jean-Paul as the replacement Batman instead of Dick.  “He’s his own man now” was always a copout explanation, and at least there’s one scene in the event where Dick reaffirms that he would’ve taken on the role even if he didn’t want it, simply out of loyalty to Bruce.  The rest of the issue is kind of a disappointment, as a lot of space is spent reiterating established plot points (which I guess was necessary for anyone not following every single Bat-title at the time), and Jean-Paul chews up a few pages beating up generic goons.  The Jean-Paul/LeHah subplot is even more tedious than Bruce fighting martial arts masters every issue, since Jean-Paul remains an unsympathetic character, and LeHah himself is a mystery to anyone who hasn’t read Sword of Azrael.

SHADOW OF THE BAT #29 - July 1994

Manimal: Proving Ground

Credits:  Alan Grant (writer), Bret Blevins (penciler), Bob Smith and Bret Blevins (inks), Todd Klein (letterer), Adrienne Roy (colorist)

Summary:  Bruce orders Robin and Nightwing to follow Jean-Paul, while he continues his training.  Another master tracks Bruce to his cabin in the woods, and even though Bruce defeats him in battle, he remains unconvinced that he’s ready to return as Batman.  Meanwhile, Jean-Paul continues his search for Carlton LeHah, his father’s murderer.

Irrelevant Continuity:  According to Bruce’s research, the St. Dumas that Jean-Paul’s order was created to serve possibly never existed.

Total N00B:  I’m assuming Carlton LeHah appeared in the Sword of Azrael miniseries, because the characters in this issue certainly talk about him as if he’s an established character.  We do get a fairly lengthy flashback explaining the Order of Dumas and how Jean-Paul received the mantle of Azrael, the first time this information has been revealed in the sixty or so comics that have been reprinted so far.

Review:  I think Alan Grant still hates Azrael, but thankfully he’s not the sole focus of the series anymore.  The double-sized remit allows Grant a lot of space to focus on Bruce and his insecurities over returning as Batman, along with numerous pages of him training and fighting another unnamed master.  And symbolic animal imagery, of course.  The martial arts scenes get a little tiresome, but Grant’s third-person narration does a lot to humanize Bruce and make his current situation feel like a legitimate character arc, instead of filler before his inevitable return as Batman.  The rest of the story is pretty blatant filler, though, as Jean-Paul keeps talking to visions, Robin and Nightwing fight some generic thugs, and as I said, Bruce trains and trains like he’s in a Rocky montage.  The few good scenes don’t do enough to distract from the padding.  Another great cover, though.

BATMAN #509 - July 1994

 

Spirit of the Bat

Credits:  Doug Moench (writer), Mike Manley (penciler), Dick Giordano (inks), Ken Bruzenak (letterer), Adrienne Roy (colorist)

Summary:  Shiva dons the mask of Tengu and kills a martial arts master in combat.  His seven former disciples, now masters, vow vengeance.  Later, Shiva tells Bruce Wayne to don the mask to complete his training.  He soon realizes that he’s been framed for murder and each of the seven masters will pursue him.  Bruce brings the first defeated master to Shiva, unaware that she’s going to kill him.  After defeating the second master, and realizing that Shiva killed the first, Bruce lets him go free.  Meanwhile, while stopping a gun running operation, Batman comes across a medallion once owned by LeHah.  He swears vengeance.  

Irrelevant Continuity:  Batman lists Jigsaw as one of the menaces he’s stopped since taking over the role.  He’s referring to the Marvel villain, I’m assuming, who appeared in the two Batman/Punisher crossovers that occurred in the early ‘90s.  This is one of the very few explicit references to a Marvel/DC crossover ever made in a regular monthly title.

Total N00B:  The goons working for the gun running operation talk about someone named LeHah, who apparently ran a munitions operations now overseen by another mystery figure, Selkirk.  Jean-Paul recognizes LeHah as “the master of the System” as the story has a one-panel flashback to the Sword of Azrael miniseries.

Review:  This issue marks the beginning of “Knightsend,” the final crossover of the Jean-Paul Valley era.  To mark the launch of “Knightsend,” every Bat-title released this month was double-sized, even though some of the chapters arguably didn’t need the extra length.  When the month is over, you’ve consumed a lot of Bruce vs. Ninja pages.  This chapter actually holds up pretty well, thanks largely to Mike Manley’s knack for drawing martial arts action.  Doug Moench also has a clever opening to the issue, as we discover that the ninja master Shiva has engaged in combat truly is an expert in “unarmed” combat.  The ending is also strong, as Moench has Bruce stand at the edge of a skyscraper, unable to perform the classic Batman-swinging-from-a-rope move we’ve all seen a thousand times.

The main problem with the issue is Bruce Wayne’s willingness to go along with Shiva’s plot in the first place.  As soon as he discovered she murdered the original master (“murder” might be too strong a word, but she is responsible for the death of a man who’s not obviously guilty of anything), Bruce should’ve done everything in his power to apprehend her.  Instead, he plays along with her game, and even stupidly brings her the first of his opponents after he defeats him.  After she kills him for no real purpose, that makes Bruce indirectly responsible for two deaths.  That should bother him, but he’s pretty unemotional about the affair.  I understand that the storyline is supposed to show how far Bruce is willing to go to get back into the condition he needs to be as Batman, but he just comes across as too passive and annoyingly out-of-character.

WILDC.A.T.S/X-MEN - THE MODERN AGE - August 1997

 

Credits:  James Robinson (writer), Adam Hughes (penciler), Mark Farmer (inker), Joe Chiodo & Martin Jimenez (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft’s Dave Lanphear (letters)

Summary:  The X-Men investigate the British Hellfire Club.  Nightcrawler hopes to find a missing mutant boy from a nearby town, but instead encounters Warblade, who is tracking Daemonites.  Later, Marlowe arrives at the Hellfire Club with Spartan and Voodoo in disguise as his aides.  The leader of the British Hellfire Club, Blair Cameron, attempts to recruit Marlowe during dinner.  That night, Marlowe, Spartan, and Voodoo are abducted by Cameron, who reveals that he needs to sacrifice an immortal (Marlowe) and a virgin with great power (the missing mutant) to unleash a demon.  The Daemonites have aided him in his plan.  Suddenly, the X-Men arrive with the rest of the WildC.A.T.S and rescue their teammates.  Cameron is defeated and the manor is destroyed.  However, the teams realize that their styles are too different to ever be compatible.

Continuity Notes:  

• The X-Men of the “modern age” consist of the team circa 1979.  The WildC.A.T.S. team appears to be the original lineup from 1992.
• One glaring continuity error is Wolverine’s brown costume, which he didn’t wear until after the death of Phoenix, who is clearly alive in this story.  The story also assumes that the Hellfire Club is a long established enemy of the X-Men, even though they only knew of the Club’s existence a few weeks before Phoenix’s death.
• This story is set after the previous two WildC.A.T.S/X-Men crossover comics.  Wolverine recognizes Zealot from The Golden Age, and Grifter can see Phoenix is Jean Grey following The Silver Age.

Gimmicks:  Two covers exist for the comic.  One by Adam Hughes and another by Paul Smith.

Review:  Okay, I guess no one wanted to acknowledge that the “modern age” of the X-Men of this era consisted of…half the team in space, with the other half stuck on Earth fighting Zero Tolerance.  And Wolverine couldn’t decide if he had a nose or not.  The creators could’ve gone back to, say, the more coherent lineup that predates the “Onslaught” event, or even the days of Claremont/Lee’s X-Men #1.  Seeing the WildC.A.T.S. encounter the X-Men as they existed just as Jim Lee left to actually create the WildC.A.T.S. could’ve been fun --  the crossover comic you would’ve never thought could happen back in 1992.  Going back to pre-1980 seems ridiculous for a book that’s nominally concurrent with what was being published in 1997.  

Ignoring that pedantry, this chapter pairs James Robinson with Adam Hughes, making this one of the few times Hughes has ever done interior art on an X-Men story.  The results are of course beautiful, and while I’m sure the prospect of seeing Hughes draw female characters in Hellfire regalia is one reason why they were chosen as villains, his interpretation of the standard Hellfire guard is also pretty amazing.  Robinson’s story is a simple setup that does the job of getting the teams together, even if he doesn’t seem too interested in why the Daemonites (arch-enemies of the WildC.A.T.S.) would be so eager to help a human summon a demon.  Perhaps the answer could be found in an existing WildC.A.T.S. issue, but the story does very little to clue us in on who the characters are or why they’re doing what they’re doing.  Like many of these ’90s intercompany crossovers, the assumption is that you already know who these people are and are just desperate to see them in the same comic together.  

As a basic cloak and dagger/action story, this moves along at a decent pace with no real problems, until you get to the tacked-on ending.  Over the course of one page, we’re to believe that the X-Men have had the sudden revelation that they just can’t associate with these WildC.A.T.S. characters, based solely on their willingness to kill alien monsters.  Overlooking that their teammate Wolverine was eagerly slicing up these monsters just a few pages earlier, this is still ridiculous.  Ugly aliens and monsters are pretty much always exempt for a hero’s no killing rule, and the X-Men have certainly shown this in the past.  The final page just reads as if Robinson is desperate to find a conclusion, so he’s decided to throw in a little conflict to disrupt the happy ending.  Making this more awkward is Cyclops’ melodramatic proclamation that if the teams meet again, it will be a “dark and terrible day.”  It’s almost as if they already knew the title of the next chapter…

GENERATION X/GEN 13 - February 1997

 

Harvest of Evil

Credits:  James Robinson (writer), Salvador Larroca (penciler), Troy Hubbs & Al Milgrom (inker), Shannon Blanchard (colors), Comicraft (letters)

Summary:  Dr. Pretorious creates a scheme to harvest the organs of young superhumans and then sell them to elderly patients.  He lures Generation X and Gen 13 to his “hotel” in Mexico.  Soon, they discover his creations and discern his true motives.  Burnout escapes to get help and is soon attacked by Pretorious’ genetic hybrids.  The teams combine their powers to escape and eventually rescue Burnout.  With the help of Lynch, Pretorious is arrested and placed into custody.

Not Approved By The Comics Code Authority:  Marvel published this chapter of the crossover, even though there’s no Code approval stamp on the cover.  I think it could’ve been approved, but it is a little racy for a Marvel book of the era.  There are two references to Rainmaker’s lesbianism, Fairchild is allowed to “poke” out in one panel, and in one scene Grunge tries to take Jubilee’s bathing suit off in the water.  (And Jubilee’s supposed to be around fourteen during these days!)

Review:  One day I’ll be free of these Marvel/Wildstorm crossovers.  I didn’t even know Marvel published its own Generation X/Gen 13 crossover until a few weeks ago.  At the time of its release, I was only vaguely aware of the original Image Gen 13/Generation X crossover comic, which had art by Arthur freakin’ Adams yet still managed to fly under the radar.  Marvel clearly didn’t have much of an interest in promoting these comics, perhaps because Gen 13 was already slipping in popularity a bit, or it could’ve been a simple case of a higher-up making the call not to promote the competition’s characters.  Regardless, regular Generation X writer James Robinson, who also did a decent amount of work for Wildstorm, is a good choice to script, and he’s devised a story that doesn’t seem out of place for either team.  It’s a bit Scooby-Doo, but that actually fits Gen 13 perfectly, and it’s not out of the realm of something Scott Lobdell would’ve done in the early Generation X issues.  The only real flaw of the story is Robinson’s assumption that a) you know who all of these characters are (most of the cast isn’t identified by code name or given a clear scene to show off their powers), and b) you know that the characters have already met in the Image crossover comic.  

A larger issue is Salvador Larroca’s art.  There are two inkers on the comic, which might explain why the art is fairly impressive in the opening pages and then grows shockingly inconsistent towards the end.  Even if the book ran into deadline trouble, someone should’ve done something to fix the panels that make some of the cast members look so unrecognizable.  If drawn properly, Jubilee really shouldn’t be confused for any member of Gen 13.  Looking at the various monsters used throughout the story, obviously inspired by old horror movies, also leads me to believe that Arthur Adams was handed the wrong version of the crossover to draw.  Adams could’ve done an incredible job on this comic, but instead he was given a cluttered mess that forced him to pencil one boring talking head after another.  This would’ve been a much better fit; so much so I almost wonder if Robinson heard that Adams was drawing the Generation X/Gen 13 crossover and just assumed he was writing Adams’ chapter.

SPIDER-MAN/ GEN 13 - November 1996

Crossed Generations

Credits:  Peter David (writer), Stuart Immonen (penciler), Cam Smith w/Andrew Pepoy (inks), Joe Rosas (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters)

The Plot:  While in California, Spider-Man confronts the mercenary Glider.  She injures him in the fight, leading Gen 13 to take Spider-Man to their compound.  Glider’s employer, Bartlett, has Spider-Man tracked to Gen 13’s home.  Soon, Glider, Bartlett’s son, and a brigade of soldiers face Spider-Man and Gen 13 in La Jolla.  A soldier targets a nearby school in order to force Gen 13 to surrender.  When Glider sees her daughter Alyssa has been taken hostage, she snaps and turns against her employer.  She kills Bartlett’s son, shortly after receiving a critical wound.  

The Subplots:  Peter Parker is in California on a Daily Bugle assignment to photograph the band Black Lung Disease.  Glider, in her civilian identity, is fighting her ex-husband for custody of Alyssa.  Later, while recovering from her wounds, her husband uses the traumatic incident as justification for taking Alyssa out of the country.  

Web of Continuity:  The younger Bartlett was a guard embarrassed by Gen 13 in their original miniseries (which chronicled their escape from I/O).  His father has arranged for this elaborate operation in order to assuage his son’s bruised ego.  Spider-Man was just used by Glider as a means to attract Gen 13’s attention in the story’s opening.

Forever Young:  Grunge tells Spider-Man he’s been tracking his career since he was a kid.  Freefall confirms that Spider-Man is the “grand old man of super-guys.”  Spider-Man remarks that he’s been humiliated as a hero but he’s never felt old before.

I Love the ‘90s:  Spidey makes a reference to Bob Dole’s grouchy demeanor.  Freefall refers to Spider-Man as the “Nine Inch Nails of super-guys.”  Spider-Man states that he’s not used to being looked up to by Gen X’ers.  And, finally, Spider-Man makes a Helen Hunt reference when Rainmaker creates a twister.

Approved By The Comics Code Authority:  Grunge is allowed to say “Bitchin’!” once.

Production Note:  This is a forty-eight page, prestige format one-shot.  The cover price is $4.95.

Review:  Further proof that Gen 13 was everywhere in the ‘90s, this one-shot was pretty much inevitable once Jim Lee and Marvel made nice in the mid-1990s.  I don’t think it’s too controversial to say that J. Scott Campbell was the main draw of Gen 13, and had he drawn this one-shot, it probably would’ve been one of the few memorable intercompany crossover comics of the era.  I’m sure Wizard would’ve hyped J. Scott Campbell drawing Spider-Man and Gen 13 in the same comic for about a year before its actual release.  Instead, we get Stuart Immonen as artist.  Immonen isn’t bad, but he’s still fairly generic at this stage, and I can’t get too excited over his interpretation of Spider-Man.  Today, he would probably draw a Spider-Man/Gen 13 comic that could put J. Scott Campbell to shame, but he’s not on that level yet.

Peter David might appear to be an odd choice as writer since he's never worked on Gen 13 before, but it’s my understanding that he was Wildstorm’s first choice to replace original Gen 13 scribe Brandon Choi after he left the book at around this time.  David's sensibilities would seem to suit the series, which was essentially a superhero comedy with some cheesecake thrown in.  There’s not a lot of cheesecake here, but David tries to keep the tone light for most of the issue (until he abruptly decides not to, but we’ll get to that later).  If Marvel published this today, I’m sure there would be an effort to play up the idea of Spider-Man as a “youthful” hero, so it’s amusing to see that almost twenty years ago Peter Parker was already considered too old to be hanging out with teenagers.  

The humor of the story isn’t that great, but it’s about as funny as I recall the standard Gen 13 comic from the era.   The real problem with the one-shot is the ending, as the last few pages of the story take a sudden swerve into melodrama.  Glider (a new character apparently created for this one-shot) receives an inordinate amount of the spotlight during the issue, and while she serves her role as nuisance fairly well for most of the story, the ending of the comic suddenly makes her the star.  Forget about Spider-Man and Gen 13 getting into trouble or having fun during their first meeting; instead, this is a comic about a divorcee making a horrible decision and losing custody of her daughter as a result.  And while the concept of overprotective parents does show up earlier in the story, so this isn’t totally out of nowhere, it’s an odd choice to make such a serious (and adult) topic the main theme.  Doing a Gen 13 story with a depressing ending just doesn’t feel right, and creating a new character specifically designed to explore an adult, serious issue also feels like a bizarre fit for the book.   

PETER PARKER, SPIDER-MAN #81 - June 1997

 

Shadow of the Cat

Credits:  Howard Mackie (writer), John Romita, Jr. (penciler), Scott Hanna (inks), Gregory Wright (colors), Comicraft (letters)

The Plot:  Betty Brant pressures Peter Parker into following the trail of the Cat, who’s going on a rampage throughout the city.  From the Cat’s ex-wife, Peter and Betty learn that their son has been kidnapped by an opposing crimelord.  As Spider-Man, Peter tracks down the Cat and helps him defeat his son’s kidnappers, Razorfist and Shockwave.  Spider-Man allows the Cat to be reunited with his son, even though he’s sure he’ll have to face the Cat as an enemy one day.

The Subplots:  MJ wants Peter to stay in with her, claiming that this is the only night they’ve had alone since losing the baby.  (This ignores the fact Aunt Anna has been out of the house more than she’s been inside it since moving in.)

Web of Continuity:  The Cat has apparently gone from mercenary to aspiring crimelord for the purposes of this story.  His ex-wife explains that he set his sights on “farther and darker horizons,” presumably since his last appearance.  The rival mobster that’s hired Razorfist and Shockwave isn’t revealed.

How Did This Get Published?:  Razorfist to the Cat: “I have always believed that the word of your martial arts prowess was an exaggeration.”  The Cat replies, “And yet I see you are still among the living?  And sporting new hands?  Many things are exaggerated in the retelling.  And you, Razorfist?  I understand you recently suffered a defeat from the assassin called Elektra.”  To be fair to Howard Mackie, most of the scripting in this issue is fine.  This exchange should’ve had a red pen taken to it, though.

Review:  Every time I glance at this cover, I think Spider-Man is about to meet the original X-Men.  The Cat’s logo looks like the original X-Men logo, Shockwave is colored like Iceman (his energy signature even looks like ice), and Razorfist’s costume has the same color scheme as the original X-Men’s uniforms.  Am I nuts?  

Anyway, the Cat joins Shang Chi, Devil Dinosaur, Howard the Duck, and Hero(es) for Hire as the latest Bronze Age revival during this era of Marvel.  I’m not certain why so many characters from the ‘70s were pulled out of storage over the course of this year, but I seem to recall reading that new editor-in-chief Bob Harras had something to do with it.  I can understand his reasoning; there’s nothing inherently wrong with these characters, and it couldn’t hurt to at least give them another shot in front of a younger audience.  I don’t think anything came of the revivals, and I vividly recall my sixteen-year-old self being bewildered by Shang Chi’s sudden appearance in X-Men, but I tend to respect Spider-Man stories that don’t rely on the same villains we’ve seen a thousand times.  

The Cat, as great a martial artist as he is, wouldn’t be much of a threat for Spider-Man, so Mackie has instead constructed a story that has him chasing the Cat around the city, stumbling across the broken bodies of the city’s underworld.  When Spider-Man and the Cat finally locate his son, two supervillains emerge and we get a more traditional fight scene.  Thankfully, Mackie doesn’t go for the obvious choice and have Scorpion or Shocker appear, but instead it’s Razorfist and Shockwave.  I have no idea who these characters are, but Romita, Jr. makes them look presentable, and their obscurity absolutely fits the story.  In terms of making this a Spider-Man story, Mackie continually makes a connection between the Cat “losing” his son and Peter and MJ’s recent miscarriage, and while he isn’t great with emotion, he’s still able to get the point across.  I also appreciate that this is a one-issue story that isn’t bogged down by pointless mysteries and vague hints about future stories that will probably never materialize.  Mackie doesn’t seem to care about who the rival crimelord is supposed to be (I assume it’s meant to be the Kingpin), but that’s not important to the story.  As a simple done-in-one issue, this is pretty entertaining.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #423 - May 1997

Choices!

Credits:  Tom DeFalco (writer), Joe Bennett (penciler), Ralph Cabrera, Harry Candelario, & Bud LaRosa (inks), Bob Sharen (colors), Comicraft (letters)

The Plot:  Dragonfly and the True Believers target Robbie Robertson, attracting the attention of Electro, who’s been hired by the Rose to kill the True Believers.  Spider-Man is caught in the middle of the fight, and is eventually beaten into submission by Electro.  Electro leaves, content knowing that he’s humiliated Spider-Man.  Meanwhile, Robbie saves Dragonfly from Electro’s attack.  She feels honor-bound to spare him, and answers his questions about the Black Tarantula.

The Subplots:  Robbie Robertson’s wife Martha is upset with him for working extra hours at the Daily Bugle during their downsizing.  Peter Parker’s tutee Neil questions if Paul Stacy should be his tutor after meeting Paul.  And Spider-Man is still experiencing headaches, not nausea (as seen in the other titles), following Morbius’ bite.

Web of Continuity:  Electro can now tap into the Earth’s electrical field and fly.  His other new powers include the ability to evaporate water before it touches his body, and the capability to enter someone’s brain through electrical impulses.

Review:  Oh, hooray.  More Green Ninjas.  And another Joe Bennett fill-in.  This is probably Bennett’s weakest issue on the Spider-titles yet, although to be fair to him, having three inkers leads me to believe this had to be a rush job.  Even by Bennett’s standards of the day, his faces and anatomy aren’t usually this bad.  (There’s a ridiculous shot of Dragonfly on page nine that would make even Jim Balent blush.)  The story Bennett’s been given probably wouldn’t have inspired the greatest artist, anyway.  The basic idea of Electro being upgraded and picking a side in this Rose/Black Tarantula feud is fine, but the story fails to create any real sense of drama.  Dragonfly and the Green Ninjas are dull, Robbie’s great personal crisis boils down to his wife nagging him, and all we see of Peter Parker’s life is a brief glimpse of him tutoring SHOC’s secret identity.  This all adds up to an issue’s worth of “Who Cares?” to be honest.