I mentioned on SM 88 that when I see that cover, I think a different comic is inside. It’s this one.
Both books are standoffs between Peter & Norman by the same creative team, it’s not that weird. Maybe it is. As is becoming the fashion around here, we begin in the middle. We roll back the clock to Spider-Man giving his unreserved support to new gun laws in NYC at the time in a fun sideways 2-page spread of the kind Romita, Jr.’s into these days, before getting involved in a random incident.
I love an unconventional superhero thing, and this certainly was that. We never even got that guy’s name. Kingpin is reading about this gun crackdown in the paper, telling Ox this mayor will be a worthy adversary, and that all this will make anyone who opposes his return to power have a harder time resisting. He sends Ox off on an unexplained errand, and then we cut to…
“Have we mentioned we’re, like, extremely young lately? So young! Barely allowed to drive, it feels like! Yessir, if there’s one thing we’re not, it’s old!” It’s always funny to me.
Later, Peter is upstairs with Betty, going over some upcoming jobs in a walk & talk, when they spot an extremely suspicious guy in a corner. And then the elevator they’re waiting for arrives, and guess what, It’s Norman and Normie. But then the guy in the corner reveal himself to be Nitro, The Living Bomb, last seen around here way back in TAC 56. He announces to Norman that Wilson Fisk sends his regards and does what he does. He could’ve at least verified Norman was in the elevator, what a terrible assassin. Peter shoves Betty in and smashes the close door button just as…
Gee, Betty, it’s keen observation skills like that that make you an ace reporter. Generally speaking, I am vehemently opposed to adding blur to comic art to show speed or pull focus or, well, this. But it’s more effective in that panel than it usually is. The elevator catches before they can hit the ground, but then much of he elevator shaft comes tumbling down on top of them, leaving them where they are on the splash. Nitro says “And so it begins” like a real drama queen and leaves.
I mean, when have you ever seen your hero in a situation quite like this one? This was the Spider-Man book to beat in these days, no question.
The GOAT! Peter does his hero thing, telling Normie to close his eyes to keep the smoke out, freeing himself and then wrenching the doors open. He lifts Betty & Normie up into the floor they’re caught slightly under, and despite thinking he can barely stay conscious due to the pai, goes back for Norman, who refuses to help himself until the very end. As soon as they get out of the elevator, it plummets.
Easy to see why this was generally the only Spider-Man title I was buying at this time, unless they forced me to get all 4. And speaking of being forced to buy all 4 books, The Gathering of Five? Goodness, what’s that? With only 2 months left for each book (Well, mostly), it couldn’t be a big crazy thing that will send the titles racing to a big finish, could it? Meanwhile, on the Bullpen Bulletins page, some poor prediction of the future…
1 of these 3 things will come to pass, at least in the form they knew about at the time. So bizarre that, after decades of failure to launch, the first real Marvel movie ended up being Blade, of all things. Really speaks to how little anyone wanted to do with superheroes in Hollywood. Plenty of people still don’t know Blade was based on a comic book. But Blade finally got the company taken a little more seriously, enough for Fox to take a chance on X-Men. And the rest is history.