The exoskeleton is taking the fashion world by storm this season! Let’s get right to it and find out what Fortunato’s all about.
Real mob bossy. Meanwhile, the guy who took said photos is deteriorating rapidly in the hospital, as Doc Connors fights to save his life. Why, tho? Connors is a biologist, not this kind of doctor. I’m confused. At any rate, they manage to stabilize Peter again, but things aren’t looking good.
While Peter & Mary Jane have their tender moment, Spider-Man is looking into a train robbery that looks to be the work of The Trapster. He once again thinks it’s odd that so many (crappy) old villains keep showing up. As Spidey rushes to the hospital to see Peter, we find Hammerhead got there first, and holds a doctor at gunpoint, demanding to be patched up after last issue (Time is getting wonky here). Ben Reilly arrives at Peter’s room, and MJ takes the chance to go get something to eat.
I guess this would be pretty grim if anyone believed for one second that Peter would actually die. But since no one does, it’s just kinda going through the motions. Downstairs, Hammerhead is all bandaged up, and has tied up the doc for his efforts, and he’s getting the exoskeleton on the cover out of a suitcase when he spots Ben Urich out in the hall. He thinks Urich might know things even he doesn’t about who’s taking over the mobs and decides to pay him a visit. As Ben and MJ trade out watching Peter for a moment, we find that Jimmy Six has gone to Ben’s place to lay low, Ben apparently having offered him a place to crash (Whyyyyyyy?), and since Ben’s not home and Fortunato’s goons are on his trail, Jimmy breaks in. Ok, sure. Back at the hospital, Ben Reilly runs into Ben Urich in the hallway, when Urich is YOINKED into a dark room by Hammerhead. What a dummy. Right in front of a witness? I guess Hammerhead was always kind of an idiot. Well, worst possible witness, because, you know…
Hammerhead didn’t intimate that he suspected Ben was at the meeting before at all. Of course, he has no idea who Delilah is, but casually lets Spidey and us know The Tinkerer designed this exoskeleton for him, but The Human Torch wrecked it (IN FF#233! In 1981! What a random pull!), but now he’s got it working again. Really, really random exposition out of the way, it’s fightin’ time, as Spidey boots HH out into the hallway, where he tries to take 2 hostages, but gets a face full of web.
Objection! Egregious use of the web, your honor! Turns out I get no say, though, so sure, let’s have a fight in a web tunnel in the hospital hallway. For a minute, anyway. Until Spidey realizes the supersuit must have a power source…
Hammerhead shoots some oxygen tanks and escapes in the chaos, and Spidey’s about to go after him when he hears a code blue to room 314, and rushes in in full Spidey gear…
THE END. Ben stops dying his hair and takes over Peter’s life, and The Clone Saga comes to a close. Oh, sure, everyone was mad at first, but we all got used to it after awhile. Just kidding. Of course I’m just kidding. To see what really happens, come back next time for more pulse pounding hospital drama!
This issue features a letter from Olav Beemer, a comics superfan who wrote so many letters to comics in the late 90s and early 2000s he became a minor celebrity in the comics world himself. Our man Olav was really enjoying the Blood Brothers storyline, which casts suspicion on all his tastes and opinions! We all struggled through the 90s in our own way, I suppose.