Suddenly, totally new art team this issue. That seems odd, right? Paulo Siqueira, Amilton Santos and Jeromy Cox are back for the kind of opening page that just… makes me sigh a little.
I mean, does anything here feel like it should be happening? This is so far removed from the world of Spider-Man. To me, it’s one thing for Spider-Man to be an Avenger. It’s another thing entirely for Harry Osborn to be in this situation. But that, increasingly, will be the way of things in Spider-World. Anyway.
Ouch!
No one is ever gonna trust you that much, Harry, sorry. Well, now it’s time for some Spider-Action. As we may recall from previous appearances by Mr. Siqueira, this means that, despite his fine drawing in every other aspect, we get hopeless McFarlane worship in the Spider-Man parts. The Spider-Action turns out to be all of one page, his internal monologue worrying about Harry as he saves people in a burning building. Next day at Avengers Tower, Norman is taking Harry around for orientation, with Harry trying to get Norman to tell him where Lily is.
Oh good, more Norah Winters. I have no idea what’s going on in that bottom panel.
Jay doesn’t want Peter to think May is marrying a coward, and tells him the story of being overseas when his girl back home died shortly after giving birth to JJJ. I’m not sure that jibes with what we’ve seen in the past, but the past is no longer terribly welcome in comics. Jay deserted the military to be home with her when she gave birth, and tried to do right by Jonah after, but says he wound up raised by Jay’s brother. Peter respects the story, and then Jay tells him to go with his gut over his worries about Harry. No one ever explains to me what Peter was supposed to be wearing in that one panel.
Peter takes a page to go ask Gwen Stacy’s grave what he should do, but it doesn’t answer.
Could she talk any stupider? Jeez, man. Kelly always has his characters talking in “old guy’s guess at young people dialogue” patois that’s only slightly more believable than Tom DeFalco in the 90s. Man, he returned to the character for this book called Non-Stop Spider-Man where Spider-Man was speaking almost entirely in dated memes and I literally couldn’t finish the first issue. Ye Gods, am I going to have to read that someday? Well, speaking of Joe Kelly being awful, we find Mac Gargan chatting up a prostitute so he can lure her into being eaten as Bullseye idly kills alley rats with quarters until…
So, it turns out Sue Storm is also on hand, wearing what appears to be an FF suit Siqueira just made up, as Peter beats up Gargan and stuffs him in some kind of box. Sue gives Spidey a black costume Reed made, and it’s time for him to infiltrate Avengers Tower, I guess. Already inside, Harry disables a security camera in his bedroom, and begins unpacking equipment to go rescue Lily. He’s gonna be pretty disappointed, I think, and I don’t just think that because this is part 2 of 5.
For God’s sake! Dropping the R-slur!! I HATE JOE KELLY SO MUCH.