“Now on sale monthly!” That’s funny to me. Like dropping back down to monthly from twice a month is a selling point. “Fewer comics!” You think people were really clamoring for Peter Parker to go back to college? Is this truly an “at last” situation? I can’t say for sure. It’s been a long time. Almost 60 issues. At any rate, at last! This issue is noteworthy for credited “background assists” by one Terry Fitzgerald, Todd McFarlane’s good friend who he would later name a major Spawn supporting character after, and who was (Maybe still is) a big part of his business. Janice Cohen also tags in on colors. Killer Shrike is back! He last fought Spidey ages ago, in TAC 102. The odd villain who doesn’t really belong to anybody. Created in a Hulk comic, he’s fought Spider-Man, Captain America, Spider-Woman, Moon Knight and more, and none of them very often. And here, he looks like a ponytailed Batman.
He’s robbing an armored car, and about to kill a guard, when Spider-Man shows up. Shrike boasts Spidey’s webbing could never hold him, and Spider-Man just kicks him in the face.
Spidey stops the thrown van from hurting anyone, and Killer Shrike flies away. The usual, really. He retrieves his camera and hopes The Bugle will buy the shots, because…
Some pretty iconic McFarlane Spider-Man there. He’s settling into the character. The photo background is something else that we’ll see more of, too. Spidey arrives home and unmasks before his Spider Sense warns him someone’s in the house. He darts out of sight as MJ escorts a locksmith out. She’s just had the locks changed due to her whole kidnapping ordeal. She gives Peter his new keys as he prepares to head to ESU for the aforementioned registration.
Here’s the new college cast. As I recall, they’re not going to be as well integrated as Peter’s previous college cast. Doc Swann gets a package delivery, and when Annie says she thinks they’ve already used up their equipment budget, he nervously says not to worry about it and retires to his office. She says he’s been acting weird, and Peter thinks that the Doc’s private lab set off his Spider Sense. Trouble already! He’s still got his mind on that when he & MJ are getting out of the movie they went to…which was apparently Bambi? Like… the original? Uh, ok. Peter says he’s gonna go pick up some ice cream and meet her back home, but then stops, saying he doesn’t want to lie to her, that he’s gonna go investigate Doc Swann’s deal. She thanks him for telling the truth. Like… why’d he do that? But then we’re off.
The Tinkerer! Been awhile. His gadget makes no sense to me, but it’s for Killer Shrike, who smashes through the window to pick it up. Terrible customer, he is. Spidey thinks, “If someone wrote this in a story, nobody’d believe it!” I don’t think you get off the hook by pointing out the existence of a hook, but ok. At any rate, it’s fightin’ time. The combatants manage to start a fire as they go at it, and then, inevitably…
(Extremely Batman-esque) Tinkerer says he expected a doublecross, so he withheld part of the thingie, and now it’s overloading Shrike’s systems, and he’s being electrocuted. Spider-Man smashes him into a wall to take him out, and Tinkerer seals himself in Swan’s private lab in the chaos. Spidey kicks the door off, but Tink has gone out a window. Spidey says at least one criminal will go to jail tonight, and Dr. Swan thinks maybe two…
Aw, poor guy. That doesn’t bode well for Peter’s freshly reactivated college career. In the letter column, dudes are losing it for McFarlane’s Mary Jane. No internet back then, people got real hot’n’bothered over comic book ladies. It was a weird time.