I would like to see the line art for this cover. I’m betting this cover is a really spectacular example of all that colorists bring to comics in the 21st Century. And they still have deal with credits that call what the line artist does “art” and what they do “color.” In a medium whose fans have only appreciated all of the art less and less over the last few decades, the colorist is underappreciated even compared to the penciler. Well, at any rate, now it’s 3 weeks ago (still also One Month Ago), Dr. Curt Connors is in prison, and beat up, when we’re told he’s being transferred.
But the Triskelion is rocked by an explosion. Is this Norman escaping in USM 113? “Three weeks ago?” Are we almost coming up to the present? Yes, we see Norman emerge from his cell, and repeat the beats of him and the other villains and Gwen, now following her, as she just walks out boast them all, seemingly in kind of a daze. She emerges from the wreckage and looks at distant Manhattan.
It’s today! It’s today! It’s taken 4 issues, but it’s today! Peter is upset because a pretty dirty looking Eddie Brock has appeared on campus. And he tells Peter that he will get Eddie his suit back, or Eddie will tell the world he’s Spider-Man. Despite the circumstances, Peter is mostly genuinely shocked Eddie wants the thing back, but Eddie isn’t there to chat. He reiterates his threat and leaves. Cue Spider-Man swinging through a rainy night, doing his trademark neurotic internal monologue as he runs down how the FF are conveniently out of town, as always, how he can’t go to the cops, how he can’t go to Nick Fury because he’s gone, and how he doesn’t trust SHIELD, and he doesn’t know what to do. He realizes he should go to the Ultimates, and gets to their base or whatever just in time to see them fly away (I guess they’re in whatever they call Avengers Mansion now). So, bereft of options, Spider-Man says he’ll have to do this himself.
“For Thor’s sake!” is pretty funny.
Uh-oh! Is Ben Urich finally gonna Ben Urich his way into Spider-Man’s identity?
Now there’s a page people weren’t expecting, I think! Somehow, this whole business concludes next issue. Seems like they got a lot to do!